To the Editor & Fillmore Community:

Please join your neighbors at Fillmore City Hall, next Tuesday, August 15 at 6 pm, to present our concerns to local officials and Supervisor Kelly Long, about the parking of 100 heavily graffitied railcars in the Agricultural Zone, along Old Telegraph Road. The cars have now been there for over 6 months, and were not present when the Sespe Rail bridge collapsed last winter. They were brought in, afterwards.

Many in Fillmore might think this issue is not of their concern. That is not true. An agreement between the Ventura County Transportation Commission (VCTC)and Sierra Northern Railroad was signed in November, 2022, which allows 3rd party railroad storage on all the Santa Paula Branch Line, running from Montalvo to East of Piru, FOR THE NEXT 35 YEARS. While the railway cannot store railcars within city limits, they believe they have been given the right to use the rest of the tracks for Industrial Storage all across the Santa Clara Valley to Piru and all through the green farmlands on the way to Ventura, where one lone railcar already stands, west of Briggs Road.

All of us will be affected if more railcars from Ventura and neighboring counties are allowed to be stored on the railroad tracks. Who will want to start a business or buy a home in Fillmore if it is surrounded by miles of old and heavily graffitied railcars, which are known to draw vandals? Although Sierra Northern Railways is earning hundreds PER DAY by storing these railcars, and the VCTC is set to profit by many thousands this year, the Fillmore community seems to be paying the price. Many believe such an agreement would never even be suggested close to cities like Camarillo and Ventura.
Another troubling part of the Sierra Northern/VCTC Agreement is the inauguration of the Sunburst Railbikes, small pedal “bikes” which rent for $250 a trip, and run on the railroad tracks from Santa Paula to 7th Avenue in Fillmore, before they turn around retrace their route back. These railbikes criss cross Highway 126 sometimes eight times daily, meaning the rail arms come down and close our busy highway in both directions, EIGHT TIMES on some days, not only to regular traffic, but to Emergency Responders: Police, Fire and Ambulance Traffic. While the railbikes are promoted as “scenic experiences” for tourists, the reality is that the graffitied railcars stored by the same company, and parked just a few more feet to the east, have robbed commuters, residents, farmers, and taxpayers of any scenic views for them.

Concerned neighbors have attended a series of VCTC meetings, asking to limit railbike closure times on Highway 126, and asking that the current graffitied rail cars, probably under contract, at least be moved to a less public site, one mile to the west, shortening the railbike ride from 17 to 15 miles, but making the cars much less of an attractive nuisance to tagging crews and teens wanting to jump from car to car. This repositioning would also make them less of a public nuisance in terms of what many feel is offensive and obscene graffiti. County Municipal Code 10 and a section in the agreement between Sierra Northern and the VCTC both address graffiti, but have not been enforced. So far letters, emails, and visits to VCTC meetings have been largely ignored. Many believe that if the agreements in the VCTC/Sierra Northern Contract are not going to be followed, it is time to take steps to terminate this contract and find an alternative partner for the line. Moving the railcars to a less public place, limiting the highway closures, and renegotiating this contract regarding “stored railcars” must happen immediately.

Our Supervisor Kelly Long will be at the meeting. As the head of the VCTC Board in November, she not only voted for this agreement which affects our district, and the area she represents, but she was also the signer for the VCTC. We need to understand why such an agreement was ever negotiated by the VCTC, which is a Ventura County Agency, but which seems to violate Ventura County Zoning Ordinances, the Ventura County General Plan, and the SOAR initiative, which voters approved twice.

Please attend this meeting, which will affect 35 years of all of our futures. You needn’t speak, if that is uncomfortable for you, as a large presence will speak for all of us. A partnership with Sierra Northern could certainly benefit our Fillmore, and we would like to welcome them, but only if their business with us is based on mutual respect and cooperation.

A Concerned Citizen