Doug, you say,
"I do not think the CHS has ulterior motives".
Formula =
(a) Local CHS director has personal problems with Loop operators (even though Loop proceeds pay his bills).
(b) Local CHS director drafts letters to his superiors suggesting business relations with the current operators be reconsidered (severed).
(c) Local CHS director assumes equipment and staff remain.
(d) Local CHS director belongs to local special interest group that is interested in 40% of what the Loop makes. That 40% will be masked as "local preservation".
(e) Local CHS director tells locals he's exiting CHS after this season.
He's very smrt if it all works his way - money for nothing, train for free (actually paid for by new operator and state tax dollars). Gosh, I wish I had a train and millions of dollars to donate to this so that the local special interest groups could slander me, complain about the train, then force me out when they feel like it.
Something about this just doesn't smell good. Smells like a very rotten ulterior motive.