SPRING CLEANING AT THE RAILROAD
American Heritage seeks permission to sell surplus items, scrap metal
BY LELAND ACKER

On the eve of the first day of spring, Texas State Railroad General Manager Paul Schranck outlined spring cleaning plans to the Texas State Railroad Authority (TSRA). Mr. Schranck provided a list to the authority of items he deemed to be surplus property during its meeting March 20.

Items include worn out rail drills, inoperable generators, an inoperable Dodge Intrepid, several vehicles, used rails and cross ties, a 1974 International bus and a manufactured home that is in poor condition. A substantial amount of scrap metal was also included.

Steve Presley, TSRA president, proposed submitting the list of surplus items to the Texas Parks and Wildlife Department (TPWD) to get approval to dispose of the surplus items in one request, so that the TSRA will not have to keep involving TPWD in disposal procedures.

"All we're asking for is permission to dispose of these items," Mr. Presley said. "I want to get TPWD out of the mix."

Aside from the list of surplus items, Mr. Schranck advised the board that some of the coaches, rail cars and equipment in the Rusk rail yard will likely never be used by the Texas State Railroad.

"Some of the pieces are not historical and will never be used," he said. "Some are not candidates for being rebuilt."

Mr. Schranck suggested selling some of the equipment in the rail yard. The board discussed going to the donors of the equipment first to see if they would like the equipment returned.

"I think it's something that concerns people," Mr. Schranck said. "People don't want to see the coaches disposed of."

"I'm not prepared to make a decision on that," Mr. Presley said. "I just want to get TPWD out of the mix."

The board voted 5-0 to submit the list of surplus items to TPWD to get permission to dispose of them. The board also voted to transfer the titles of all state railroad vehicles to American Heritage Railways of Texas, LLC.

Present for the meeting were: board members Mr. Presley, Dale Brown, Charles Hassell, Marie Whitehead and Dan Davis, and American Heritage representative Mr. Schranck. Absent were board members Bob Goldsberry and Wesley Holloway.