east st. louis high speed rail multimodal station

East St. Louis High Speed Rail

Multimodal Station

East St. Louis, Illinois

TIGER Discretionary Planning Grant

St. Clair County, Illinois

Local Government Agency

TIGER Planning Grant Requested: $2.4 Million

EAST ST. LOUIS HSR MULTIMODAL STATION – TIGER 2014 PAGE | 1

TABLE OF CONTENTS 1.0 Executive Summary............................................................................................... 2

2.0 Project Description ................................................................................................ 3

2.1 Project Location ................................................................................................. 3

2.2 History ................................................................................................................ 6

2.3 Future Development ........................................................................................... 8

2.4 Project Status ..................................................................................................... 9

2.4 Connections with Existing Transportation Infrastructure .................................. 10

2.5 Proposed Improvements .................................................................................. 11

3.0 Project Partnerships ............................................................................................ 12

4.0 Project Funding ................................................................................................... 13

5.0 Primary Selection Criteria .................................................................................... 14

5.1 Long Term Outcomes ...................................................................................... 14

5.1.1 State of Good Repair ................................................................................. 14

5.1.2 Economic Competitiveness ....................................................................... 14

5.1.3 Quality of Life ............................................................................................. 16

5.1.4 Environmental Sustainability ...................................................................... 17

5.1.5 Safety ........................................................................................................ 18

5.2 Job Creation & Economic Stimulus .................................................................. 19

6.0 Secondary Selection Criteria ............................................................................... 19

6.1 Innovation ........................................................................................................ 19

6.2 Partnership ....................................................................................................... 20

6.2.1 Jurisdictional & Stakeholder Collaboration ................................................ 21

6.2.2 Disciplinary Integration .............................................................................. 21

7.0 Benefit-Cost Analysis .......................................................................................... 23

8.0 Project Schedule ................................................................................................. 26

9.0 Federal Wage Rate Requirement ........................................................................ 27

10.0 National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) Requirement .................................... 27

11.0 Environmentally Related Federal, State & Local Actions .................................... 28

12.0 Confidential Business Information ....................................................................... 28

13.0 Letters of Support & Supplemental Information ................................................... 28


1.0 Executive Summary

St. Clair County respectfully submits this

application for TIGER Discretionary Grant

funding in the amount of $3 million for a

Planning Grant for the East St. Louis High

Speed Rail (HSR) Multimodal Station. The

proposed station is located along the Chicago to

St. Louis HSR (CHISL HSR) project currently in

design and construction. The CHISL HSR

project is being managed and developed by the

Illinois Department of Transportation (IDOT),

Union Pacific Railroad (UP), Terminal Railroad

Association (TRRA), and other supporting

project team members and stakeholders. The

CHISL HSR completion date is projected to be

in early 2017. The CHISL HSR project will pass

through East St. Louis to cross into Missouri via

the MacArthur Bridge. The proposed East St.

Louis HSR Multimodal Station site is

conveniently located at the intersection of the

HSR alignment and the MetroLink tracks in

Downtown East St. Louis. MetroLink is the

Metropolitan St. Louis region’s light-rail

passenger system that connects communities,

employment centers, medical facilities,

educational institutions, recreational and

entertainment venues in St. Clair County, Illinois

and St. Louis County, Missouri. MetroLink 2013

system ridership exceeds 17 million boardings.

The East St. Louis HSR Multimodal Station will

connect all modes of transportation – passenger

train, MetroLink, bus, air, passenger vehicle,

pedestrians, and bicycles – in one convenient

location.

The East St. Louis HSR Multimodal Station restores passenger train service to East St.

Louis that enhances transportation choices and provides an affordable transportation

connection to the Metropolitan St. Louis region to Chicago, Dallas, and Los Angeles via

Amtrak for the residents of East St. Louis, St. Clair County, and Southwestern Illinois.

This narrative shows that the proposed East St. Louis HSR Multimodal Station will

satisfy the requirements for both the long term outcomes and the secondary selection criteria for the TIGER Discretionary Grant.

East St. Louis HSR Multimodal

Station

• TIGER Planning Grant

• $2.4 Million Requested

• Applicant – St. Clair County

• Project Website – www.co.st-clair.il.us/departments/econDev/HSR

• Creates a truly multimodal station

in Metropolitan St. Louis region

• Continues FHWA and IDOT $710

million investment in transportation

investments in MetroEast region

• Creates new jobs in an

economically distressed area

• Spurs economic redevelopment

• Reduces vehicle congestion,

emissions, and dependence on oil

• Enhances IDOT’s Chicago to St. Louis High Speed Rail Project


2.0 Project Description

As part of the CHISL HSR project, the East St. Louis HSR Multimodal passenger station

links East St. Louis, St. Clair County and the greater metropolitan St. Louis region with

the greater Chicago region. These valuable connections increase job opportunities,

foster economic development, strengthen the East St. Louis community, and provide a

new transportation alternative for the greater St. Louis metropolitan region. The

proposed station enhances the intermodal connectivity of Downtown East St. Louis

including the surrounding St. Clair County and St. Louis region. The station connects

existing modes of transportation (passenger vehicles, bicycles, pedestrians,

MetroBuses, and MetroLink – the St. Louis region light-rail system) to Amtrak HSR

passenger service.

The East St. Louis HSR Multimodal Station works in conjunction with existing

infrastructure, including the Casino Queen development, the roadway network,

MetroLink facilities, and the Eads Bridge. The addition of the HSR station strengthens

existing partnerships between St. Clair Country, the City of East St. Louis, IDOT, the

Federal Railroad Administration (FRA), Metro, and private businesses.

The East St. Louis HSR Multimodal Station will work with the City of East St. Louis and

the Mid-America Medial District (MAMD) as well as private businesses and developers

to redevelop vacant parcels of land in Downtown East St. Louis and surrounding the

station to create a transit-orientated development (TOD). TOD is not in itself a type of

development or real estate product. Rather, it is a method of creating neighborhoods or

districts that are anchored by transit stations and are specifically designed to encourage

transit accessibility and reduced automobile usage. TOD typically contains a mix of

land uses and interconnected circulation systems to emphasize multiple modes of

transportation and integrated within the community to enhance livability thus

contributing to a sustainable urban land use and development pattern. East St. Louis

has successfully been utilizing MetroLink for the past two decades and has a successful

TOD at Parsons Place at the Emerson Park MetroLink station. The proposed station

will enhance and expand the transportation options as well as the educational, retail,

medical, tourist, and employment opportunities.

