Selling Cincinnati's railroad is a no-brainer | Letters
Some opponents of selling Cincinnati’s railroad right-of-way are people I respect, so I’ve read their reasons for not selling carefully. None have made a substantive argument against converting that right-of-way asset into cash, which is a better asset. Opponents of the sale are distrustful, afraid, convinced against the evidence we’re getting a bad deal, and apparently persuaded that some devious deception of the public is underway.
Jason Williams, for example, devoted an entire column to erecting a straw man, an imagined shady scheme for a new sports arena, then thrashing it thoroughly with a rhetorical stick. To me, the decision to sell is simple. I’m retired from a 40-plus-year career managing small and medium-sized businesses and nonprofits. In business, cash is king. In all cases − all cases − cash is a much, much more valuable asset than specialized real estate. Converting the railroad to cash provides Cincinnati with enormous flexibility to meet multiple public needs for generations to come. With great appreciation to our farsighted forebears who secured the original asset, it’s a no-brainer today − sell the railroad right-of-way and give us the cash.
Robert Pickford, College Hill
Views on homeless at the library filled with ignorance
I was driving to my volunteer job with the radio tuned to WLW. Eddie Fingers and Rocky Boiman began talking about an Enquirer article regarding the libraries and homeless folks. I would have been better served by a symphony of cow flatulence. These guys spewed such bile and ignorance that one feels the need for a bath afterward.
The Enquirer article was thoughtful and informative about a positive, though complicated, situation that underpaid and underappreciated librarians deal apparently with grace.
WLW used to be an admirable broadcaster. Other than live sports, they have degraded to mean-spirited drivel and ignorant attacks on anything smacking of "liberalism." Thank goodness un-housed people, whether parents with children, or single men and women can spend time in a library.
Nelson Horseman, Amberley
Sell the railroad, invest the money wisely
If I had a 337-mile railroad that was 143 years old in my personal portfolio, I would sell it in a heartbeat for the agreed amount of $1.6 billion. While playing the board game Monopoly hundreds of times as a child, I learned never to sell your railroad-owned properties. I have not forgot that, but I have since learned what a liability it can be to own a railroad.
Surely, the city has a lease with Norfolk Southern Corporation that makes them responsible for maintaining the conditions of the track as well as their trains. However, in this day and age, if anything happens anywhere along the 337-mile tracks similar to or worse than what we have seen in East Palestine, Ohio earlier this year, guess who is going to end up in the courtroom? The owner of the tracks.
How long do you think the current $25 million the city gets annually will last in a courtroom full of angry residents and their attorneys? Even if the city gets off the hook the first time around, there are countless possibilities along this 337-mile ribbon of 143-year-old railroad tracks.
If I were playing Monopoly today, I would play it safe, sell the railroad, forget about getting "Sent to Jail" or drawing the "Chance Card" that indicated I was financially responsible for a chemical spill. Let’s work with city leaders to make sure the $1.6 billion is invested wisely and allocated in an equitable manner for all of Cincinnati’s citizens.
Tim Jeckering, Northside
This article originally appeared on Cincinnati Enquirer: Selling Cincinnati's railroad is a no-brainer | Letters
