The March 15th meeting was called to order at approximately 6:30PM after relocating from the Large Town Hall in Silver Plume to Grumpy’s establishment in the same town. Committee members present were: Acting Chair Frank Young, Joseph Bell, Lee Behrens, Kathy Denzer, Mark Graybill, Larry Jensen, Sarah Walen, and Rod Wolthoff.

Sarah Walen asked Jim Poston for the reasoning behind the three questions asked of the Committee (questions and LPCC answers are attached to this report. -JP). Mr. Poston explained the need for monthly boiler washes as preventative maintenance, and that the size of diesel #1203 could potentially may hinder its operation on the Loop.

Larry Jensen stated there was a ‘huge return rate’ of former employees, and that work on #12 should be complete in time for a two-week shakedown prior to the May 27th opening day.

Work on C&S #9 was continuing at Uhrich Locomotive Company. Delivery to Silver Plume is still targeted for late April or early May. Schedules permitting, there may be an opportunity to display the #9 with Union Pacific’s #844 as the 4-8-4 begins its April-June "Spring Tour". The possibility of displaying #9 in a Denver stopover was mentioned.

Joseph Bell reconfirmed the #111 was next in line for operational restoration with delivery in 2007. Locomotive #74 is next, and work on #60 is pending bids for restoration as well as a replacement display locomotive for the site in Idaho Springs. (Note: funding for #60’s restoration was not discussed.)

Delivery of #1203 from Sumpter Valley is scheduled for June of this year. Transport by rail or truck has not been determined.

1) With the #12 reported as performing for all but two days of the 2005 operating season, what were the dates the monthly boiler washes were actually performed? What procedure was followed, and how much time was taken for this maintenance?

Boiler washes were done on steam locomotive #12, following an industry standard checklist, on June 28th, August 9th, and October 11th of 2005. This was deemed adequate by outside consultants, given the limited number of miles (4,300) the locomotive operated during the season. As an insular railroad that is not under FRA jurisdiction, monthly boiler washes are not necessary or required. In each case, the locomotive was cooled overnight and the wash was done at dawn the next morning, so that it could be refilled with water and fired up again in time for the scheduled departure that day.

2) What precautions (i.e., measurements) have been taken on diesel #1203 to assure it will fit on the Loop's right-of-way?

The Society has been working with Sumpter Valley Railroad on all operational specifications for the Loop. The track data has been provided. The Society has been assured by Sumpter Valley Railroad that the locomotive will work on-site and meet the Loop's needs. There are a few locations where the track will be adjusted to address clearance issues. Also, the Society has discussed possible modification to the locomotive's frame, to trim it to meet clearance needs.

The fiscal year is May 1, 2006, to April 30, 2007. During that period, total expenses for operating the railroad are expected to be $1,340,034. Maintenance (including rolling stock, shop expenses and associated labor) is expected to be approximately $200,000.

The February 22nd meeting of the Loop park Communication Committee began at 6:11PM at the Georgetown Commissioner’s office. Members in attendance were Chairperson Joan Drury, Lee Behrens, Joseph Bell, Mark Graybill, Larry Jensen, Heather Lopez, Rod Wolthoff, and Frank Young. Minutes of the previous LPCC meeting were not brought up for approval, distribution of the evening’s agenda was solely to Committee members, and no public comments were solicited.

Initial discussions included commemorating the 100-year anniversary of the Argentine Central and the potential development of an ice-climbing park on or near Loop Park property.

Larry Jensen stated that the Loop office in downtown Georgetown would be primarily for taking reservations, although tickets and information could be obtained during office hours at that location. Additionally, having the office downtown would draw the attention of Georgetown visitors who might not otherwise be aware of the train.

Regarding parking and possible shuttle service, the LPCC discussed drafting a letter to Georgetown and Silver Plume to move this issue forward.

C&S #9 is to be delivered in the April/May timeframe, with Breckenridge’s #111 taking priority over #30 from Boulder.

The #9 has passed its boiler inspections and the paperwork will be provided from/via Uhrich Locomotive Works. The Society is working with Marlin Uhrich on ‘nailing down a delivery date.’

The agreement between Idaho Springs and the CHS for #60 needs to be finished. Activation of the CDOT grant is also required.