2.1 Project Location

While the proposed East St. Louis HSR Multimodal Station is in the early conceptual

planning stages, the IDOT CHISL HSR project prepared an Alternatives Screening draft

report. This report evaluated six locations within the St. Clair County area that could be

developed into a HSR passenger station. The screening criteria included an evaluation

of each site for the following: Location within the Community, Accessibility and Parking,

Site Assessment, and Railroad Characteristics.


The site that ranked the highest in the screening criteria is located in the City of East St.

Louis, west of Interstate 55/64, along Riverpark Drive. This site is located at the

intersection of the CHISL HSR tracks and the MetroLink light-rail tracks. The East St.

Louis HSR Multimodal Station is located at the nexus of roadway, rail, and river access.

The site is conveniently accessible from Interstate 55/64, which has a current average

daily traffic (ADT) volume of 57,400 vehicles per day (vpd), Illinois Route 15, which has

a current ADT of 12,000 vpd, and Illinois Route 3, which has a current ADT of 27,300

vpd. The site also has direct access from the Eads Bridge, which accommodates

vehicular, MetroLink, pedestrian, and bicycle traffic. The Eads Bridge currently carries

over 11,400 vpd. The Federal Highway Administration (FHWA) and IDOT have

invested over $710 million for the construction of the Stan Musial Veterans’ Memorial

Bridge and the relocation of Illinois Route 3. St. Clair County Transit District (SCCTD),

IDOT, Distressed Communities Economic Opportunity (DCEO), Southwestern Illinois

Development Authority (SWIDA), Bunge-SCF, and the Casino Queen Hotel and Casino

have joined together to fund and construction roadway, sidewalk, and other

transportation infrastructure projects in the River Bridge District in East St. Louis to

improve access within the area. The public-private partnership project totals over $5.3

million.

The site is located approximately

0.3 miles from the Casino Queen

Hotel and Casino. The Casino

Queen is a 40,000 square feet

casino which features games such

as slots, video poker, blackjack,

craps, poker, and baccarat. In

addition to being featured as one

of the top five casinos in Casino

Player’s Magazine’s annual list of

the loosest slots for more than ten

years. The Casino Queen

development also offers four restaurants as well as over 150 hotel rooms and a 140-

space RV park.


The site is also located approximately

0.75 miles from the Malcom W. Martin

Memorial Park. The 34.1 acre park

completed the vision of the Jefferson

National Expansion Memorial, home of

the St. Louis Gateway Arch. The original

layout of the Arch included parks on both

sides of the Mississippi River. The

Malcom W. Martin Memorial Park is home

to the Gateway Geyser and the

Mississippi River Overlook. The Gateway

Geyser is a fountain that erupts three times a day during the spring and summer

months. The geyser erupts to a height of 630 feet, the same height as the Gateway

Arch. The lake surrounding the fountain includes four smaller fountains. The

Mississippi River Overlook is a tiered structure that is 40 feet high and offers visitors

views of the park, the Mississippi River, and the St. Louis City skyline.

A location map of the proposed project site is included in Figure 2.1.


2.2 History

The East St. Louis area has a well-developed infrastructure and transportation system due to its rich history in development, economic trade, and the Industrial Revolution. The settlement and development of the area took advantage of its prime location to connect residents and businesses to transportation facilities – beginning with ferries crossing the Mississippi River. During the late 1800s, railroads supported industries like the meat packing plants and the stockyards as well as transporting Illinois coal to other parts of the nation. All of the major railroad companies had tracks that passed through East St. Louis. After World War I and the Industrial Revolution, additional industries in the East St. Louis region included steel mills which also relied upon the railroads for transportation of their products.

Figure 2.1


In addition to the utilization of the railroad infrastructure for industrial and commercial use, the railroads were utilized extensively to connect East St. Louis to communities throughout Southwestern Illinois, the state of Illinois, and throughout the United States. Rail passenger service provided an economical transportation alternative option to connect people with employment opportunities, educational opportunities, and medical and well-being opportunities. East St. Louis was home to the East St. Louis Relay Station, located at the intersection of East Missouri Avenue and North 1st Street which is approximately 0.25 miles north of the proposed East St. Louis HSR Multimodal Station. The Relay Station provided passenger services such as restaurants, newsstands, and a ticket office. Passenger rail service in East St. Louis dominated the transportation alternatives until the mid-1960s, when the interstate system and passenger vehicles provided new transportation alternatives.

The East St. Louis community and economy has struggled since the 1950s due to corporate restructuring, diminishing employment opportunities, residential relocations, and decreasing municipal tax revenue. However, beginning in the 1990s, new developments such as the Casino Queen Hotel and Casino provided new employment opportunities and tax revenue for the City of East St. Louis. During the early 2000s, the City

of East St. Louis successfully completed the design and construction of a new public library and a new city hall. Beginning in the early 2000s and continuing to the present, there have been several successful public-private partnerships for new retail developments and housing developments. The most notable successful public-private partnership was the development and expansion of the MetroLink light-rail system in East St. Louis and throughout St. Clair County to Scott Air Force Base. Beginning in 2010, partnerships between community associations, nonprofit groups, and universities have joined together to develop plots for urban farming to create community gardens and greenspace on vacant tracks of land to enhance the community and provide additional resources to the community. Another successful private-public partnership resulted in the TOD, anchored by MetroLink, in the Emerson Park neighborhood of East St. Louis. Before the St. Clair County extension of MetroLink, the residents of the Emerson Park neighborhood did not own private automobiles and had extreme difficulty in obtaining affordable transportation


