Passenger Trains > Progress On WMATA New York Avenue Station

I took the MARC Brunswick Line from DC\'s Union Station last Tuesday (October 15). Work on Metro\'s New York Avenue infill station is well underway. Land has been cleared and construction of the bridge across Florida Avenue has begun.

Part of the fascination with this project is the funding. $34 million is coming from local government (District of Columbia), $25 million from federal funding and $25 million from private sources.

http://www.wmata.com

Click on Inside Metro and then click on Expansion Plans.

twinbrook wrote:

> Part of the fascination with this project is the funding. $34
> million is coming from local government (District of Columbia),
> $25 million from federal funding and $25 million from private
> sources.

Sounds like what Portland did with its Red Line
to the airport. Except I\'m not sure how much
local money was in that. I sort of recall that
the local money got voted down, so it was done
with only federal and private money. The private
money was cajoled by offering long-term leases to
developable land near the right-of-way. But my
memory is fuzzy, F40PHR231 or others would have
better details.

And with all that, the "Cascades station," which
is the station on the line where much of the
development was to have happened, isn\'t open yet
because nothing has been built there yet. For
all the use the leasees are making of the lease,
Tri-Met appears to have gotten the better bargain,
at least in the early years. That area is still
a relatively pleasant, open park-like strip where
one can go and foam planes, if the trains are slow
that day.

What was the bait to lure in the private money in
WMATA\'s case?

The District of Columbia government is apparently trying to transform New York Avenue into a high-tech corridor. I would also not be surprised if support infrastructure (hotels, restaurants) for the new convention center were also a factor.

In any event, I\'m impressed that DC has managed to lure so much private investment in WMATA. It\'s a far cry from the good old days of 80% Federal and 20% local funding that are unlikely to return.