photo by: Elvyn Jones

A crane attaches to one of the four passenger cars that were trucked this month from the Midland Railway tracks in Baldwin City to their owner in Indiana. The cars have been in Baldwin City for nearly two years but were never put in service.

Although Midland Railway has recently settled with out-of-state creditors, its popular tourist train out of Baldwin City remains idled this holiday season as the railroad continues legal battles with Baldwin City and a local nonprofit.

In another development, A.J. Stevens, CEO of the Midland Railway’s wholly owned for-profit subsidiary — variously called the Baldwin City & Southern, and the Leavenworth, Lawrence & Galveston Railroad Company — faces personal legal problems after being charged Nov. 5 in Douglas County District Court with a felony count of forgery.

Stevens — who is a former Baldwin City council member and last year ran unsuccessfully for a seat in the Kansas legislature — made his first court appearance on the charge Dec. 9 and was ordered to report to the Douglas County Jail for booking and was released on a $1,500 own recognizance bond. His next court appearance is set for Jan. 11.

The Douglas County District Attorney’s complaint alleges that Stevens on or about Jan. 13, 2020, improperly used a check from the Parkside Lane Homeowners Association in Baldwin City to create a payable to the Leavenworth, Lawrence & Galveston Railroad. The complaint does not state the amount of the check.

An attorney for Stevens did not return a phone message seeking comment for this article.

The Midland Railway has been a staple of the region’s tourism industry since the 1980s when it began offering historic train excursions between Baldwin City and a rural stop near Ottawa in Franklin County. But the future of the entity has been in question as legal and financial problems have mounted in recent years.

Earlier this month, four passenger rail cars that have been parked on the Midland tracks for nearly two years were loaded on semitrailers and taken to Indiana. Midland nor its for-profit arms never put the cars in service because tourist rides ended in March 2020 due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Midland’s ability to operate also has been hindered by the railroad’s legal dispute with the Santa Fe Trail Historical Association. That litigation, in which the historical association seeks to evict Midland from the historic depot in Baldwin City and collect $6,457 in alleged unpaid rent plus legal fees, is still being fought in Douglas County District Court.

Ben Butterworth, owner of the railcars, said it was about two years ago that he made a deal to sell the four cars to the Baldwin City railroad. He said he received some payments for the cars but then the deal fell apart.

Butterworth said he, Stevens and attorneys for both parties eventually worked out plans for him to take possession of the railcars. He transported the railcars back to Indiana at his expense, he said. Midland’s current business venture of parking unused coal cars on its tracks just south of Baldwin City made it impossible to move his railcars by rail, he said.

A negotiated settlement has been reached in another out-of-state lawsuit against Midland brought by Rail Events Inc. of Durango, Colo.. Rail Events owner Al Harper and his law firm confirmed that the La Plata County District Court in Colorado approved the settlement agreement last month; however, details of that settlement are under seal.

Rail Events filed three lawsuits in La Plata County District Court in August and September 2020, seeking to recover $660,000 plus interest and legal fees from Midland’s alleged failure to pay royalties and other fees associated with the “Polar Express” rides Midland offered during the 2018 and 2019 holiday seasons and “Peanuts”-related events offered in 2019 and 2020.

In contrast to the two out-of-state lawsuits, Midland continues to contest in Douglas County District Court a lawsuit Baldwin City filed against the railroad in December 2020. The city seeks $321,000 loaned to BC & Southern through a Kansas Department of Commerce program. The city alleges that the railroad failed to file required paperwork detailing how the money was spent.

Finally, Midland filed suit in June against the Elkhorn Valley Railcar Company, which is the legal name of the Kansas Belle Dinner Train that ran on Midland tracks until the start of the pandemic. Kansas Belle Dinner Train owner Bruce Eveland said Midland was seeking rent payment for parking his cars on Midland tracks since his contract with Midland expired in January. However, Eveland said he was unable to move the cars because of the coal cars parked south of Baldwin City.