to secure jobs that provided decent wages for living in other parts of St. Clair County, Scott Air Force Base, Downtown St. Louis, and the St. Louis Metropolitan region. The extension of MetroLink service to Emerson Park resulted in the successful public-private partnership for the TOD development of Parsons Place. Parsons Place included the development of modern infrastructure, including high-quality housing, cultural centers, and access to affordable transportation to connect residents to jobs. The partnership included the Emerson Park Development Corporation (EPDC), the Lessie Bates Davis Settlement Hours, the State Community College, the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign (UIUC) School of Architecture, and the Carpenters and Joiners Union of the ALF-CIO and the project team secured a $1 million YouthBuild Grant from Housing and Urban Development (HUD). The grant trained long-term unemployed adults in the community in the construction trades on the Parsons Place construction site. Between 2000 and 2001, nearly 225 units of new, affordable housing were constructed in Emerson Park and achieved full occupancy in record time. The MetroLink extension was constructed during the same time and the extension included a passenger station in Emerson Park, which connected the Parsons Place and Emerson Park residents with both MetroLink and MetroBus. The surge in housing and transportation development in Emerson Park also resulted in a $13 million state-of-the-art youth recreational, educational, and

cultural center on land adjacent to the Parson Place development. This facility was developed by the Jackie Joyner-Kersee Foundation. In 2002, the Federal Reserve Bank of St. Louis, in cooperation with the EPDC, the City of East St. Louis, and the UICU, held their first regional conference on community-based planning and development at the Jackie Joyner-Kersee Youth Development Center.

2.3 Future Development

The East St. Louis region has a history rich which successfully utilized transportation infrastructure, such as rail, river, and roadways, to connect people to well-paying jobs and to export raw materials and manufactured goods to other parts of the nation and world for consumption. East St. Louis is now transitioning from an industrial-based economy to a distribution-based economy. The East St. Louis River District is home to Bunge-North America and Cargill, which are high-speed grain transfer facilities. These facilities connect grain brought by trucks and freight trains to the barges along the Mississippi River for distribution and processing in other parts of the country and the world. A public-private partnership including SCCTD, IDOT, the Casino Queen Hotel and Casino, and Bungee-SCF resulted in $7 million of funding for roadway, bicycle trail, sidewalk, and other infrastructure improvements in the River Bridge District. Existing businesses in East St. Louis are not only investing in improvements internally for their


businesses but in transportation infrastructure that directly benefits the businesses, residents, and visitors to the area.

East St. Louis has a history rich in transportation and a well-developed urban infrastructure. East St. Louis grew and developed their community during the height of the railroad age and utilized the passenger rail station to connect people with jobs, retail and commercial services, and educational opportunities. By 2017, with the CHISL HSR project, passenger rail service along the corridor will revolutionize transportation between Chicago and St. Louis. East St. Louis has shown the successful operation of a passenger rail station and with the established partnerships for the project and the conceptual ideas for the proposed East St. Louis HSR Multimodal Station, St. Clair County envisions a passenger station that will provide passenger amenities including food and retail, and will enhance existing developments, such as the Casino Queen Casino and Hotel and Downtown

St. Louis. A passenger station will spur additional developments surrounding the station, and will connect all transportation modes in one convenient location to create a true multimodal, transit-oriented development station in East St. Louis to serve East St. Louis, St. Clair County, the Metropolitan St. Louis area, and Southwestern Illinois region. The East St. Louis region has successfully proven that investments in transportation infrastructure leads to improvements in affordable transportation choices for its residents, which leads to well-paying employment opportunities, which leads to residential development and redevelopment, which leads to retail and cultural development, which brings visitors and tourists to the area. Existing businesses partner with government agencies to further implement projects that stimulate economic opportunities. With a TIGER Discretionary Grant investment in the East St. Louis HSR Multimodal Station, business retention and development continues, affordable transportation choices connect residents with jobs, educational, medical, and cultural opportunities, and provides a vital link between the CHISL HSR and Downtown St. Louis and Lambert International St. Louis Airport via MetroLink. 2.4 Project Status

This request for TIGER Discretionary Grant funding is for a Planning Grant, so detailed

design layouts, plans, environmental assessments, and construction bidding documents

will be prepared with the award of this grant. However, St. Clair County has been

assembling a project team and project partners for the East St. Louis HSR Multimodal


Station. The County has already committed funds to the planning and design phase of

the project and has been actively meeting with various project partners, including IDOT

and their project management consultant for the CHISL HSR project, as well as local

communities to show local support for a station in St. Clair County.

Additionally, as part of the IDOT CHISL HSR project, various

station site locations were selected for an evaluation against

evaluation criteria for site location, accessibility, existing support

services, potential for development, and railroad track geometry

and characteristics. From this draft station location analysis report,

the station site located along Riverpark Drive, east of the Casino

Queen Hotel and Casino and Eads Bridge, was ranked the highest

of the potential HSR station sites in the East St. Louis area.

With a station site selected, St. Clair County has been meeting with the CHISL HSR

team, including IDOT and their project

management consultant. Public informational

meetings have been held as well as briefings for

local governmental agencies. The most recent

CHISL HSR public information meeting, held at

the Jackie Joyner-Kersee Center in East St.

Louis, had the largest attendance of a CHISL

HSR public informational meeting to date.

Meeting attendees showed overwhelming positive

support for a station in East St. Louis at this

meeting.

St. Clair County is committed to moving forward with the conceptual station and site

layouts, environmental documents, construction plans and documents for the East St.

Louis HSR Multimodal Station. St. Clair County will work jointly with the IDOT CHISL

HSR team to design the station platform and facilities to accommodate the Amtrak

CHISL HSR trains that will ultimately connect St. Louis to Chicago and will provide new

opportunities for employment, education, and development for East St. Louis, the St.

Clair County area, and the Southwestern Illinois region.

2.5 Connections with Existing Transportation Infrastructure

The East St. Louis HSR Multimodal Station promotes and enhances local, regional, and

international connections to the existing transportation infrastructure. The station’s

primary function is to serve as a passenger train station for Amtrak CHISL HSR

passenger trains from East St. Louis to Chicago as well as to connect other modes of

transportation together in one centralized location. Due to its connection with

MetroLink, St. Louis residents will also access CHISL HSR at this station.


Amtrak and CHISL HSR Passengers Connect East St. Louis, the Metropolitan St. Louis Region, and Southwestern Illinois with Chicago, Little Rock, Dallas, Tucson, and Los Angeles.

Air Travelers Direct connectivity via MetroLink to St. Louis Lambert International Airport. CHISL HSR service will provide a convenient link to Chicago and O’Hare International Airport and Midway International Airport and expand air travel options.

