Damen station (CTA Green Line)

Last updated
Damen
 
2000W
200N
Chicago "L" rapid transit station
Damen Green Line station house (March 2024).jpg
Damen station and its station house under construction, March 2024
General information
LocationDamen Avenue and Lake Street
Chicago, Illinois
Coordinates 41°53′6″N87°40′37″W / 41.88500°N 87.67694°W / 41.88500; -87.67694
Owned by Chicago Transit Authority
Line(s) Lake Branch
Platforms2 side platforms
Tracks2 tracks
Construction
Structure typeElevated
AccessibleYes
History
OpenedNovember 6, 1893
ClosedApril 4, 1948
Rebuilt2022–2024
Passengers
1947106,902 Decrease2.svg 3.91%(C.T.A.)
Rank208 out of 222
Services
Preceding station Chicago "L" Following station
California
toward Harlem/Lake
Green Line Ashland
toward Ashland/63rd or Cottage Grove
Former services
Preceding station Chicago "L" Following station
Oakley
toward Forest Park
Lake Street Elevated Wood
Closed 1913
toward Loop
(Randolph/Wells) or Market Terminal
Location
Damen station (CTA Green Line)

Damen is an under construction rapid transit station on the Chicago "L"'s Green Line, that is expected to open in mid-2024. [1] A station existed at this location from 1893 to 1948; opened as Robey in 1893, it was one of the original stations on what was then known as the Lake Street Elevated. The removal of the old station created a 1.5-mile (2.4 km) gap between the remaining stations. As the surrounding neighborhood saw an increase in new developments, the need for a replacement station grew. The station will also provide closer access to the United Center sports arena.

Contents

History

Original station (1893–1948)

The Lake Street Elevated Railway Company was incorporated on February 7, 1888. [2] Reincorpoated as the Lake Street Elevated Railroad Company on August 24, 1892, to avoid legal issues, [3] its line, the Lake Street Elevated, commenced revenue operations at 5 a.m. on November 6, 1893, between California station and the Market Street Terminal. [4] The new line had 13 stations, [lower-alpha 1] one of which was located on Robey Street; [6] the street, originally named for politician James Robey, was renamed Damen Avenue for Father Arnold Damen in 1927. [7] Originally powered by steam locomotives, the Elevated's tracks were electrified on May 9, 1896. [8]

The Lake Street Elevated Railroad, having been dogged by financial issues since its inception, was reorganized as the Chicago and Oak Park Elevated Railroad (C&OP) on March 31, 1904. [9] The C&OP, along with the other companies operating "L" lines in Chicago, became a part of the Chicago Elevated Railways (CER) trust on July 1, 1911. [10] CER acted as a de facto holding company for the "L" –unifying its operations, instituting the same management across the companies, and instituting free transfers between the lines starting in 1913 –but kept the underlying companies intact. [11] This continued until the companies were formally merged into the single Chicago Rapid Transit Company (CRT) in 1924, which assumed operations on January 9; the former C&OP would not join the CRT until it was bought out at an auction on January 31, and was designated the Lake Street Division of the CRT for administrative purposes. [12] Although municipal ownership of transit had been a hotly-contested issue for half a century, the publicly-owned Chicago Transit Authority (CTA) would not be created until 1945, [13] or assume operation of the "L" until October 1, 1947. [14]

The newly-created CTA closed the original Damen station alongside nine others on the Lake Street Elevated on April 4, 1948, due to their low ridership and in order to speed up service along the line. [15] The closed stations were demolished in early 1949 and adaptively reused to make improvements to other "L" stations, including their wood and steel platform girders used to extend station platforms elsewhere. [16] The station closures led to a gap between California and Lake Street Transfer in the area where Damen had been; [17] after 1951, this became a gap between California and Ashland, which measured 1.5 miles (2.4 km) across. [18]

New station

Construction of the new Damen station, viewed from Damen Avenue at Lake Street Damen Green Line station from Damen Ave (March 2024).jpg
Construction of the new Damen station, viewed from Damen Avenue at Lake Street