Work will be commencing on remodeling the entryway to the Lebanon Mine to a late 1800’s appearance. An archaeological analysis of the mill will be performed to prepare that area for visitors. Lee Behrens stated the application of a reservoir permit has been made to provide 4.2 acre-feet of water (3.5 acre-feet per the Clear Creek Courant) for the proposed operational water wheel.

Per Larry Jensen, work on locomotive #12 will commence in April; Ron Trottier has arranged financing to support this endeavour. Wheelsets are being procured for the steam locomotive and excursion cars, and replacement flues will be on hand for contingency purposes over the summer, and for any required work during the 2006-2007 off-season.

Joseph Bell stated the desire to have adequate funding available for off-season work following the 2006 operating season.

Heather Lopez is working with Railstar’s Larry Jensen and Kathy Denzer on marketing. Plans include brochures at the depot to advertise downtown merchants, and the concessionaire will be more firmly directed to issue those brochures with the train tickets.

‘Railroad Days’ are planned for Memorial Day weekend, and the Argentine Central anniversary may be included in that event. Proposed tours of the railyard are to include access to the car barn presently storing historic Colorado rolling stock.

Regarding some old business, Frank Young mentioned the profit-sharing topic discussed in previous meetings. The towns have no income from the train, and Silver Plume feels the train operation is tax-exempt. Within this discussion, it was stated that net profits from the Railroad might be a funding mechanism to help solve the parking problem.

If a community/railroad authority is created, Rod Wolthoff suggested that money from the Railroad might be used to fund grants to that authority. (A sidebar from Mr. Wolthoff inquired, "How do we get casino money?" There was no comment or discussion on this topic.)

Ron Ruhoff personally offered his rebuttal (also printed in the ‘Clear Creek Courant’) to the published rationale for the shortfall in 2005 ridership. Lee Behrens asked Mr. Ruhoff if he had seen the www.georgetowncolorado.com website, inferring that negative publicity existed at that location. Mr. Ruhoff stated that he had not, but asserted that a better pre-season advertising effort than actually provided by the Colorado Historical Society would have helped offset any negative advertising, had any existed.

As a follow-on to the website ‘discussion’, Larry Jensen admitted the GLHR website (www.georgetownlooprr.com) needed improvement, and to check the website in approximately thirty days.

The first work session of the Loop Park Coordination Committee met at 6:00 PM at the Silver Plume Large Town Hall. Committee members in attendance were Joseph Bell, Lee Behrens, Joan Drury, Ron Trottier, Rod Wolthoff, and Frank Young. Also present were Kathy Denzer, Heather Lopez, Jim Poston and two summer residents of Silver Plume.

The first item on the agenda was to review the Committee’s mission statement. However, since no copies of the mission statement were available, this item was tabled.

Lee Behrens opened the discussion of the Georgetown ticket office. While clarifying that he was not speaking for Georgetown, Behrens stated the location preferences might include the Visitor‘s Center, the Community Center, or a year-round storefront in Georgetown (including a gift shop).

Suggested individuals to further this topic included Mark Graybill, Peggy Stokstad, or a representative of the Desperate Merchants Association.

Further discussion was tabled pending the arrival of LPCC member Peggy Stokstad. (Ms. Stokstad did not attend the meeting.)

In regard to Silver Plume parking, Lee Behrens stated the frontage road on the south side of I-70 must be preserved to allow access to the former grade of the Argentine Central.

The parking on the north side of the interstate had been leased from CDOT, but that lease had expired several years ago, and CDOT has been staging some of their equipment on that property.

The remainder of the discussion included parking at Georgetown Lake, and Rod Wolthoff’s inquiry whether any of the town governments had addressed the parking issue.

Shuttle service might be offered from property near the Alpine Inn. Holiday Inn Express (not represented at this meeting) has expressed an interest in this location which has an estimated $350K purchase price.

Heather Lopez offered that a new company had recently begun shuttle service between Idaho Springs and Central City and might be an entity to contact.

Types of shuttle transportation included replica trolleys, modernized old-time school buses, and recognizing historic accuracy, Frank Young stated that Stanley Steamers were once a part of Colorado transportation.

Other suggestions included kiosks, volunteer appreciation day(s), familiarization tours for Denver concierges, and advertising the Loop near Engine #60 in Idaho Springs, posting more events on the Clear Creek County website, and linking various websites related to Clear Creek County to each other.

