Federal officials halt Savannah bus terminal pending review
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Posted 11:52AM on Thursday 2nd May 2002 ( 23 years ago )
SAVANNAH - Federal transit officials have put the brakes on a proposed $13 million public bus terminal pending a review of whether it would harm Savannah's historic district. <br>
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The Federal Transit Administration, which controls ten million dollars in grant money needed to fund the terminal, had previously approved the project. But objections from local residents and warnings from the National Park Service have prompted the agency to take a second look. <br>
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In a letter to Chatham County officials, regional administrator Jerry Franklin wrote -- ``F.T.A. requests that you take no further project implementation steps, including final design, site work such as building demolition, or other construction activities until further notice.'' <br>
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Chatham Area Transit wants to build a block-long bus terminal with indoor waiting space, retail and a 180-space parking deck at the corner of Elbert Square, now a sliver of grass since it was paved over in the 1930s. <br>
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Savannah business leaders and preservations opposed to the project say it would choke the area with traffic, hinder restoration of Elbert Square and violate the grid-like town plan devised by General James Edward Oglethorpe in 1733. <br>
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The National Park Service in February warned that building the bus terminal in the historic district would threaten Savannah's designation as a National Historic Landmark.
http://accesswdun.com/article/2002/5/195202
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