The CTA conducted a study in 2002 to investigate the possibility of "infill stations" on the Green Line to fill station gaps that were wider than normal. [16] Morgan, another Lake Street station closed in 1948, had been floated for revival since the 1990s and was discussed in the study, opening in 2012 and filling a 1.3-mile (2.1 km) gap between Ashland and Clinton. Another infill station discussed by the study, Cermak–McCormick Place station, was completed in 2015. Both stations spurred significant economic growth in their respective neighborhoods. [19]

The new Damen station was announced on February 9, 2017, marking the third new CTA station announced during Rahm Emanuel's tenure as Mayor of Chicago. [20] At the time of the announcement, design and engineering was planned to commence in 2017, construction of the new station was expected to begin in spring 2019 and be completed in 2020. [21] Groundbreaking of the new station began in May 2019, with construction of the new station expected to begin in late 2019 and be completed in 2021. [22] [23] [24] It will fill the 1.5-mile (2.4 km) distance between the California and Ashland stations on the Green line. [18] It will become the closest "L" station to the United Center, with public transportation service to an emerging business corridor and residential neighborhood. [19] [20] At the time of the announcement, the estimate cost was $50 million, but no designs for the station were announced. State and federal agencies were being lobbied for funding for the station by 27th ward alderman Walter Burnett Jr. although tax increment financing (TIF) was planned if no other funding is received. [25]

On April 25, 2018, the city began the Lake Street reconstruction project, which includes the Damen Station. [26] [27]

On August 12, 2022, after years of delay, a building permit for the new Damen Station was issued, with the construction expected to take 18 months. Causes for the delays included supply chain issues that hampered utility relocation. [28]

Station details

Original station

One of Ashland's station houses in April 2005. The original Damen station was of a similar design, but had staircases on both sides of the station house. CTA Ashland StationHouse.jpg
One of Ashland's station houses in April 2005. The original Damen station was of a similar design, but had staircases on both sides of the station house.

The original Damen station had two station houses, one on each platform, designed in a "gingerbread" Queen Anne style, similar to the other stations on the route and the surviving station houses at Ashland. [29] The station houses were heated by potbelly stoves, and while earlier plans had called for their ticket agent's booths to be placed on the sides of the station houses facing the street, they ended up being placed in alcoves adjacent to the platforms. [29] The construction of the Lake Street Elevated's stations was contracted to Frank L. Underwood of Kansas City and Willard R. Green of New York, [30] who subcontracted to the Lloyd and Pennington Company. [16]

New station

On July 9, 2018, the design for the new station was revealed. A glass-covered pedestrian bridge will enable foot traffic between the inbound and outbound platforms, and provide a view of the city's skyline. The station was designed by the architecture firm Perkins and Will. [31]

Ridership

The original Damen station's ridership peaked at 496,839 passengers in 1905, and last exceeded 400,000 riders in 1906. [32] Ridership held steady for a decade afterwards, but last exceeded 300,000 passengers in 1920, 200,000 passengers in 1927, and 100,000 in 1931 before the late 1940s, bottoming out at 80,161 in 1938. [33] In its last full year of operation, 1947, Damen served 106,902 riders, a 3.91 percent decrease from the 111,248 riders in 1946. For the part of 1948 it was open, Damen served 30,262 passengers. [34] While in 1947 it had been the Lake Street's tenth-lowest ridership station, in early 1948 it declined to be its fifth-least patronized station, after the overflow-use Randolph/Market station downtown, Campbell and Oakley immediately to Damen's west, and Racine, [34] all of which also closed on April 4. [15] In 1947, it was the 208th-most ridden of the 222 "L" stations where ridership was recorded, and during early 1948 was the 218th-busiest of 223 such stations. [lower-alpha 2] [37]

Bus connections

CTA

Notes

  1. ↑ Including one at Homan, west of California, which had been a part of a non-revenue grand opening on November 4 but would not open for revenue service until November 24. [5]
  2. ↑ Several stations on the Niles Center and Westchester branches were permanently unmanned and thus did not collect ridership statistics. [35] Exchange station on the Stock Yards branch lacked statistics for 1947 but returned in 1948. [36]

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Chicago "L"</span> Rapid transit system in Chicago, Illinois, US

