[GeoStL] Re: FW: Agreement for 'Complete Katy Trail' announced
- From: "Andrew Senger" <asenger@xxxxxxxxx>
- To: geocaching@xxxxxxxxxxxxx
- Date: Thu, 29 Nov 2007 22:24:25 -0600
-
Very nice. I heard the news today that an agreement was settled, but
nothing was mentioned in this regard.
I had to laugh about the news, though. The news mentioned the
settlement included wording that Ameren couldn't raise rates to pay
for the settlement. They then quoted an Ameren person (lawyer,
spokesman, someone) that stated that most of the cost to repair the
dam (including the settlement money) would be covered by insurance. I
then realized that the rates wouldn't go up to pay for the repairs,
but to pay Ameren's rising insurance rates.
Andrew (yawetag)
On Nov 29, 2007 5:57 PM, Bernie <happykraut@xxxxxxxxxxxxx> wrote:
> -
> I received this from an acquaintance of mine. Bernie
>
>
> Subject: FW: Agreement for 'Complete Katy Trail' announced
>
>
>
>
> Today, an event that the Missouri Bicycle Federation, bicycling and trails
> groups, and thousands of individuals across Missouri have been working hard
> to achieve for many years--an agreement to "complete the Katy Trail" by
> connecting it to the Kansas City metro area.
>
> The Department of Natural Resources (DNR), the Attorney General's Office,
> and AmerenUE announced a settlement regarding the Taum Sauk dam disaster
> this morning.
>
> The settlement includes about $180 million in reparation payments from
> Ameren.
>
> Included in the settlement is a "Trail Use Agreement" and $18 million that
> will allow the DNR to build the Katy Trail Connection to Kansas City and
> will pay a good part of the expense of building the trail connection.
>
> Our thanks go to Governor Blunt, Attorney General Jay Nixon, and DNR
> Director Doyle Childers for working together to make sure the Katy Trail
> Connection was included in the Ameren agreement. Political differences made
> the negotiations rocky at times, but all sides were able to see the benefit
> of the Katy Trail connection for all Missourians and, in the end, all sides
> had to work together to make it happen.
>
> All involved can consider the Katy Trail Connection to be an important part
> of their legacy--a new 46-mile long state park that will be enjoyed by many
> millions of citizens for decades and centuries to come.
>
> MoBikeFed and other groups across the state have been working over a period
> of several years to generate over 5000 email, mail, and phone messages in
> support of the Katy Trail Connection, as well as numerous resolutions and
> letters of support from cities, counties, parks departments, community
> organizations, and other agencies, insuring that our political leaders knew
> there is strong community support for the trail connection.
>
> Thanks to all of you who have been part of this effort.
>
> When you take the time to let your elected officials know how you feel, it
> really DOES make a difference!
>
> Katy Trail Connection Details
> -----------------------------
> The Katy Trail connection will be built on the Rock Island railroad corridor
> between Windsor and Pleasant Hill. Pleasant Hill is on the edge of the
> Kansas City metropolitan area.
>
> (Union Pacific owns the Rock Island line from From Pleasant Hill on in to
> Kansas City, and plans are already underway to connect the trail through
> Lee's Summit and eventually to downtown Kansas City via alternate routes.)
>
> The portion of the Rock Island corridor that will be used for the trail is
> about 46 miles. Putting this together with the 'Machens extension' on the
> east end (about 11 miles), this will increase the total size of the complete
> Katy Rail-Trail network to approximately 282 miles.
>
> The Rock Island portion of the trail will be a "rails-with-trails"
> project--the trail will be built in the railroad right-of-way alongside the
> railroad tracks so that the railroad can still use the corridor in the
> future.
>
> Building the Katy Trail Connection alongside the existing track will be
> relatively expensive compared with building a trail on the railbed, as the
> rest of the Katy Trail and most rail-trails are. Much grading and foundation
> work must be done, and bridges and underpasses built alongside existing
> railroad bridges and underpasses.
>
> However, the agreement includes $18 million from Ameren to assist in
> construction expenses. Apparently this is not enough to completely construct
> the 46-mile segment and additional funds will be needed--either from the
> Missouri General Assembly or from other sources.
>
> The state also receives first right of refusal for purchase of the railroad
> corridor if Ameren ever decides to sell it.
>
> More about the Katy Trail Connection online
> -------------------------------------------
>
> Complete text of the agreement with Ameren (PDF format):
>
> http://ago.mo.gov/pdf/2007/TaumSaukConsentJudgment.pdf
>
> (Rock Island RR agreement is on pp. 9-10 and the
> Trail Use Agreement is Appendix E, starting on p. 44)
>
> Where will the Katy Trail Connection go? What will it look like? Map and
> visualization of the "shared corridor concept" is here:
>
> http://mobikefed.org/2005/03/what-katy-trail-connection-to-kansas.php
>
> Governor Blunt's press release:
>
> http://www.gov.mo.gov/cgi-bin/coranto/viewnews.cgi?id=EEAykyuAEuKxAtvRow&sty
> le=Default+News+Style&tmpl=newsitem
>
> Attorney General Nixon's press release:
>
> http://ago.mo.gov/newsreleases/2007/Taum_Sauk_settlement_with_Ameren/
>
> Kansas City Star article:
>
> http://www.kansascity.com/news/breaking_news/story/380807.html
>
> St. Louis Post-Dispatch article:
>
> http://www.stltoday.com/stltoday/news/stories.nsf/missouristatenews/story/CF
> D659E4513A957C862573A1005677E7?OpenDocument
>
> Associated Press article:
>
> http://www.columbiatribune.com/2007/Nov/20071128News034.asp
>
>
>
>
>
>
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>
--
Andrew Senger
asenger@xxxxxxxxx
http://yawetag.110mb.com
"I can't win anything. In fact, if you look up 'loser' in the
dictionary, you'll see someone else's photo!" --Andrew Senger
****************************************
For List Info or To make _ANY_ changes, including unsubscribing from this
list, click -----> //www.freelists.org/list/geocaching
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