When I was in junior high I recall hearing a guy talking about having lunch at the Red Fox (now Dakota Farms) on the east end of Main Street…he saw diesel spewing from one of the locomotives at the tanks behind what is now the vacant McDonald’s building, and hurried over to tell some railroad workers who were sitting in the diner. Their response? “We’re on break.” That pretty much cemented my opinion of unions, even at a young age. It’s also what I think of every time I hear talk about the lake of diesel sitting under my home town.

I also remember that shortly after we had moved into our new workspace in the Mandan Law Enforcement Center, we were told we couldn’t go downstairs or use the elevator because the diesel fumes were toxic. That immediately reminded me of the anecdote I’d heard years before, and I realized that it was part of a deeper issue. Sadly, much of Mandan is paying the price for the damage caused by the railroad by losing some of its more historic features.

It would be neat to see new life breathed into buildings such as the Showboat. A dollar theater would be really cool, as long as it didn’t become a place for parents to stash their unruly junior high kids (ie, Thunder Alley) and expect someone else to babysit them. One of Mandan’s key features is its history downtown area, and I hope it doesn’t disappear completely in the wake of the diesel aftermath.