The Colorado Supreme Court ruled against the Durango & Silverton Narrow Gauge Railroad last week, upholding the Colorado Public Utilities Commission’s ruling that La Plata County has authority under its land-use code to regulate the railroad.
At the height of the COVID-19 pandemic, Rockwood station became the D&SNG’s main arrival and departure point for the Cascade Canyon Express tourist excursion. The station, located about 15 miles north of Durango, offered a popular boarding and de-boarding option between Durango and Silverton.
To accommodate an influx of passengers, D&SNG enlarged Rockwood station’s parking lot, removed a fence, and added portable toilets and tents for passengers waiting to board the train. The county issued several warnings that such changes violated its land-use code, and the D&SNG would need to either reverse the changes or undergo proper land-use process.
D&SNG and its parent company, American Heritage Railways Inc., ignored the warnings and subsequently sued the county, arguing that it lacked jurisdiction to regulate the railroad’s development.
The state Supreme Court upheld the PUC’s ruling that the county had authority to regulate the station’s expanded parking lot as an “extension of its existing facility, plant, or system,” which would require “a new certificate of public convenience and necessity.”
“The County is pleased the Colorado Supreme Court affirmed the County’s and the PUC’s interpretation of the law and the applicability of the County’s land use regulations,” said La Plata County Attorney Sheryl Rogers in a statement. “The County respects the historical and economic importance of the Train to our community but also believes that adherence to our land use regulations is essential to the health, safety and welfare of the entire community.”
The Cascade Canyon Express route between Rockwood and Cascade Wye began operating in 2019 and quickly gained popularity in 2020.
The county believed the route was a temporary alternative, but when D&SNG announced it would run trains through Rockwood in 2021, the community raised concerns. The train brought up to 600 passengers to the neighborhood daily, causing residents to complain about traffic congestion, littering and increased fire risk, among other concerns.
“There were quite literally hundreds of cars,” said resident Jeff Beckel, who has lived in the Rockwood area for over a decade.
Beckel was concerned that tourists riding the train were unfamiliar with the area, which let to several problems. He recalled the area being flooded with trash after a food truck was set up to serve waiting passengers, raising concern about attracting bears.
“One of our neighbors put a fire out on the side of the road,” said John McAward, president of the Rockwood Estates Homeowners Association. “Someone threw a cigarette butt out of a car driving to the station.”
The influx of people became so disruptive that McAward said they put up a gate to their subdivision to keep people out.
Now that Rockwood station is no longer used as a primary point of arrival and departure, Beckel and McAward said Rockwood quickly returned to normal. Very few passengers board the train at the Rockwood station, and the vast majority board in town.
“We love the train,” McAward said. “We just had an issue with the train bringing a large portion of its business here as a departure place. This place isn’t zoned for that kind of business.”
The D&SNG did not respond to requests for comment for this story.
Richa Sharma is an intern for The Durango Herald and The Journal in Cortez and a student at American University in Washington, D.C. She can be reached at rsharma@durangoherald.com.
