In this RFP process, what exactly is the City’s intent? Are they asking private individuals to develop some type of a preservation concept for #503, and then to raise funding or provide it directly to pay for the execution of the project?

Or are they asking private individuals to simply propose a preservation concept that either they or the City will execute with the work being publically funded by the City?

My hunch is that a more formal bid process will be used. The PA opportunities page (www.portarthurtx.gov/bids.aspx) provides a hint or two, especially the current opportunity for asbestos and lead abatement within a dwelling.

What Jason made the city realize is that the 503 has cash value, or at lest some perceived cash value, and they want their fair share. Nothing wrong with that. The abatement of the grounds still needs to be done. I’d look for the city to auction the locomotive off, much like they would do with excess equipment, old police cars, recovered bicycles, etc. The argument then is that proceeds from the locomotive can be used for abatement of the ground and other potential improvements to the site via separate RFP. We saw this with Pemberton as well where the auction process was used and which also addressed title issues of the equipment.

Again, my crystal ball would be for a more formal, open process resulting in an auction of the locomotive followed by a separate RFP for the abatement of the grounds.

From the proceedings on 3-6, it appears that the RFP for temporarily moving 503 to allow for the abatement of the ballast and soil will come first, the abatement will occur so that the immediate need of complying with the TCEQ mandate will be met, and then they will decide on how they will address the other issues with 503 moving forward.

As to the metes and bounds of the RFP concerning the future of 503, it appears that is a work in progress. The current administration is dealing with the devastating effects of Harvey and is trying to prepare for the next storm season. They have inherited an old locomotive with needs, needs which came to the fore with the TCEQ mandate. Mr. Sobczynski's mature and patient approach of giving them the time they need to sort this out may not feed his ego, but it is the one that gives the best likelihood for a better future for 503.

I have again watched the last portion of the meeting, and find it quite confusing. However, there appears to be a clear intent to do the following in relation to the RFP process:

1) The City will consider proposals only to retain, preserve, and display 503 in Port Arthur. Anyone may submit an RFP, but the City Council will not consider proposals that entail moving 503 out of Port Arthur.

2) The City may fund the entire proposal selected or will fund only a portion of it with the balance of the funding coming from private sources.

3) The remaining remediation work, including the movement of 503 to clear the work, will be conducted separately from the process of following a selected proposal for preserving and displaying 503 in Port Arthur. The remaining remediation work will be conducted either by Inland Environmental or by another contractor.

At first, with item #1, the Mayor and Councilman Doucet seemed to disagree in that the Mayor wanted to open the consideration of RFPs to everybody no matter whether they were citizens of Port Arthur, and no matter whether 503 was retained in Port Arthur; while Councilman Doucet wanted the proposals to come only from citizens of Port Arthur and only to propose plans to retain 503 in Port Arthur.

However, they resolved that apparent difference by the Mayor clarifying that he had not meant for the City to consider RFPs from people outside of the City with proposals to remove 503 from the City. He had only meant to have the RFP consideration apply to proposals from any number of groups of Port Arthur citizens as opposed to only groups organized by John Beard. So at that point the Mayor and Councilman Doucet agreed.

So, if I am not mistaken, I conclude that the City Council intends not to consider a proposal from Jason to move 503 out of Port Arthur to be restored for operation at a new location.

I would not rule out the possibility that the City will change their plan to consider moving 503 to a new destiny outside of Port Arthur. Just the proposal from Jason may be enough to cause the City to change on this point. It seems to me that it would be good for Jason’s proposal to layout an extremely clear cut comparison of two different elements of 503’s future as follows:

1) The immediate and ongoing cost to the City of preserving and displaying 503 in the City compared to selling it to Jason’s funding supporters.

2) The total effect of 503 presenting its historical heritage related to Port Arthur when displayed in the City as opposed to being restored to operation in a different city.

Depending on the presentation of these two factors, an RFP from Jason could make a very compelling case for the City of Port Arthur to decide to sell 503 to Jason’s group.

Looks like to me that the only way the 503 will ever leave PA is in a scrap hopper....look for that in the next few years when the current City Council grandstanding blows over and reality sets in ($$$$).

Again, now that this is out in the open, some form of proper procedure must be followed. The city could ask for proposals from interested historical groups from within the community as a first step. This would not be a formal RFP, I’d call it a Request for Information (RFI) and would be used to draw together ideas. These RFI responses could be reviewed and if some group, could be the local Elks, Boy Scouts, etc, has a workable plan to include fund raising, then the engine stays in PA and probably remain the property of the town. Title would not transfer to the historical group. Could Jason respond to this call for proposals or RFI as I prefer to call it? Depends on how it is written, but my hunch is that the goal of this initial stage is to see it stay in town. Ownership would not transfer. If a local group puts together a good plan, then this would be voted on by the council at some point for approval.

If no satisfactory RFI is received, then you go to plan B. The locomotive is auctioned off. Again, this follows proper procedure and Jason can then buy it outright.

Again, forget the arm waving you see in the video. The lawyers are now involved as are the procurement people. There is a process that must be followed.

So, let’s see what the next RFP, or what I’d call an RFI, might say. See how close my crystal ball might be this time. I was right once, see if I am right again.

J.R.

