A portion of the $3.1 million renovations at the Mattoon Amtrack Station will be complete on Monday.

Since last summer, workers have been renovating the nearly 100-year-old building, and starting early next week an elevator on the east side of the station will be working, said Jackie Record, a member of the Coles County Historic Society.

In 2000, the city of Mattoon bought the train station from Amtrak and has since been taking steps to restore the historic building.

A fundraiser held by the Coles County Historic Society raised $165,000 to repair leaks in the roof, which were fixed in 2002.

Now the city has moved on to the rest of the building, using $3.1 million for the restoration project.

“With nearly 28,000 passengers coming through the station every year, most of whom are Eastern students and professors, the renovations needed to be done,” Record said.

The train station was built in 1918; however, that alone is not why the building has historical relevance.

“It is a unique three story depot building, there is no other like it in the state – maybe in the whole country,” Record said. “Since Mattoon does not have a courthouse or town square, this train station serves as the center of the town.”

The renovations include new plumbing and wiring throughout the building, restoration of the interior and exterior of the building and an uplift to the original windows.

The $3.1 million project was paid for in part by two federal transportation grants. The grants covered 80 percent of the cost, and the city was required to pay the rest. Private donations of $400,000 helped pay the city’s portion.

The city received the money in 2005 with aid from President Barack Obama, who at the time was an Illinois senator, Sen. Dick Durbin (D-IL) and Rep. Tim Johnson (R-Urbana).

The city paid for the remaining costs.

“Most of the building was locked up for the last 15 years, and some of it was used as office space,” Record said.

When owned by the railroad company, the building was used to service steam engines.

“It was used to fuel the engines and test the water,” Record said. “It has not been used much since then, that’s why it was in such poor condition.”

Once the renovations are complete, the city has plans for the building.

The passenger waiting room is leased to Amtrak by the city of Mattoon, but now the rest of the building will be leased as well.

“The area at track level, three different spaces, will be leased to the Historical Society,” Record said. “There will be enough space to have a history of the rail road and local history museum.”

The city plans to lease the areas at street level to businesses.

If all goes to plan, the project will be complete in May. A dedication and ribbon cutting will be held at the end of June.

Kayleigh Zyskowski can be reached at 581-7943 or at kzyskowski@eiu.edu

Renovatons are underway at the train station in Mattoon, where a portion will open to the public on Monday. This historic landmark has been under renovation since 2002 and is likely to be completed by May. (Megan Mathy / The Daily Eastern News)

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