The Emanuel Administration has yet to secure needed funding for a big project to update Chicago's Union Station. Now it's up to the Trump Administration to supply a needed loan.
Greg Hinz reports: "Mayor Rahm Emanuel is getting ready for his first big ask from President-elect Donald Trump: a low-interest federal loan of up to $1 billion to modernize and expand Chicago's Union Station."
According to Hinz, Mayor Emanuel has been working hard to advocate for the project in Washington, D.C. The effort has also enlisted members of Congress from the state of Illinois, including Sen. Dick Durbin, D-Ill., and former Sen. Mark Kirk, R-Ill., who "pushed legislation to ensure that the project would qualify for a Railroad Rehabilitation and Improvement Financing loan."
So far, however, the "President Barack Obama's Department of Transportation agreed only to sign an Emerging Projects Agreement under which 'Chicago can closely work with USDOT with the ultimate goal of seeking' the grant," reports Hinz.
If the term "Emerging Projects Agreement" (EmPA) seems unfamiliar, that's because it's only ever been granted one other project—the PATH tunnel project connecting New Jersey and New York under the Hudson River.
FULL STORY: Emanuel wants $1 billion from Trump for Union Station
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City of Albany
UCLA Lewis Center for Regional Policy Studies
Mpact (formerly Rail~Volution)
Chaddick Institute at DePaul University
City of Piedmont, CA
Great Falls Development Authority, Inc.
HUDs Office of Policy Development and Research