Apartment complex proposed for PAR-owned land in Dover

From Foster's Daily Democrat:

Foster's Daily Democrat wrote:A developer wants to demolish two existing railroad related buildings and replace them with two four-story apartment buildings with 108 units near the city’s Transportation Center.
. . .
The existing buildings, which are used for a railroad dispatch and maintenance facility, are currently owned by Boston and Maine Corporation, known as Boston and Maine Railroad.

The properties are located on the other side of the railroad tracks near the city’s Transportation Center.
. . .
[Dover’s assistant city manager] does not anticipate any issues with having the project as close as it is to the train tracks.

That’s particularly true, Parker said, “when the developer is buying the land from the railroad itself, so clearly they’re aware of the environment of where the site is.”

Read more at: https://www.fosters.com/news/20200908/1 ... d-in-dover

I'n excited for the scandalous news story about residents of these apartments complaining about train noise.

And the fumes, don't forget the fumes!

"I didn't know there were tracks there."

Yep...just like the Brickbottom Apartments in Somerville, Ma. Used to get calls from them all the time about the BET switcher making moves. Got so bad,
the MBTA had to get involved. They used to complain about the reefers in Yard 8. On and on.

Do they still have a crew working out of there? I can remember delivering to them back in the 90's, out behind Hampshire Controls on Grove street.

The Track Department works out of one of those buildings. The former Carpenter Shop is an occasional stop for engines low on water. I remember taking photos in the late '60s of a carpenter crew refurbishing the floor of a boxcar.

If they sell that land and buildings I'm wondering if they will put up some kind of building over in Dover yard for that crew to work out of.

Isn't there already a crew trailer at the yard?

Yes, but just enough for the PAR/NHN crews. Adding MOW will most likely require a larger trailer, or additional trailer.

If the sale goes through, where the trackies end up may be a moot point.
I'd suggest putting a trailer back at 256. Plenty of room to pile stuff, access to the mainline and Portsmouth branch, and neighbors who seem to keep a pretty good eye on things.

The plan to do something with the property seems to be moving forward. I went off the reservation today and noticed that the shop buildings are indeed gone, the property is a barren lot. Just speculating, but it must be a recent development as the machines that did the deed are still there. I'm surprised no one else has noted this.
MECFAN; You could be right, the signal department already has a fenced in area over in the old yard to store equipment, gate and signal parts and such. It's way down on the west end of the yard. It would make sense for the trackies to get their own trailer and move in there too.

The buiildings there were removed at least three months ago. The center of the empty lot was covered with fresh ballast. I would expect that there are some-haz-mat issues theren after maybe a hundred years of railroad use. With several existing apartment and condo complexes nearby, trespassers crossing the main line west of the Amtak station is already an issue. Some sort of high grade fencing will be necessary to address the problem from the station to near the Cocheco River Bridge.