Duluth vetoes study, but rail line is still on track

After showing strong support, the city made a surprise flip-flop on a critical feasibility study.

By Paul Levy, Star Tribune

Last update: November 23, 2007 - 8:37 PM

The proposed $350 million passenger rail line from Minneapolis to Duluth isn't in danger of derailing, officials say. But the line hit a speed bump earlier this month when Duluth -- the city likely to benefit most from the line -- vetoed a critical study on the project.

That surprising vote came from a Duluth City Council that, a year ago, overwhelmingly favored by a 7-2 vote having the feasibility study done for the line that is on track to open in 2011 or 2012, said John Ongaro, St. Louis County director of intergovernmental affairs.

But if the 150-mile line has lost steam in Duluth, it's come to a stop in Carlton County.

Officials there say they want no part in funding a line that runs through, but doesn't stop, in their county.

And then there's the case of Sandstone, which has been told cities aren't invited to rail corridor planning sessions. But Sandstone officials not only continue to show up at meetings, asking for a stop, they have come up with a blueprint for an $8 million station, Ongaro said.

"We're thrilled by Sandstone's persistence," he said. "We just wish that everyone along the corridor would have half the amount of enthusiasm Sandstone has."

Ongaro is based in Duluth, long thought to be the engine driving this line. That left a few officials "in total shock" when Duluth's City Council recently voted, 4-3, against paying the city's share of $40,000 toward a $300,000 feasibility study that was begun almost a year ago and is near completion, Ongaro said. The study is expected to be presented to the Federal Rail Authority in December -- a crucial meeting for a line that expects 80 percent of its costs to be covered by federal funding.

Yet, with that deadline looming, two key City Council members were missing for the Duluth vote. A second vote has been scheduled for Monday.

With four of five incoming Duluth council members showing support for the line, approval is expected for the study, which predicts that 800,000 to 900,000 riders will use the line each year, hopefully enough to sustain the project, Ongaro said.

By becoming the first local group to approve the study almost a year ago, Duluth "is legally obligated" to pay its $40,000 share, he said. That officials could have "forgotten" the project, necessitating Monday's vote, is "unbelievable," he said.

Counties to approve the study are Hennepin, Anoka, Isanti, St. Louis, Lake and Douglas, Wis. The line will not run through Lake County, but that county's interest is linked to its membership to a regional rail authority, Ongaro said.

Paul Levy • 612-673-4419

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