MetroLink The multimodal station will be home to stations for both Amtrak CHISL HSR and MetroLink – the St. Louis region’s light-rail system which connects Lambert International Airport to Scott Air Force Base and communities, jobs, retail, and entertainment venues.

Interstate & Highway Access Direct access from Interstates 55/64 and from Illinois Route 3 and Illinois Route 15 make the station site conveniently located for residents of St. Clair County, Metropolitan St. Louis region, and Southwestern Illinois.

MetroBus The multimodal station will include a MetroBus station and will connect residents and visitors to routes and stations throughout St. Clair County and the Metropolitan St. Louis region without the need for an automobile to enjoy the region.

Eads Bridge Pedestrian & Bicycle Facilities The station is conveniently located less than 0.3 miles from the Eads Bridge – the only bridge in the St. Louis region that has pedestrian/bicycle facilities.

Downtown East St. Louis Enhanced walking and biking as well as MetroLink and MetroBus service will connect the station to retail, employment, health care, and human resource services.

River Bridge District The station is located in the River Bridge District development area that is also home to several successful and expanding private businesses.

2.6 Proposed Improvements

This TIGER Discretionary Planning Grant will

complete the funding package for the planning and

design activities for the East St. Louis HSR

Multimodal Station located in the economically

disadvantaged East St. Louis community in St.

Clair County, Illinois. The proposed station site

location is located adjacent to Downtown East St.

Louis, the River Bridge District, and the Casino


Queen Hotel and Casino development. The proposed station connects all modes of

transportation, including MetroLink, Amtrak CHISL HSR, buses, vehicular traffic, taxis,

pedestrian, and bicycles, and creates a truly multimodal station to serve the East St.

Louis community, the St. Clair County area, the surrounding Metropolitan St. Louis

area, and the Southwestern Illinois region. The proposed East St. Louis HSR

Multimodal Station connects residents of the East St. Louis and St. Clair County

communities with Chicago by providing an economically feasible transportation

alternative. Additionally, the proposed station promotes tourism to the Metropolitan St.

Louis region and enhances the development opportunities in the East St. Louis area to

support the station through public-private partnerships like the River Bridge District.

3.0 Project Partnerships

The East St. Louis HSR Multimodal Station project brings together a diverse group of

project partners for the successful development, construction, and operation of the

station.

St. Clair County, Illinois • TIGER Planning Grant

applicant.

• Financially committed $600,000 of engineering and design costs.

St. Clair County Transit District

• Provides transportation services such as MetroBus, MetroLink, and MetroBikeLink.

Illinois Department of Transportation • Project Partner – Lead

agency for the development of the CHISL HSR corridor project.

Illinois Department of Transportation • Project partner – Has

jurisdictional agency responsible for interstates and state router highways.

Federal Railroad Administration • Federal-agency responsible

for review and approval of improvements to railroad tracks for proposed station.

• Project partner for IDOT CHISL HSR project.

Amtrak • Project Partner – Provides

passenger rail services, including HSR, for the proposed station.

City of East St. Louis • Project Partner to help

design and development of station, site services and access, and roadway improvements, as needed.

Metro • Project Partner – Will

provide MetroLink and MetroBus services to the proposed station.


4.0 Project Funding

Partnership for the development of the East St. Louis HSR Multimodal Station also

includes cooperation in project funding, not only for construction of the improvements

but for design of the station and required improvements. The capital for the

construction of the station would be accomplished by a diverse funding package that

includes local, state, and federal funding.

St. Clair County has already committed funds to the design of the station and has the

support of the IDOT CHISL HSR project as well.

St. Clair County, on behalf of the East St. Louis HSR Multimodal Station project

partners, respectfully requests $2.4 million in TIGER Discretionary Grant funding for the

planning and design of the station and supporting infrastructure. The project

partnership will provide the required matching funds for the planning and design of the

project. St. Clair County has already committed $600,000 for the design and

engineering costs for the project. The project design can begin immediately upon

receipt of the TIGER Discretionary Grant funding and will easily be able to meet the

September 2016 funding obligation deadline. Figure 4.1 includes a summary of the

financial plan for the East St. Louis HSR Multimodal Station.

Figure 4.1


5.0 Primary Selection Criteria

5.1 Long Term Outcomes

This project will have a significant positive impact for the City of East St. Louis and the

metropolitan St. Louis area as a whole. The success of the project can be established

and measured by the following criteria.

5.1.1 State of Good Repair

This project is part of the effort to enhance the regional passenger transportation

network, increase rail capacity, and improve reliability for HSR service between Chicago

and St. Louis. The facility would be located in Downtown East St. Louis, Illinois, along

the existing Amtrak and MetroLink alignment that offers the potential to develop a

station that services both HSR and MetroLink and be a true multimodal station.

The East St. Louis HSR Multimodal Station will be a newly constructed facility and

consequently does not need to be brought into a state of good repair. As identified

above, the East St. Louis HSR Multimodal Station Project is supported by St. Clair

County, St. Clair County Transit District, the City of East St. Louis, MetroLink, IDOT, the

Casino Queen Hotel and Casino, and other private businesses, all of which have a

vested interest in the long-term operation and maintenance of the facility. However,

long-term operations and maintenance will be overseen and managed by St. Clair

County working closely with Amtrak and MetroLink.

The station design will incorporate the relative tenets of green

building design and use the American Society of Civil Engineers

(ASCE) EnvisionTM rating system as a guidance tool for

sustainable infrastructure design. Studies by the United States

Green Building Council conclude that an upfront investment of 2%

in green building design, on average results in a life cycle savings

of 20% of the total construction costs.

5.1.2 Economic Competitiveness

The nation fully recognizes the need for an efficient and balanced transportation infrastructure. Implementation of HSR projects serve as a catalyst for growth in regional economic productivity and expansion by stimulating domestic manufacturing, promoting local tourism, and driving commercial and residential development. Implementation of HSR service in the Chicago to St. Louis corridor promotes economic vitality throughout the corridor.


In addition to enhancing access to HSR, the East St. Louis HSR Multimodal Station enhances mobility by creating alternate choices for travelers, which reduces national dependence on oil and fosters livable communities.

