Chicago Mayor Rahm Emanuel and other officials joined the Chicago Transit Authority (CTA) Aug. 29 to break ground on the new ­Cermak Green Line Station, a $50 million construction project that will energize the area around the McCormick Place convention center and provide a crucial additional transportation option for the Near South Side. The Chicago Tax Increment Funding program is covering the entire cost.

“We are pleased to be able to work with Mayor Emanuel and the city of Chicago to fund a new rail station on the CTA Green Line,” said CTA President Forrest Claypool. “The new Cermak-McCormick Place Station will offer a convenient transit option for commuters, residents, employees, and visitors, and at the same time help support economic development well under way on the Near South Side of Chicago.”

The station is part of a package of transportation improvements totaling $92 million. Other projects will include the rehabilitation of two Red Line stations and of the 18th Street Connector, which carries Orange Line trains to and from the Loop.

The future Green Line station at Cermak—the 146th in the CTA system—will be the first station at that location since 1977, when the previous one was demolished. CTA expects to complete construction by the end of 2014.

The station will be located directly west of McCormick Place and will include three entrance points and a main building equipped with elevators, bike racks, state-of-the-art security, and enclosed boarding platforms.

“We are making a comprehensive investment in the CTA, and this investment includes building a new station to serve McCormick Place and the surrounding area,” the mayor said. “We are improving our infrastructure to brighten our economic future. You cannot have a 21st-century economy sitting on a 20th-century economic infrastructure.”

Breaking ground for CTA’s newest station are, from left, Virgil Jones, president, LINK Unlimited, a nonprofit educational organization;  CTA President Forrest Claypool, Rep. Danny Davis (D-IL), Chicago Alderman Pat Dowell, Mayor Rahm Emanuel, and Chicago DOT Commissioner Gabe Klein.