Reply to Raytown Phase 2

Does anyone know if construction has started on phase to in Raytown. The rail runs right behind my house yet so construction.

Work on Rock Island Trail ordered to stop for second time this year

KANSAS CITY, Mo. — For a second time this year, a federal board has ordered Jackson County to stop all work on the Rock Island Trail.

It's the latest development on a legal saga between the county and nearby landowners along the corridor.

"They think they can go in and take these people's lands without paying them for it, (which) violates the Constitution of the United States and the law of Missouri and the laws of the United States," Thomas Stewart, an attorney at Stewart, Wald and McCulley who represents landowners, told 41 Action News in July.

When Jackson County purchased the corridor from Union Pacific Railroad in 2016 for more than $50 million, leaders said they were going to leave the tracks in place and put the hiking and biking trail alongside it.

That's not what they did.

Instead, the rail line was removed and a trail was built in its place.

The Surface Transportation Board revoked the county's rights in July after learning it didn't stick to the original plan.

A few days later, and after reviewing the ruling, the county resumed work on the northern half of the path with the instruction that crews were not to remove any rail, ties or track material from the rail bed.

On Thursday, the board said in a new ruling that it disagreed.

"Moreover, continued trail construction on another part of the line, even if it is not on the rail bed itself and does not involve further removal of track, is clearly related to the wrongful actions that led the board to revoke the county's exemption in the first place," the ruling said, in part.

While acknowledging that the county is in process of obtaining a trail condition under the Trails Act, until a decision is made all construction activity on the corridor has been deemed unlawful.

A Jackson County spokesperson said the county will comply with the decision and "will not proceed with any construction activity until all requirements of the board have been satisfied."

This issue remains at the center of several lawsuits in state and federal court.

Why would they plan to leave the rails & ties in place? A trail next to the railway would be much more difficult to construct than following the path of the original railway.

Has the lose of rights issue been addressed for 2020? I see the halted construction along Raytown road. What are the plans moving forward to address the rights of the property oee we need along the tracks?

Jackson County - Missouri
· February 24 ·


#PressRelease: Jackson County Executive announces construction restart on second phase of Jackson County Parks + Rec Rock Island Trail as agreement with Union Pacific is finalized. KCTV5 FOX4 News Kansas City 41 Action News - KSHB-TV KMBC 9 KCUR Radio Station KMBZ The Examiner The Kansas City Star Lee's Summit Tribune Grain Valley News RaytownNews The Pitch Kansas City Dos Mundos Newspaper Kansas City's Northeast News National Recreation and Park Association Visit KC Visit Missouri Greater Kansas City Attractions Association Jackson County Rock Island Corridor