The East St. Louis HSR Multimodal Station benefits an Economically Distressed Area. According to the US Bureau of Labor Statistics, the unemployment rate in East St. Louis was approximately 17% in August 2013, as compared to nearly 7% for the nation as a whole. Per the US Census, 43% of residents with income below the poverty level from 2008-2012, as compared to the state as a whole during this period where the persons with income below the poverty level was reported as 14%. Lastly, East St. Louis has a low per capita income of $11,802, well below the national average of $42,693. The economic competitiveness and viability of East St. Louis is dependent upon its ability to connect with the surrounding region. To that end, primary economic benefits of the East St. Louis HSR Multimodal Station are as follows:

The project will provide jobs and activities in close proximity to the station. As most of the underemployed and transit-dependent live in the urban core, the proposed location of the station will have a direct benefit for those who need it most.

The project will provide regional rail service, supported by regional and local bus service, taxi, pedestrian, and bicycle facilities, enabling people to reach major employment and education centers.

The project will facilitate employee mobility throughout the region, resulting in travel time savings and travel cost savings for train riders.

The project will spur new economic development opportunities due to the increased flow of commuters and visitors through the station.

The project will enhance and support future development of currently vacant and underutilized land as well as expansion of existing areas such as the Casino Queen Hotel and Casino, Downtown East St. Louis, and the Mid-America Medical District (MAMD).

The East St. Louis Multimodal Passenger Station will facilitate access to the Malcolm W. Martin Memorial Park and Gateway Geyser, bringing additional visitors that will promote economic development.

The project will reduce vehicle congestion and promote increased public transit usage, walking, and biking; making the area more attractive to businesses, employees, and residents.


5.1.3 Quality of Life

The East St. Louis HSR Multimodal Station will provide a variety of reasonably priced

transportation options that will be available in a central location. Increased access to a

variety of transportation choices helps to foster livable communities and will benefit a

diverse group of people in the region including:

Economically Disadvantaged Citizens – According to the Bureau of Labor Statics’ new release in September 2013, transportation costs are the second most significant expenditure, outranked by housing costs, by the average US citizen. The project’s proposed location will provide ample area for free parking so people can leave automobiles at the station and access their destinations via a variety of affordable transportation alternatives.

Disabled Citizens – Access to transportation that will enhance mobility and independence.

Senior Citizens – Transportation choices for the driving averse.

Tourists – Transportation choices for weekend trips to destinations in the region including the Casino Queen Hotel and Casino, Springfield, Chicago, and St. Louis. In addition, Lambert St. Louis International Airport and sporting events in the City of St. Louis can be accessed by the various modes of transportation available at the station.

Students – Southern Illinois University Edwardsville (SIUE), Southwestern Illinois College (SWIC), and Lindenwood University - Belleville have each established a satellite campus in East St. Louis. In addition, students attending the University of Missouri St. Louis (UMSL) can utilize the East St. Louis HSR Multimodal Station via MetroLink to gain access to various modes of transportation.

Employees – Access to employment centers in St. Clair County and destinations in the St. Louis Metropolitan area and supports several State and St. Clair County initiatives aimed at creating high-quality employment opportunities for the surrounding lower-income communities.

Trail Enthusiasts – St. Louis City, St. Louis County, and St. Clair Counties in Illinois have all developed extensive bicycle and pedestrian trail systems within their jurisdictions. Similar to the interstates and railroads, all of these trails are accessible from the project site. The multimodal station will provide facilities to accommodate trail enthusiasts and will enhance local economic prosperity.

In addition to the quality of life benefits

achieved through strengthening

transportation interconnectivity, the East

St. Louis HSR Multimodal Station will


contribute to the surrounding resident’s quality of life as the station will serve as a

catalyst for creation of TOD. TOD is about creating sustainable communities that

include a mixture of housing, office, retail, and other amenities integrated into a

walkable neighborhood proximate to high quality public transportation. TOD can have

significant benefits to individuals, communities, regions, states, the economy, and the

natural environment. The current East St. Louis TOD, Emerson Park, has had a

tremendous impact on the quality of life of its residents and the entire community.

5.1.4 Environmental Sustainability

Decisions that support environmental sustainability will be incorporated into design, construction, and operation of the East St. Louis HSR Multimodal Station. The significant long-term benefits in sustainability provided by the project include:

The project design incorporates reduced reliance of both commuters and residents of the City of East St. Louis on single-occupancy vehicle transportation by providing enhanced transportation mode choices, ease of use, and connectivity to other modes of transportation in a convenient location.

Appropriate green street design and Low Impact Development best management practices are intended to be standard components of the station’s building and surrounding parking and streetscape design. This will yield significant benefits of reducing environmental impacts through more permeable surfaces, context-sensitive stormwater capture, retention and distribution methods, and enhanced landscaping elements. While difficult to quantify and monetize these potential benefits at the planning stage of the proposed project, the fact that such benefits will be ultimately realized must be considered as part of the benefit-cost analysis.

The project will be designed to be LEED certified and will incorporate the ASCE Envision TM rating system as a guidance tool for sustainable infrastructure design.

The project design improves utilization of public transit by reducing the number of modes of transportation necessary to access regional and local transit thereby helping to reduce the region’s reliance on the automobile and crude oil and reduce fuel consumption and carbon dioxide emissions.

Streetscaping and connectivity improvements throughout the project encourages bike and pedestrian usage through enhanced accessibility while promoting new business opportunities.

The project design encourages the redevelopment and reuse of deteriorated and underutilized land parcels, rather than the development of open land.


The project is located in an area that can be served by the existing infrastructure (roads, utilities, rail tracks); therefore, major construction would not be required since additional road or transit infrastructure is not necessary.

5.1.5 Safety

A fundamental objective of the East St. Louis HSR Multimodal Station is to enhance safety for all modes of transportation. This entails removing barriers for certain modes to achieve access, such as creating sidewalks where none exist and providing bicycle infrastructure to highlight the presence of bicycles in the roadway. Additionally, this includes separating modes reducing congestion conflicts and potentially saving lives. Project design criteria includes separate facilities for bicycles and grade-separated crossings to enhance non-motorized connections. The safety features and benefits proposed for the design of the East St. Louis HSR Multimodal Station include the following:

Protected indoor waiting areas for rail patrons.

