Commuters who use the Homewood train station were greeted with free coffee and donuts Monday morning, May 20, courtesy of the village and served by village staff.
The treats were a way to say “welcome back” after the station was closed for about seven weeks as crews replaced the stairway from the pedestrian tunnel to the Metra boarding platform.
The stairway replacement was part of the $20 million renovation project that Metra expects will be finished sometime next year.
Assistant Village Manager Terence Acquah was among the staff members greeting commuters at the Park Avenue entrance.
“We just wanted to welcome back our favorite people,” he said. “It’s just awesome to see the smiling faces.”
Chandra Windmon accepted a coffee on her way to the platform and said she was glad to see the station she’s been using for about 17 years reopen.
“I’m so happy that I’m able to come back to my station,” she said. “I was going to Calumet. It was not bad, but you miss your own.”
Prudence Jackson has only been boarding at the Homewood station since November, but she, too, was glad to see the station open again.
“I’m curious to see the other side,” she said, referring to the east entrance on Harwood Avenue, where crews are building a new entrance structure and adding a ramp to improve accessibility.
Ida Wells of Hazel Crest said the renovations are welcome. She likes the new surface being installed on the pedestrian tunnel walls, covering the old concrete surface.
“It’s absolutely wonderful,” she said.
The major renovation of the station began in 2020, when Amtrak started work on a $15 million renovation to its boarding platform and added a ramp to improve accessibility at the west entrance on Park Avenue. Amtrak’s project was completed in 2022.