Regarding the Internet, Lee Behrens asked CHRRPA President Jim Poston why the link to "www.georgetownloop.com" was still on the Association’s website, the concern being that georgetownloop.com was not "friendly" (my word -JP) to the Georgetown Loop Historic Railroad.

Mr. Poston stated he would review the website within forty-eight hours and determine whether the link was appropriate.

[Note: I reviewed the "georgetownloop.com website" on July 21st. The site includes a brief history of the Georgetown Loop Railroad, Inc., its three-decade operation of the Railroad, the ending of its contract with the CHS, and links to the Royal Gorge Railroad in Canon City. Other links at the website are to the Colorado Railroad Museum in Golden, as well as to the Colorado Historical Society. Hence, there is no need to delete this or any other link on the CHRRPA website.]

(Unknown) reported that a representative of the Railroad surveyed some of the Silver Plume businesses as to hours of operation, offerings, and other details. The understanding was that this information would be passed along to Loop passengers. This effort was "much appreciated" by the Silver Plume merchants.

Jim Poston asked if the former Argentine Central grade might be an attraction for both hikers and railfans, with the understanding that a caveat about altitude, steepness of grade and weather be provided to anyone considering this undertaking.

Other marketing ideas included lengthening the operating season (circa 2006 or 2007), and running special trains for Silver Plume’s birthday (August 18th) and/or the Christmas Market.

There were no further investigative details of the fire at the Boulder County Historic Railroad Society. Parts from the damaged car will be reused on a replacement car that will use the burned car’s number.

The next meeting of the Loop Park Coordination Committee will be at 6:00 PM in Georgetown on August 17, 2005. Lee Behrens will research the actual meeting location.

The June 22nd meeting of the Loop Park Coordination Committee was held at the Visitor Center in Idaho Springs at 6:00 PM. Committee members in attendance were Chairman Mark Graybill, Lee Behrens, Joseph Bell, Bob Bowland, Kathy Denzer, Joan Drury, Pete Gores, Sara Walen, Rod Wolthoff, and Frank Young.

Minutes of the April 27th meeting were distributed. Jim Poston challenged the use of the word "demanding" to describe the questions posed to the Committee. Also, the discussion of advertising expenses was completely missing from the minutes. Mark Graybill stated that changes and/or inclusions would be made to the minutes, with re-distribution to follow.

Per the agreement of April 27th, questions from the Colorado Historic Railroad Preservation Association were submitted on Friday, June 17th, well in advance of three days prior to the meeting . (The questions and answers are at the end of this report.)

To summarize their responses, the CHS representatives of the Committee declined to provide ridership numbers, claiming first that this information was proprietary. After being challenged whether these numbers were privileged information, the answer was revised by saying they needed to get the data from the reservation system, and the information would be provided on July 10th, 2005.

Questions about rolling stock, advertising, and improved tourist traffic were the subject of other questions to the Committee. CHS attorney Rod Wolthoff and CHS/Georgetown representative Lee Behrens stated objections to the questions. However, LPCC Chairman Mark Graybill asserted the inquiries were valid, and would be asking them himself if CHRRPA had not asked them first.

Sara Walen offered that she had not received the CHRRPA questions in advance of the meeting. Mr. Graybill and Mr. Bell agreed the questions would be distributed to Committee members prior to subsequent LPCC meetings.

Also, to expedite the LPCC meeting agenda, it was suggested to distribute handouts with the questions and their answers, and when possible, include the answers as part of the agenda topics.

Railstar GM Pete Gores noted his concerns about the divisive attitude(s) that still exist regarding the Loop. He requested that all those with an interest in a viable operation of the Georgetown Loop "look at the railroad through the whole group’s* eyes", and stated that if you "take care of the railroad, it will take care of you."

Mark Graybill graded the initial operations of the 2005 Georgetown Loop at a "B+". Adding that his sales (at the "End of the Line" shop) were good for the weekend of May 28th and the following week, business had declined since then. He also mentioned that one of his employees had ridden the 3:00 PM train on June 22nd and reported that no mention of local businesses was made on the train, nor were advertising handouts given out with ticket purchases. Pete Gores and Kathy Denzer said they would address the publicity concerns immediately.

Beginning with the July 20th, 2005 meeting, the LPCC will be alternating work sessions with their regular meetings. While the work sessions will be open to the public, questions to the Committee can be asked in person every other month, beginning with the August meeting (date TBD).

