(The following story by Dan Campana appeared on the Suburban Chicago News website on August 21.)
AURORA — The Surface Transportation Board has been “unwilling” to change the site of a public meeting on Canadian National Railway’s plan to buy the Elgin, Joliet & Eastern Railway, according to Aurora Mayor Tom Weisner.
On Friday, officials from Aurora and Naperville went public with their disappointment over the federal agency’s decision to use West Aurora High School — several miles from the rail line sale’s hot zone — to host public comment on Sept. 9.
“As early as spring of this year, we asked the STB to schedule the meeting at Waubonsie Valley High School,” Weisner said. “When it was discovered they had reserved West Aurora High School, the affected communities made multiple calls to have it moved, but the STB was unwilling.”
The STB applied to use West High in June, but didn’t immediately announce any locations for the series of community meetings along the EJ&E line. The forums, which begin Aug. 25, are scheduled for hotels and high schools and will feature a two-hour open house, followed by a three-hour public meeting where residents will have up to three minutes to speak on CN’s proposed $300 million purchase.
In August, the city hosted a community forum at Waubonsie Valley that drew 1,500 residents from around the region.
“Banding together publicly is what has made people take notice,” Assistant Chief of Staff Carie Anne Ergo said.
However, federal officials said the meeting is just one avenue for residents to make their voice heard. The STB has established a phone hotline for comments, and letters can be sent to the STB in Washington or electronically through the agency’s Web site.