MARTA to the city: We're not stopping Five Points renovation
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The most recent vision for the Five Points Station renovation. Credit: Courtesy of MARTA
Despite pushback from Mayor Andre Dickens, local mobility advocates and business leaders, MARTA is forging ahead with its $230 million Five Points Station renovation project.
Why it matters: MARTA's plan to close street-level access to the past-its-prime station in late July is expected to affect roughly 17,000 riders who use the station every day.
What they're saying: MARTA said Tuesday in a statement that it's "moving full steam ahead" with the project, and any delays would do "nothing to alleviate the service impacts necessary for such complex deconstruction work."
- "The time to do this work is now, not years from now when we will be left with no choice and potentially forced to close the entire station without the benefit of detour planning and communications," MARTA said.
- Delaying the project would put into jeopardy MARTA's plan to use federal funding, along with other sources of revenue, to pay for the renovations, it said.
The other side: Opponents of MARTA's plan held a rally Tuesday at the Five Points station, urging the board to press pause on the project.
- Dickens, who called on MARTA to halt the project, said along with concerns about the closure and accessibility to the station, he also has heartburn over an ongoing audit of More MARTA, a sales tax that's funding much of the Five Points makeover.
- "I stand by my call to pause construction activity until we can reassess and determine a better path forward," he said.
Zoom in: MARTA said Tuesday that water seeping into the station has weakened the concrete canopy, creating a hazard for customers.
- Deconstructing the canopy is projected to take 18 months, with the entire project expected to last four years.
- "We are investing millions in renovating the platform levels and hundreds of millions in new trains," MARTA said. "It is irresponsible to not also address the deteriorating canopy and risk damage to these investments.
Context: Designed by global architecture firm Skidmore Owings & Merrill, MARTA's makeover calls for deconstructing Five Points' hulking concrete canopy and opening up the subterranean station to more sunlight and fresh air, Thomas previously reported.