By Lindsay Harrison/WMBD-TV

NORMAL – The Town of Normal is moving forward with plans to build an underpass at Uptown Station.

The town has been discussing ways to build a train track crossing for several years. In 2015, the council postponed plans to build an overpass in order to look at alternative options.

Monday, the council voted 5-2 in favor of an underpass with a park. While this is not the final vote, the move allows the project to move to phase two, which includes additional studies for the plans and design work.

Monday’s vote comes after a month of public input. Out of 41 comments received, 29 were in favor of the underpass, five were against, three were in favor of the overpass, and the rest did not specify a preference.

At Monday’s meeting, two people spoke out in concern of the cost. Marc Tiritilli said, if the council moves forward with the project, the town should avoid paying for extra studies and save money to pay for it out of pocket.

“This is going to be less and less about rail, more and more about a center piece park. All the more reason to save our money if we’re going to do this, pay for it ourselves without the interest,” he said.

While many people say they would support an at-grade crossing, that option has been ruled out by the railroad. Supporters of the underpass believe it is the most easily accessible option for everyone, even though it’s most expensive.

“It’s still possible, depending on funding, that this doesn’t happen,” councilman R.C. McBride said. “But I think this is the path we should be pursuing and I’m very much in favor of pursuing it.”

An outside consultant has estimated in the past that the project will cost about $12.7 million. The council said it will look for significant federal and state funding, and the plans will not move forward if the funding can’t be secured

Trustees Kathleen Lorenz and Scott Preston voted against the proposal.