| NSC Stars future is up in the air |
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One of the Stars top additions during training camp was Two Boys Gumede, left, a South African national, who became the Conference- USA Player of the Year playing at the University of Alabama-Birmingham. Photo by Jason Olson
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Nine months after the idea of bringing back professional soccer to the
National Sports Center in Blaine, became a reality, the future of the
NSC Minnesota Stars after the 2010 season looks bleak at best without
some help from community.
| Northstar Commuter Rail federal full funding grant agreement is signed |
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| Tuesday, 11 December 2007 | |
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by Peter Bodley Managing editor It was the day all backers of the Northstar Commuter Rail project had been waiting for. A signing ceremony took place at the Anoka County Government Center this morning (Tuesday, Dec. 11) for the federal full funding grant agreement, which gives the green light for the $156.8 million in federal dollars to help pay for the $317 million project. Gov. Tim Pawlenty and Adm. Thomas Barrett, U.S. Deputy Secretary of Transportation, signed the documents that guarantee the federal dollars while at the same time releasing $97.5 million in state bonding money approved for the Northstar project by the 2005 and 2006 Minnesota Legislature. “Minnesota has reached a new milestone today with the signing of the full funding grant agreement for Northstar,” said Anoka County Commissioner Dan Erhart, chairman of the Northstar Corridor Development Authority (NCDA). “Not only is this day a celebration for those who have kept the project on track, but for Minnesotans who will soon be riding the trains, employers who will have their workers on board and communities along the corridor.” Indeed, in a recent survey, 82 percent of the respondents said that Northstar was a good idea, Erhart said. “And if all the people ride the trains that said they would in the survey, we will be overloaded and that will be a good problem to have,” he said. According to Barrett, the federal dollars to bring Northstar off the drawing board to reality is another example of the federal government’s commitment to help the Twin Cities in the wake of the I-35W bridge collapse. Barrett described Northstar as an innovative and collaborative effort to reduce congestion. “This is a new star rising for you, lighting the path to fast travel to the office and back home and to the ballgame as well,” Barrett said. The commuter rail station in Minneapolis, where the line will link up with the Hiawatha light rail line is next to the new Minnesota Twins ballpark. According to Pawlenty, Northstar is a “fabulously successful” project that has overcome many hurdles. It is a testament to the vision, persistence and enthusiasm of its backers, Pawlenty said. “It will improve the quality of life by taking one and a half lanes of traffic off the freeway,” he said. “The best way to envision is to go out and invent it yourself.” Pawlenty’s support of the project was a major turning point for the project, according to Erhart. And the 30 communities who comprise the 10-year-old Northstar Corridor Development Authority stayed together, were persistent and kept the project on track, Erhart said. “It has shown how local governments can come together, get a project done and do it in an efficient manner,” he said. “This is a new era in transportation.” Minnesota’s U.S. Sens. Norm Coleman (R) and Amy Klobuchar (DFL) took part in the program via video link from Washington, D.C. “This is one of the most important moments in Minnesota transportation history,” Coleman said. “I can’t think of a better Christmas present than the full funding grant agreement.” “It is true that dreams can become reality. In the case of Northstar, it was more of a marathon, with hurdles, instead of sprint.” According to Klobuchar, a growing, vibrant community needs a forward-thinking transportation policy – one that gives people choices, that reduces congestion on the roads and that creates a responsible transportation strategy to reduce the country’s dependence on foreign fuels and reduce emissions of greenhouse gases. State Rep. Kathy Tingelstad, R-Andover/Coon Rapids, carried the Northstar legislation in the House, together with Sen. Don Betzold, DFL-Fridley, in the Senate. “This is an awesome day,” Tingelstad said. “Enjoy it.” The now-released state bonding dollars will be used to make the next payment, due this month, to Burlington-Northern Santa Fe Railroad (BNSF), on the perpetual easement that allows the Northstar commuter rail trains to use the railroad’s tracks, according to Tim Yantos, executive director of both the Anoka County Regional Rail Authority and the NCDA. The three counties - Anoka, Hennepin and Sherburne - which have been fronting money through cash flow and short-term borrowing to keep the project moving forward until the federal and state dollars became available, can now be reimbursed, Yantos said. Those county’s regional rail authorities have previously sold bonds for the local share of the project cost. Some $30 million of the federal pot has previously been approved and spent, Yantos said. Commuter trains are expected to start running by November 2009. Construction has been under way since June on the commuter rail link with the Hiawatha light line in downtown Minneapolis in conjunction with the new Minnesota Twins ballpark project. As well, work on the maintenance building in Big Lake began in July. Five reconstructed locomotives have been ordered for delivery by the summer of 2008 and with the full funding grant agreement in place, a contract will be awarded for the 17 Northstar coaches, which will be delivered in the spring of 2009, according to Yantos. The grant agreement signing also means that the NCDA can move ahead with the bidding process for the Northstar stations with construction to start in the spring of 2008 and completion in 2009. There will be stations in Big Lake, Elk River, Anoka, Coon Rapids and Minneapolis. The Northstar commuter rail line will run on the BNSF double-line tracks from Minneapolis to Big Lake through Anoka County. According to both Pawlenty and Erhart, Northstar would not be a reality without the support of the railroad. Service will include five round trips each week day during rush hours, along with a reverse-commute trip each week day and three round trips each weekend day. Peter Bodley is at This e-mail address is being protected from spam bots, you need JavaScript enabled to view it |
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