(rshsdepot) Mattoon, IL

[I95BERNIEW_@_aol.com]

From the Journal Gazette.
 
Bernie Wagenblast
 
+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
 
Mattoon leaders agree to let bids for depot work 
September 18 2008 -  Journal Gazette; Mattoon, Ill. 
 

By Herb Meeker 
 
MATTOON — City commissioners approved a local bid letting for the railroad  
depot restoration project Tuesday but kept their fingers on the airbrake if  
project costs prove too high. 
 
The resolution for seeking fair and open bidding standards would authorize  
the city to advance funds for all approved pay requests from contractors and  
subcontractors. But Mattoon City Attorney and Treasurer Preston Owen said the  
city will hold checks to make sure the Illinois Department of Transportation  
reimburses the municipality from earmarked federal funds. 
 
Those funds could total more than $2 million from a 2005 commitment in  
federal transportation legislation. 
 
“This is federal money managed by the state and it cannot be ‘hijacked,’”  
said Owen. 
 
He explained that holding the city’s check for 30 days to coordinate  
reimbursement “would minimize the time the city is out of pocket” on the money.  But 
the total cost of the bid will determine if the city moves ahead on the  
commitment. 
 
The vote for the bid letting resolution was approved by Mayor Dave Cline  and 
city commissioners Joe McKenzie, Rick Hall, Randy Ervin and David Schilling. 
 
The bid letting would cover interior and exterior repairs to the  90-year-old 
brick building, which is currently an Amtrak station averaging more  than 
2,500 passengers per month, city officials said. It would also cover  
installation of a public elevator. The only access now to the passenger lobby on  the 
track level is via three levels of staircases. 
 
The community was required to provide 20 percent of the costs for the  
project. That has been offered through work completed already on a roof repair  
several years ago to stop water damage to the structure and through a private  
fundraiser by supporters of the Depot Project. 
 
The city partnered with the Coles County Historical Society to save the old  
depot building. And a share of local funding will pay for a local history 
museum  in the old depot and possibly commercial space for lease on the top level 
of the  building on Broadway Avenue. 
 
“This is a step in the right direction,” said Jackie Record, who has headed  
the depot committee and coordinated the fundraising. “It has taken much 
longer  than expected.” 
 
Over the past two years, city officials have been frustrated by project  
delays related to federal funding politics and navigating through the  application 
process with different federal agencies. 
 
 



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The Railroad Station Historical Society maintains a database of existing
railroad structures at: http://www.rrshs.org
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End of RSHSDepot Digest V1 #1778
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The Railroad Station Historical Society maintains a database of existing
railroad structures at: http://www.rrshs.org