After more than a year in place, about 33 tons of railroad materials are expected to be moved from two downtown streets in Dolores.
The move comes after growing questions from the public about when the materials would be cleared, according to Town Manager Leigh Reeves.
The town is finalizing a written lease agreement with the Galloping Goose Historical Society, which owns the tracks. The 33 tons include rail stacked on Sixth Street and loaded onto a trailer parked off Central Street.
The rails are part of broader conversations about the small town’s look and feel that are underway as officials put together a 20‑year comprehensive plan.
When and how the tracks will be moved is still being determined. The timing depends largely on weather and completion of an existing labor contract.
Galloping Goose board member Kent Aikin said the museum is committed to relocating the steel to Dolores’ green waste site. He said he hopes to ease the burden on the town.
He described town officials as “gracious” for allowing the heavy material to remain there for about 18 months and said the tracks could be donated to a new rail restoration project in eastern Colorado.
“Ken Vance has been under contract to get the rail moved, and the Galloping Goose Historical Society understands the urgency of getting the rail off the street and intends to see it happen,” Aikin said, and said the town is not responsible for relocating the materials.
Reeves said the materials have prompted questions from residents and were raised during a recent Planning and Zoning meeting. The school district has also inquired a few times about when the rails would be moved.
“There’s plenty of pressure,” Reeves said. “Especially for the school, people park over there on the south side of Central.”
The rails were donated to the Galloping Goose Historical Society about 20 years ago from the U.S. Army Pueblo Army Depot when it was being decommissioned in 2004. The society, a 501(c)(3) organization, preserves the history of the Rio Grande Southern Railroad, as well as the Galloping Goose No. 5 rail car.
“It’s not unusual for historic organizations, such as ours, to trade things with other similar organizations from time to time to enhance the collection or to help out another organization,” Aikin said.
After the donation, the rails were stored on private property in Dolores. When ownership of that land changed, they needed to be moved. The town allowed the museum to store most of the rail at the old green waste landfill, and most has already been relocated under the contract with Vance. Mud and snow have recently delayed some movement to the landfill.
A portion of the rail has been incorporated into features at the Dolores Bike and Skate Park, which broke ground last fall.
awatson@the‑journal.com
