Assiniboine Park's miniature train has been in the news recently as it has seen a large drop in attendance since the closure of the park's east gate earlier this year.
The 24" gauge steam powered train is certainly one of Winnipeg's most unique attractions. here is a look back at how it came here almost fifty years ago.
March 4, 1964, Winnipeg Free Press
At their December 30, 1963 meeting, Metro Winnipeg council discussed the idea of providing a miniature train attraction at Assiniboine Park. Why a miniature train is not clear from newspaper reports, but likely a councillor saw one whilst on vacation or read about one in a trade / tourism magazine.
The council had no idea what such an attraction would cost and passed a motion to call for proposals from interested parties.
The call closed on March 24, 1964 with four responses. One was from a local consortium led by businessman Peter Buzunis and his brother, Andrew.
They offered to spend up to $50,000 to provide a miniature steam train, lay 3,000 feet of track and build the necessary infrastructure, such as a platform and crossing signs. The consortium's costs would be recovered through a 25 cent fare and the city would get 10% of the gate as rent.
April 18, 1964, Winnipeg Free Press
Given that the Buzunis proposal wouldn't cost the city a cent and was the only one to offer a steam option, the city offered him a contract on April 23, 1964.
Things went off the rails right away when city lawyers included a provision in the contract stating that the deal could be revoked by the city at any time without compensation. Buzinis balked at this saying that if the consortium was going to invest $50,000 it needed better assurance that the city would not lose interest in the project at the end of the season.
Metro councillors ordered the lawyers to remove the clause right away. The delay held up the project up by more than a month.
There was some opposition to the train. Three delegates appeared before council in late June to oppose its installation. The Manitoba Horticultural Society, Winnipeg Horticultural Society and the Manitoba Natural History Society all felt that the train was the thin edge of the wedge for turning Assiniboine Park into a commercial "Coney Island" type attraction.
Councillors assured them that there were no such plans.
In May, the train was ordered from Crown Metal Works in Wyano, Pennsylvania and work got underway on laying the 24-inch gauge tracks and building a platform.
The train arrived in late July and at 2 pm on July 30, 1964, Metro council chairman Dick Bonnycastle drove the tiny, ceremonial last spike with a hammer and service began under the watchful eye of Ken Cameron, the train’s first conductor.
Patronage of the train had its ups and downs those first few years. As is still the case today, attendance is hampered by factors such as bad weather and a lack of access due to construction in and around the park. These led to the train taking in just $2,500 in 1965, down from its $6,000 estimate.
A sad fact of life for the train has been vandalism.
That first summer there were two incidents of vandalism. One involved someone ripping up sections of track. In a July 23, 1981 Free Press story Andrew Buzinis said that vandalism costs him about $1,500 per year. In 2009, an arsonist damaged a number of the train's buildings and water cooler.
In 1988, Tim Buzunis, Peter's son, took over the train's operation. Peter Buzunis died in 2007.
The train runs between noon and 6 pm from Victoria Day to Labour Day. (For more info.)
Related:
Willy's Garage, Episode 10 (video)
Steam train faces troubled times CBC
Low attendance threatens park's beloved steam train Free Press
© 2012, Christian Cassidy
No comments:
Post a Comment