(The following story by Nancy H. Gonter appeared on The Republican website on April 6, 2009.)
PALMER, Mass. — Town officials are working to resurrect Palmer’s railroad heritage.
The Redevelopment Authority is moving forward with an effort to get Amtrak trains to stop here, to build a parking area on a nearby playing field, and to lay out a park where the public works depot is located.
Blake E. Lamothe, chairman of the authority, said last week that it is time to do something in Palmer with the economy dwindling.
“We need to find out how we can keep our town growing and prosperous,” said Lamothe, owner of the Steaming Tender Restaurant, located in Union Station next to the railroad tracks.
Part of the overall project involves creating a new Public Works Department facility at Burleigh Park. Town Manager Matthew S. Streeter said that last January the town included a request for $4 million to build a 100-by-300-foot public works garage and salt shed at the park in its list of requests for federal stimulus funding.
“This is to put the project on their radar screen; we knew the chance of it being funded is slim,” he said.
The Redevelopment Authority’s plan calls for putting a park on the public works site, with a two-foot- gauge train running around, picnic tables near the river, a performance area, and a spray park for children.
A 680-car parking lot would be built on the playing field at Bridge and Water Streets. Revenue from the lot, if filled, could exceed $1 million a year for the town, said Lamothe.
State Sen. Stephen M. Brewer, D-Barre, said he thinks it is a great idea, and is working with other state and federal officials to assist. And the town’s Economic Development Advisory Committee, mindful of Palmer’s proud railroading heritage, has endorsed creating a Amtrak stop here.
“It’s all predicated on having the train stop in Palmer,” he said. “I think it’s a great idea. Palmer is the town of seven railroads.”
Until the 1950s, the town was a hub of New England railroading.
Town Councilor Paul E. Burns, chairman of the Economic Advisory Committee, said in a letter that having passenger service in Palmer would provide a significant benefits for all residents of Quaboag Valley.
“Railroads have been a significant part of Palmer’s history, and reintroduction of passenger rail service would be a significant driver of economic growth and development to Palmer and the region,” Burns said in a letter after the commission watched a presentation by the Redevelopment Authority.
The authority is also trying to convince state Transportation Secretary James A. Aloisi that a $30 million project to bring Amtrak service to Holyoke, Northampton, and Greenfield is a mistake.
That project, being studied by the Pioneer Valley Planning Commission under the title, “Knowledge Corridor Passenger Rail Study,” has been endorsed by Aloisi. Lamothe said it would cost only $3 million to improve the existing route through Palmer.
On April 2, he sent Aloisi a letter saying that Amtrak’s current route, which Lamothe dubbed the Population Corridor Line, draws from an area with a population of more than 260,000, whereas the Knowledge Corridor has a population of only 70,000.
“These are real figures, real numbers, and I hope you’ll understand the Population Corridor rules over the Knowledge Corridor,” Lamothe wrote.