Covered platforms with enhanced access and safer boarding conditions for rail patrons rather than ground-level boarding, requiring a climb up into the rail cars. This design eliminates the risk of trip-and-fall injuries and from walking on or next to the rail tracks.

Direct transfer access between modes and access to all platforms, waiting areas, and sidewalks without having to cross vehicular rights-of-way (streets or rails) or busy parking lots.

Unobstructed visibility at the rail platform and the passenger concourse for increased security.

Active building frontage at street level, increasing personal safety by attracting more people to the area during the daytime and nighttime.

Reduced exposure to auto crashes on the existing roadway system.

Secure, weather-protected bike parking facilities to be located adjacent to the station entrance to complement the established regional bike system.

Upgrades to crossing geometry and signal timing to Americans with Disability Act (ADA) standards at roadway intersections in proximity to the station.

Lighting, to provide a safe and secure environment, will be installed on adjacent roadways, enhancing visibility, safety, and the multi-modal experience. While levels of lighting may vary, uniform lighting levels will be used to avoid areas of glare.

Pedestrian safety improvements to include, but not limited to, refurbished high-visibility crosswalks, median extensions, curb extensions, and other related enhancements.

Overall, the safety component of this project enhances mobility and provides active transportation options for residents living in proximity to the station as well as those accessing the station from surrounding areas.


5.2 Job Creation & Economic Stimulus

The East St. Louis HSR Multimodal Station immediately creates engineering and design

work and during construction can produce hundreds of temporary construction jobs.

The station also creates hundreds of new, permanent jobs as well as the retention of

hundreds of permanent jobs resulting in an important positive impact on the

unemployment rate of the East St. Louis area. The construction of the station creates

economic benefits from the construction that can be classified into three categories:

direct impacts, indirect impacts, and induced impacts.

Direct Impacts – Economic impacts due to new spending, hiring, and production by construction companies to accommodate the demand for resources in order to complete the project. These jobs will be temporary construction jobs.

Indirect Impacts – Economic impacts due to the increase in production industries supplying intermediate goods and services to the construction industry. These businesses should experience increased demand for their products and services and may hire additional workers, either temporary or permanent, to meet the increased demand. The East St. Louis HSR Multimodal Station project increases jobs for existing establishments like the Casino Queen Hotel and Casino and various other restaurants near the project area. The project stimulates real estate development and redevelopment near the station and Downtown East St. Louis. The project increases the ridership on MetroLink due to construction workers and other workers utilizing MetroLink to commute to work.

Induced Impacts – Economic impacts due to the re-spending of wages earned by workers and households benefitting from the direct and indirect construction of the East St. Louis HSR Multimodal Station.

This request for TIGER Discretionary Grant funding is for the planning and engineering

of the design of the East St. Louis HSR Multimodal Station. At this time, detailed

studies and plans are not available for the construction costs and duration so direct

impacts, indirect impacts, and induced impacts would be speculation and therefore, this

grant request does not contain a detailed analysis of the job creation and economic

stimulus of the construction of the East St. Louis HSR Multimodal Station.

6.0 Secondary Selection Criteria

6.1 Innovation

Sustainability - Conceptually, sustainable development can be broken into three parts: environmental sustainability, economic sustainability, and social sustainability. In other words, is the project good for the environment, affordable over the life-cycle of the project, and beneficial to the public? Although design of the East St. Louis


HSR Multimodal Station conforms with industry standards, the overall effort is innovative in its commitment to sustainability in the following ways:

• The building is designed to LEED-certified standards and follows the ASCE EnvisonTM sustainable infrastructure rating system as a guidance tool for sustainable infrastructure design.

• The project is supported by a variety of public/private partners all of which have a vested interest in its success from a national, regional, and local perspective and therefore the project will be financially viable for the long-term.

• The project is expected to benefit the local and regional market through the expansion of transportation alternatives, creation of and retention of jobs, and improvements in the quality of life all of which contribute to a healthy community.

Transportation Interconnectivity – The East St. Louis HSR Multimodal Station is planned to be the only truly multimodal HSR passenger station outside the Chicago area. The East St. Louis HSR Multimodal Station connects all modes of transportation options seamlessly. The station brings together passenger vehicles, bicycles, taxies, buses, pedestrians, and MetroLink light-rail. Easy automotive access to the East St. Louis HSR Multimodal Station is convenient. Direct automotive connections are provided by Interstates 55/64, Illinois Route 3, Illinois Route 15, and the Eads Bridge to Downtown St. Louis. The Eads Bridge also carries MetroLink trains and the East St. Louis HSR Multimodal Station includes a MetroLink stop as well. The station will also include accommodations for MetroBuses and taxis.

Mixed-Use Development – The East St. Louis HSR Multimodal Station not only serves as a multimodal station but also includes space to serve as a gateway to the station and welcome travelers from other cities, states, and countries to the metropolitan area. This space is designed to accommodate civic events and small public venues. The station includes plans for spaces for station functions, food and beverage retail areas, and potentially office space. The East St. Louis HSR Multimodal Station project serves as an example of mixed-use, public/private development.

Partnership – The East St. Louis HSR Multimodal Station exemplifies partnership and teamwork. Leaders from local, state, and federal government have been working together expand transportation alternatives and improve the quality of life through the creation of jobs, the retention of jobs, and the expansion of tourism and development to the area.

6.2 Partnership

The East St. Louis HSR Multimodal Station truly embodies a model of collaboration,

partnership, and teamwork among local, state, and federal stakeholders. IDOT has

received over $1.2 billion in funding from the Federal Railroad Administration (FRA) for

the CHISL HSR project. As part of the IDOT CHISL HSR project, project stakeholders

include IDOT, FRA, UP, Illinois Commerce Commission (ICC), as well as numerous

municipalities, counties, and townships. As part of the East St. Louis HSR Multimodal


Station project, the project team will coordinate closely with the

members of the IDOT CHISL HSR project to ensure cohesion between

the two projects. The East St. Louis HSR Multimodal Station project

includes project team members from St. Clair County Transit District,

the City of East St. Louis, MetroLink, IDOT, the Casino Queen Hotel

and Casino, and other private businesses.

