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Mayor Reviews Multi-Year BNSF Timeline, Cites Early Staff Engagement and Later Termination
Summary
The mayor reviewed a multi-year timeline of city engagement with BNSF Railway, from 2019 outreach through 2021 land acquisitions and a 2023 termination of the agreement; the review described community surprise over perceived lack of early public notice and noted ongoing litigation limits further public detail.
The mayor provided a detailed chronology of the city's interactions with BNSF Railway, saying initial outreach began in 2019 and that discussions intensified in 2021 when BNSF pursued property and drove permitting questions. The mayor said staff first engaged with BNSF in 2019 and continued periodic correspondence through 2021; by late 2021 BNSF had acquired land in the area north of town.
The mayor recounted that in early 2023 BNSF representatives and city staff were negotiating agreements and scheduling notices and that the council accepted a development agreement in May 2023 by a 4-0 vote (one councilor absent). He said citizens later expressed anger that the project had not been discussed publicly earlier in the process; staff and BNSF representatives organized community engagement events in June 2021 and later to respond to residents' questions.
The mayor said the city and BNSF ultimately agreed to terminate the development agreement when relations soured and that litigation now constrains what officials may disclose publicly. "We dated BNSF for a very long time. We were happy... we got a divorce," the mayor said, characterizing the relationship and its breakdown. He told council he believes forthcoming negotiations can yield better outcomes than litigation but said both sides will need to rebuild trust.
Council asked questions about who had been involved in negotiations, staff's communications and whether appropriate notice and public engagement had occurred. The mayor acknowledged gaps in public outreach early in the process and described multiple internal emails and meetings among staff and council during the multi-year sequence.
Next steps: counsel will review the timeline and staff will coordinate executive-session communications as needed; the mayor offered to place the timeline on a future open agenda for additional public review if the council desires.
