Running the South Shore Line to a new downtown station would cost up to an estimated $102.3 million, by far the most expensive option, but also could generate up to $415.3 million in economic impact over 10 years, offering the highest potential reward, according to the results of a consultant’s study released Thursday.

On the other end of the spectrum, building a new station on underutilized parking lots at Honeywell Corp. would cost the least, up to $23.9 million, with economic impact ranging from $132 million to $171.5 million.

The estimates were projected by engineering firm AECOM, hired by the city at a cost of $125,000 to analyze potential costs and benefits of five alternatives to realign the passenger rail line in the city. Mayor Pete Buttigieg shared the 63-page report, which he initially said would be released in February, with the common council at a public meeting late Thursday afternoon.

In between the downtown and Honeywell sites on the cost/benefit spectrum are:

  • $44.3 million to build a station at Mark Tarner’s proposed South Bend Chocolate Factory plant and Dinosaur Museum about a mile west of the station’s current home at South Bend International Airport, generating up to $144.4 million in economic impact;
  • $31.7 million for a station at the existing Amtrak station at Washington and Meade streets, with up to $139.7 million in economic  impact, and
  • $29.5 million to move the station to the airport’s west end, from its current home on the east end, by cutting a new route through the Ardmore neighborhood, generating up to $83.8 million in impact.
For purposes of the study, AECOM projected a downtown station built between Union Station and Four Winds Field, on what is now South Street. Much of the economic impact would come from a mix of residential development types: higher-density duplexes, townhomes and apartments, drawing people who would work in Chicago.

Buttigieg didn’t say which option he prefers, and he’ll consult with officials from the South Shore’s operator, the Northern Indiana Commuter Transportation District, before making a decision in “coming weeks,” his spokesman told The Tribune. But the mayor told the council that the city should think about the downtown option’s projected $102.3 million pricetag “from a long-term planning perspective.”
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