Council unclear on Amtrak stance

Mist continues to swirl around the city’s role and city council’s position on a proposed Amtrak train stop in White Rock, and council members are anxious to clear up some misconceptions.

“I’ve received numerous phone calls and many of them have been contentious,” said Frank Bresnan Jr. at the April 23 city council meeting. “City manager Gary Tomsic has inherited something John Hobberlin and Tony Mortillaro started and I don’t know what’s really going on. Most negotiations have happened behind closed doors.” The only quasi-official evidence of Blaine’s support for the stop in White Rock is a draft of a memorandum of agreement between White Rock and Amtrak, which was scheduled to be signed April 4 “in the presence of” mayor Dieter Schugt. Tomsic said the agreement has been put on hold at Amtrak’s request, while the concerns of state senator Georgia Gardner are addressed.

Fellow council members agreed they

didn’t have enough information and agreed a public meeting with all players present was needed to clear the air.

The date of the meeting will be set when the availability of senator Gardner, Amtrak and state transportation representatives is determined.

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