Museum site still dogging railyard plan

The ongoing dispute between the downtown railyard developer and the state of California took center stage again Tuesday when the Sacramento City Council held the first of three planned meetings to review the railyard development proposal.

State Parks Director Ruth Coleman, appearing in front of the council, struck a conciliatory tone, emphasizing that the state is in no position to "demand" two of the former railyard shop buildings from developer Thomas Enterprises for a new Museum of Railroad Technology.

She also said the parks agency is eager to work with Thomas Enterprises and the city to enliven the museum at night by putting restaurants and stores along its periphery.

"We're hearing your message that people want an exciting, vibrant museum," she said, adding, "It is not in our interest to build a flawed project."

Still, Coleman emphasized Thomas' offer of one building is inadequate. The museum has long held a memorandum of understanding – first from Union Pacific and then Millennia Partners, which later morphed into Thomas Enterprises – that would allow it to take possession of two buildings – the former boiler shop and the erecting shop.

Coleman said the existing museum in Old Sacramento already uses the tin-clad boiler shop to construct exhibits for the museum and to refurbish trains. This building is connected by a rail line to the existing railroad museum. The boiler shop is the only building Thomas Enterprises has offered for the Museum of Railroad Technology. The firm has balked at the long-standing plan by state parks to take possession of the brick erecting shop next door as well.

It would be too expensive to retrofit the boiler shop to museum standards, Coleman said. The tin building lacks the insulating qualities of the brick building next door and would be far more expensive to upgrade for exhibits.

With most people in the packed council chamber supporting quick approval of the railyard plan, council members urged the parks department and Thomas Enterprises to resolve the issue before the firm applies for state bond funds to build streets, sewers and other infrastructure in the railyard. It will require $300 million just to lay the backbone for the project's first phase, according to city estimates.

"We need to move on this," Councilwoman Sandy Sheedy said. "When you apply for funds, it's best to have a united front."

Councilwoman Lauren Hammond stressed the need to have street life at night, not a closed museum that could "create dark open spaces that aren't attractive to women."

Councilman Steve Cohn called for an independent consultant to study the railroad technology museum concept. "There's no question that we need the Museum of Railroad Technology," he said. "It's really a question of how it should be laid out to attract the most visitors."

Stan Thomas, the Atlanta developer who heads Thomas Enterprises, asked for approval by the Dec. 11 council meeting so that his firm will be well-positioned to apply for state bond funds.

"The money, as we understand it, will go to about six premium projects in the state," he said. "We understand that they want them to be signature projects. We've been lobbying to make sure we position ourselves."

As the project approaches a vote, a variety of issues remain unresolved, including the ultimate size of a historic district, and a complicated land swap needed to resolve the state's claim to land formerly covered by the American River.

Some reiterated a concern that the railyard project's review was moving too quickly, but Cohn offered a different assessment.

"I first came to the council 12 years ago, when we adopted the (previous) plan for the railyard. ... During that time, the Arctic ice cap has melted by 43 percent. I hardly think that moving at slower than glacial speed is moving too fast."

After public testimony concluded, council members offered some thoughts on the specifics of the railyard plan. Mayor Heather Fargo said two 450-foot-high hotels planned next to the Sacramento River are too tall and too close the water.

Others focused on the need to move quickly, regardless of the issues that remain.

Cohn said the remaining issues "are really in the nature of details that can be worked out. The larger picture here is we have a plan that has captured the imagination of this entire community and this region," he said.

Councilwoman Bonnie Pannell said she was "looking forward to the 11th (of December) to support this project."

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