[Federal Register Volume 62, Number 201 (Friday, October 17, 1997)]
[Notices]
[Pages 54155-54156]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 97-27600]
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DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION
Surface Transportation Board
[STB Docket No. AB-534 (Sub-No. 1X)]
Lake State Railway Company--Abandonment Exemption--in Alpena
County, MI
Lake State Railway Company (Lake State) has filed a notice of
exemption under 49 CFR 1152 Subpart F--Exempt Abandonments to abandon
its 8-mile line of railroad between milepost 0.0 near Alpena, and
milepost 8.0 near Hillman, in Alpena County, MI. The line traverses
United States Postal Service Zip Code 49707.
Lake State has certified that: (1) No local traffic has moved over
the line for at least 2 years; (2) there has been no overhead traffic
moving over the line during this time; (3) no formal complaint filed by
a user of rail service on the line (or by a state or local government
entity acting on behalf of such user) regarding cessation of service
over the line either is pending with the Surface Transportation Board
(Board) or with any U.S. District Court or has been decided in favor of
complainant within the 2-year period; and (4) the requirements at 49
CFR 1105.7 (environmental reports), 49 CFR 1105.8 (historic reports),
49 CFR 1105.11 (transmittal letter), 49 CFR 1105.12 (newspaper
publication), and 49 CFR 1152.50(d)(1) (notice to governmental
agencies) have been met.
As a condition to this exemption, any employee adversely affected
by the abandonment shall be protected under Oregon Short Line R. Co.--
Abandonment--Goshen, 360 I.C.C. 91 (1979). To address whether this
condition adequately protects affected employees, a petition for
partial revocation under 49 U.S.C. 10502(d) must be filed. Provided no
formal expression of intent to file an offer of financial assistance
(OFA) has been received, this exemption will be effective on November
16, 1997, unless stayed pending reconsideration. Petitions to stay that
do not involve environmental issues,1 formal expressions of
intent to file an OFA under 49 CFR 1152.27(c)(2),2 and trail
use/rail banking requests under 49 CFR 1152.29 must be filed by October
27, 1997. Petitions to reopen or requests for public use conditions
under 49 CFR 1152.28 must be filed by November 6, 1997, with: Surface
Transportation Board, Office of the Secretary, Case Control Unit, 1925
K Street, N.W., Washington, DC 20423.
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\1\ The Board will grant a stay if an informed decision on
environmental issues (whether raised by a party or by the Board's
Section of Environmental Analysis in its independent investigation)
cannot be made before the exemption's effective date. See Exemption
of Out-of-Service Rail Lines, 5 I.C.C.2d 377 (1989). Any request for
a stay should be filed as soon as possible so that the Board may
take appropriate action before the exemption's effective date.
\2\ Each offer of financial assistance must be accompanied by
the filing fee, which currently is set at $900. See 49 CFR
1002.2(f)(25).
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A copy of any petition filed with the Board should be sent to
applicant's representative: Kelvin J. Dowd, Esq., Slover & Loftus, 1224
Seventeenth Street, N.W., Washington, DC 20036.
If the verified notice contains false or misleading information,
the exemption is void ab initio.
Lake State has filed an environmental report which addresses the
abandonment's effects, if any, on the environment and historic
resources. The Section of Environmental Analysis (SEA) will issue an
environmental assessment (EA) by October 22, 1997. Interested persons
may obtain a copy of the EA by writing to SEA (Room 500, Surface
Transportation Board, Washington, DC 20423) or by calling SEA, at (202)
565-1545. Comments on environmental and historic preservation matters
must be filed within 15 days
[[Page 54156]]
after the EA becomes available to the public.
Environmental, historic preservation, public use, or trail use/rail
banking conditions will be imposed, where appropriate, in a subsequent
decision.
Pursuant to the provisions of 49 CFR 1152.29(e)(2), Lake State
shall file a notice of consummation with the Board to signify that it
has exercised the authority granted and fully abandoned the line. If
consummation has not been effected by Lake State's filing of a notice
of consummation by October 17, 1998, and there are no legal or
regulatory barriers to consummation, the authority to abandon will
automatically expire.
Decided: October 9, 1997.
By the Board, David M. Konschnik, Director, Office of
Proceedings.
Vernon A. Williams,
Secretary.
[FR Doc. 97-27600 Filed 10-16-97; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4915-00-P
