All it takes is the owner of the railway and the City of Manitou Springs to sign an agreement; but, naturally there's a lot else that has to be in place before that happens.

Oklahoma Publishing Co. is the parent company of the Broadmoor Hotel in Colorado Springs, who owns the Pike's Peak Cog Railway, and its CEO says the reopening would cost around $100 million, because it would include a complete rebuild of the railroad.  The company plans to fund this itself with the exception of some tax funds from City of Manitou.

If the current discussions continue to evolve, this project could start as soon as August, with the reopening estimated in May 2020.

Last November, the owners closed the train for maintenance, then after a good look at the situation, the CEO of the Broadmoor determined it had "run its useful life," and said a study would begin to determine whether it should be rebuilt or closed forever.  Despite all of the concerns and criticism, it appears that statement was 100% true.

Before its closing last year, the Cog had run yearly since 1889, and recently took about 300,000 passengers annually from Manitou Springs to the top of Pike's Peak - an 8.9-mile ascension.

The "complete rebuild" would be truly that, including demolition and replacement of the depot in Manitou where passengers board the train, work to alleviate traffic congestion around the attraction's entrance, and a Pike's Peak Cog Railway Museum.

Here is more information on this topic.

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