U.S.
Senators Charles E. Schumer and Kirsten Gillibrand today announced that
a U.S. Department of Transportation (DOT) grant of $1,028,154 has been
awarded to Jamestown for the Gateway Intermodal Station and Riverwalk
Connector project. The grant will be used to rehabilitate an intermodal
station in Jamestown.
“This
is great news for the future of the historic Jamestown Train Station,”
said Schumer. “This much-needed project would revitalize the region and
reconnect it to its waterfront. I am so glad to help bring these
critical funds to the project and will continue to help in any way I
can so that all of Western New York can benefit from what will be an
economic shot in the arm.”
“This
is a great investment for Western New York,” Senator Gillibrand said.
“These federal dollars will help upgrade the intermodal station, make
transportation more efficient in the area, support job creation and
help get our economy back on track. I will continue working with
Senator Schumer and the entire Congressional Delegation to make sure
New York gets its fair share from the federal government.”
Schumer
has a long history in boosting and helping the Jamestown Gateway
Intermodal Station and Riverwalk Connector project. In 2008, Schumer
secured a final agreement for the Federal Transit Administration (FTA)
to be the lead agency on overseeing the development of both Gateway
Train Station and the Riverwalk Connector as a single project, a
decision that will save the city an estimated $325,000 and jumpstart
the long-delayed project. He also secured $640,000 from the FTA to get
the project underway after being stalled for three years prior.
Jamestown
currently has plans for a Jamestown Gateway Intermodal Station and
Visitors Center and for a Riverwalk Connector Trail. The two projects
are designed to work in tandem and would fuel the long-awaited
revitalization of the vacant Erie Lackawanna Railroad Station, an Art
Deco landmark vacant since 1973, and reconnect the station to the
Riverwalk Connector Trail now underway along the Chadakoin River, by a
new pedestrian bridge over the downtown rail corridor.
According
to the DOT grant, these funds will assist Jamestown in restoring an
intermodal station which will provide important linkages between modes
of transport for travelers in the area.