The Chicago "L" is the rapid transit system serving the city of Chicago and some of its surrounding suburbs in the U.S. state of Illinois. Operated by the Chicago Transit Authority (CTA), it is the fourth-largest rapid transit system in the United States in terms of total route length, at 102.8 miles (165.4 km) long as of 2014, and the third-busiest rapid transit system in the United States. In 2016, the "L" had 1,492 rail cars, eight different routes, and 145 train stations. In 2023, the system had 117,447,000 rides, or about 373,800 per weekday in the fourth quarter of 2023.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Green Line (CTA)</span> Rapid transit line, part of the Chicago L system

The Green Line is a rapid transit line in Chicago, Illinois, operated by the Chicago Transit Authority (CTA) as part of the Chicago "L" system. It is the only completely elevated route in the "L" system. All other routes may have various combinations of elevated, subway, street level, or freeway median sections.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Damen station (CTA Brown Line)</span> Chicago "L" station

Damen is an 'L' station on the CTA's Brown Line. It is an elevated station with two side platforms, located at 4643–47 North Damen Avenue in Chicago's Ravenswood neighborhood. The adjacent stations are Western, which is located about one half mile (0.8 km) to the west, and Montrose, about one half mile (0.8 km) to the southeast. Located three blocks east is the Ravenswood Metra station on the commuter railroad's Union Pacific North Line.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Ashland station (CTA Green and Pink Lines)</span> Chicago "L" station

Ashland is an 'L' station on the CTA's Green and Pink Lines. It is an elevated station with two side platforms, located in Chicago's Near West Side neighborhood at 1601 West Lake Street. Just to the west of the station, the Pink Line branches off from the Lake Street branch to follow the Paulina Connector to the Douglas branch. The adjacent stations are California (Green), which is located about 1+1⁄2 miles (2.4 km) to the west, Polk (Pink), which is located about 1 mile (1.6 km) to the south, and Morgan station, approximately 3⁄4 mile (1.2 km) to the east.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Western station (CTA Blue Line O'Hare branch)</span> Chicago rapid transit station

Western is an elevated rapid transit station on the Chicago "L"'s Blue Line, where it is located on the O'Hare branch. The station, opened in 1895, is located within the Bucktown neighborhood in the larger Logan Square community area. It has two side platforms at track level with a station house at street level.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Damen station (CTA Blue Line)</span> Rapid transit station in Chicago

Damen is a rapid transit station on the Chicago "L", currently serving the O'Hare branch of its Blue Line. Opened on May 6, 1895, as Robey, it is the oldest station on the Blue Line. The station serves the popular Bucktown and Wicker Park neighborhoods, and is consistently in the top 40 highest-ridership "L" stations. It has two wooden side platforms and a brick station house at street level. The west platform, serving southbound trains, contains a tower that has never been used but is a relic of the station's past. The station is served by three bus routes on Damen, Milwaukee, and North Avenues, which are each descended from streetcar lines on those streets in the early 20th century. The Blue Line has owl service; while the surrounding streetcar lines also had owl service in the early 20th century, the modern bus services do not.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Morgan station</span> Chicago "L" station

Morgan is a rapid transit station on the Chicago "L"'s Green and Pink Lines in Chicago's Near West Side neighborhood. The current station opened at this location in 2012, where a previous station stood from 1893 to 1949.

29th was a rapid transit station on the Chicago "L"'s South Side main line. Originally constructed by the South Side Elevated Railroad company, it was one of the original ten stations opened on the Chicago "L", beginning service on June 6, 1892. The South Side Elevated Railroad merged operations with three other companies to form Chicago Elevated Railways (CER) in 1911, before merging outright with them in 1924 to form the Chicago Rapid Transit Company (CRT). Public ownership came to the "L" in 1947 with the Chicago Transit Authority (CTA).

