Oakton (CTA)

Infobox Station
name=Oakton
type=


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address=Oakton Street and Skokie Boulevard
Skokie, IL
coordinates=(4800W/8000N)
line=rail color box|system=CTA|line=Yellow
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structure=
platform=1 island platform
depth=
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tracks=2 tracks
parking=
bicycle=
baggage_check=
opened=March 28, 1925
closed=March 27, 1948
rebuilt=
electrified=
ADA=
code=
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Oakton was a station on the CTA Skokie Swift Line. It opened in 1925 and was demolished, along with other stops, in 1948. Currently there are plans to bring it back.

History

This station, which in many ways resembles the Dempster station of the same line, was the only stop on the "L"'s Niles Center route that was even remotely close to what little population existed in the empty suburb of Niles Center (later Skokie) in 1925. This station served Skokie's downtown. Built as part of the Chicago, North Shore & Milwaukee Railroad's Skokie Valley Route, a high-speed bypass for the interurban around the more congested North Shore suburbs, the Chicago rapid transit had trackage rights on the line and operated local service to intermediate stations between Howard and Dempster, including Oakton. The North Shore Line never used this stop, even though it was one of only two also used by the "L" that it helped pay for. Both the North Shore Line and Chicago Rapid Transit Company were owned by utilities magnate Samuel Insull.

Arthur U. Gerber, staff architect for Sam Insull, designed the depot. Nearly identical to the Dempster station at the end of the line, Oakton was smaller and set between the tracks with a single high-level island platform projecting from the rear of the station house.

The Niles Center branch and Oakton station opened for service on March 28, 1925.

The station's history over the next couple decades was fairly unremarkable. Within just a few years of the opening of the Skokie Valley Route and the CRT's Niles Center local service the Depression hit. New construction in the suburb virtually halted. By the time the Chicago Transit Authority took over in 1947, the Niles Center branch's prospects for high (or even respectable) ridership levels were still dim. The hoped-for development of Niles Center was squelched by the Depression just a few years after the line opened, and remained unfeasible through World War II. After assuming operation of the "L" system, the CTA studied each rapid transit line and monitored each station. Then, bit by bit, they closed the stations and lines that were most uneconomical and had the lowest ridership to concentrate on the stronger routes. The Niles Center Line fell victim to this systematic pruning when on March 27, 1948, service between Howard and Dempster was replaced by the #97 Skokie bus line. This date was chosen in large part because it so happened that the North Shore Line's employees went on strike on this date -- one of several NSL strikes of the 1940s -- meaning that the Skokie Valley Route was not staffed, preventing the Niles Center branch from operating. Service had to be suspended on the branch due to the North Shore Line strike anyway, so it was a convenient opportunity served to drop a service that was marginal at best.

The North Shore Line continued to operate on the Skokie Valley Route but did not provide service to Oakton station, which remained shuttered and abandoned. The Chicago North Shore and Milwaukee ceased operation in the early morning hours of January 21, 1963.

In 1963, following North Shore Line abandonment, the CTA began work to convert the Skokie Valley Line as far north as Dempster to a new rapid transit line. The Transit Authority planned to resume "L" service over the line, though rather than a local branch service it was envisioned as a nonstop shuttle between Dempster and Howard. The "Skokie Swift", as it was dubbed, opened to the public on Monday, April 20, 1964. Remarkably, when the Skokie Swift was inaugurated in 1964, no station was built on this site, even though it is a mere block from Skokie's central business district.

Return to Oakton?

Since shortly after the Swift began operating in 1963, there has also been an interest on the part of the Village of Skokie and that town's citizens to reestablish at least one of the local stations. The one most likely to return would be Oakton, since it would serve Skokie's downtown and would likely have the most potential traffic. A study commissioned by the Village of Skokie and completed in Fall 2003 recommended establishing a stop at Oakton.

Village officials have been discussing and planning for a downtown Skokie Swift station for more than five years. More recently, building a stop at Oakton was seen as a benefit to the village's major downtown project calling for a developer to purchase the 28-acre Pfizer Pharmaceuticals property and create a life sciences research park. The station would be located next to the property and would be ideal for employees coming to and leaving work. The CTA® has supported both the Oakton station and the extension of the line. A letter from CTA® President Frank Kruesi released by the village states, "By extending (the Skokie Swift) north, and providing infill stations, the CTA® will make better use of existing service capacity and provide expanded reverse commute opportunities."

In early 2005, the village received $417,000 in a federal grant earmarked for the station's design, which covers about 80 percent of design costs for the station. The village would pick up the remainder, about $104,000, according to Village Director of Engineering Fred Schattner. Then, in mid-2005, village staff submitted a grant proposal to the federal Congestion Mitigation and Air Quality grant program, which provides funds for projects that contribute to traffic congestion relief and cleaner air quality.

In late November 2005, the Skokie secured a $1 million federal grant for the village's downtown Skokie Swift project with the help of U.S. Rep. Jan Schakowsky, D-9th. Then, in early December 2005, Skokie learned they would receive an additional $9.2 million in federal grant funds to construct the station. The entire project is estimated to cost about $15 million including any land acquisition needed, which means the village had by this time secured more than two-thirds of the funding. Skokie Mayor Van Dusen has said he is exploring options to help pay for some or all of the remaining cost.

The station will be located on the site of the original station, just west of Skokie Boulevard, north of Oakton Street and adjacent to the new Illinois Science + Technology Park.

The village is seeking proposals from firms for design work for the new station. According to Van Dusen, station design should begin in Summer 2006. Construction of the new downtown station is expected to begin in 2007. Officials estimate the station will be completed in 2007 or 2008.

Reestablishing an Oakton stop would change the nature of the Yellow Line's fast, nonstop shuttle operation, though one additional stop might not make a substantial enough difference to substantially alter the service provided.

In early 2007, the Village of Skokie was considering initiating eminent domain proceedings against two landowners to make room for the new Oakton stop, with the Village Board approving the step Monday, December 18, 2006 if negotiations to buy the properties fail.

The station, expected to open on in 2008, could still be built without the additional parcels at 8116 and 8152-8200 Skokie Blvd., said Tom Thompson, Skokie's economic development coordinator. But acquiring the land is vital because extra space is needed for a "kiss and ride" stop, a bus turnaround and a taxi drop-off area, officials said.

The village has made several bids to buy the properties, officials said, but the buyers have not agreed to sell at a price that was determined by the village's appraiser. The Skokie Boulevard properties house an auto repair shop and a truck rental business.

Negotiations will continue, but if an agreement is not reached soon, the village could move ahead with the eminent domain proceedings. That step, unanimously approved by the Village Board at Monday's meeting, wasn't entered into lightly, officials said.

External links

* [http://www.chicago-l.org/stations/oakton.html]