SPRINGFIELD, Ill. (CAPITOL CITY NOW) – As part of Springfield’s rail consolidation project, discontinued railroad tracks will become greenways. The city council Tuesday will vote whether to support the project and in turn be eligible for state grant money.

The city’s share of this phase of $820,000 of a $4.1 million project. The area in focus now is Sangamon Avenue between Fifth and Eighth Streets and Eighth Street between Converse Street and Sangamon Avenue. During last week’s committee of the whole meeting, Ald. Shawn Gregory wanted to know why that area is coming before downtown.

Mike Mendenhall of Hanson Professional Services said on “the north end of the project, we have the ability to actually start that right now. It allows you to get essentially from Lincoln Park to the Illinois State Fairgrounds.”

Ald. Jennifer Notariano had a question about a different part of town. “The southern section of LINC by Stanford Avenue, I thought we were supposed to be doing construction this year. Has there been a delay?”

“Yes,” answered Mendenhall. “We have been waiting for IDOT to do environmental approvals, and they are backed up quite substantially.”