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Lake Street Elevated</span> Rapid transit line in Chicago

The Lake Street Elevated, also known as the Lake branch, is a 8.75 mi (14.08 km) long branch of the Chicago "L" which is located west of the Chicago Loop and serves the Green Line for its entire length, as well as the Pink Line east of Ashland Avenue. As of February 2013, the branch serves an average of 27,217 passengers each weekday. It serves the Near West Side, East Garfield Park, West Garfield Park, and Austin neighborhoods of Chicago, as well as the suburbs Oak Park and Forest Park. It owes its name to Lake Street, the street that the branch overlooks for 6.25 mi (10.06 km) before continuing its route straight west, adjacent to South Boulevard, towards the terminus at Harlem/Lake.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Logan Square branch</span> Rapid transit line in Chicago

The Logan Square branch was an elevated rapid transit line of the Chicago "L", where it was one of the branches of the Metropolitan West Side Elevated Railroad. Diverging north from the Metropolitan's main line west of Marshfield station, it opened in 1895 and served Chicago's Logan Square and West Town neighborhoods. North of Damen station, the Humboldt Park branch diverged from the Logan Square branch, going west to serve Humboldt Park. The original Logan Square branch was separated into several sections in 1951, some of which remain in revenue service as of 2023.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Lake Street Transfer station</span> Rapid transit station in Chicago (1913–1951)

The Lake Street Transfer station was a rapid transit station on the Chicago "L", serving as a transfer station between its Lake Street Elevated Railroad and the Logan Square branch of its Metropolitan West Side Elevated Railroad. Located where the Logan Square branch crossed over the Lake Street Elevated, it was in service from 1913 to 1951, when it was rendered obsolete by the opening of the Dearborn Street subway.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Marshfield station</span> Rapid transit station in Chicago, 1895–1954

Marshfield was a rapid transit station on the Chicago "L" in service between 1895 and 1954. Constructed by the Metropolitan West Side Elevated Railroad, it was the westernmost station of the Metropolitan's main line, which then diverged into three branches. Marshfield was also served by the Aurora Elgin and Chicago Railway (AE&C) and its descendant the Chicago Aurora and Elgin Railroad (CA&E), an interurban, between 1905 and 1953.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Madison station (CTA)</span> Rapid transit station in Chicago, 1895–1951

Madison was a rapid transit station on the Chicago "L"'s Metropolitan West Side Elevated Railroad, serving its Logan Square branch from 1895 to 1951. The station was typical of those constructed by the Metropolitan, with a Queen Anne station house and two wooden side platforms adjacent to the tracks. For much of its existence, Madison served the nearby sports arena Chicago Stadium.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Laflin station</span> Rapid transit station in Chicago, 1895–1951

Laflin was a rapid transit station operated by the Chicago "L"'s Metropolitan West Side Elevated Railroad and located on its main line. The station existed from 1895 to 1951, when it was closed due to low ridership. The entire main line would soon be demolished for construction of the Eisenhower Expressway and its Congress Line, and the niche served by the Laflin would be filled by an entrance on the new line's Racine station.

Canal was a rapid transit station located on the Metropolitan main line of the Chicago "L" that was in service from 1895 to 1958, when the entire main line was replaced by the Congress Line located in the median of the nearby Eisenhower Expressway. Starting in 1927, the interurban Chicago Aurora and Elgin Railroad (CA&E) also served the station, continuing until 1953. The station connected with Chicago's Union Station, which was one of the city's rail terminals. One of the busiest stations on the Metropolitan's routes, and of the "L" in general, it opened a second entrance on Clinton Street in 1914.

Division was a rapid transit station on the Chicago "L"'s Logan Square branch, one of several branches of the Metropolitan West Side Elevated Railroad. Located on Division Street, the station was constructed by the Metropolitan in the early 1890s and began service on May 6, 1895.

Chicago was a rapid transit station on the Logan Square branch of the Chicago "L", one of the several branches of the Metropolitan West Side Elevated Railroad, between 1895 and 1951. Located on Chicago Avenue, the station was constructed by the Metropolitan in the early 1890s and began service on May 6, 1895.

Grand was a rapid transit station on the Chicago "L"'s Logan Square branch, one of the several branches of the Metropolitan West Side Elevated Railroad. Located on Grand Avenue, the station was constructed by the Metropolitan in the early 1890s and began service on May 6, 1895.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Loomis station (CTA Lake Street Elevated)</span> Former station on the Chicago "L"

Loomis was a rapid transit station on the Chicago Transit Authority Lake Street Elevated, which is now part of the Green Line. The station was located at the intersection of Lake Street, Loomis Street, and Ogden Avenue in the Near West Side neighborhood. Loomis opened on November 6, 1893, and closed on April 4, 1954.

