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Silverton looks to diversify economy with new railroad

Long gone Silverton Northern could run again, but proposal steams D&SNG owner’s boilers

SILVERTON – The last time the Silverton Northern Railroad ran was in 1938, primarily serving mines north of Silverton toward Howardsville, in the Upper Animas Forks region. Now, a few members of the San Juan Historical Society look to reconstruct the route, hoping to add a new tourist attraction.

“Once upon a time, there was the Silverton Northern Railroad,” begins 45-year Silverton resident Fritz Klinke in his retelling of the train’s history. Klinke is chairman of the project, which is sponsored by the SJHS.

“There’s been idle chitchat for years about rebuilding the Silverton Northern, but it finally took hold about five or six years ago,” Klinke said.

After the last-producing mine in the Animas Forks Basin closed in 1938, so did the Silverton Northern. The tracks were torn up in 1942, but the roadbed remained as County Road 2, which passes the ghost town of Howardsville.

A few years ago, when San Juan County was developing its long-term master plan, one of the goals was to diversify an economy almost entirely dependent on tourism. The idea of restoring the old Silverton Northern line entered the conversation, and a few members of the SJHS approached the county, asking for the right-of-way. After several more years of planning and fundraising, the first ceremonial spike was driven into the ground Nov. 8 near the Powerhouse on the Animas River, about a mile north of Silverton.

“It was just great to go out there and have this symbolic first spike,” said Beverly Rich, a SJHS member who is approaching her 65th year in Silverton. “It shows we’re actually serious and doing something. I think we realize we are so dependent on tourism we need to diversify as much as we can.”

The dream, Klinke said, is to complete the 2.5-mile stretch up to Howardsville, which would take about an hour round-trip. But because of the project’s dependency on funding and volunteers, there’s no set completion date. The 150-feet of tracks laid two weeks ago is now under almost 2 feet of snow, with work to resume in spring.

“At this point, we’ve got no equipment and nothing to run; just an idea and some track,” Klinke said.

But not all are in support of the railroad’s resurrection. Durango & Silverton Narrow Gauge Railroad owner Al Harper is vehemently against the project, citing concerns that the Silverton Northern will take away ridership, and ultimately have an adverse impact on Silverton’s economy.

“They have the best railroad in North America coming to them, and now they want to build a railroad that will compete with us,” Harper said. “They are so economically out of touch with reality and out of touch with the potential impact to the Golden Goose for Silverton, which is the D&SNGR.”

The D&SNG brought more than 130,000 riders to Silverton this year, up 10 percent from 2014, and it averages a $140 million jolt to the region’s economy, according to a Fort Lewis College study. Harper said if the Silverton Northern takes just 10,000 riders, it would put the D&SNG in the red. If that happens, he said he may have to rethink the way he does business.

“They have not thought of the consequences if they take ridership from this railroad,” Harper said. “It’s not a threat, it’s a reality. If they’re not careful they’re going to bite themselves in the foot. There’ll be a day of reckoning. There will be.”

Klinke doesn’t see it that way. He said the Silverton Northern is not trying to undermine the D&SNG. Instead, he sees the new line as a complement. A new rail line would be one more attraction that keeps tourists in town, he said.

“More people in town translates into better business for everybody,” he said. “Our whole goal is to be working with any of the regional tourism operations, the railroad in particular.”

However, many see the resuscitation of the Silverton Northern as a large pipe dream – a large and expensive pipe dream. The SJHS is placing its financial hopes on donations and subsidies, but the several million-dollar goal is a long way off.

“They haven’t thought it through nor have any comprehension of what it’s going to take to run a railroad,” Harper said. “If it sounds like I’m bitter about this, I am. I am frustrated with them. Frankly, this is an ego trip with (Klinke) to do this. He dreams about being in the business, but he’s in for some rude awakenings.”

Harper cited his long and proven investment in the town of Silverton, evidenced by the fact he recently purchased and is renovating the Grand Imperial Hotel, which he expects will hold 60 to 80 tourists in town nightly during the summer. He shrugs off claims that the Silverton Northern will add ridership to the D&SNG, calling the project “tunnel vision” on the part of its creators.

“We’re so dependent on the (D&SNG), which we love, but a bad summer of forest fires or something like that could shut the train down,” Rich said. “We’re so vulnerable to that. The more we have going on up here, the better for us.”

Klinke says he’s conjured no delusions of grandeur. Right now, the Silverton Northern is a community project, which would create jobs and help stimulate a fragile economy in the town of 600 residents.

When asked when he expects the Silverton Northern to make its maiden voyage – again – he said hopefully in his lifetime.

“Timeline?” he responded. “Well, we have a 99-year lease.”

jromeo@durangoherald.com



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