ROGERS PARK — Mayor Rahm Emanuel, Ald. Joe Moore (49th) and other politicians officially unveiled Friday afternoon the extensive $17 million Loyola "L" station renovation that included a spruced up station house and a new outdoor plaza.
"This is a gateway to Loyola University," said Father Michael Garanzini, the university's president. "It's a clean, open, safe place for all of us to be."
The Chicago Transit Authority received $10 million in federal funding for the station repairs, while Loyola paid $6.9 million to build the plaza.
"Not only is the Loyola Station the gateway to Loyola University, it's also the southern gateway to Rogers Park and the 49th Ward," said Moore (49th) from inside the station. "And it is really exciting to see this wonderful new plaza just outside these windows."
Moore said the station — and also Rogers Park's other three Red Line stations — were an "embarrassment" for the community before they were renovated by the CTA over the past two years.
U.S. Rep. Jan Schakowsky was also at the unveiling and said Loyola station "definitely was a place that needed a facelift."
Emanuel said the newly reconstructed Red Line south train line and other station improvements show the city's strong commitment to public transportation.
"More people take the CTA in one month than all of Amtrak nationwide all year," he said. "Modernizing it has been a single focus of the city's."
State Rep. Kelly Cassidy, U.S. Sen. Dick Durbin and CTA President Forrest Claypool were also in attendance.