The kids loved the handmade scenes and local history on display, but there may be no light at the end of the tunnel for the Quesnel Model Train Club. The group has never had so many members, but they have been told by their landlords that they have to move on down the track.
The group has been using a spare storefront space at West Park Mall, but it is no longer surplus real estate.
“We just got notified today that someone is looking at renting the spot we’re in because we have an outside entrance and they want us out in two weeks. We are hoping we can come to some kind of comprise. It took us almost a year to build what we got,” said club member Roy Zschiedrich.
The club has 15 members, which is more than double what they had when the last location evicted them in 2021, along with everyone else. They were in Maple Park Mall but that facility shut down completely.
West Park Mall, seeing the traffic it would bring into their shopping plaza, invited them in.
They were right about the draw the miniature trains could be. First, there are the club members who come at all hours and all days of the week behind closed doors to build the complex miniature landscapes on which their trains will run. These are toy trains, in the hands of children, but nearly professional level creations in the hands of the enthusiasts in the club. They build forests, towns, mountains and many other eye-pleasing scenes through which their trains roll.
On a regular basis, they open their doors and let the public in to see what they’ve been creating. The trains have a story, the scenery has a story, the tools of their artistic trade have a story.
That’s why Dallin Foley-Ziemer, a home learning parent with connections to many other home-school families, gathered a group together and brought them down to the space at the mall for a tour. The club members were excited to have so many children and their families in to enjoy their sets.
“As a home-learning family (my children are distance learners through a private Christian school) it is very important to me that my children are exposed to a variety of socialization opportunities and that they get to explore the many interesting and educational facilities Quesnel offers,” said Foley-Ziemer, who was a leader in arranging field trips this school year for the network of families who school their children at home. Indoor opportunities were especially valuable during the winter months.
“I believed that the local model train club would be a fun place to visit knowing that many of the younger children especially have an interest in machines and transportation,” said Foley Ziemer. “But I was also aware that some of the older children were learning about topics such as the history of the Canadian Pacific Railway and the Last Spike and that they would also benefit from such a field trip. I believed that visiting the model train club would be a wonderful opportunity to get the children interested in engineering and to learn about local and national history, as well as to introduce them to scale modeling. Many of the artistic kids were asking questions about how the various landscapes were constructed, and several of the eagle-eyed older children were having fun finding and pointing out replicas of local buildings. All the children were fully engaged and very much enjoyed the opportunity to visit the club and their many wonderful displays. I was very happy that the club was able to accommodate us, and as they scheduled our tour for a weekend it allowed us to invite some of our brick-and-mortar friends as well.”
Zschiedrich said it was something the club members eagerly looked forward to, and the visit was just as pleasant as they imagined.
“There were about 30 or so people, big and small, who attended and it lasted a good 45 minutes with both O-Scale and H O-scale trains along with a small N-Scale layout , all running complete with sound effects. It was enjoyed by all,” he said.
Too bad it might be the last tour of school children to get to see it.
“We build to suit the area, hoping for a semi permanent location, said Zschiedrich. “Our last one was for 12 years; this one looks like we aren’t going to make two. This’ll be the last one as we are getting older so the club will be folding and the layout will be destroyed.”
That is, unless a new home can be found. Zschiedrich said a potential new home would have to have heat, washroom, be accessible at all hours, and offer a footprint of 16x20 feet, or bigger.
“The mall is great because we need people traffic for donation purposes, but beggars can’t be choosers,” Zschiedrich said. “We are a not-for-profit society and rely on dues and donations to turn back into our layout. We all have our own trains and have hosted two spring meets, 2005 and 2012, bringing in other clubs and vendors from through out B.C.”
For any quick ideas on a new home, or to find out more about the club and its passion for railroad, look up the Quesnel Model Railway Club page on Facebook. They are typically open at the mall for public viewing on Saturdays from 12-5 p.m. but that could end soon.
READ MORE: Quesnel Model Railway Club looking for a new home
READ MORE: Quesnel Model Railway Club finds new home at West Park Mall