Comment EI-23168
Received or sent (printed as 6/1/2016)
RE: The Great Lakes Basin Railroad I live in the very northern part of unincorporated Kouts, IN, approximately 2.5-3.0 miles south of the proposed GLB Railway. My husband and I moved out to the country setting 5 years ago where we found our dream home with a little over an acre at a price that we could afford. It is a very quiet subdivision surrounded by farm fields and abundant wildlife. We absolutely love it here and the peacefulness it offers. I grew up in Northern Lake County and Porter County throughout my life. My grandparents raising their families in East Chicago, IN with multi railways at the end of their street just a few doors down from their home. My parents raised me and my siblings in Highland, IN with railway crossings spewed throughout the town. When I moved to Valparaiso, IN to raise my daughter, we had a railway 2 blocks away. Now, living in these areas with nearby railways was our choice to do so. My husband and I moved out to the country in Kouts, as that is exactly what it is, the country! There is no land nearby tarnished with unsightly, loud, hazardous, pollutant railways directly near us. That was our choice! With the proposed railway sight just north of our home, our serene surroundings will be no more. Our drive to civilization will not be the beautiful farmlands and rolling prairies. It will be tarnished with the unsightly views of hazardous freight trains covered in graffiti and the fresh air will be overtaken by locomotive fuel and other imminent pollutants. I know this as I grew up with it! If I wanted to continue to live near this, I would be. Now my husband and I and our fellow neighbors near and far affected by this railway will be forced to accept the fact and just deal with it?! We all have the fears of air and noise pollution, environmental hazards and affects, water flow issues, damage to our wildlife and live stock and overall quality of life. I understand the importance of the railroad. I have family and friends that work for the railroad but it's my understanding that there are alternatives for use of current rail lines where these areas are already designed to handle this kind of operation. The GLB Railway is NOT A NEED! It is not a life or death situation that this railway be built. The Southern Porter County area has had a welcoming population growth over the recent years with great schools and communities. This railway will be the demise of that! Our property values will decrease and taxes will be affected. Our emergency response teams, school buses, and all means of transportation routes to and from connecting towns, schools,and farms will compromised. Our property, our lives and our children lives will be compromised. These are hard working people trying to live the American Dream" who cannot be bought and whose lives and future generations they will be destroying. They need to think about that! Sometimes less is more! I highly oppose this proposed GLB railway!"
Submitted by: Christine Makowiecki
The Board publishes this comment in its environmental-comment table for this proceeding. It is quoted here as printed; nothing is inferred from it, and it states the commenter's own position in their own words, not this record's.
Permanent address docketyard.org/d/FD-35952/comment/EI-23168 · back to the docket sheet