A couple weeks ago, as word broke that Detroit was declaring bankruptcy, I took a drive through Englewood.
Detroit’s implosion didn’t just happen—there were a lot of contributing factors. Like global economics and the decline of the auto industry. Or white flight. Or bad planning.
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The current freight yard runs from 47th to 55th, roughly between Wallace and Eggleston. The expansion will take it south five blocks to 61st Street.
Norfolk Southern, the Virginia-based rail company that’s developing the project, says the freight yard will be a boon for the city, creating several hundred jobs. Maybe so.
I’ll say this about our mayor: he respects wealth.
“Diesel pollution is a very serious concern, especially for people with asthma,” says Faith Bugel, a lawyer for the Environmental Law and Policy Center.
The proposed rail yard is between two tax increment financing districts—the Englewood and the 47th Street and Halsted TIFs.
