RAIL: Leaving Cd'A behind

Coeur d'Alene ready to compete? For businesses and jobs? Not anymore. Not after you let that one remaining rail spur get yanked out of town. Now you will never be able to attract the kind of manufacturing, distribution and other businesses that have been drawn to Moses Lake, Quincy, the Tri Cities and the West Plains.

Those places have exploded with new business growth and hundreds of permanent jobs (not just short-term construction jobs) in large part because they had the necessary infrastructure in place. I only hope that Post Falls can learn from Coeur d'Alene's mistake and preserve its portion of the former Coeur d'Alene rail spur. Doing so would be a major key to attracting future commerce, and future jobs that pay better than what's offered by the tourist mecca on the lake.

BRUCE KELLY

Post Falls