As potential work session topics, Rod Wolthoff offered ticketing in Georgetown, parking, and shuttle service. Other suggested topics were maintenance, plans for the Loop Park, CDOT, and reviewing/updating the mission of the LPCC.

Frank Young voiced a concern about cyclists going through the Silver Plume cemetery and suggested an arrangements of gates might assuage the situation.

The April Meeting of the Loop Park Coordination Committee was held at 6:00 PM at the Georgetown Courthouse. Committee members attending were Chairman Mark Graybill, Lee Behrens, Joseph Bell, Joan Drury, Pete Gores, Peggy Stokstad, Rod Wolthoff, Frank Young, and Railstar’s new marketing and public relations manager, Kathy Denzer.

Jim Poston opened the public comment section by asking approximately fourteen ‘yes or no’ questions of the Committee, and asserted the option of follow-up questions based on the Committee’s response. (Questions and responses are posted at the end of the Notes.)

Rod Wolthoff took issue with the number and timing of the questions, essentially stating that the Committee was unprepared to answer the questions in sufficient detail. He used the example of dollars spent by the Society and stated the "need" (quotation mine. - JP) to be exact to a specific amount. Mr. Poston’s response was that ‘ballpark’ figures were acceptable, but that an organization run in a professional manner should have the overall status of the Georgetown Loop and its subcontractors already at hand.

It was agreed that questions from CHRRPA to the Committee would be submitted at least three days in advance to Joseph Bell.

The Railstar marketing update was provided by Kathy Denzer. Noting her membership in/participation with various travel organizations, she stated that several tourist groups had been contacted, including the Denver Convention and Visitor’s Bureau. Ms. Denzer also mentioned an involvement with Big Brothers/Big Sisters to have underprivileged kids experience the Georgetown Loop.

Railstar’s operational update was generally covered by the questions/answers from the public comment section (see below).

When the Committee was asked specifically if there would be steam on the Loop on May 28th, the general response was affirmative. However, Lee Behrens clearly stated "there are no guarantees".

Lee Behrens stated that new, blue signs to guide tourists to the Railroad were to be installed, as well as signage at the "T"-intersection just east (north) of I-70.

Joan Drury complimented the Committee on their progress for 2005 operations. Lee Behrens replied that her comment was nice to hear considering that previous statements regarding the Loop included negative comments, e.g., the (#12) locomotive was too small, etc.

The next ‘meeting’ of the Loop Park Coordination Committee will be a May 18th e-mail update from Mark Graybill, with the next actual LPCC meeting scheduled for 6:00 PM on Wednesday, June 15th, at the Idaho Springs Visitor’s Center.

(Pete Gores) Yes, for some of the appliances on the locomotive. Also, to obtain the economies of scale, several castings of the same item are being made for use on both the #9 and the #74.

(Joseph Bell, Rod Wolthoff) As of two weeks prior to the meeting, there were approximately eleven people performing woodworking, foundry, and machine shop work at Uhrich.

(Bell, et al.) Running gear disassembly is still in work, but reassembly (on other portions of the locomotive? -JP) was beginning ‘immediately’. CHS has periodically been inspecting the work, and as long as there were no ‘surprises’ during the restoration, the Society has ‘every intention’ of having the 2-6-0 operating in July.

5) Do you have an opinion of the Inter-governmental Agreement (IGA)/proposed IGA between Silver Plume and Georgetown regarding the profit sharing from the Loop?

(Wolthoff, et al.) It is not a ‘profit-sharing’ plan. However, under consideration is a 3% impact fee from ticket sales to address ‘items of interest to the communities‘.

8) Do you know how many people Railstar has working on the Georgetown Loop? Please include qualified train personnel, reservations and ticketing staff, publicity, shop personnel, R-O-W maintenance, - the total staffing of Railstar for the Georgetown Loop?

9) There is a concern about how much money the Society has spent in installing a new operator for the Georgetown Loop Railroad. Do you know how much money - in total - the Society has spent since April 1st when the RFI for the Georgetown Loop was announced, or August 17th when Railstar was named the new Loop operator?

12) Do you know if John Braun of Mammoth Locomotive Works, anyone working for Uhrich Locomotive Works, or anyone involved in the operational restoration of any locomotive under consideration for use on the Georgetown Loop has the proper stamps for boiler repair?

