Superheater's posts and Mr. Ross Rowland's posts have brought up several interesting issues regarding collections management, a topic of several other threads on this board and one that has been in the news again lately. Mr. Bell's post on another 757 thread, "Some thoughts on NKP 757", regarding the history and condition of 757 was very informative and furthered my belief that this was fantastic preservation work by the RRMPA and MR&NKP. I have seen nothing on this thread to lead me to conclude otherwise. I'm looking forward to seeing great things for this Berk.

The 759 thread, "NKP 759 History (includes the "freeze") for Record", linked below has some information about the surviving Berks for further context, especially in the earlier pages:

http://www.rypn.org/forums/viewtopic.php?f=1&t=30001&hilit=freeze+damage&sid=05d771bcb74db8c3569f59a01f7f5d53

I wish the new organization nothing but success. As an active taxpayer anything that might improve our ROI for the $ 5.8 million taxpayer dollars a year that get poured down the Scranton drain has my support.

Again I need to remind myself that the late Cong. Joe McDade created the place as a job corp. for a very depressed area and for that purpose it has been a success. It was not created ( mission statement not withstanding) to be an active home for operating steam.

I have very recently had several interesting conversations with senior members of the new Trump team about privatizing the place and that's being looked at. It's a real long shot in that it involves a National Historic Site which is an integral part of the NPS which in turn is under the Dep't. of the Interior etc., etc., etc. You get the picture.

There's zero question that if the NPS put out an RFP to the railroad tourist industry that included a $ 2 million dollar a year subsidy and the freedom to run the place based on sound private sector principles ( closed Nov-April, active, reliable mainline steam excursions an integral part of daily attraction, staff numbers appropriate to need, etc., etc.) that they would receive a good number of quality proposals from proven operators. If I'm right about that we'd save about $3.8 million/year in taxpayer funds, have a much more vibrant operation whose guest numbers would surely exceed the current paltry attendance.

Sadly, the chances of that happening aren't zero but almost that. Once something gets totally entwined in the federal fly paper its nearly impossible to free it.

Hope springs eternal. Never give up !! Thanks, Ross Rowland

Just get the Railroad Museum of Pennsylvania(RMoP) and Steamtown together in a big Federal state museum in Scranton

I stop my sarcasm loll

For the 757 the RMoP just show in all the fact 757 has not the statut to be in this museum that it

For example just see the roundhouse projet

Railroad Museum of Pennsylvania was the plan B for NW to save 757
Bellevue has to get the 757 back where it should be in the first time

Just read on another forum that when 757 arrives in Bellevue it will go into their shop. If the new engine house isn't started by the time the restoration is completed then it will stay inside until it is. After 55 years of sitting outside it will finally go inside. Good news!

Alan