The Governmental Affairs Committee of the Elmhurst Chamber of Commerce and Industry is sharing information on the next phase of the City of Elmhurst’s dowtown Metra Station Improvement Project, as follows:
The City will host a virtual public information meeting and deploy a survey to collect feedback from Elmhurst residents and Metra commuters on the potential new architectural characteristics and features for the station. This feedback will be used to develop future design concepts.
The live virtual public information meeting is scheduled for Thursday, February 18, from 6 to 7 pm. Information on how to participate and meeting details are located on the City’s website at Elmhurst.org/metrastation. The meeting will be recorded and available on the website on Friday, February 19, for those unable to attend.
In addition, the public is encouraged to take the visual preference survey online at tinyurl.com/elmhurstsurvey. The survey will be open through Sunday, February 28.
“We are excited to enter this new phase of the design process. Our Metra station is such an important focal point of our downtown. This is a great opportunity for our residents and commuters to weigh-in on the future look and feel of the new Metra station,” said Elmhurst Mayor Steve Morley.
The Elmhurst Metra Station Improvement Project is a multi-phase study to identify improvements to this important transit hub. The project began in 2017 to identify alternatives and begin Phase I engineering. Through that process, the public provided input through a series of workshops on the current use of the station and identified needs.
Elmhurst is now launching Phase II Design of the station that will identify the architectural details of the Metra Station.
Construction of the station may begin in 2023 after design details are confirmed.
Elmhurst’s Metra station serves an average of approximately 2,300 weekday boardings, making it one of the busiest on the Union Pacific-West line. The facility, which was last updated in the 1980s, is outdated and in need of upgrades and improved commuter features.
This project is partially funded through grants from the Congestion Mitigation and Air Quality Improvement Program administered by the Chicago Metropolitan Agency for Planning, Surface Transportation Program, the Illinois Commerce Commission and Metra.
Future phases of work, including additional engineering and construction, are anticipated to be funded primarily through federal grants to leverage city funding.
For requests for reasonable meeting/survey accommodations, please contact Kassondra Schref, the City’s Communications Manager, at 630-530-6018.