Local leaders gathered together Wednesday afternoon for a ground breaking ceremony for the new Mountain Line Downtown Connection Center. During the ceremony, Mountain Line President and CEO Heather Dalmolin said they have outgrown their current location and needed to expand. She said, “during the last 15 years our ridership and the number of buses coming in and out of this location has more than doubled and we moved from 30-foot buses to 35-foot and 60-foot buses.” Phase One is already underway the demolition of existing buildings on Phoenix Avenue near Milton Road will begin to come down and construction of a new two-story facility will begin. The building will house Mountain Line customer service, operations and administrative space. Phase One is expected to be completed by the middle of 2024. Phase Two involves constructing bus bays for the fleet, room for buses to maneuver in the lot and will include space for the City of Flagstaff to develop a future parking garage and civic space. The Mountain Line has received more than $30-million in federal grants and state funding to construct the new center on Phoenix Avenue between Milton Road and Beaver Street.