In the name of expanding Amtrak’s Downeaster service up the coast, Freeport has approved using eminent domain to acquire a parcel of land next to the new train platform that one official says is necessary for passenger access.
The Forecaster reports that the town has been in negotiations with the owner of the property for months, who has asked the town for four to five times the appraised value of around $300,000.
Town Manager Dale Olmstead said that the property could serve as expansion space for long-term parking, which is not currently available near the new station.
Edward Bonney, a chairman of the town’s Train Station Committee, argued that the property is essential to the train service starting on Nov. 1 in Freeport and Brunswick.
“If you don’t get this easement, the train will not stop in Freeport,” Bonney said, according to the Forecaster.
