Officials broke ground this morning for the new Citilink Baker Street Transfer Facility.
Here are some talking points distributed to the media:
Citilink Transit Center Groundbreaking 8/29/11 – Talking Points
History – Citilink initiated efforts to develop an improved Downtown Transit Station in 2002. A site selection process identified a parking lot on Barr Street between Washington & Jefferson as optimum; however, after years of effort and preliminary design, inability to acquire sufficient property proved to be an insurmountable barrier. Other options were explored and the decision
was made to use property owned by Citilink at Baker & Calhoun; which had served as the south transit terminal several years ago. The facility was redesigned and received federal & local approvals. A construction contract for $4.4 Million has been awarded to Hamilton Hunter Builders. We anticipate completion by September, 2012.Funding – Federal Transit Administration (FTA) grant funding to cover 80% of the cost of planning, designing and constructing this facility has been accumulated over the years. Local share funding of 20% has been and will continue to be from Citilink capital reserves; which includes proceeds from the sale of the Barr Street property and the public parking garage at the corner of Calhoun & Jefferson. These funds are available for capital improvements only and cannot be spent to subsidize operating expenses.
Energy/Environment Savings – Many environmental friendly features have been incorporated to help contain ongoing operating expenses. While we do not intend to spend the funds necessary to obtain official LEED certification the project includes; Geothermal heating/cooling with radiant heating in the flooring, lots of windows & skylights for ambient lighting, state of the art efficient lighting , energy controls, low maintenance structures & landscaping, etc.
Amenities – The project plans call for a 2,700-square-foot building equipped with indoor restrooms, an information center and a drivers lounge. The property will also contain bus bays covered with large canopies to protect waiting passengers from rain and snow. Passengers and neighbors will be able to purchase bus passes, speak with customer service staff, pick up maps &Â schedules, wait in comfort inside or out, use the restroom, receive electronic messages regarding on-time status of buses and other notifications, enjoy the community park area, listen to musicians, eat lunch from one of the food vendors or vending machines, etc.
Connectivity – One of the benefits of the Baker Street site is the proximity to the train station. When efforts to encourage passenger rail to return to downtown Fort Wayne are successful we will be right next door. Discussions are underway to encourage Greyhound/intercity bus service to operate out of our new facility and several parking spaces will be dedicated for passenger drop off/pick up for taxi, Countilink, social service, kiss & ride, etc. Bike racks and other amenities are incorporated into the design as well as pedestrian friendly features.
Downtown Revitalization – Citilink is pleased to be a partner in efforts to invest in Downtown Fort Wayne development. Design features were selected to compliment surrounding architecture; red brick to match surrounding buildings, canopies reminiscent of Barr Street Market and the train station, two story building frontage, pouring patterns in sidewalk, decorative lighting, etc. With ridership at nearly two million passenger trips per year, Citilink will bring over 5,000 passengers/day to the station – adding vitality to the surrounding neighborhood.
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