HPT buses to begin using depot Tuesday morning

(HAZLETON, PA – MONDAY, NOV. 16, 2009) – Officials from the City of Hazleton, led by Mayor Lou Barletta, joined state Sen. Ray Musto and mayors, township supervisors and representatives from surrounding communities to cut the ribbon and open the Church Street Station, the new intermodal transportation center in Downtown Hazleton.

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Also joining in the celebration were other federal and state officials and representatives of the Greater Hazleton Chamber of Commerce and the economic development agency CAN DO.

Monday’s event marked the grand opening of the $12 million first phase of the long-awaited intermodal project.

Church Street Station, which stretches from Church Street to Laurel Street one block south of Broad Street (State Route 93), will serve as the hub for Hazleton Public Transit buses that run throughout Hazleton and the surrounding areas. Regional and out-of-town busing companies and taxi services will also use the station.

Hazleton Public Transit and the Hazleton Parking Authority will move their offices into the station, which includes retail space at the front of the building.

“This is a great day for the City of Hazleton. When we began this project several years ago, we had no money for it. Back then, the Church Street Station was just a dream. But with the commitment and support of some of our elected officials, City Hall employees, and dedicated friends, we persevered. The result is this beautiful center,” Mayor Barletta said.

Mayor Barletta also praised Hazleton Public Transit Director Renee Craig and all bus drivers and HPT employees for their diligent, patient work.

“The Church Street Station is desperately needed,” Mayor Barletta said. “Over the past few years, we have seen increases in our ridership. Everyone from seniors to students relies on Hazleton Public Transit buses to take them to school, to a store, to the mall or to destinations in three counties. Our buses take people to work in the morning and bring them home to their families at the end of their workday. The Church Street Station is for them.”

Director Craig added, “Hazleton Public Transit riders had to wait a long time for this day. They were very patient, but we think today’s result is worth that wait. We are glad to be able to provide a state-of-the-art facility for our riders and for those who come to Hazleton via intracity bus.”

The local business community has been eagerly anticipating completion of the intermodal center project. Donna Palermo, president of the Greater Hazleton Chamber of Commerce, attended the ribbon-cutting.

“The Greater Hazleton Chamber of Commerce welcomes the new Church Street Station to Downtown Hazleton, and we feel it will serve the entire community very well,” Palermo said. “This project, together with the upcoming Broad Street Corridor Project, will spur a new sense of pride in the downtown area.”

Church Street Station Features

The first phase of the Church Street Station is a 10,000-square-foot center that will become the new hub of transportation in Downtown Hazleton.

The station features a new automated system that will provide information about arriving and departing buses through the public address system.

“As a Hazleton Public Transit bus arrives at the station, an announcement will be made that will detail the bus number and route. It will also tell people in the station the number of the stall where that bus will be,” Craig explained. “This will inform our riders and help them find their buses easily.”

To help ensure the security of citizens, the Church Street Station has an extensive security system, including cameras that provide monitored coverage of the entire center.

The metal roof, which is designed to be more durable than a traditional commercial roof, will have a snow and ice guard system installed to protect people and vehicles from accumulated frozen precipitation that may slide off.

The exterior of the building is brick with stone accents incorporated in the design to remind residents of the former Hazleton train station, which once stood on the site.

Sidewalks include numerous ramps to meet federal handicap-accessibility standards.

Inside, the Church Street Station has several sections.

There are spacious waiting areas for Hazleton Public Transit riders and for those waiting for out-of-town buses. There is a counter so riders can purchase out-of-town (intracity) bus tickets.

Behind the scenes, there are offices for Hazleton Public Transit, the Hazleton Parking Authority and Susquehanna Trailways, the intracity bus provider.

The Church Street façade of the building includes separate, secure space for retail development. Plans are under way to develop this space to provide services for riders and enhance the ridership experience.

Funding for Church Street Station has come from federal, state and county sources. To date, the City of Hazleton has procured $12.2 million for the project, with 80 percent of the funding coming from federal sources and 20 percent from state and county sources.

The total construction cost of the first phase was about $8.5 million. Design and engineering work, site preparation and demolition costs added several million dollars to the total cost of Phase I.

Mayor Barletta and Director Craig thanked and commended the contractors responsible for the completion of the first phase.

Alfred Benesch and Company was the project manager. The Quandel Group, Inc., was the construction manager. Hazleton Site Contractors performed the site work. Berger Construction Co. was the general contractor. The steel contractor was Northeast Steel Products. Electrical work was performed by George J. Hayden, Inc. Plumbing work was performed by Bognet, Inc. The sprinkler system was installed by Triangle. Heating, ventilation and cooling (HVAC) work was performed by Yanuzzi, Inc. Storefront work (windows, doors, etc.) was performed by Hershocks, Inc.  The design team for the project included Highland Associates; Acker Associates, Inc.; O’Donnell and Naccarato, Inc. and Renaissance Engineering, P.C.

