FMW Solutions LLC has continued its successful run as the Colebrookdale Railroad’s strategic grant writing partner, securing the maximum award available in the latest round of federal BUILD funding: a $25 million grant, announced earlier this month, for one of the nation’s most distinctive railroad applicants.
FMW Solutions’ grant writing team supported a joint application by Montgomery County and the Redevelopment Authority of the County of Berks entitled “Clear the Line, Connect the Community: Pottstown Iron Bridge Multimodal Hub”, a $27 million capital project that will transform a constrained railroad interchange into more efficient and better-connected infrastructure for freight, passengers, workers, and the regional community between Pottstown and Boyertown, Pennsylvania.
The Colebrookdale Railroad Preservation Trust (“Colebrookdale”), a not-for-profit corporation, operates its own for-profit subsidiary freight railroad, the Eastern Berks Gateway Railroad (“EBGR”), a common carrier with a community purpose. EBGR and the Redevelopment Authority of Berks County collaborated with neighboring Montgomery County (Pennsylvania) to submit this BUILD application, which was one of only five awards classified as rail projects, and Colebrookdale tied for the largest rail award. Among the railroad applicants, Colebrookdale is the only heritage and tourist operation, competing successfully against a national field dominated by state transportation agencies and ports.
“A heritage railroad winning the maximum BUILD award in a national field of major public agencies is an extraordinary result,” stated Chris Homco, Project Grant Writer and VP of Operations for FMW Solutions. “We are proud to have transformed Colebrookdale’s ambitious vision into an investment-ready opportunity that competed on a national level, and thankful for the recognition from the US Department of Transportation.”
The project will improve the freight interchange with Norfolk Southern and implement 6,300 feet of new track and sidings, including 16 switches, permitting the railroad to build and switch trains off the national network and reduce costly delays and emissions.
In addition, a 500-foot, three-track train shed with a full complement of utilities to serve the freight and passenger train operations will be constructed, and a new training facility will support railway, mechanical, hospitality, apprenticeship, and trade programs in what the BUILD program describes as an “Area of Persistent Poverty.” New walkways, lighting, security, transit connections, and links to the Schuylkill River Trail will also improve access and pedestrian safety.
“Our relationship with Nathaniel Guest and his team at Colebrookdale extends back nearly a decade, and we are honored to continue aiding them with this important work,” explained FMW President Davidson Ward. “With this most recent BUILD Grant award, the total amount of funding that we have secured for this growing rail line exceeds $50 million.”
“The Colebrookdale is a different kind of railroad project: community-first, multi-county, state, federal, and privately supported, with one foot solidly grounded in heritage preservation and identity-building, and the other on the edge of the future. It takes a special kind of organization to keep up with us, and I’m happy FMW is one of them,” said Nathaniel Guest, Executive Director of the Colebrookdale Railroad Preservation Trust.
The project drew broad support from federal and state officials, PennDOT, regional authorities, municipalities, Norfolk Southern, freight customers, tourism organizations, chambers, foundations, and community partners.
RAILROADERS BUILDING AN AWARD-WINNING GRANT STRATEGY
FMW’s team integrated the project’s five components into one persuasive federal investment case backed by Colebrookdale’s $2,127,535 committed non-federal match. That combination of disciplined analysis, project packaging, stakeholder alignment, and narrative strategy provides a powerful reference for clients entering the next round of federal transportation grants.
Leaders described the broader investment as central to the region’s future, with U.S. Senator John Fetterman calling it an investment in “Pennsylvania’s future” and U.S. Representative Madeleine Dean celebrating Colebrookdale’s role as an economic and tourist engine for the region.
The result adds to FMW Solutions’ record of helping railroads and transportation partners, including Colebrookdale and Eastern Berks Gateway, compete successfully for complex discretionary grants. From opportunity assessment and benefit framing to narrative development, compliance, and submission strategy, FMW Solutions helps clients turn strong projects into fundable federal proposals.
ABOUT FMW
FMW Solutions LLC is a railroad consulting firm providing engineering, mechanical, operations, and project-development expertise to railroads, public agencies, and transportation partners. The firm helps clients plan, position, and deliver high-impact rail investments, including competitive federal and state grant pursuits.
For more information, visit fmwsolutions.com. To discuss your grant writing needs, contact Chris Homco.
ABOUT EASTERN BERKS GATEWAY RAILROAD
The Eastern Berks Gateway Railroad Company (reporting mark EBGX) is a Class III common carrier freight railroad operating an 8.6-mile corridor between Boyertown, Berks County, and Pottstown, Montgomery County, Pennsylvania, where it interchanges with Norfolk Southern.
A for-profit subsidiary of the not-for-profit Colebrookdale Railroad Preservation Trust, EBGR is a common carrier with a community purpose: alongside its freight service to the region’s manufacturers, the railroad’s operations sustain the Trust’s workforce development, apprenticeship, historic preservation, and heritage tourism programs in the Middle Schuylkill Valley.
This dual mission, moving freight for regional industry while rebuilding the economy and identity of the communities along its line, is the foundation on which the Pottstown Iron Bridge Multimodal Hub is built. For more information, visit colebrookdalerailroad.com.