Northstar rail line picks up steam
Commuter train project from Big Lake to Minneapolis still faces significant obstacles
BY CHARLES LASZEWSKI
Pioneer Press
Of the half-dozen big mass-transit projects under discussion for the Twin Cities area, the Northstar commuter rail project looks like the closest thing to a sure bet.
Millions of dollars have already poured into the 40-mile railroad line from Big Lake to Minneapolis. Gov. Tim Pawlenty included another $60 million for the project in his proposal for the bonding bill that will be considered by the Legislature this year. Earlier this month, the Federal Transit Administration granted approval for the Northstar Corridor Development Authority to move into the final design stage. Developers along the route are lining up housing projects near the train stations.
Still, there are plenty of obstacles blocking the $265 million project.
• Federal funding is becoming more difficult to obtain as more projects compete for a shrinking pool of dollars, said Tim Yantos, executive director of the development authority and the Northstar project office.
• Tough negotiations continue between the development authority and Burlington Northern Santa Fe Corp. over use and improvement of the company’s tracks.
• Negotiations must be completed with a local farmer for his Big Lake property, which is slated to be the site for the station and the maintenance facility.
"We really are hoping to stay on schedule and be open in 2009,‘’ Yantos said. "It will take a tremendous effort, and some luck, to get it done.‘’
Like the proposed Central Corridor light-rail line between Minneapolis and St. Paul, the Northstar line has to come up with a cost-effectiveness index number for the federal transit officials that is low enough to move it ahead of other projects around the nation.
"The FTA restrictions get tougher and more costly because of the demand,‘’