Changes to traffic patterns, bus stops

The north side (Broad Street side) of the station will be the new stop for Hazleton Public Transit buses. Those buses will access Mine Street from Church Street and proceed east toward Laurel Street, stopping at various stalls along the station.

The south side (Chestnut Street side) of the station will be the new stop for out-of-town (intracity) buses. Those buses will access the station from Laurel Street and proceed west toward Church Street, stopping at various stalls along the station.

One-way traffic on the south side of the station flows from Laurel Street to Church Street. One-way traffic on the north side of the station flows from Church Street to Laurel Street.

“We ask motorists to be especially cautious of the new traffic patterns around the Church Street Station. We’d like them to pay very close attention to the one-way signs and do-not-enter signs so they can avoid accidents and injury,” Craig said.

Hazleton Public Transit buses will begin using the Church Street Station on the morning of Tuesday, Nov. 17.  All bus routes that stop on Laurel Street between Mine and Broad streets will be relocated to the Church Street Station effective Tuesday morning.

Riders are asked to no longer use the stop on Laurel Street between Mine and Broad streets and to begin using the intermodal transportation center.

“As the weather gets colder and the snow begins to fall, our riders are welcome to stay warm inside this beautiful new building,” Craig said. “Whether it is cold and snowy in the winter or hot and humid in the summer, the inside of the Church Street Station will provide shelter and comfort to riders.”

Craig said the area of the former bus stop along the east side of Laurel Street (near the bus shelters) will be converted into metered parking spaces for visitors to Downtown Hazleton.

Additionally, offices for both Hazleton Public Transit and the Hazleton Parking Authority are now inside the Church Street Station. Those seeking to conduct business with those agencies can visit them in their new offices in the intermodal center.

Project History

Hazleton Mayor Lou Barletta proposed the creation of an intermodal transportation center in the city during his first term in office. The project began with a blank sheet of paper and no funding.

After diligently working with federal and state officials including U.S. Sen. Arlen Specter and former U.S. Sen. Rick Santorum and state Sen. Ray Musto, the Barletta Administration was able to secure millions of dollars in funding to start the first phase. The Luzerne County Commissioners also played a vital role in providing funding for the intermodal center.

“This project would never have been possible without the efforts of former Senator Santorum, Senator Musto and the Luzerne County Commissioners. They were the ones who strongly embraced the potential of the Church Street Station, and they worked very hard to improve the transportation, traffic conditions and  economic development opportunities in Downtown Hazleton,” Mayor Barletta said.

Construction of the Church Street Station started several years ago when the City of Hazleton demolished the former Elton’s building on Broad Street. This demolition was part of the overall site plan for the intermodal center.

The Church Street Station sits on the site of the former Hazleton train station, which was torn down in the 1970s. It remained a parking lot for several decades until site preparation work for the intermodal center began in September 2008.

One of the first steps in the process involved moving power and communications lines from utility poles to underground channels along Mine Street (the first block south of Broad Street). Crews worked diligently to ensure minimal disruption of utility service for tenants affected by the change. Utility poles were removed once the power and communications lines were buried to allow buses more access to the Church Street Station.

During the winter of 2008-09, structural steel was installed and the foundation and basic outline of the building began to take shape.

Construction of the building was supposed to be completed during the summer of 2009, but the Barletta Administration received an additional $1.5 million from the federal government. That money was used to extend the roof canopy toward Laurel Street, upgrade the roof material to a more durable metal, and install the foundation for a ramp at the intersection of Church and Mine streets.

Future Phases

The foundation of the ramp is in preparation for future phases of the Church Street Station that include the construction of up to four parking decks above the existing structure of Phase I.

The first phase of the Church Street Station was designed and built to support those parking decks. The foundation of the building was reinforced to hold the extra weight, and the structural steel was upgraded to carry them.

An elevator shaft that will eventually go to the upper parking decks was built into Phase I; adding it later would have required extensive modifications to the ceiling and general structure of the facility. It was determined that including the elevator shaft in Phase I would be more cost-effective and less disruptive than adding it  later.

Developing the ramp foundations that would serve as access points to the parking decks in the first phase of construction eliminates the need to excavate the intersection of Church and Mine streets when future phases of the project begin. Again, performing this work in Phase I of the construction was determined to be less disruptive and more cost-effective than waiting to perform it during a future phase.

Current plans call for the creation of four parking decks above the existing structure. Each deck would accommodate 50 parking spaces. The estimated cost for each deck is $1.5 million, and the Barletta Administration continues to work with federal, state and county officials to secure funding for those additions.

“The construction of these parking decks is an essential part of the Church Street Station project. Developers have told us they would invest in Downtown Hazleton if we had additional parking spaces, so we are working very hard to get funding and complete this project,” Mayor Barletta said. “The initial investment in the parking decks will be far outweighed by the creation of new jobs and new economic development in the very heart of our city.”