Park district agrees to many Tilden steam train demands but dispute chugs on

"The miniature railway, which winds through a custom-grown redwood forest and clusters of mini frontier-town buildings, has been a defining feature of the Berkeley Hills since 1952. The trains are sized-down, functional replicas of the steam locomotives that once connected the entire country. At just $4 a ride, this anachronistic museum-amusement-park mashup is hugely popular, drawing an estimated 250,000 visitors each year."

"Ellen Thomsen, who heads the Redwood Valley Railway Corporation that owns and operates the steam train, announced the situation publicly during a meeting of the Board of Directors of the East Bay Regional Park District in October. She said that she was hesitant to make any investments in the railway's future while negotiations for a new contract dragged on, and that she was considering leaving the park altogether."

"Negotiations have been ongoing for more than seven years, with months-long stretches of no apparent progress in the last two years, according to emails and lease drafts that Berkeleyside obtained through a California Public Records Act request. Since at least July 2024, Thomsen has been telling EBRPD staff that the railway would have to leave the park."

Tilden Park's miniature steam railway, a beloved Berkeley Hills attraction since 1952, faced closure when its operator Ellen Thomsen publicly announced a lease dispute with the East Bay Regional Park District in October. The railway, featuring functional replicas of historic locomotives winding through a custom redwood forest and frontier-town buildings, draws approximately 250,000 visitors annually at $4 per ride. Negotiations for a new contract had stalled for over seven years with minimal progress in recent years. Following Thomsen's public announcement, the park district reversed its position on her long-standing demands. In November, park district management agreed to restructure the financial arrangement, reducing the railway's rent obligation to just 2% of sales with additional maintenance fee adjustments, resolving the impasse.

Read at www.berkeleyside.org