Borough finally settles with CSX
EVANS CITY — A seven-year lawsuit between the borough and two railroads is finally over.
Borough solicitor Mike Gallagher said at the Feb. 2 council meeting that the borough filed suit in 2008 against the CSX Corp. and the Buffalo and Pittsburgh Railroad over collapsing areas on a retaining wall along the Breakneck Creek beside the train tracks.
The companies and borough disagreed on whether the areas of the wall were unstable.
Gallagher said a recent court order mandates that CSX pay to have the wall stabilized. The collapsing areas are to the north and south of the Route 68 bridge over the creek.
Engineers from the two companies also will review another area near Maple Street that appears unstable. They then will meet with borough officials to decide on what action to take on Maple Street.
Gallagher said engineers from the two companies will design and contract out the stabilization projects.
Gallagher said the borough wanted the wall, which is on CSX's property, to be repaired to prevent rocks and debris from the wall from falling into the creek and worsening a potential flood. The council felt that the foundation under the tracks could be weakened if the wall were unstable.
He said the borough also has requirements in the ruling, including cleaning up the debris and large rocks in the creek near the Boylan Funeral Home.
Gallagher said the borough will rent a crane to remove the large rocks. Public works director Norm Nelson said the crane must be parked in the Boylan parking lot for the job because CSX does not allow it on the train tracks.
Gallagher said the ruling on the longtime disagreement is fair.
“Neither side got everything they wanted,” Gallagher told the council, “but I think it's something that's going to help the borough.”
He said all of the work must be done by August.
Council president Lee Dyer said he wants members of the council and Nelson to walk the entire length of the creek through the borough along the wall to check for debris.
“We don't want anything in our creek,” Dyer said. “This is so we can say we have done everything we can to make sure that water is flowing.”
Gallagher said the work would likely begin once the weather improves.