(Bell) There will be three inspectors working with Uhrich Locomotive, with one additional inspector to be added later on.

(Poston) Per Randy Austin, Chief Boiler Inspector for the state of Colorado, John Braun’s re-certification is in work.

-Responding to the March 20th question by Peggy Stokstad regarding reservations and ticketing, Kathy Denzer said a reservationist had been retained and was testing the system. This person would also train future reservationists working for Railstar.

In a very informative conversation with Colorado state boiler inspector Randy Austin, resolution of the paperwork for #12 is in progress with John Braun of Mammoth Locomotive Works. Mammoth (http://mammothlocomotiveworks.net) was the builder of #12's replacement boiler and has an excellent reputation for steam locomotive manufacturing, boiler repair and replacement, as well as other railroad-related projects.

Per Mr. Austin, had the #12 been Colorado-certified before 1998 and a 1988 'paper mishap' not happened, the documentation would have been in place and questions about its use in Colorado would not have arisen. He also said the boiler construction met or exceeded code requirements, and a recent inspection of the interior and exterior of the boiler revealed it to be in very good condition.

Bottom line: get the paperwork in order, take care of some minor details, re-hydro the boiler, and get ready for May 28th.

From reliable sources that presently need to remain anonymous, it has been determined that ex-Kahului #12 now in Silver Plume is not approved for operation in Colorado.

The state of Idaho has no state boiler inspection requirement, so no Idaho boiler certification exists. Operation of the #12 would thereby fall under the jurisdiction of the Federal Railroad Administration; that no requirement exists does not exempt a steam locomotive from governmental oversight.

Research into Colorado state law says a steam locomotive without boiler certification is not allowed to operate in the state. The only allowance would be if the locomotive is an antique. The #12 would have to go back to Idaho or another location for certification prior to re-delivery anywhere in Colorado.

Per the Railstar website (www.georgetownlooprr.com), the 2-6-2 was undergoing ‘final restoration’ in Silver Plume. If said ‘restoration’ has included a steam-up, the lack of certification could - and should - result in major consequences.

As for diesel motive power, there has been no sign of the 44-ton diesel scheduled for late March/early April, and no update of the ‘under evaluation’ status of the proposed 70-ton diesel.

The public comment section of the meeting opened with a statement by CHRRPA President Jim Poston. His remarks included:

He closed by saying the Association and the community would be looking for concrete evidence of staffing, quality ticketing and reservation systems, and 100,000 satisfied passengers as promised by the Colorado Historical Society.

Per Joseph Bell, ex-Kahului 2-6-2 # 12 was en-route from Idaho with delivery expected on March 24th or 25th. C&S 2-6-0 #9 is expected on the Loop in July, with operable 44-ton diesel #21 scheduled for the end of March/beginning of April. A 70-ton diesel (number unknown) was ‘under evaluation’.

Concern was voiced regarding the number of cars #12 could haul. The general agreement was the locomotive could pull a six-car train. When stated that the previous operator regularly had nine-car passenger trains and that six cars would be a 33% reduction in capacity, Lee Behrens, et al. stated that 2-6-0 #9 could be used, and if passenger traffic dictated, the #9 would be doubled-headed with one of the Loop diesels.

Jim Poston made the observation that extra trains required the cost of extra crews and maintenance. Behrens replied that this had already been considered.

Regarding passenger cars, Bell stated that ten cars have been committed - five covered, five open, plus the Society-owned caboose.

Asked about the percentage of completed staffing, GM Peter Gores stated that negotiations with personnel were in work.

advertising is taking place in the 2005 AAA guides, the 2005 State Vacation Guide, the 2005 Destination Planning Guide, the Denver Metro Guide, and the May/June and July/August editions of ‘Encompass", the Colorado-oriented magazine published by AAA;

Also from Bell, implementation of the Loop gift shop is ‘under control‘. Mark Graybill asked about the ‘800-lb gorilla‘ of a gift shop vendor, and stated that no local bids were made and no local merchants were approached. Bell replied that the sub-contractor was supposed to inquire about acquiring goods from local vendors.

Regarding a new Loop logo, a new design is in work and should be available in 2-3 weeks. When Bell stated the logos of the Colorado & Southern and the Denver & Rio Grande Western were under consideration, Jim Poston advised that the Union Pacific Railroad owns the copyrights to the Rio Grande as well as other railroads.

