TMCnet News
Mosaic sets tone for Dearborn transit center [Detroit Free Press](Detroit Free Press (MI) Via Acquire Media NewsEdge) Oct. 26--A mosaic bursts with blue tiles stretching out in rays and stars and smaller green arches at a new transit center in Dearborn. And Siham Saleh, 17, a senior at the city's Fordson High School, beams as she explained the meaning today. "The past still shapes who we are today, but we're looking toward the future," she said during the dedication of the 18-by-20-foot "Transformations" mosaic in the lobby of the John D. Dingell Transit Center. Saleh was part of an arts group of 10 students from the three Dearborn High Schools called Pockets of Perception -- We Are One Community. The group, which is sponsored by the Dearborn Community Fund, was tasked with setting their mark on a center that proponents hope will act as a gateway for Dearborn and boost an invigorated transit network for the region, which earlier this month saw the opening of the long-delayed $6.4 million Troy Transit Center. The Troy center, which replaced a concrete platform in Birmingham, had been the focus of lawsuits and figured in the recall of former Mayor Janice Daniels, a fierce opponent. This week, Michigan will unveil another train station. On Monday, the $6.1 million Vernon J. Ehlers Amtrak Station opens in Grand Rapids, providing links between local buses and trains traveling between Grand Rapids and Chicago. In Dearborn, work is continuing but appears to be nearing completion on the federally funded $28.2 million center on Michigan Avenue even as it prepares for its grand opening on Dec. 15, less than a week after Amtrak plans to start operations on Dec. 10. The 16,000-square-foot center is designed as an intermodal passenger rail station on the Chicago-Detroit/Pontiac line with connections to SMART, DDOT and charter buses, corporate and hotel shuttles and taxis, according to Dearborn city spokeswoman Mary Laundroche. The center is near the Rouge River Gateway Greenway Trail that connects to the University of Michigan-Dearborn and Henry Ford College campuses. A pedestrian bridge should also make it easy for passengers to enter the Henry Ford and Greenfield Village, Laundroche said. The center would also serve proposed future developments, such as high-speed rail between Detroit and Chicago and a commuter rail line connecting Ann Arbor and Detroit, she said. "We're just really excited to have it be open and hopefully people will be excited about the possibilities of rail travel. We want to make it convenient to leave Dearborn but also convenient (for) people to come to Dearborn," Laundroche said. The center with its large brick-arched windows looking out on the rail platform received American Recovery and Reinvestment Act money in 2009. Laundroche said the length of time to complete the work was caused by requirements from the Federal Railroad Administration, which requested a special platform because the area will serve both freight and passengers, and track improvements made by the Michigan Department of Transportation. "Nothing in the city's control ... delayed the project," Laundroche said, noting that the center was designed to last for many years and serve an evolving transportation future. "Everyone wanted to do this station correctly." Staff writer Christina Hall contributed to this report. Contact Eric D. Lawrence: [email protected]. Follow him on Twitter: @_ericdlawrence ___ (c)2014 the Detroit Free Press Visit the Detroit Free Press at www.freep.com Distributed by MCT Information Services |