Appleton secures $25M transit center funding two years after announcement

By DUKE BEHNKE

USA Today Network via Reuters Connect

Nearly two years after the announcement of a $25 million federal grant to build a new $26.8 million downtown Appleton Transit Center, the City of Appleton and Valley Transit have, finally, secured the money.

“It’s there. It’s done. It’s executed. The grant is ours,” Valley Transit General Manager Ron McDonald told The Post-Crescent on April 27. “We can get to work on the project now.”

The grant was announced in June 2024 during the last year of the Biden administration. The project passed an environmental review in January 2025, but when the Trump administration took charge, it stopped all grant payments until it could implement its own review and approval.

It took another 15 months to prove “we were not doing anything that was contrary to what the administration wanted done,” McDonald said. “This was a very laborious process to get through.”

Mayor Jake Woodford said he was excited to get rolling on the redevelopment. He thanked local, state and federal officials who helped secure the money across two presidential administrations.

“We would like to especially recognize Congressman Tony Wied, former Congressman Mike Gallagher, Sen. Tammy Baldwin, Deputy Assistant Secretary for Policy at the U.S. Department of Transportation Loren A. Smith Jr. and the Federal Transit Administration for their assistance and support of the project,” Woodford said.

The Appleton Transit Center is located at 100 E. Washington St. McDonald said the next step will be to find and set up a temporary location for the center. Construction of the new center is expected to start in early 2027.

The drive-through transit center will occupy the ground floor of a larger economic development project that will include apartments on the upper five to seven floors. The apartments will be built by an undisclosed private developer. Appleton set aside $1.8 million from the American Rescue Plan Act to support an affordable housing component of the project.

The value of the upper floors is unknown but will be in addition to the $26.8 million for the transit center.

The property lies within Appleton’s Tax Incremental Financing District 11, which could be used to provide public support for the development of the apartments.

“This transformational project will improve mobility, strengthen downtown Appleton, expand Valley Transit’s offerings and create new opportunities for residents, businesses and visitors,” Woodford said. “The new transit center will provide a safer, more accessible and more efficient transportation hub while also supporting additional housing and economic development in the heart of our city.”

Plans for the new transit center call for 14 bus bays, indoor and covered outdoor passenger waiting areas, public restrooms, secure bicycle storage, vending machines, a ticketing office, a supervisor’s office and an Appleton Police Department substation and security office.

“This project will improve the customer experience, expand accessibility, support future growth and position our system to continue connecting people to jobs, health care, education and other essential destinations,” McDonald said.

A pedestrian zone is envisioned between the transit center and the Appleton Public Library.

The $25 million grant will come from the Rebuilding American Infrastructure with Sustainability and Equity (RAISE) program, which help states, local communities and tribal governments complete transportation infrastructure projects.

“They just don’t write us a check for $25 million,” McDonald said. “We submit expenses against the project up to $25 million, and they will reimburse that amount.”

The existing transit center was built in 1989 and handles not only buses operated by Valley Transit, but also Lamers Connect, Coach USA and Amtrak. McDonald said the facility is undersized and outdated for accessibility, safety and security. It was the scene of a fatal shooting in May 2019.