(The Center Square) – A new Amtrak maintenance facility to be constructed in Bridgeport and the proposal for a new White Sox stadium on the land of Amtrak’s current facility have drawn pushback from community members opposed to the change.
Plans were unveiled by likely future Chicago White Sox owner Justin Ishbia late last week for the construction of a roughly $900 million mixed-use development called “The Railyard” in the South Loop.
Just across the Chicago River is a similar mixed-use development which has already broken ground, The 78. The site was once pitched to be a future home to the White Sox, alongside the privately funded McDonalds Park, future home to MLS team the Chicago Fire.
In July, $424.9 million in Chicago taxpayer funds were approved for infrastructure near the new Fire stadium. The General Assembly and Gov. J.B. Pritzker didn’t take up a previous wider plan to publicly fund a baseball stadium at the site.
“The taxpayers’ dollars are precious and the idea of taking taxpayer dollars and subsidizing the building of a stadium as opposed to, for example, subsidizing the building of a birth center, just to give the example, does not seem like the stadium ought to have higher priority,” Pritzker said in February, 2022, regarding previous proposals.
Pritzker didn’t say if he’d be willing to consider some state funding for Ishbia’s White Sox stadium, however.
“[Ishbia] has talked about funding most of that himself, and may need some help from the state, but I haven’t talked to him specifically about it. I know some concerns have been raised by some local communities. He should be listening to those,” Pritzker said Tuesday.
Amtrak announced last month it received two grants totaling $572 million and up to $87 million from the Federal Railroad Administration to develop a new, updated maintenance facility to service trains from the 17 different routes that either depart from or arrive to Chicago.
The new facility is planned to be constructed adjacent to Rate Field, current home to the White Sox, near Bridgeport. The project is expected to begin in the coming months.
Ishbia is contributing an additional $125 million to the relocation project through Canal Edge, a new LLC developing the Railyard project, according to Amtrak.
Alderman Nicole Lee at a news conference Tuesday said many residents in the 11th Ward work at the team’s current ballpark and having the team there is a benefit to the neighborhood.
“Working class residents have spent their hard earned money on season tickets, merchandise, concessions, year after year in support of the team. And I’ve got to tell ya, our community feels pretty disrespected right now on all fronts,” Lee said.
U.S. Rep. Mike Quigley, D-Ill., said he’s told Amtrak officials he’s opposed to the selected site for their new facility, and reminded them he could block some of their future funding.
“I am the lead appropriator in DC for transportation. And last week I met Amtrak and said, ‘You do need a new maintenance facility, but not here.’ I told Amtrak, ‘You need this, but do not use your preemptive powers.’ I heard someone say, ‘Let’s go to federal court.’ We need to avoid that. We need to stop this on its merits,” Quigley said Tuesday.
The project is scheduled to continue, for now, but community members near the site remain opposed and are growing in their protest.
