No tax money from train for JT

Jim Thorpe Borough’s agreement with Reading Northern and Blue Mountain railroad to get scenic train rides back in town does not include any of the amusement tax money the municipality originally sought from the company.

When questioned by a resident during Thursday night’s council meeting, borough solicitor Jim Nanovic outlined what led up to the agreement.

“Council felt it was best to get the railroad back in town,” Nanovic said. “I can tell you one of the contributing factors is that it was brought to our attention that state Rep. Doyle Heffley and state Sen. John Yudichak were introducing legislation that would exempt railroads from the tax. So we could have gone into a lengthy legal battle, only to have a change in the legislation that would exempt them anyway.”

Berkheimer, the tax collection agency representing Jim Thorpe borough, filed a suit against the railway last year for nearly $100,000 in unpaid amusement taxes for the past three years, leading to the train’s decision to stop the rides, including the popular Santa trains in December.

Soon after the train made its announcement, the two sides met on multiple occasions, with the borough eventually agreeing to drop the lawsuit as a show of good faith to keep the railroad at the table and working toward a resolution.

On Wednesday, the train announced it would return to the borough starting this weekend.

Heffley said Friday morning that while there is legislation drafted, it has not been introduced in Harrisburg.

“When you’re trying to bring the sides together, you put a bunch of things out there,” he said. “At the end of the day, the most important thing is that this issue is resolved. Cooler heads prevailed and I commend the borough and the railroad for working it out. Trains are really what built Jim Thorpe. There aren’t too many places you can see a steam engine pull into an 1800s train station in a place like Jim Thorpe.”

Trish Spillman, owner of the Jim Thorpe House of Jerky, said the train’s return will be a welcome sight for downtown businesses.

“The train brings people to Jim Thorpe,” Spillman said. “I can’t tell you the number of customers who come in my store said tell us, we originally just came for the train, but now we’re going to come back year after year because we’ve seen all the town has to offer. You can’t put a price tag on that.”

While many welcomed the news of the train’s return, that feeling wasn’t unanimous among residents at Thursday’s council meeting. Bill Malatak gave an impassioned speech to council during which he referred to Reading Northern and Blue Mountain Chief Executive Officer Andy Muller Jr. as a “con artist.”

“He’s gotten away with a lot in this town and now after he threatens to take his choo-choo train to Tamaqua, all of a sudden he is back. All of these people that think Jim Thorpe is only a train, they’re wrong.”

Kevin Herman backed up Malatak’s words, telling council they “gave Muller a free pass.”

Just last week, Jim Thorpe Tourism Agency President James Dougher urged council to move swiftly in its negotiations with the railroad, saying its absence was having a negative impact on the rest of the borough businesses.

“I appreciate the various perspectives of the residents here tonight,” Dougher said at Thursday’s meeting. “I don’t think I need to tell you how excited all of our members are that the train service is restarting.”

Council President Greg Strubinger said the borough did not have the luxury of taking a side on the issue.

“It goes without saying this wasn’t easy,” he said of situation. “Things had to be looked at in a way that takes a lot of different things into consideration. Ultimately we had a decision to make and we did that.”

Heffley said he hopes the discussion and resolution can lead to a reset between the train owners and government entities.

“This was a very tough situation and I understand the passion on both sides,” he said. “I really hope the relationship between the county, railroad and borough can take off from here. If they could partner together to do more, I think that would be great for the area.”