Nah, this sad little drama will just reply itself in a few years once someone else gets a bee under their bonnet on how 503, having been repainted sometime way back in 2018 (come on, you know that'll happen, but just one coat from a spray gun with no prep done and crummy paint) is looking like ick again and someone needs to do something about.
But we dare not sell the thing to someone who might restore it!

No, it doesn't need a new jacket for a cosmetic restoration. Having a boiler jacket makes things more difficult, as now you have to figure out how to fill the space between the jacket and boiler while also allowing for drainage. Contrary to what you might think, having a jacket on the boiler often harms it rather than helps, as it keeps it damp a lot of the time, leading to corrosion.

It is quite possible to paint the boiler (hopefully with proper prep) and put it on display as it, without damaging the boiler or harming future restoration potential.

Granted, it won't look as nice. It won't be a true restoration. But it's acceptable and looks good enough for a park engine while also stopping/reducing deterioration.

City Attorney Valecia R. Tizeno presented an outline of the procedures for divesting of City property, such as 503, during the 3-6 meeting. She also answered several questions from Council members regarding various scenarios and how the criteria would be applied to various potential recipients of 503. So, as Mr. May points out, there is a system in place and the outcome will vary based on the nature of the RFP and the quality and type of proposals that are submitted. The final form of any RFP for the City's divestiture of 503 will have to be voted on by the Council after a motion is made and seconded.

According to his GoFundMe site, Mr. Sobczynski's plan is to establish an organization dedicated to the preservation of 503 (he refers to it as a trust) and apply for 501(c)(3) status from the IRS. Based on Ms. Tizeno's presentation, my recommendation would be that he use the time patiently waiting for the City to deal with the TCEQ mandate and get further along on the 503 RFP to either:

1. establish his organization and get his application for 501(c)(3) status in to the IRS or,
2. find an established 501(c)(3) that he can work under (either temporarily or permanently) to implement his preservation plan for 503.

On 2-26 (page 13 of this thread), Mr. Glueck briefly discussed the proposals for 470 that were received by the City of Waterville, ME and how/why the City made the decision to sell to his organization. This gives some insight into the types of factors that could be dispositive in these situations.

It seemed clear to me that the Council interest in Jason's filing a RFP is directly associated with the idea of keeping as much of that $65K-plus in Port Arthur as possible, without the locomotive officially changing its ownership.

I do not think that is possible under the terms of the GoFundMe, and as I have said I don't think any subsequent crowdfunding effort, even right along the lines of the successful one, that involves the locomotive remaining in Port Arthur even if it is ultimately restored to operability there will produce even a fraction of the amount the current campaign has -- especially if many donors think they were somehow gypped or baited-and-switched. So the golden goose is not as ripe for plucking (or whatever) as I suspect some in the Port Arthur council, etc. may think.

I do think the operative thing to do going forward is to establish a 501(c)(3) organization in Port Arthur and call it, say, the "Friends of 503". Ownership of the locomotive is not that important, but something else is: an absolute binding commitment that the City shall take no action regarding the 503 without the written consent of the Friends organization, and an equally formal commitment that the City shall give the Friends organization a right of first refusal, with adequate notice, if the City ever anticipates (or attempts to contract) giving up title and ownership of 503.

Then do all subsequent work on the 503 AT COST to the City, with the understanding that the 503 will serve as collateral for repayment of the organization's fair costs. I think the form of a mechanic's lien in Texas would do nicely for the boilerplate involved.

This would, I think, serve as the basis for a renewed GoFundMe campaign, with the resources of the current one available to it, that should bring in enough resources and interest to get the 503 at least stabilized and avoid the sort of sweetheart pocket-lining opportunities that I see implicit in the figures the Mayor gave in the 3/6 meeting.

It also ensures that any default or failure of the City to comply with keeping up its 'asset' would result in the 503 going somewhere sensible under the full control of the Friends organization, not into a dumpster of convenience. The Friends would, I expect, continue to work with the local press and community to keep the progress clearly and transparently evident to the voting population of the City.

Forming the organization that you suggest sounds like the right course of action for a group of Port Arthur citizens and whatever fundraising they can accomplish. It also sounds like the plan that the City prefers, and the City has said that they intend to help fund such a plan.

But I don’t understand how the funding that Jason has raised could be put into this plan, as you say. Is there a way for Jason to integrate his plan for restoration and operation into this Port Arthur based plan?

Sounds like a good plan. I don't think Jason's fund could be used for such a purpose. I think the proper course of action would be for the Friends group to start their own Gofundme or other fundraiser, have Jason refund his money with an update informing everyone of the new group and perhaps a recommendation to contribute to it. This is all contingent on the assumption that Jason's proposal is refused by the city.

Some good insight from the publisher of the Port Arthur News:

http://www.panews.com/2018/03/19/woulda-shoulda-coulda-engine-503/

Congratulations to the PA News for saying it like it is. Now let's hope that the City Council reads it carefully and follows suit. My read of the special meeting to handle this matter was that they were determined to find a way ( including spending precious taxpayer dollars if need be ) to keep the 503 in Port Arthur.

Maybe, just maybe, they'll sober up, smell the coffee and realize that Jason is a Godsend and let him have her??

Hope springs eternal.

Ross Rowland

I’ll say it again.


Also, has anyone really explained to the City that 503 has no historical significance to Port Arthur other than having sat in the park for sixty years? That engine never served the Port Arthur area. KCS had no steam locomotives to give by the time PA asked for one. That’s why they ended up with. L&A 503.