Help Save Frisco Business Car "Arkansas"

Hey Everybody!

I have started a GoFundMe campaign to purchase Frisco Business Car "Arkansas" from an estate.

Here is a link to the campaign: https://www.gofundme.com/a48kewcs

and to the Facebook page: https://www.facebook.com/Save-Frisco-Business-Car-Arkansas-1002878026402143/

Would you consider making a donation?

You are welcome to share the links above on as many websites as possible. The more the word spreads, the better chance we have of saving the car.

Thanks!
Bryan Lalevee

 

Who will be the owner of the car?

 

Paul,

I will be the owner of the car. I am in negotiations with a tourist railroad to provide a permanent home for the car, as well as operate the car in charter service on their trains.

I do not want the car to go to a museum where it will be "stuffed and mounted", never turning a wheel, likely falling into a state of disrepair.

Bryan

 

I should note after the car is purchased, I will create a non-profit organization and donate the car to it.

 

The GoFundMe fundraiser is now "Facebook Verified". Proving I am the one leading the campaign!

 

Bryan, Which tourist line are you in discussions with to provide a home for the Arkansas? Had you thought of checking with the Arkansas & Missouri Railroad? A&M is one of very few lines operating passenger excursions on ex-Frisco trackage, and I think it would be a great home for the Arkansas.
Murphy Jenkins

 

What exactly are you planning on "saving" the car from? it looks in pretty fair shape now. How much is the owner asking for the car?

 

I am in talks with a tourist railroad located about 2 hours from our house here in Northern Indiana. Arkansas is beautiful! But too far away from our house.

 

Please see below...

 

UPDATE!

Time to bring everyone up to speed. As you know, I have started a GoFundMe campaign to purchase Frisco Business Car "Arkansas".

- The paperwork was submitted to CSX by the person running the estate within the last week. They are awaiting a response as well as an inspection to see if it can be shipped on live rail. If the car is deemed acceptable to ship on its own wheels, the funding goal of $60000-$65000 would stand. That figure includes the purchase price of $42000, the charges assessed by CSX to ship the car and the insurance required with shipping the car.

- If the car is deemed not suitable for shipment on it's own wheels, the person running the estate has informed me the purchase price would drop considerably. That is best case scenario for our efforts.

- I am currently in negotiations with a tourist railroad here in the Midwest to provide a permanent home for the car. There the car will be prepared for service and will be used as a charter-able car.

- The owner of the railroad owns a heavy-haul trucking company who has moved railroad cars before. I will be requesting the owner to possibly donate the move of the car, or for a discounted rate.

- If we are successful in saving the car, I will create a non-profit organization called "The Friends of Frisco "Arkansas". At that time, I will donate the car to the organization. Also, I will re-donate 10% of any money collected when the car is chartered to organizations of YOUR choice. The remaining 90% will be used to maintain the car, paint the car, etc...

Now I have a question for you all.

Lets look at best case scenario:
1. The car has to be trucked out.
2. The railroad I am in negotiations with gives us a green light.
3. The owner of the railroad owner agrees to assist with the trucking of the car.

Would you consider donating if I create a new "All-or-Nothing" fundraiser?

That means a financial goal and a end date for the fundraiser will be set in stone. That means that no money will be charged to you if the goal isn't met.

If you would be willing to come on board with a donation, please reply with a comment and the amount you would like to pledge in the comment box below. It's not an actual donation, just a pledge. If you would like to keep the amount private, please type "I'm in" below and send a private message stating your pledge.

I don't think a railroad car has ever been saved using a GoFundMe fundraiser. If we band together, we can do something amazing. And in return, the Frisco "Arkansas" can be enjoyed by many for years to come.

Thanks and God Bless,
Bryan

 

Bryan,in what town do you live and where is the car currently setting? Also have you personally looked the car over to determine if it's a viable candidate for restoration, if so do you have photos that could be posted?

Joe

 

Let's start with the photos.

 

Part 2.

 

Part 3.

 

Part 4.

 

I am in NW Indiana, the car is in Delaware, OH.

UPDATE!

- I have reached an agreement with the Coopersville & Marne Railroad located near Grand Rapids, MI. They have agreed to provide track space for the car, as well as operate the car in charter service on their trains. I pursued the C&M because the railroad is about 2 hours from our house.

- The person running the estate is still waiting on CSX to do an inspection on the car to determine of the car can be shipped on CSX. (2nd to worst case scenario because the purchase price of $42,000 plus the fee to ship the car on CSX and insurance would have to be raised.)

- If CSX can not ship the car, it will need to be trucked. (Best and Worst case scenario. Best being I can negotiate a lower shipping cost and purchase price. The lower the funding goal, the more likely the fundraiser will be successful. Worst case scenario, if the funding goal is not met and no one steps forward to truck the car, scraping of the car on site is not out of the realm of possibility, and that is per the person running the estate.

- The owner of the C&M, who can truck the car, has quoted a ballpark figure of $30,000 to truck the car. That number can go higher or lower when the car and the route traveled is inspected before trucking.

- I've removed the GoFundMe campaign I originally started in favor of creating a "all-or-nothing" campaign. But I can't do that until I have firm numbers as the funding goal and end date are set in stone. "All-or-Nothing" means no donor will be charged the donation if the goal isn't met.

- A thorough inspection by my mechanical guru will be conducted before the fundraiser is restarted.

Stay tuned!
Bryan

 

UPDATE!

A busy day of phone calls and emails in the books.

- Me and my mechanical guru have agreed that trucking the car from it's current location is the only way to go. Reason being is shipping the car on live rail leaves the door open for the car to be damaged. One accidental hard coupling or bad train handling means thousands and thousands of dollars of damage. Even with insurance on the car, I'm not willing to take that risk.

By trucking the car, I would be following close behind her over every mile of her journey down the highway from Delaware, OH to Coopersville, MI.

- I am setting up a meeting with the owner of the Coopersville & Marne Railroad to negotiate a price for trucking the car. Once we agree upon a number, I will start negotiations with the estate to purchase the car for the least amount possible, which in turn will result in a lower funding goal.

- I'll be meeting up with my mechanical guru as soon as our schedules match to do a through ground-up inspection of the car.

- Once everything is finalized, I will re-launch the GoFundMe campaign as a "All-or-Nothing" campaign as I mentioned before.

But none of this can happen without your donations. Once I launch the fund raising campaign, every dollar counts. A donation of just $25 from 1800 donors would raise $40,000 (before GoFundMe fees).

Together, we can do the unthinkable. We CAN do this! All I ask is for you to hop on board.

Thanks and God Bless!
Bryan

 

UPDATE!

CSX will not ship the car on it's own wheels. Trucking the car is not an option as numerous pieces of underbody equipment would have to be removed before trucking the car. We decided that placing the car on a flatcar was the only viable method of shipping the car. It was our intention to inspect the car to ensure she was safe to lift using a crane.

When I attempted to schedule the inspection, the person representing the estate denied us access to the car stating the family has requested the car to be removed "now".

Without immediate funding, our push to save the car has come to an end.

Thank you everyone!

 

I have to ask, who owns the car now, or who's estate is it part of? And where is the car currently located?

I'm going to be moving back to the Columbus,oh area next month, and I'm hopeful the car will be in it's current location so I can take pictures. Last I knew, this car was owned by silcott railway equipment, and was used as silcott's office in worthington,oh. It was painted blue and white the last time I saw it.

Paul

 

If they want it moved now what are their plans if nobody can meet the funds necessary to do so? Are they going to accept a lower price? It seems like that would be their only choice. Maybe it's time to offer half of what they want.

Joe