Troy Transit Center opens

A story I've been following since 2011 has come to a happy conclusion; the Troy Transit Center opened.


That was the WXYZ preview.  The Detroit News covered the actual opening in Ceremony celebrates Troy Transit Center opening.

More than 200 people witnessed the ribbon-cutting for the new Troy Transit Center Tuesday, including Brian Smiatacz, 36, who had two kids in tow.

Four-year-old Adam, and Grace, 2, came outfitted with train engineer hats.

"They've been waiting for a year for this to open," Smiatacz said. "We were watching it get built. It took a long time for this to happen."

I've been waiting longer than that.  First, it was voted down by Troy's then Tea Party City Council in 2011.  This embroiled then-Mayor Janice Daniels in a scandal, one that led to a recall effort that was successful.*  As for the transit center, it got a second chance and was finally approved.  It faced a final hurdle, as the ownership of the land it stood on was in doubt.  I'm glad that was settled so the Troy Transit Center finally opened.

Now I can turn my attention to the construction of the M1 streetcar, the other project that got a second chance.  Here's to that story having as happy a conclusion as the transit center!

*I was rooting for the recall from the start.  I thought Daniels was trouble from the very beginning.