Letter: Wants more information on railroad crossing dispute

Like many in Columbus, I've been closely following The Dispatch's stories of the interactions between Mr. Ed Atkins and the Luxapalila Railroad. The railroad runs through Mr. Atkins' property and they have told him that he cannot access the back portion of his land. The Dispatch articles and the LXVR's response from September are the only stories about this issue I've seen. I spoke to Mr. Atkins and he sadly stated that nothing has been done, and he still cannot cross the tracks to access his own land.

Court proceedings are very costly. So now an 85 year old man is at a crossroads where he has no choice but to sit on his porch and stare at his own property on the other side of the tracks. He wonders how he will be able to leave it to his children. Will they bear the burden of continuing to fight for access to their land? Gone are the days of fishing together on the Luxapalila River – no one can get to it now! Why is the railroad taking such a hard stance and insisting on parking their box cars in this particular spot after all these years? Why will they not compromise? Why is no one helping Mr. Atkins mediate this matter?

To The Dispatch – please investigate and run a follow up story. Please don't let this travesty die on the vine. This should be a call to action before other properties allegedly could be compromised.

In conclusion, as Paul Harvey used to say at commercial break, "In a moment… the rest of the story…" Supporters of Mr. Atkins would like to know — Where is the rest of the story?

Mary Stewart

Columbus

Editor's note: In LXVR's response to our articles on this situation, they provide instructions for Mr. Atkins to request a crossing be installed on his property. We reprint the relevant portion of those instructions here for reference.

However, as previously stated on multiple occasions to both Mr. Atkins and his attorney (Mr. Hudson), Mr. Atkins can request that a formal crossing be put in place. The simple process would require Mr. Atkins to fill out a single application and provide evidence of basic liability insurance through his homeowners' policy. We have also consented to waive the fee that typically accompanies the application, an offer that still stands for Mr. Atkins.

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