St. Clair County unveils public safety center at MetroLink stop in East St. Louis

St. Clair County-area officials unveiled a $15 million public safety center in East St. Louis on Thursday that they believe will improve security around MetroLink.

Located at the Emerson Park stop, construction on the project wrapped in April and opened shortly after.

The 16,000-square-foot facility houses a new St. Clair County 911 dispatch unit, office space for the county sheriff’s department and backup equipment for the light rail system’s control center. The two-floor building also has public bathrooms and a water fountain for riders.

“This project benefits public safety, supports employment opportunities and modernizes our MetroLink facilities — and for that we are very grateful,” said Mark Kern, chairman of the St. Clair County Board.

When plans were announced early last year , the cost stood at $13.6 million. The total creeped up because of inflation and some delays in shipments, said Herb Simmons, former chair of the St. Clair County Transit District Board and treasurer of the Bi-State Development Board of Commissioners.

Nearly $10 million of the funds for the new center came from Rebuild Illinois, a 2019 legislative priority of Illinois Gov. J.B. Pritzker. The county transit district and Bi-State Development, the owner and operator of MetroLink, covered the remainder.

“This is the only building of this kind” on the 46 miles of MetroLink track, Simmons said.

MetroLink and East St. Louis are often criticized for crime issues.

To make the trains safer, MetroLink began installing security gates at select platforms in the Metro East earlier this year. The agency has yet to complete the project because of supply-chain problems with needed electrical equipment, however. The new gates require a rider to purchase a ticket before entering.

Over the last couple of years, homicides and nonfatal shootings in East St. Louis have trended down, according to data from the Illinois State Police.

Thursday’s announcement comes as MetroLink is working on the details of its planned north-to-south expansion in St. Louis — called the Green Line. Construction is also underway on an extension of light rail to MidAmerica St. Louis Airport in the Metro East.