Damen is a under construction rapid transit station on the Chicago "L"'s Green Line that is planned to open in 2024. A station existed at this location from 1893 to 1948; opened as Robey in 1893, it was one of the original stations on what was then known as the Lake Street Elevated. The removal of the old station created a gap between the remaining stations. As the surrounding neighborhood gentrified, the need for a replacement station grew. The station will also provide closer access to the United Center sports arena. History Original station (1893–1948) The Lake Street Elevated Railway Company was incorporated on February 7, 1888. Reincorpoated as the Lake Street Elevated Railroad Company on August 24, 1892, to avoid legal issues, its line, the Lake Street Elevated, commenced revenue operations at 5 a.m. on November 6, 1893, between California station and the Market Street Terminal. The new line had 13 stations, one of which was located on Robey Street; the street, originally named for politician James Robey, was renamed Damen Avenue for Father Arnold Damen in 1927. Originally powered by steam locomotives, the Elevated's tracks were electrified on May 9, 1896. The Lake Street Elevated Railroad, having been dogged by financial issues since its inception, was reorganized as the Chicago and Oak Park Elevated Railroad (C&OP) on March 31, 1904. The C&OP, along with the other companies operating "L" lines in Chicago, became a part of the Chicago Elevated Railways (CER) trust on July 1, 1911. CER acted as a de facto holding company for the "L"unifying its operations, instituting the same management across the companies, and instituting free transfers between the lines starting in 1913but kept the underlying companies intact. This continued until the companies were formally merged into the single Chicago Rapid Transit Company (CRT) in 1924, which assumed operations on January 9; the former C&OP would not join the CRT until it was bought out at an auction on January 31, and was designated the Lake Street Division of the CRT for administrative purposes. Although municipal ownership of transit had been a hotly-contested issue for half a century, the publicly-owned Chicago Transit Authority (CTA) would not be created until 1945, or assume operation of the "L" until October 1, 1947. The newly-created CTA closed the original Damen station alongside nine others on the Lake Street Elevated on April 4, 1948, due to their low ridership