References

  1. ↑ https://www.axios.com/local/chicago/2023/12/04/green-line-new-stop-damen-avenue
  2. ↑ Moffat 1995, p. 55
  3. ↑ Moffat 1995, p. 59
  4. ↑ Moffat 1995, p. 62
  5. ↑ Moffat 1995, pp. 62–63
  6. ↑ Moffat 1995, p. 63
  7. ↑ "Historic Street Renamed for Damen After Hard Fight". Chicago Tribune. Vol. 88, no. 32. August 11, 1929. p. S-3. Retrieved January 8, 2023– via Newspapers.com.
  8. ↑ Moffat 1995, p. 73
  9. ↑ Moffat 1995, pp. 104–106
  10. ↑ Moffat 1995, p. 237
  11. ↑ Moffat 1995, pp. 240–242
  12. ↑ Moffat 1995, p. 261
  13. ↑ Moffat 1995, p. 260
  14. ↑ Chicago Transit Authority (October 1, 1947). "Today – they're all yours!". Chicago Tribune. Vol. 106, no. 235. p. 8. Retrieved 29 October 2022– via Newspapers.com.
  15. 1 2 "10 Stations Closed as CTA Speeds Up Lake St. Elevated". Chicago Tribune. Vol. 107, no. 82. April 5, 1948. p. 4 – via Newspapers.com.
  16. 1 2 3 Garfield, Graham. "Damen". Chicago-L.org. Retrieved 8 January 2023.
  17. ↑ Chicago Transit Authority (April 5, 1948). "New Lake Street All-Express "L" Service". Chicago Tribune. Vol. 107, no. 82. p. 7. Archived from the original on February 13, 2022. Retrieved February 13, 2022– via Newspapers.com.
  18. 1 2 Hinz, Greg (February 9, 2017). "CTA to open new el stop by United Center". Crain's Chicago Business . Retrieved February 9, 2017.
  19. 1 2 Wisniewski, Mary (February 9, 2017). "City plans new CTA Green Line station at Damen, near United Center". Chicago Tribune . Retrieved February 9, 2017.
  20. 1 2 Esposito, Stefano (February 9, 2017). "We're Finally Getting A United Center L Station". Chicago Sun-Times . Archived from the original on February 9, 2017. Retrieved February 9, 2017.
  21. ↑ Long, Zach (July 9, 2018). "Here's What the CTA's New Green Line Station at Damen Avenue Will Look Like". Time Out. Retrieved July 10, 2018.
  22. ↑ "West Side must wait until 2021 for new CTA Green Line station at Damen". Chicago Tribune .
  23. ↑ "Mayor Emanuel Joins Alderman Burnett, CDOT, CTA and DCASE at Groundbreaking for New CTA Green Line Station at Damen & Lake".
  24. ↑ "Damen Green Line station breaks ground, opening slips to 2021". 9 July 2018.
  25. ↑ Lulay, Stephanie (February 9, 2017). "New $50 Million Green Line Station Planned Near United Center". DNAInfo.com. Archived from the original on February 10, 2017. Retrieved February 9, 2017.
  26. ↑ Greenfield, John (April 25, 2018). "The New Lake/Damen Green Line Stop Could Transform the Near West Side". Chi.streetsblog.org. Retrieved May 1, 2018.
  27. ↑ Freund, Sara (April 27, 2018). "New $60 million Green Line station aims to bring more opportunities to West Side". Curbed . Retrieved May 1, 2018.
  28. ↑ Kugler, Lukas (August 12, 2022). "Permits issued for Damen CTA Green Line station". Urbanize Chicago. Retrieved August 18, 2022.
  29. 1 2 Moffat 1995, pp. 64–65
  30. ↑ Moffat 1995, p. 60
  31. ↑ Wilusz, Luke (July 9, 2018). "City, CTA Release Designs for New Damen Green Line Station". Chicago Sun-Times. Retrieved July 10, 2018.
  32. ↑ CTA 1979, p. 26
  33. ↑ CTA 1979, pp. 27–30
  34. 1 2 CTA 1979, p. 30
  35. ↑ CTA 1979, pp. 22 & 38
  36. ↑ CTA 1979, p. 14
  37. ↑ CTA 1979, pp. 6, 14, 22, 30, & 38

Works cited

This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.