Boston Herald: Feds slam brakes on Assembly Square T stop

A massive plan to redevelop Assembly Square in Somerville is on the rocks after federal officials blocked efforts to fast-track construction of a $40 million MBTA station needed to support an explosion of retail shops and office space, the Herald has learned.
Federal transit officials confirmed they have nixed plans to build the proposed station under a streamlined regulatory process, delivering yet another blow to the train-deprived city after years of efforts to improve public transit.
The shocking blow comes two weeks after the Patrick administration delayed a separate effort to extend the Green Line to Somerville and Medford, citing the need to leverage federal funding. That project, already years behind schedule, could now be put off two years beyond its 2014 completion date.
The snafu with the proposed Assembly Square Orange Line station caught several public officials off guard, creating a scramble to ensure the delivery of $25 million in federal money for the project.
Somerville Mayor Joe Curtatone insisted the T station - considered a linchpin for the Assembly Square development - will not be thrown off course.
“You can rest assured, that T stop is going to get built,” Curtatone said last night. “In the end, this is going to be inconsequential. All systems are go.”
But sources with knowledge of the situation said the MBTA now expects to miss an early September deadline for submitting an application to get funding for the station. That means T officials must go back to the drawing board for months of work to develop cost-benefit data needed for a more detailed regulatory review.
The snafu arose after the Federal Transit Administration found that the proposed T station does not qualify for its “Very Small Starts” program, which allows transit projects to bypass regulatory hurdles.
While the extent of the delay is unknown, it could put retailers and developers in a precarious situation, especially since the commitment to build the new T stop between Sullivan Square and Wellington Station was key to winning local support.
Said Bob Walsh, vice president of development for Federal Investment Realty Trust, the lead developer of Assembly Square: “We have recently begun preliminary conversations with the FTA on what is the best route to access the $25 million.”
The development plan includes a massive Ikea furniture store, a multiplex cinema, retail shops, a 200-room hotel and 1.75 million square feet of office space. Executives with Ikea and Federal Realty Trust have already committed $15 million for the T station.
U.S. Rep. Michael Capuano (D-Somerville) said he is working to make sure the federal money is not significantly delayed. “All parties involved are working together to identify the best way to access federal funding,” Capuano said in a statement. “I expect it to move forward on a reasonable schedule.”