City One Step Closer To 606 Extension, North Side Light Rail Link

CHICAGO, IL — Lincoln Yards developer Sterling Bay and the city have started planning for a light rail train or bus lane that would connect the North Side with downtown Chicago. The train would operate on existing freight train tracks, the city said. The $10 billion, 70-acre Lincoln Yards development would bring thousands of new residents to the riverside in between the Bucktown area and Lincoln Park, and they would need more ways to get around, the city said.

Plans for extending the 606 trail under the Kennedy Expressway and across the Chicago River are also part of the initial planning stages.

The rail company Iowa Pacific Holdings left several dozen empty tanker cars sitting on the proposed Lincoln Yards site, a move that angered Sterling Bay, according to a report by Crain's Chicago. Late last year, Sterling Bay filed a formal application with the federal Surface Transportation Board requesting that the agency order the rail company to give up the tracks, according to the report. The board forced the rail company to abandon the tracks, Crain's reported.

Sterling Bay, the city and Iowa Pacific Holdings are negotiating a deal that would transform the railroad right of way into a bike trail that would connect to the 606, according to the report.

The Lincoln Yards development would be built on the former Finkl & Sons steel site on the east side of the Chicago River between Lincoln Park and Bucktown. The site was among five Chicago locations that Amazon visited in March to scout for the company's second headquarters. Amazon plans to spend around $5 billion building and running its second headquarters, which is expected to create 50,000 jobs in the chosen city.

Top image: a rendering of the proposed Lincoln Yards Amazon development. Image credit: Sterling Bay.