Featured Projects

‘Archer Station’ Will Bring Retail to Former CTA Bus Garage – Transaction handled by TRA

(Francisco Kjolseth | Tribune file photo) Bicyclists make their way through Salt Lake City traffic. Officials are pushing to promote more walking and biking as the Wasatch Front population is predicted to double in coming decades. BRIGHTON PARK — The site of a demolished, century-old CTA bus garage will get new life as a major retail development under a plan OK’d by the City Council.

Plans for the 6-acre “Archer Station” development at Pershing Road and Archer Avenue, approved by the City Council last month, call for four new commercial buildings and 366 parking spaces. The project will be anchored by a 40,000 square-foot L.A. Fitness center with an indoor pool, group exercise classes and child care options.

“It will attract folks and be a neighborhood convenience. That’s a big seller for a community that’s starting to see some opportunity,” said Ald. George Cardenas.

Josh Levy, an executive with the First American Properties, said the project will “establish a high standard” for development in the Brighton Park and McKinley Park neighborhoods. First American bought the 274,810-square-foot property for $1.6 million.

“You will see the effect this has on the community,” Levy said.

Cleanup at the site, which includes the removal of contaminated soil, asbestos-laden building materials and fuel and oil storage tanks, is underway, Levy said.

To help reverse a century’s worth of damage — “the bus port was spewing toxins,” Cardenas said — developers are planting more than 200 trees throughout the site, and the parking lot will be built with special permeable pavers, which help keep stormwater out of the city’s aging sewer systems. Read more

September 12, 2014 0

TRA Brings Wi-fi to the MBTA

[Renderings via Hines.] TRA has successfully negotiated a long-term license agreement to expand and improve both the availability and the quality of the current Wi-Fi service on the MBTA Commuter Rail and Ferry Boats. The state-of-the-art standards will enhance the ridership experience throughout the system and also provide Wi-Fi service to the South Station, North Station and Bay Back commuter facilities.

As reported in Boston Magazine, the MBTA General Manager Beverly Scott stated “This is a very exciting time for our Commuter Rail system. While the introduction of new locomotives and new coaches will continue to improve on-time performance rates, customer service initiatives like Wi-Fi and e-ticketing make the overall commuting experience an even better one.”

The provider is a high speed broadband “dedicated” wireless network provider focused exclusively on the transportation industry. The provider’s management team has deployed nationwide networks including Airfone, In-Flight Phone and USA Today’s skyRadio. InMotion has developed an innovative broadband wireless solution to address critical technical needs for commuter rail systems. Read more

August 12, 2014 0

Which DC Metro stations are physically “walkable”?

David Alpert | Greater Greater Washington

Anyone who’s seen the area around a variety of Metro stations knows that some are very walkable and some are not. Is there a scientific measure of that? Metro planners crunched the numbers to find out.

Metro rider surveys have shown that most people are willing to walk up to about a half mile to get to a Metro station. Research in other cities also has settled on the half-mile zone. Read more

June 18, 2014 0

A chance to look forward on transit in Minneapolis

Elliot Altbaum | Minnesota 2020

The opening of the Central Corridor provides an opportunity to celebrate the two LRT lines that now provide service between St. Paul, Minneapolis, and the airport. It’s important to remember that ridership for Hiawatha (Blue Line) has blown past projected ridership for 2020. The Blue Line averaged 31,000 weekday riders in the 3rd quarter of 2013, significantly above the 2020 projections of 24,800 riders. It succeeded because it connected major centers of activity and is surrounded by areas of relative density. Read more

June 17, 2014 0

TRA managing MBTA selling of former ferry terminal in Quincy

Thomas Grillo | Boston Business Journal

The MBTA is selling the former ferry terminal building and the 7.8-acre parcel at the Fore River Shipyard on Washington Street at the Fore River Bridge in Quincy.

0313 Quincy Terminal — The T is seeking bidders for the former ferry terminal building and the 7.8-acre parcel at the Fore River Shipyard in Quincy.

The T is seeking bidders for the land and building at 703 Washington St. There is no minimum bid for the property. Bids are due on Wednesday, April 16, and a pre-bid conference has been scheduled at Transit Realty Associates, the Boston firm that disposes of MBTA real estate, on Thursday, April 3 at 1 p.m.

Bidding documents did not reveal the zoning for the parcel. A spokesman for Quincy Mayor Thomas Koch said the parcel is zoned industrial but with a special permit almost anything could be built on the site.

T ferry service was shuttered last October when transit officials learned the terminal was unsafe and the cost to repair it — between $15 and $50 million — was prohibitive. T patrons now take the ferry from Hingham and there are no plans to bring back the service to Quincy, according to MBTA spokesman Joe Pesaturo. {….}

March 14, 2014 0

Lenora Fisher | Citizens For Modern Transit

On Tuesday, February 25th CMT welcomed the Transit Oriented Development ‘Deal’ Guy, Francis DeCoste, to St. Louis. Before a crowd of more than 80 St. Louis civic and community leaders, Mr. DeCoste discussed his assessment of the development possibilities and challenges around the Forest Park MetroLink Station.

“Even though MetroLink opened in St. Louis in 1993, building around our public transit infrastructure has not gone as far as the region could hope. We looked at the Forest Park MetroLink Station because it will be truly multi-modal in the near future– with the MetroLink red and blue lines providing service, several MetroBus routes serving the station, the future Loop Trolley, Great Rivers Greenway trail and more all providing access. With these realities in mind, we were happy to see Fran examine the possibilities for development and possible financing incentives for the area,” said Kim Cella, CMT Executive Director.

Feb 25 B Mr. DeCoste has over 30 years of experience in the real estate development industry. In his career, he has successfully negotiated and conducted due diligence for site acquisitions, performed economic feasibility analysis, coordinated site and building designs, presented to the public proposals for the permitting and approval of projects, obtained both institutional and private financing, and managed the sales and construction of retail, office, multi-family rental, and luxury condominium projects throughout the country. As Chief Operating Officer with Transit Reality Associates, Mr. DeCoste is responsible for directing the daily operations of TRA and overseeing all staff as well as focusing on transit oriented development projects in the Boston and Chicago markets.

Enjoy Mr. DeCoste’s presentation here, and plan to join us for CMT’s presentation to the community on the feasibility study for a possible mid-town MetroLink Station at Cortex on March 27 at 7:30 am.

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