Quote:
Originally Posted by Ned.B
It was originally assumed that the bus station could be rearranged or that the air rights could be developed. Neither of these proved possible or acceptable for CDOT. And the park that fills over 50% of the rest of the site was Alderman required.
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We don't know that the bus station will
never get developed - but it was paid for with Federal money, and the Feds don't take too kindly when you tear down brand new facilities just a few years after they open. They might ask for their money back, as they did for the 63rd St branch of the Green Line in 1997 when the city decided to tear that down*.
As always, the problem is the dysfunctional relationship between agencies - in this case, CDOT and Amtrak. CDOT could have held off on the bus terminal if they were sure Amtrak was going to redevelop the garage, but Amtrak has failed to fish or cut bait on Union Station development for literally decades, so I don't blame CDOT for grabbing the Federal money while it could and building the bus terminal as a capstone for the Loop Link bus lanes project. It's actually a pretty elegant facility and way better than a parking lot or more underused park/plaza space.
As Mr. D speculated awhile back, the bus terminal site is plenty of space for a second tower that could include an enclosed bus terminal in its base. Maybe in the next development cycle, or the one after that, once the terminal has passed the 12 or 15 year mark. It's probably good to let this area grow over time, instead of putting up as many blue-glass towers as possible, all at once...
* = CTA ended up cutting a deal to reuse the Federally-funded steel somewhere else in the city, but they never did and it still sits rusting in a yard.