Peggy Stokstad inquired about the reservation and ticketing systems. According to Bell, the completely tested systems from a Denver software company are scheduled for mid-May. In the meantime, Ron Trottier is the sole contact for reservations and is presently focusing on bus tours.

A ticket office in Georgetown is ‘economically unfeasible’ according to Bell, in spite of the fact that the T1 computer line and other expenses are reimbursable from profits.

Mark Graybill inquired if Railstar was spending $50,000 on publicity. Joseph Bell stated there was $100,000 slated for this effort: $20-30K to be spent now, $50K later, with the balance saved as a reserve.

Once the #12 is operational, brochures and posters will be updated with new photographs. Ron Ruhoff stated his experience with Colorado photography and pictures of the Georgetown Loop; Joseph Bell seemed inclined to have Society photographers contact Mr. Ruhoff for tips on photographing the Loop.

Heather Lopez of the Clear Creek County Tourism Chamber said the city of Golden and the Buffalo Bill Memorial had been contacted,

Jim Poston asked if any of the Kalmbach publications - Trains, Model Railroader - or other railfan-related magazines had been contacted. Although Joseph Bell seemed surprised at the question, Shane Schabow had posed the same question at the February meeting. Bell’s reply then not only addressed advertising with Kalmbach, but included a reference to his interview by Trains regarding the Loop.

Mark Graybill offered that the incentive for passengers to visit Silver Plume and Georgetown would ease the loss of parking space at the Silver Plume terminal.

According to the CHS, possible environmental issues at the Silver Plume yard may require input from the previous operator;

the Railstar office, operations center, and gift shop will be centralized in Silver Plume with cell phones to provide good communication among Loop employees and the communities;

Responding to the question of ‘economic relief’ for the Loop-affected communities, both Bell and CHS attorney Rod Wolthoff stated that any financial compensation would have to be the result of a natural disaster.

Jim Poston opened the public statement portion of the meeting by stating that the `tell-all' meeting of January 24th `flunked', i.e., photos, display boards and words were very nice, but there was there was very little substance presented. (A full statement in our Editorial section coming soon.)

Next, the Colorado Historical Society and Railstar's Ron Trottier said Kahului #12 would be on Loop tracks in mid-March, that an ex-Sumpter Valley car was ready for the Loop pending a Railstar inspection, and there were seven `secured cars' in the pipeline.

The enclosed coaches that Railstar said last January were already built at their Watertown, NY plant were, in fact, not yet constructed. Per Trottier, these cars were to be built by a company on the West Coast, but due to a prior ten-car contract with the White Pass & Yukon, that contractor would not be delivering those cars until the second half of the 2005 season and that he couldn't be sure when construction might be started.

(Note: At the time of the meeting, two passenger cars were in Silver Plume. The car from Sumpter Valley is a recent arrival.)

As for CHS-procured locomotives, the Society said C&S #9 would be operational in July of this year, the #30 in 2006, and Breckenridge's #111 in 2007.

Addressing concerns about Railstar's Loop website, Trottier said a better display would be online by the end of March. However, Mark Graybill pressed the issue saying that a decent website could be built in an hour.

General Manager Peter Gores would be in Colorado full-time between ten days and two weeks from the date of the meeting.

Ron Trottier said that a `very limited amount of advertising' had been done. Final marketing plans would be performed the week of February 28th, with their focus predominately on the local and Denver area.

On the subject of advertising, CHS attorney Rod Wolthoff said the Society was trying to engage the media. Joseph Bell stated the Society was `trying to match' the advertising of the previous Loop operator, spending $30,000 for publicity, with Railstar expending $50,000.

When asked by Jim Poston about the potential impact to the Loop of CDOT's widening of I-70, Lee Behrens stated that the Loop Park was under the jurisdiction of "Recreation and Public Places", and that the Society was `not in the business of building condos.'

Future events include a newly-named "Mining & Railroad Days" event set primarily in Idaho Springs, and a VIP weekend for legislators and members of the Colorado Historical Society.

April: Locomotive trials and train test runs; rework of the Railstar/Georgetown Loop website; resolving `glitches' in proposed operations; right-of-way maintenance; an engineering evaluation of bridges and other structural necessities; constructing and stocking gift shops; hiring of crews; and building a reservations system.