From Ann Arbor.com
Big transportation changes are on the way for the stretch of North University Avenue between Fletcher and Church streets.
The University of Michigan Board of Regents approved plans for a $4.5 million Central Campus transit center at its monthly meeting Thursday.
Read more:
http://www.annarbor.com/news/university-of-michigan-central-campus-transit-center-planned/
From The Lansing State Journal
EAST LANSING – The city of East Lansing will not receive a $27 million federal stimulus grant officials wanted to build a transit center.
But the project isn’t dead.
The city, along with Michigan State University
and the Capital Area Transportation Authority, will forge ahead with plans to redevelop the 35-year-old Amtrak station at 1240 S. Harrison Road.
Now, though, they’ll have to implement the project in phases – and they still plan to reach out to the federal government
.
The city has requested $7 million in federal appropriations for the first phase, said Lori Mullins, the city’s community and economic development administrator. Any appropriations that are being considered now would be for next fiscal year.
It would include a new train station, improved parking and circulation on the site and a new platform. Later phases call for a parking structure, relocating MSU facilities from the site to campus and improved CATA facilities, Mullins said.
From The State News
The city of East Lansing will not receive the $25 million it requested from a Transportation Investment Generating Economic Recovery, or TIGER, grant to renovate the Amtrak station on Harrison Road.
The grant would have upgraded the Amtrak facility and created a public parking structure, a project which city officials view as essential to redeveloping the Trowbridge corridor.
“(It) would have been great not only for the region but also for the Trowbridge corridor,” Councilmember Roger Peters said.
Read more:
http://statenews.com/index.php/article/2010/02/el_denied_25m_grant_to_improve_rail_station
From The Ann Arbor Chronicle
Chris Leinberger was blunt in his assessment of the proposed Fuller Road Station: If the parking structure is built as proposed, in 20 years it will be torn down.
Speaking at a forum on transit-oriented development, Leinberger – a University of Michigan professor of practice in urban planning – said current plans for the joint UM/city of Ann Arbor project do a good job of incorporating different kinds of transit, from bikes and buses to perhaps, eventually, commuter rail.
But Leinberger criticized the project for taking some of Ann Arbor’s most valuable land and turning it into something that won’t generate revenue for the city. He told Eli Cooper, the city’s transportation program manager, that “whoever’s in your position 20 years from now will tear it down.”
Monday’s forum, held at the UM Art & Architecture building on north campus, was organized by members of the WALLY Coalition and the 208 Group, among others, to focus on local transit-oriented development efforts. Moderated by local developer Peter Allen, the event included presentations by Cooper, Richard Murphy of the city of Ypsilanti and Shea Charles, Howell’s city manager.
Read more:
http://annarborchronicle.com/2010/02/17/transit-forum-critiques-fuller-road-station/
From the Detroit Free Press
The Detroit News and the Detroit Free Press are both reporting Detroit is expected to receive a $25 million grant on Wednesday, Feb. 17, 2010 for the proposed M-1 light rail project along Woodward Avenue within the city limits. The grant is intended for environmental studies needed to begin the project.
Detroit Free Press article:
http://www.freep.com/article/20100216/NEWS01/100216045/1320/25M-grant-for-Woodward-rail-plan
The Detroit News article:
http://detnews.com/article/20100217/METRO01/2170363#ixzz0foDUN9Mq