The East St. Louis HSR Multimodal Station project has already gained

the support of local communities. Local governmental agencies such

as the City of Belleville have passed resolutions supporting the East St.

Louis HSR Multimodal Station. The St. Clair County Board has passed

a resolution to commit $500,000 for the design and planning of the

station.

This project not only enhances the transportation options for the

region but also promotes sustainable travel, creates a more livable

community, and spurs economic development.

6.2.1 Jurisdictional & Stakeholder Collaboration

In addition to the federal partners, the East St. Louis HSR Multimodal Station has

brought together the State of Illinois, IDOT, St. Clair County, and the City of East St.

Louis. St. Clair County is the lead applicant of this TIGER VI Discretionary Grant

application. Partnership on this project extends well beyond governmental agencies.

St. Clair County is working together with MetroLink, the MAMD, local higher education

institutions, the Casino Queen Hotel and Casino, and the business community. Strong

partnerships have been developed with Amtrak, MetroLink, and IDOT. These

relationships have been carefully crafted as they are critical to meeting the significant

transportation efficiency improvements for this project. Coordination with these

stakeholders ensures the successful completion of the East St. Louis HSR Multimodal

Station and redevelopment of the surrounding area.

6.2.2 Disciplinary Integration

The East St. Louis HSR Multimodal Station has brought together a diverse group of

stakeholders, organizations, and groups within the East St. Louis and St. Clair County


area. These groups and organizations within the Metropolitan St. Louis area all benefit

from the East St. Louis HSR Multimodal Station.

Business Community – The East St. Louis HSR Multimodal Station enhances and brings together the business community, including the Casino Queen Hotel and Casino, to incorporate ideas and features into the new station that benefits the users from the business community.

Educational Institutions – East St. Louis is home to satellite campuses for SIUE and SWIC. The design team for the East St. Louis HSR Multimodal Station is working with these educational institutions in developing ideas and features that encourage students to utilize the station to connect to all modes of transportation.

MetroLink & MetroBus – The East St. Louis HSR Multimodal Station project team is working with MetroLink and MetroBus to provide facilities for service to the station and will create a truly multimodal station facility.

Mid-America Medical District – MAMD was created in 2007 by the State of Illinois to create a medical center district within the corporate boundaries of the City of East St. Louis. MAMD was established to attract and retain academic centers of excellence, viable healthcare facilities, medical research facilities, emerging high technology enterprises, and other facilities. The MAMD boundaries encompass a portion of Downtown East St. Louis. MAMD is included in the development of the East St. Louis HSR Multimodal Station project to ensure that the station design encourages patrons of MAMD to utilize the station as well as to encourage development of the MAMD property near the station.

Tourist Destinations – The East St. Louis HSR Multimodal Station project team is coordinating with tourist and entertainment destinations. East St. Louis is home to several destinations, including the Malcolm W. Martin Memorial Park, Gateway Geyser, the Casino Queen Hotel and Casino, and the Jackie Joyner-Kersee Center. In addition to the tourist destinations located in East St. Louis, MetroLink connects tourists and visitors to numerous activities and entertainment venues on both sides of the Mississippi River including Busch Stadium, home of the St. Louis Cardinals professional baseball team, Scottrade Center, home of the St. Louis Blues professional hockey team, and the Edward Jones Dome, home of the St. Louis Rams professional football team.

Federal Offices – East St. Louis is home to the Melvin Price U.S. Courthouse and Melvin Price Federal Building. The Melvin Price U.S. Courthouse is home to the U.S. District and Bankruptcy Courts as well as offices for U.S. Attorneys, Magistrate, Marshall Service, Probation, and Public Defender. The Melvin Price Federal Building includes office space for court-related agencies, the Social Security Administrative offices, the Department of Homeland Security, and U.S. Trustees.


Connected directly to East St. Louis via MetroLink, Scott Air Force Base (SAFB) is home to 375th Air Mobility Wing, the Air Mobility Command, U.S. Transportation Command, five headquarters, a reserve aeromedical airlift wing, and an Air National Guard unit. SAFB is also home to over 30 tenants, including the 18th Air Force, the 126th Air Refueling Wing, Defense Information Systems Agency/Defense Information and Contracting Organization, Air Force Network Integration Center, and Surface Deployment and Distribution Command. The mission of SAFB is to provide a Total Force team, engaging globally by providing priority airlift, aeromedical evacuation, combat support, and medical expertise, while ensuring an outstanding quality of lift. SAFB is the largest employer and economic driver in St. Clair County. The East St. Louis HSR Multimodal project team is involving the various federal offices so the proposed station is utilized by people from other parts of the state, the country, and the world doing business with these organizations.

7.0 Benefit-Cost Analysis

The East St. Louis HSR Multimodal Station is requesting TIGER Discretionary Grant

funding for a planning grant. The station is still in the very early conceptual stages and

information such as capital costs and ridership projections have not been completed at

this time, but to be completed as part of the station design that will be funded, in part,

with the TIGER funds.

Even though the East St. Louis HSR Multimodal Station is still in the early conceptual

planning stage, the project has already identified the following costs for the project:

PROJECT COSTS

Capital Costs • Property Acquisition • Site Design • Auxiliary infrastructure improvements • Construction of Station, platform, parking lot, utility services,

etc.

Annual Maintenance & Operation • Utility costs • Building and facilities maintenance costs • Employee salaries

Tickets • Ticket costs for passengers to ride trains


The East St. Louis HSR Multimodal Station generates numerous benefits for the local

area, the region, and the state as well. The following list summarizes the benefits of the

development of the station:

PROJECT BENEFITS

Reduction of Vehicle Emissions • Reduction of vehicle trips between

East St. Louis and Chicago (or intermediate stations) reduces vehicle emissions.

• Reduction of vehicle trips due to partial redistribution of airline trips between St. Louis and Chicago. Passenger vehicles have a shorter travel distance to the East St. Louis station as compared to Lambert Airport or to Union Station as to O’Hare Airport or Midway Airport.

• Reduction of vehicle trips to St. Louis and Alton Amtrak Stations.

• Reduction of vehicle trips due multimodal connectivity in Metropolitan St. Louis region.

Alternative Travel Options • Introduce new riders to Amtrak

HSR. • Provide new transportation option

for Metropolitan St. Louis region. • Provide travel option for those that

do not want to drive in Chicago or St. Louis traffic.

