Washington State DOT Secretary Paula J. Hammond, Federal Railroad Administrator Joseph C. Szabo, Congressman Jim McDermott, and Seattle Mayor Mike McGinn
The commencement of Phase IIB was marked with the visit of Federal Railroad Administrator Joseph C. Szabo last week. This work will complete building and clock tower seismic upgrade work along with building historic architectural details, including the waiting room’s ornamental plaster work. It will also complete the distribution upgrades of the building’s mechanical and electrical systems.
Administrator Szabo toured King Street Station Restoration project with Congressman Jim McDermott, Seattle Mayor Mike McGinn, and Washington State DOT Secretary Paula J. Hammond. The officials got to see the improvements that were recently finished at this historic site and kicked off the next phase of the restoration. The kick-off event celebrates the seismic upgrade, the first of five federally-funded capital rail projects under construction in 2012. The project received $40 M from the Federal Transit Administration (FTA), the Federal Railroad Administration (FRA), the Washington State Department of Transportation (WSDOT), the Washington State Historical Society, the South Downtown Foundation and 4Culture.
“King Street Station is the gateway to the Pacific Northwest. This project – combined with hundreds of millions in new federal funding for intercity rail – will bring us closer to Vancouver, B.C., Portland and beyond, creating economic opportunities for Seattle,” said Seattle Mayor Mike McGinn. “Thanks to funding from the Federal Railroad Administration, the Federal Transit Administration and the Washington State Department of Transportation, we are making needed improvements to this iconic Seattle rail station. The city’s success in rehabilitating King Street Station is due to a partnership that reaches across communities and agencies.”
Phase IIB started in March 2012. Red bricks will pave the rest of the Westside walkway.
To learn more about the King Street Station Restoration, visit the project’s website at: http://www.seattle.gov/transportation/kingstreet.htm
Structural supporting column gets seismic upgrades.