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HomeMy WebLinkAbout05-10-22 Correspondence - Big Sky Passenger Rail Authority - Big Sky Passenger Rail Authority News and RequestFrom:Bill Berg To:Agenda; Cyndy Andrus Subject:Big Sky Passenger Rail Authority News and Request Date:Tuesday, May 10, 2022 4:15:13 PM Attachments:image.png image.png image.png image.png image.png Bozeman Letter.pdf CAUTION: This email originated from outside of the organization. Do not click links or open attachments unless you recognize the sender and know the content is safe. Dear Mayor Andrus and the Bozeman Leadership Team: We are 18 Montana Counties, including Gallatin and Park, working together to bringpassenger rail back to southern Montana. We are writing to ask you to join us. We'd alsolike to invite you to the Greater Northwest Rail Summit that we'll be hosting in Billings inAugust. Please review the attached letter and reach out with your ideas and questions. Thank youfor taking a look. Best, Bill Berg Big Sky Passenger Rail Authority Board Secretary Park County Commissioner Bill Berg Secretary 406.223.2565 bberg@bigskyrail.org www.bigskyrail.org Passenger Rail Service through Southern Montana ended 42 years ago. Together, we can bring it back. May 4, 2022 Dear Bozeman Leadership Team: We are writing to ask that you join us in supporting the Big Sky Rail Passenger Authority. BSRPA is a vibrant rural-urban coalition including counties, cities, towns, Tribal officials, and businesses that seeks to restore passenger rail service across southern Montana that will improve the health, safety, and economic prosperity for our communities and the surrounding region. Montana lost this passenger rail service 43 years ago. Together we can bring it back. Today, there’s a void in passenger rail service across much of southern Montana. This lack of service separates communities, hinders important benefits like health care, and costs the region millions of dollars. A recent study projects that a restored passenger rail line will create jobs and generate $271 million in benefits each year, bringing visitors to Montana and providing locals with affordable, safe, and weather-proof transportation year-round for health care, education, commerce, and other services. Bringing the project closer to reality, the Federal Railway Administration recently advised BSRPA it will study restoring long-range passenger rail across southern Montana as part of the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law. This effort also is supported by a bipartisan group of U.S. Senators from the Greater Northwest. The BSPRA consists of 18 Montana counties along with cities, businesses, and others—with county dues a major revenue source. We actively are working with the Montana Association of Counties as well as the Montana League of Cities and Towns and are supported by groups beyond Montana in Idaho, Washington, North Dakota, and Minnesota. While momentum for a passenger line is building, we need additional localized support from Montana communities that will allow us to provide the necessary research clarifying the benefits of passenger rail to specific cities and towns, demonstrate the detailed engineering/construction All Aboard Montana bigskyrail.org BSPRA Member Counties Broadwater Butte-Silver Bow Carbon Custer Dawson Gallatin Granite Jefferson Lake Mineral Missoula Park Powell Prairie Rosebud Sanders Stillwater Wibaux Ex Officio Members Confederated Salish & Kootenai Tribes Crow Tribe Northern Cheyenne Tribe Amtrak 200 W. Broadway Missoula, MT 59802 406.624-5522 hello@bigskyrail.org Passenger Rail Service through Southern Montana ended 42 years ago. Together, we can bring it back. bigskyrail.org needs, and frankly show the breadth of political support for passenger rail to state and federal officials. To that end, BSPRA is requesting that Bozeman consider an annual $6000 contribution along with a letter of endorsement in support of restoring passenger rail across southern Montana. As elected officials we appreciate tight budgets. Our jurisdictions have contributed to BSPRA and our request is calibrated to your community’s size and proximity to the rail line. There are many benefits from improving passenger rail and we hope you can support these efforts. Please contact Chair Dave Strohmaier with any questions, clarifications, or concerns. Sincerely, Dave Strohmaier, Missoula County Commissioner and BSPRA Chair, 406.258.3204 or dstrohmaier@bigskyrail.org Mayor Mary Hensleigh, Town of Whitehall