Residents Support Train Stop Relocation

By KIM VELSEY
The Hartford Courant

WINDSOR LOCKS — If you build it, will they come?

The "Field of Dreams" question surfaced several times during a public hearing earlier this week on a plan to relocate the train stop to the center of town.
It was answered by a steady stream of residents who argued that given the current state of downtown, there's nothing to lose if they don't.
Town officials say that relocating the train stop from an isolated area by the I-91 ramps to downtown would help revitalize the once-vibrant area. The timing is also ideal, they say, now that the New Haven-Hartford-Springfield rail line is promising to increase train service and link the station with Bradley International Airport by express bus.
"It's a tale of two cities," said Chris Ferraro, a vice president at Fuss & O'Neill, which identified relocating the train stop as key component of revitalization in a study several years ago. Referring to the commercial area near the airport, he said: "Route 75 really has its own economy, while the downtown lost its character,"
The meeting started off with a short film on Main Street's past that juxtaposed photos of lively intersections with today's empty streetscapes. Resident Kevin Brace, who produced the film, said that he wasn't old enough to remember Main Street's glory days, but urged residents to "do something positive for Windsor Locks… for once."
John Bernick a project engineer for the state Department of Transportation, said that the cost difference between building a station for the revamped New Haven-Springfield line at the current site versus downtown is negligible. The department expects to make a decision on the relocation sometime in January, after an environmental assessment is completed and the public comment period ends.
Although the downtown site would pose more traffic issues because of the proximity of the station to the railroad crossing, the crossing duration would probably change from about 45 seconds to 2 minutes, according to the DOT. Prohibiting left turns and improving signal phasing would make the situation tolerable, if not ideal, officials said.
Bernick said that the DOT has been working closely with Amtrak and that the company has said it will support whatever decision the DOT makes as long as it satisfies Amtrak requirements.
Several residents said that although they would like to see a vibrant Main Street, they didn't believe the train stop would be enough to accomplish that.
"I question the whole premises that the area could get development," said Douglas Glazier, a board of finance member, who said he'd worked to bring the Windsor Locks Commons to Main Street, only to watch it struggle with high vacancy for years.
"But If it's the same cost to move it, then the worst case is that nothing happens to Windsor Locks Commons," Ferraro countered.