• Provide options for a truly multimodal trip.

• Economic travel option for students, the elderly, and low-income populations.

• Provide bicycle rentals at East St.

Louis HSR Multimodal Station so

that travelers can bike across the

Eads Bridge into St. Louis. The

Eads Bridge is the only bridge

across the Mississippi River that

accommodates pedestrians and bicyclists.

Time Savings • Improved Amtrak on-time

performance as part of CHISL HSR project.

• Travel-time savings for reduced time for HSR train trip as compared to passenger vehicle trip.

• Time savings due to less time spent in traffic congestion.

Reduction of Vehicle Fuel Consumption • Reduction of vehicle trips between

East St. Louis and Chicago (or intermediate stations).

• Reduction of vehicle trips from St. Louis and St. Clair County region due to multimodal connectivity.

• Reduction of vehicle trips to St. Louis and Alton Amtrak Stations.

Travel Fee Savings • No parking fees in Chicago. • Free parking at East St. Louis

station. • No toll road fees in Chicago.

Additional Tax Revenue • Additional sales tax revenue from

tourists and visitors. • Additional hotel tax revenue from

visitors.


Tourism • Increase visitors to existing tourism

market of great Metropolitan St. Louis area.

• Increase visitors to greater Chicago region.

• Increase number of day trips/weekend trips to Chicago and St. Louis regions.

• Create a link for Chicago visitors to see Mississippi River.

• Create a link between the Mississippi River and the Great Lakes.

Economic Development • Creation of new employment

opportunities due to the construction of the station and site infrastructure.

• Creation of jobs to operate and maintain the station and services at the station.

• Creation of construction jobs due to increased development surrounding the station.

• Creation of permanent jobs due to new developments near the station.

Business Expenses Savings • Reduction of rental car expenses. • Reduction of parking fees. • Gain business productivity due to

ability to work on HSR train while traveling.

• Gain business productivity due to free Wi-Fi on HSR train.

Public Transit • Increase in ridership in public

transit in greater Chicago area. • Increase in ridership of MetroLink

and MetroBus in greater St. Louis Metropolitan region.

• Provide a truly multimodal station to bring all modes of transportation together in one location.

Redevelopment of East St. Louis • Anchor for TOD. • Spur redevelopment to support

station and passengers. • Adaptive re-use of brownfield sites.

Expansion • Ability to add cars or trains to

schedule to meet increasing ridership demands.

Safety ● Reduction of crashes on roadways due to trips being redistributed to Amtrak HSR trains.

As shown in the preceding lists of Project Costs and Project Benefits, the proposed East

St. Louis HSR Multimodal Station clearly generates benefits that have a positive impact

on both great St. Louis Metropolitan area and the Chicago region. Project benefits

impact social, economic, environmental, and safety aspects and clearly provide more

benefits than the costs for construction, operation, and maintenance of the station. As

conceptual plans and studies, which includes ridership projections for the station, are

prepared, a detailed Benefit-Cost (B/C) Analysis will be prepared. However, due to the

extensive list of benefits shown, it is clear that the project’s benefits outweigh the

project’s costs and will result in a very high B/C ratio.


8.0 Project Schedule

St. Clair County plans on beginning the project immediately upon award of the TIGER

Discretionary Grant funding. The County process begins by advertising and selecting

an engineering/architectural team to develop preliminary and final plans as well as the

preparing the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) documents. The County

expects to have a design team under contract during the third quarter of 2014. It is

expected the NEPA process be completed within 1.5 years. Table 8.1 includes the

project schedule for the design and construction of the East St. Louis HSR Multimodal

Station project.

Table 8.1

Task Q1 Q2 Q3 Q4 Q1 Q2 Q3 Q4 Q1 Q2 Q3 Q4 Q1 Q2 Q3 Q4 Q1 Q2 Q3 Q4

TIGER Grant

Application

TIGER Grant Funding

Awarded

Selection/Award of

Project Design Team

East St. Louis HSR

Station Design

NEPA Process

Project Bid/Awarded for

Construction

Construction of

Improvements

East St. Louis HSR

Station Open

Project Schedule

2014 2015 2016 2017 2018

East St. Louis HSR Multimodal Station


9.0 Federal Wage Rate Requirement

St. Clair County has signed the federal wage rate certification that it complies with

Subchapter 31 of Title 40 of the United States code.

10.0 National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) Requirement

A full environmental analysis is required to be prepared as part of the project planning

process. A preliminary environmental analysis of potential environmental impacts was

conducted for the proposed site as part of the initial site screening effort by the IDOT

CHISL HSR project. Potential wetland areas were identified on the site, however, these

wetland areas could be avoided during site design. Potential impacts to natural,


cultural, and socio-economic resources are anticipated to be minor and it is expected

the project meets the criteria standards for a Categorical Exclusion.

11.0 Environmentally Related Federal, State & Local Actions

The project will comply with all applicable Federal, State, and local permitting

requirements during project construction and operation.

12.0 Confidential Business Information

There is no confidential information related to this project’s application.

13.0 Letters of Support & Supplemental Information

The East St. Louis HSR Multimodal Station project has gained project support from

several communities as well as legislatures.

• U.S. Representative William Enyart, 12th District of Illinois

• U.S. Senator Richard J. Durbin

• Illinois State Senator James F. Clayborne, Jr., 57th District

• Illinois State Senator Frank C. Watson, 51st District

• Illinois State Representative Eddie Lee Jackson, Sr., 114th District

• East West Gateway Council of Governments

• St. Clair County Health Department

• City of East St. Louis, Illinois

• City of Belleville, Illinois

The letters of support, municipal ordinances, and

resolutions can be viewed along with additional

supplemental application materials at the East St. Louis

HSR Multimodal Station TIGER Discretionary Grant website (www.co.st-clair.il.us/departments/econDev/HSR).

“The East St. Louis Station is

an opportunity to provide

easy, low-cost access to a

community that has

traditionally suffered from dis-

investment and lack of

opportunity. St. Clair County,

in partnership with East St.

Louis, is working to reverse

this trend and provide great

opportunities to the citizens of

East St. Louis.”

East-West Gateway Council

of Governments

east st. louis high speed rail multimodal station

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