| Fostoria 'train lady' helps keep rail park on track |
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| Written by JORDAN CRAVENS Sentinel Staff Writer | ||||
| Saturday, 24 September 2011 06:20 | ||||
But her real name is Ellen Gatrell, a lifelong Fostoria resident, who not only embraces the city's train heritage, but has made it her mission to help make it an even bigger tourist attraction for train enthusiasts. Gatrell is the secretary/treasurer for the Fostoria Rail Preservation Society. The group has served as a liaison between the city and rail fans for the Fostoria Iron Triangle Rail Park project. "Think of me as an advocate to make sure rail fans get what they need," Gatrell said. Officials broke ground on the $1 million rail park Friday. "For me, it's finally here. Having the groundbreaking is one more big step," Gatrell said. Gatrell and the Preservation Society, along with several other economic, tourism and city government have been working for years to make the rail park a reality. Fostoria Mayor John Davoli said the rail park is right in the "heart of the city" and will be a "catalyst for revitalizing our downtown." As it stands now, the future site of the rail park is a patch of gravel, a picnic table and a portable bathroom facility. (See TRAIN on 5) "That's all we have right now," Davoli said. When it is finished a year from now, it will have viewing/photography platform, a visitors kiosk, a walking path, bathroom facilities, and other features, Davoli said. To Fostorians, train watching might seem a bit mundane. Residents get stuck by trains on a daily basis and the blow of the whistle is a familiar one. "We've been around it so much we don't think it is important, but it is important," Gatrell said. The trains draw thousands of tourists to the city each year. They come from as far away as Canada and Europe to see the 150 to 200 trains that pass through Fostoria each day, Davoli said. "Who would have thought of Fostoria as a tourist destination," Gatrell asked. Both Davoli and Gatrell are banking on the rail park to boost the city's economy. "Think of the rail park as a nucleus and things can grow from it," Gatrell said. Davoli expects new motels, restaurants, businesses and gas stations to sprout up after the rail park is up and running. "It's getting better already. We just need more local shops. And it will come. We just need the rail park to get it going," Gatrell said.
"After all these years, there has been a lot of tweaking, but the design is really good," Gatrell said of the rail park. Before ground could be broken, crews had to clear away cars, refrigerators and a dilapidated building that once were a junk yard. There were also minor issues with soil contamination that had to be addressed and cleared by the Environmental Protection Agency, Davoli said. "Nothing good is easy. And this definitely fits that mold," he said. The planning process also involved a lot of input from train enthusiasts. Gatrell said she has handed out surveys to train watchers for more than five years. She also goes to train shows in other states to hand out surveys, promote the rail yard and Fostoria's train heritage. "They don't ask for a lot. They just want to have a place they can go to watch the trains," she said. Some things they did want though, Gatrell said, were ample parking, an elevated platform to take pictures and view trains from, and 24/7 bathroom facilities so they can watch trains around-the-clock. "A lot of the traffic is in the evening. Even up until 1 or 2 o'clock in the morning," Gatrell said. "They sit in their cars and they may doze, but they wake up when a train rolls by or when they hear it on their scanner." In addition to helping bring the rail park to fruition, Gatrell is also involved in several other rail ventures in the city. She has helped refurbish the Preservation Society's headquarters, an old depot on West North Street; helped coordinate railroad employees reunions; served as chairwoman for the city's annual Rail Fest; and she does train safety presentations at schools. "I think I inherited this, the Fostoria heritage side of it," Gatrell said. Her grandfather worked for a railroad company as a telegraph operator/dispatcher and her grandmother was an antique dealer who loved to collect Fostoria Glass. |
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