Blue Line Extension Advocates Lobby Federal Lawmakers

There’s a renewed push to get federal funding needed for the proposed Metro Blue Line Extension project.

“One thing we’ve heard a lot from patients and staff is how important having access to reliable, safe, transportation is,” said Alison Pence, Allina Health’s director of community engagement. “And we just don’t have stuff like that out in this part of the region. And so we are really working with the elected officials and the government to really try to get additional resources out in this area.”

Pence is part of a coalition of organizations and elected government officials that traveled to Washington, D.C., last week to lobby support for light rail.

Courage Kenny Would Benefit from LRT

Allina operates Courage Kenny Rehabilitation Institute in Golden Valley, which is less than a half mile from a proposed Blue Line light rail station.

The train, according to Pence, would provide a more reliable public transportation option for Courage Kenny’s 6,000 patients and 500 employees.

“Really the feeling was, these are tax dollars that Minnesota is paying into the federal government, and we should be working to get them back into our communities instead of them being spent in other parts of the country,” Pence said.

The Blue Line Extension would go from downtown Minneapolis to Brooklyn Park, and pass through Golden Valley, Robbinsdale and Crystal.

Golden Valley