Politics & Government

Judge Tosses Suit vs. Kirkland on Rail Corridor; Next Stop, Federal Board

U.S. District Court Judge Marsha Pechman ruled that the proper venue for the case, filed by a small Ballard Railroad company, is the federal Surface Transportation Board.

 

A federal judge has dismissed a lawsuit seeking to prevent the city of Kirkland from removing tracks on the Cross Kirkland Corridor, filed by a small Ballard railroad company.

U.S. District Court Judge Marsha Pechman late last week dismissed by the Ballard Terminal Railroad Company and sought an injunction to prevent the city from removing the tracks.

Find out what's happening in Kirklandwith free, real-time updates from Patch.

Kirkland City Councilman Toby Nixon was at the hearing last week, and said the judge ruled the court had no jurisdiction in the case. The judge said the proper venue for the the company to seek the injunction was the federal Surface Transportation Board (STB). The board is charged with resolving railroad disputes and reviewing proposed railroad mergers.

The Ballard Terminal Railroad Company has already filed a petition to the board reactivate the line for rail traffic.

Find out what's happening in Kirklandwith free, real-time updates from Patch.

“So now we just have to wait until the STB rules on the injunction,” said Nixon. “If the STB finds there is no merit for rail use on that line -- which is what I think they will find -- then we can move forward.”

The city of Kirkland last year purchased 5.7 miles of the so-called Eastside Rail Corridor, the former line of the Burlington Northern that all told stretches some 40 miles between Snohomish and Renton. so the the Kirkland stretch can be converted into a multi-use trail.

But Nixon expects the city to wait until the STB rules before removing any ties and rails.

“We’ve been told it would take anywhere from six to nine months for the board to make that decision,” he said. “My hope is that the STB will not grant the injunction.”

Nixon noted that the STB previously approved Burlington Northern’s petition to vacate the line and sell it.

The Ballard Terminal Railroad runs a short line in Ballard and two other lines. According to the railroad's Facebook page, Eastside Rail Freight is a segment from Snohomish to Woodinville that started operating in 2009 on the former BNSF Railway's Woodinville Subdivision. The other line, Meeker Southern, runs 5 mi (8.0 km) from Puyallup to McMillan, Washington.

The Woodinville City Council recently sent a letter to Kirkland requesting that Kirkland delay removal of the tracks until the Eastside Rail Corridor Regional Advisory Council presents recommendations for the entire corridor this summer.


Get more local news delivered straight to your inbox. Sign up for free Patch newsletters and alerts.

We’ve removed the ability to reply as we work to make improvements. Learn more here

More from Kirkland