03-8521. St. Croix Valley Railroad Company-Abandonment and Discontinuance of Service Exemption-in Pine and Kanabec Counties, MN

On March 19, 2003, St. Croix Valley Railroad Company (SCXY) filed with the Surface Transportation Board (Board) a petition under 49 U.S.C. 10502 for exemption from the provisions of 49 U.S.C. 10903 to: (1) Abandon its rail easement over a line of the Burlington Northern and Santa Fe Railway Company (BNSF) between milepost 58.3 at Mora Junction (Brook Park) and milepost 47.6 at Mora, a distance of 10.7 miles;^[1] and (2) discontinue rail service pursuant to overhead trackage rights over a rail line of BNSF between Hinckley and Mora Junction (Brook Park), a distance of 8.2 miles, in Pine and Kanabec Counties, MN. The line traverses United States Postal Service zip codes 55007, 55037, and 55051. There are three stations on the line.

The line contains Federally granted rights-of-way. Any requests for documentation should be made to BNSF as the owner of the line.

The interest of railroad employees will be protected by the conditions set forth in Oregon Short Line R. Co.—Abandonment—Goshen, 360 I.C.C. 91 (1979).

By issuance of this notice, the Board is instituting an exemption proceeding pursuant to 49 U.S.C. 10502(b). A final decision will be issued by July 7, 2003.

Any offer of financial assistance (OFA) under 49 CFR 1152.27(b)(2) will be due no later than 10 days after service of a decision granting the petition for exemption. Each OFA must be accompanied by a $1,100 filing fee. See 49 CFR 1002.2(f)(25).

All interested persons should be aware that, following abandonment of rail service and salvage of the line, the line may be suitable for other public use, including interim trail use. Any request for a public use condition under 49 CFR 1152.28 or for trail use/rail banking under 49 CFR 1152.29 will be due no later than April 28, 2003. Each trail use request must be accompanied by a $150 filing fee. See 49 CFR 1002.2(f)(27).

All filings in response to this notice must refer to STB Docket No. AB-850X and must be sent to: (1) Surface Transportation Board, 1925 K Street, NW., Washington, DC 20423-0001; and (2) Thomas F. McFarland, P.C., 208 South LaSalle St., Suite 1890, Chicago, IL 60604-1194. Replies to the SCXY petition are due on or before April 28, 2003.

Persons seeking further information concerning abandonment and discontinuance procedures may contact the Board's Office of Public Services at [phone] or refer to the full abandonment or discontinuance regulations at 49 CFR part 1152. Questions concerning environmental issues may be directed to the Board's Section of Environmental Analysis (SEA) at [phone]. (Assistance for the hearing impaired is available through the Federal Information Relay Service at 1-800-877-8339.)

An environmental assessment (EA) (or environmental impact statement (EIS), if necessary) prepared by SEA will be served upon all parties of record and upon any agencies or other persons who commented during its preparation. Other interested persons may contact SEA to obtain a copy of the EA (or EIS). EAs in these abandonment proceedings normally will be made available within 60 days of the filing of the petition. The deadline for submission of comments on the EA will generally be within 30 days of its service.

Board decisions and notices are available on our Web site at http://www.stb.dot.gov.

Decided: April 3, 2003.

By the Board, David M. Konschnik, Director, Office of Proceedings.

Vernon A. Williams,

Secretary.

Footnotes

1.  According to SCXY, this segment was embargoed, effective July 22, 2002, due to unsafe track conditions.