OLD ORCHARD BEACH — Town officials are considering making Old Orchard Beach a year-round train stop, but must first weigh the costs.

Currently, the town has a seasonal stop on the Downeaster, from April to October.

Town Planner Jeffrey Hinderliter gave a presentation to the town council Tuesday night, and said officials have been working out the steps the town would need to take should it make the Downeaster stop year-round.

Hinderliter said he wanted feedback from the council before moving forward, as there are three items the town needs to consider.

The first item is keeping the platform clear of snow and ice.

The town’s train platform is equipped for radiant heat, “everywhere except where you absolutely must have it,” at the “exclusionary zone,” the two-foot yellow strip at the edge of the platform, said Hinderliter.

The town could look at two options, said Hinderliter. The first would be to install heating at the exclusionary strip, which would have an upfront cost of about $25,000, and long-term costs of heating and labor to make sure the heat has melted off all the snow and ice.

The town could also opt to have public works department staff clean off the strip. The strip, he said, is monitored by train officials, and anyone cleaning it would need to have specific training. He said the town could use a salt-brine mixture to help keep snow and ice melted. If the town opted for the manual option, cleaning the platform would, like snow removal on streets, have to be a high priority for the public works department, said Hinderliter.

Should the town decide to have a year-round stop, it would need to have a climate-controlled ticket machine accessible from 5-1 a.m., which could be located in a nearby retail store or restaurant, or the town could build a location for it.

The town would also have to keep a parking area cleared, said Hinderliter.

Hinderliter said that should the town commit to having a year-round stop, it would need to comply with all the requirements. They may be able to make a mistake once, but “the second time, we’ll be out of there, we won’t have year-round service,” said Hinderliter.

Train officials have said there are five people from Old Orchard Beach who ride the train daily in the winter, and Hinderliter said the town needed to consider whether Old Orchard Beach is a destination that would draw travelers in the winter.

Should the town move forward with providing a year-round train stop, Hinderliter said he would like to have it open for the 2012 season.

“I don’t want to seem like a Debbie Downer, or anything like that with this,” said Hinderliter, but added that the town needed to look at whether year-round service is a worthwhile option.

Councilor Michael Coleman asked if Hinderliter could negotiate fewer hours for the ticket machine, and Hinderliter said he would talk to train officials.

Councilor Robin Dayton asked if Hinderliter could get some concrete figures on how much it would cost for the manual option for snow removal, including training. Councilor Michael Tousignant said he wanted to move forward with plans for a year-round station.

“It’s been part of the plan since day one,” said Tousignant.

Tousignant asked if the town could opt to install a glass enclosure on the platform. Hinderliter said it could, but the exclusionary zone could not be enclosed.

Dayton asked if he could look into whether the town, if it chose to enclose the platform, could put an overhang on the roof above the exclusionary zone.

Coleman said there may be cuts to federal funding for trains in the future, and the town would need to consider the cost per rider for taxpayers, with so few year-round riders.

— Staff Writer Liz Gotthelf can be contacted at 282-1535, Ext. 325 or egotthelf@journaltribune.com.