The public-private partnership behind the Purple Line light rail project in Maryland fell apart in September, and has this past week been revived.
"The Maryland Department of Transportation will pay an additional $250 million to salvage a 36-year partnership with the companies managing construction of the delayed Purple Line," report Katherine Shaver.
The project "imploded" in September after cost disputes between the state and Purple Line Transit Partners, the contractors managing construction on the project.
"The settlement ends the state’s and companies’ lawsuits against each other and resolves what the firms had said were $800 million in cost overruns on the light-rail project between Montgomery and Prince George’s counties," explains Shaver of the details announced in a press release from Maryland Department of Transportation announcing he resolution of the conflict.
"MDOT did not release details of the settlement, and agency spokeswoman Erin Henson declined to say where the state would get the $250 million," according to Shaver. "She said more details will be released when the agreement goes to the state’s Board of Public Works for approval in December."
FULL STORY: Maryland, Purple Line firms reach $250 million deal to keep project moving
Purple Line Construction Halts in Maryland as Contractor Woes Deepen
Purple Line Transit Partners, the contractors managing construction of the beleaguered Purple Line in Maryland, have begun to walk off the job as a dispute about cost overruns brings the project to a screeching halt.
Maryland's Purple Line Light Rail Project in Crisis
The design-build team hired to build the Purple Line in Maryland could walk off the job unless a deal regarding the increasing cost of the project isn't brokered by June 20.
Purple Line Contractors Haven't Walked Off the Job, Yet
The latest chapter in the ongoing saga of Maryland's Purple Line light rail hasn't yet turned the page.
Planetizen Federal Action Tracker
A weekly monitor of how Trump’s orders and actions are impacting planners and planning in America.
The state-sanctioned urbicide of Austin
People don’t kill cities. Freeways do.
US to reduce Colorado River water deliveries to Mexico
A new Colorado Treaty amendment reduces Mexico’s Colorado River water allocation by 250,000 acre feet.
5 New England states march closer to 800 megawatt wind energy project
Securing federal approval for the project may be complicated under the Trump administration, which has historically been hostile towards domestic wind power.
Baltimore to break ground on $50 million Transit Priority Project
The project will bring faster bus trips, safer streets and better bike connections to Baltimore.
Airbnb launches $250 million 'last-dollar financing' housing accelerator, makes first investment in Austin
The company will put $6.4 million towards affordable housing development in Texas’ capital.
FREE Course: Walkable City 1: Why Walkability?
After describing his path towards focusing on walkability as the essence of good planning, Jeff Speck marches through his five principal reasons for making more walkable places.
Reinventing Malls: Planning Alchemy—Turning Gray Fields Into Gold
The course focuses on the opportunities and imperatives that shape reinvention of mall sites.
Eagle County Government
Harvard University Graduate School of Design
Nashville Planning Department
The Architects Foundation
University of Cincinnati Online
The Pocatello Development Authority
The Urban Renewal Agency of the City of Pocatello
Journal of the American Planning Association