County may take train

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The Spirit of Traverse City, the small train currently located at Clinch Park, could be relocated to the Grand Traverse Civic Center. Record-Eagle/Jan-Michael Stump

January 28, 2012

Larry Fleis: Civic Center 'would be an ideal place'

BY BRIAN McGILLIVARY bmcgillivary@record-eagle.com The Record Eagle Sat Jan 28, 2012, 06:15 AM EST

TRAVERSE CITY — The Spirit of Traverse City miniature train could become the Spirit of Grand Traverse — if some county commissioners get their way.

The Grand Traverse County board will consider bidding for the pint-size steam locomotive from Traverse City and moving it to the Civic Center.

The board will discuss the possibility on Feb. 15 and asked its parks and recreation commission to consider the idea when it meets Feb. 16.

"That would be an ideal place because it's in the center of the city and you already have a lot of people that use the Civic Center," said county Commissioner Larry Fleis, the board's leading train advocate. "We could set up a little depot to sell hats and shirts, and I think it could break even if it was managed properly."

Commissioner Dick Thomas measured the Civic Center for the track and estimates a mile-long loop could be created inside the park.

Traverse City commissioners recently concluded the train did not fit plans to redevelop the city bayfront. The train, which is about 25 percent as large as a normal locomotive, had circled Clinch Park on a 0.4-mile loop since 1982 and was popular with tourists and locals, though it consistently lost money.

The city recently issued a request for bids for the train and its track. The bid deadline is April 5.

The county parks and recreation commission recently completed a master plan for the Civic Center, and it didn't include a train, said Peter Doren, parks board chairman.

"If the county board wants us to consider it, we certainly will," Doren said. "I don't know where it would go, and we certainly wouldn't want to displace any of the users that are currently there."

City residents who want to save the train list the Civic Center, Hull Park and the Grand Traverse Commons as potential homes.

"If the county can come up with a plan that makes sense and saves the train, amen," said Jack O'Malley, a local resident who has campaigned in support of the attraction. "Our group will support the best plan to save the train."

Some county board members aren't all-aboard with installing light rail at the Civic Center.

"It's the most-used park that we have, and to add more to that small area, I have some initial reservations," Commissioner Christine Maxbauer said.

The county board traditionally has eschewed funding recreational programs, and Commissioner Ross Richardson doubts a majority will support train funding.

County officials said they won't pay the city to take on the train but predict moving it will be expensive.

But payment is not the city's overriding concern, said Ben Bifoss, city manager. The city commission prefers the train stay in town.

"The Civic Center may be the best chance to keep the train in Traverse City," Bifoss said. "There's a couple other possibilities out there, but I don't think they would be as strong as the county would be."

Cost estimates to move the train vary widely, but Bifoss said he doesn't have much confidence in any of them.

"There's not a lot of experience out there relocating miniature trains," he said.