Elmhurst Train Station Pushed Back Again

ELMHURST, IL – Elmhurst is delaying the proposed new Metra train station project to 2026.

Late last year, the city said it may go out to bid for the project in June. Then it pushed that back to December.

But city officials now say the work will be done in 2026 and 2027.

The latest cost estimate is $47.3 million, which is up from $44 million in January. In mid-2020, officials estimated the Metra station's costs at $25 million.

Grants from the federal government and other entities are expected to cover three-fourths of the costs.

Elmhurst would pick up the remaining $12 million. The city said it would go into debt and pay back the money from a downtown tax increment financing district, or TIF.

At Tuesday's City Council meeting, Alderman Mike Brennan asked whether the grants had a termination date.

"We've been talking about this for a long time," he said. "It's no one's fault. There are a lot of complications that we're dealing with."

City Manager Jim Grabowski confirmed deadlines exist for spending the money. But he said the city has been working with the Chicago Metropolitan Agency on Planning, which oversees most of the grants.

He said the city's engineering firm for the project has a good relationship with the agency, so Elmhurst has been able to "maneuver" around the deadlines.

"There is a portion of our grants that went on a deferred list, but they assured us before that happened that when we are ready, they will be able to shift other dollars, perhaps some other projects that are delayed, so that we have the dollars that we have been promised."

During public meetings, officials have indicated some uncertainty about the train station project as the costs have risen.

The station project is expected to include warming shelters, a pedestrian tunnel, a platform reconstruction and surface parking improvements.

The current station, which is considered undersized for its ridership, is the fourth busiest in the Metra system. It was built in the 1960s and updated in the 1980s.