Quad Cities Multimodal Station

On January 30, 2010, State of Illinois Governor Quinn committed $45 million in State Capital funding that was linked to the announcement of $170 million in Federal High Speed Rail money to implement passenger rail service from Chicago to the Quad Cities. After careful consideration, it was decided that the station serving the Quad Cities metropolitan region would be located in Downtown Moline, Illinois. This decision allows the City of Moline to achieve its 20 year old goal of having a true intermodal station within its Downtown.

Downtown Train

Through careful long-range planning and thoughtful economic development strategies, the community has reinvigorated its riverfront and downtown, capitalizing on a strong base of tourism, education, and corporate business. The Multi-Modal Station ("MMS") — and the 65,000 sf site of which it is a part — is intended to be a catalytic project representing a significant reinvestment in downtown Moline to spur additional private investment in the surrounding area.

In 2011, over $16 million was allocated to make the Multi-Modal Station a reality, including $10 million of federal TIGER II funds. As part of the initiative to build a multi-modal station, MetroLINK and the City of Moline wish to engage in a public-private partnership to add transit oriented development to the project site. The public partners intend to provide development rights for (i) the rehabilitation of a six story historic structure, one that will include a planned passenger rail station on its first floor, as well as for (ii) undeveloped parts of this site on which the station is planned. It is anticipated that the developer selected for this project will have the opportunity to work in tandem with the construction of the multi-modal station so as to seamlessly integrate public and private components.

This development opportunity offers both the opportunity to capitalize on market opportunities generated from a true multi-modal facility that integrates rail, bus and river transportation, as well as from connectivity to the burgeoning district of Downtown Moline, an area that is expected to see hundreds of millions in new investment over the next half decade.

The Quad Cities Multi-Modal Station (MMS) site, located at the northeast corner of 12th Street and 4th Avenue (1205-1311 4th Avenue), is the designated location for new passenger rail service to a community that has gone without such service for over 30 years. The 65,000 sf site is currently improved with a six-story warehouse, built in 1917 and known as the O’Rourke Building ("O’Rourke"); it also has a former automotive shop on it. The entire site is the subject of this Report ("Site"). As part of the initiative to restore passenger rail service to the Quad Cities area, the O’Rourke will be renovated, with portions of its first floor reserved for transportation purposes and the balance of the building available for private development. The development options described in Section VII allow for a total GFA (including the O’Rourke) of up to approximately 165,000 square feet (sf).

Documentation