(rshsdepot) Mattoon, IL

[I95BERNIEW_@_aol.com]

From The Daily Eastern News.
 
Bernie Wagenblast
 
++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
 
Mattoon depot receives grant to update 90-year-old facilities

Krystal Moya/City Editor
Issue date: 10/13/08

After 90  years as a staple for the Coles County community, the Mattoon Depot 
will finally  begin its long-awaited restoration. 
 
Last week, U.S. Rep. Timothy Johnson, R-Urbana, announced the release of a  
federal grant of $973,372 to support the project. 
 
"Finally we can live up to the promise we made to Mattoon three years ago,"  
Johnson said. "It is a project that greatly deserved the attention of the  
federal government."
 
Initially, the city only intended to be awarded just under $500,000 to help  
aid the next phase of the restoration. 
 
The phase includes the reworking of the depot's electrical system and  
installing an elevator to adhere to state handicap laws and aid the Amtrak  
passengers in the three-floor train depot and lobby. 
 
The Coles County Historical Society was astonished to hear the grant would  
serve almost double the initial amount.
 
"We are thrilled that the process so long in the making can finally begin,"  
said Jerry Groniger, historical society vice president. "The way things fell  
into place is much better than expected."
 
Interest formed around the depot in 2001, when the historical society began  
Project Depot, a renovation plan that focused solely on the Illinois Central  
Railroad Depot in Mattoon. 
 
The plan involves several phases, the first of which was completed in 2002  
with the reconstruction of the depot's roof. 
 
Planning for federal aid to help the restoration began about three years  ago 
when over $2 million became available in federal grants through national  
transportation legislation. 
 
Since then, the Mattoon Depot and city officials have grappled with the  long 
and difficult application process. 
 
The historical society emphasized the hazards to public safety that the  
almost century old building's interior and exterior has the potential to bring. 
 
The application also stressed the importance of the depot as the heart of  
Mattoon's uptown redevelopment, aiding the business districts renovations in  
heart and community wholeness. 
 
This was in addition to the depot's historical potential as a museum and in  
railway advancement through the addition of high-speed rail lines.
 
The station and depot, completed in 1918, still serves as a working Amtrak  
passenger station. 
 
The depot was also placed on the National Registrar of Historical Places in  
2002.
 
Ridership from the station has grown in the last year, with ticket sales  
increasing by 68 percent in 2007 alone. 
 
It serves roughly 30,000 passengers and takes in six Amtrak passenger  trains 
a day.
 
"Ridership has doubled in Mattoon, and will continue to grow," said Jackie  
Record, a head of the "Project Depot Committee. "Donors expect their money to 
be  put to good use."
 
The depot in its final analysis was estimated to cost $130,000 at the day  of 
its debut. 
 
Now, almost half a million dollars is intended for the renovation of the  
electrical phase of the building, a sum that does not include the subsequent  
three phases.
 
The project still includes phases three, four and five. 
 
Phase three focuses on the rehabilitation of the exterior fixtures of the  
depot. 
 
Windows and tuck points in the brick masonry will be refurbished to update  
both insulation issues and aesthetics on the building's façade. 
 
Phase four includes gutting the interior, with full rework on the ceilings,  
floors and woodwork. 
 
Phase five, the final phase, is the ultimate goal for the historical  
society. 
 
"In phase five, we hope to develop a museum about the history of Coles  
County," Record said. "It will see Coles County through the eyes of the railway,  
which is a significant part of the county's history."
 
The announcement of the grant followed the House's passage of the Amtrak  
reauthorization bill, which would allow Amtrak to improve safety and grow to  
include high-speed rail lines. 
 
The passing of the bill shows the immense pressure on Congress to support  
more public transportation throughout the nation, Johnson said.
 
The Illinois Central Railroad line has been eyed as the future site of a  
high-speed rail line. 
 
The historical society hopes the renovation of the depot will help  stimulate 
the growth of Mattoon and the rail system.
 
"Mattoon owes its existence to the railway system," Groniger said. "I hope  
we can continue to support its advances."
 
The new old depot
 
Renovations to the Mattoon train depot will include:
 
• Reconstruction of depot roof
• Three-story elevator to aid  
handicapped passengers
• Touch-up of exterior fixtures, 
including  windows and masonry
• Rework of interior ceilings, floors and woodwork
•  Museum about the history of Coles County
 
Krystal Moya can be reached at 581-7945 or at _ksmoya_@_eiu.edu_ 
(mailto:ksmoya_@_eiu.edu) .
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End of RSHSDepot Digest V1 #1788
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The Railroad Station Historical Society maintains a database of existing
railroad structures at: http://www.rrshs.org