City of Racine has been awarded a $950,000 to restore a train depot and to acquire and demolish blighted buildings near the depot.
The City of Racine has been awarded a $950,000 Economic Development Initiative (EDI) from the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development. The funds be used to help the city restore the dilapidated west platform of the historic Chicago-Northwestern Railroad depot and to acquire and demolish blighted buildings in the 1300 block of State Street.
The rail depot project includes restoration of the platform to the same condition as the platform on the east side of the railroad tracks. The west platform was not previously restored because the city did not own the west platform at that time.
The properties to be acquired are across from the existing bus Transit Center. Once the dilapidated buildings are acquired and razed, the cleared land will provide a site for transit-oriented, mixed-use redevelopment.
The EDI projects will complement the reconstruction of State Street, which is scheduled for 2010. The State Street reconstruction will include pedestrian amenities similar to improvements previously made on Main Street in Downtown Racine. The objective of the project is not only to improve the appearance of the corridor but also to foster development of employment opportunities along State Street, encourage reuse and redevelopment of historic properties and provide safe access to the Julian Thomas Elementary School and other public attractions, city officials say.
“It is our objective not only to improve the appearance of the State Street Corridor with this project but to spur additional private redevelopment in the area both by existing property owners and by new developers,” said Racine Mayor John Dickert. “This grant marks another significant milestone for the revitalization of the State Street Corridor.”
