About

About - All Aboard On Depot Street

In 2009, proposals for a new Amtrak station were first presented to Ann Arbor City Council. In early 2013, City Council members voted to hire a consultant to prepare an Environmental Assessment that will result in a recommendation for the location. A diverse group of Ann Arbor residents have followed the multiple plans and iterations and decided to share our findings and concerns. A report is pending for fall of 2015, which will consider three options for the location of a new Amtrak train station:

1. on Depot Street;

2. on Fuller Road in Fuller Park; or

3. “a no build” option.


We support the Depot Street location as the best place to serve the greater Ann Arbor community for a number of reasons:

  • An established history of over 183 years serving as a rail hub

  • Connectivity and proximity to downtown Ann Arbor

  • Accessibility to alternate transportation and highway routes

  • Use of existing infrastructure to support transportation

  • Options for staged improvements as financial means are identified

  • A favorable location for transit-oriented development

  • A deeply held community conviction that park land along the Huron River is irreplaceable

Why we are reaching out at this time?


Because, if park land is used for transportation purposes, the decision makers must demonstrate that there is no “prudent or feasible alternative location”. We believe that the Depot Street location is both prudent and feasible, and that its use will provide the best benefit to the community. Ann Arbor City Council will likely make decisions on a preferred location, within the fiscal year ending June 2016. Now is the time to closely consider the issues. Now is the time to make your views heard.


Members of Protect A2 Parks:

Vivienne Armentrout

Barbara Bach

Larry Baird

Dietrich Bergmann*

Vincent Caruso

James d’Amour

George Gaston

Robert Johnson*

Ann Larimore

Nancy Kaplan

Rita Mitchell

Gwen Nystuen

Ethel Potts*

Nancy Shiffler


*Long-term, colleagues, committed Members, deceased. We appreciate and are inspired by their dedication to public process. We miss their friendship, company, and thoughtful contributions.


Note, 10/2021: Protect A2 Parks was established as a community working group in 2009. The web site allaboardondepotstreet.com was initiated in 2016 as an effort to inform citizens about pending decisions on use and potential repurposing of public land. Dates are accurate and indicate the extended time frame of the project's duration.