City Council approves grant agreement for Lexington Train Station Project
During the September 12 meeting, City Council approved the grant cooperative agreement between the United States Department of Transportation (USDOT) and the City of Lexington.
Post Date:09/14/2022 5:16 PM
In 2003, the City began seeking passenger rail service to provide equitable transportation service to residents of this community. In September 2020, USDOT selected Lexington to receive 24.9 million dollars through the Better Utilizing Investments to Leverage Development (BUILD) grant program. The BUILD grant is administered by the Federal Railroad Administration (FRA) division of USDOT.
Once a federal grant award is announced, roughly two years of prerequisite tasks must be completed before USDOT releases the funds. (Awards are always tentative pending completion of prerequisite tasks. Releasing of the funds is referred to as “grant obligation” and happens upon approval of a grant cooperative agreement. The City of Lexington and NCDOT have completed all prerequisite tasks for grant obligation.
FRA submitted the package to the Office of the Secretary of Transportation (OST) for review and approval. It has been reviewed and approved by OST for grant obligation. Funds are obligated by September 30, 2022.
On September 28, 2022, there will be a media event where FRA officials will officially present the award to the City of Lexington. This event will be a celebration of the partnerships that made this project possible and a show of appreciation to all agencies involved. Federal and State dignitaries will participate in the event. In addition, Norfolk Southern and North Carolina Railroad representatives are invited to attend.
