Trail ribbon-cutting and depot open house Saturday afternoon, Nov. 2

By Bob Steenson, bsteenson@charlescitypress.com

A ribbon-cutting ceremony for the new extension to the Charley Western Recreational Trail will be held Saturday afternoon, Nov. 2, along with an open house for the American Passenger Train History Museum depot.

Mayor Dean Andrews said the ribbon-cutting will take place at 1:30 p.m. near the corner of North Grand Avenue and 11th Avenue. That’s where the trail has been extended past the former Milwaukee Road Railroad depot and across North Grand Avenue.

Bob Moen, president of the American Passenger Train History Museum, said the depot open house will be 1 to 3 p.m.

Moen said the organization was able to start work refurbishing the depot this fall using donations and a State of Iowa Great Places Grant, and they would like to give people “a chance to see the progress that we have made and answer any questions you may have.”

Depot accomplishments have included insulating the building, pouring the concrete floor in the basement and baggage room, along with purchasing plumbing, heating and air conditioning equipment to lock in a low price, Moen said. Subgrade plumbing was also installed.

“We also plan to have tours of some of the passenger train cars so you can get an idea of what the train exhibits will look like when the museum is finished,” Moen said, adding that snacks and refreshments will be provided.

The plan eventually is for the depot to also be a trailhead for the city recreational trail, providing parking along with public restrooms accessible from the exterior of the depot.

The American Passenger Train History Museum helped spearhead a fundraising campaign to save and move the depot from its former location along Canadian Pacific tracks – where the railroad was planning to demolish it ­– to its current location.

The group is currently raising funds to refurnish the depot to be the entrance to the American Passenger Train History Museum, including displays and videos, before leading to restored passenger trains that can be walked through.

Cedar River Railroad (Canadian National) and the Charles City Railway Co. signed easements to allow the city to extend the bicycle and pedestrian trail along 11th Avenue, which isn’t actually city property.

Cost of the trail extension was paid through $270,572 in TAP (Transportation Alternatives Program) funds, which are federal transportation dollars set aside by the state each year for smaller-scale projects such as pedestrian and bicycle facilities, recreational trails, safe routes to school projects and community improvements.