By George P. Hassett

Preliminary work on an Orange Line train station can begin immediately in Assembly Square because of a recent Federal Transit Administration (FTA) decision, according to Mayor Joseph A. Curtatone.

Curtatone said this week that FTA officials have given their assurance to Congressman Michael E. Capuano, D-Somerville, that the $40-million project will not have to pre-qualify for the FTA‚Äôs ‚ÄúSmall Starts‚Äù program, which could have slowed the process down. 

Instead, the project has been given exempt status which means that although federal funding still depends on a formal application and review process, preliminary engineering and environmental review work can begin immediately.

“This ruling from the FTA clears the decks for work to get under way on this crucial element in the overall Assembly Square development plan,” Curtatone said in a statement. “It’s also a reminder that Assembly Square is the most exciting Smart Growth, transit-oriented development in the region – a model for the way urban development is supposed to work.”

Capuano has already secured a congressional authorization for $25 million to help pay for the new station and Assembly Square’s lead developer, Federal Investment Realty Trust (FRIT) and furniture retailer IKEA have pledged $10 million and $5 million respectively.

He said the latest progress is a significant move towards fully developing Assembly Square. The project had been caught in limbo for years until a settlement last year between activists of the Mystic View Task Force, FRIT and the city resolved the lawsuits holding the project up. 

“This designation represents an important step forward for Assembly Square and will allow work to proceed on the T station,” Capuano said. “And I will continue working with local officials and the FTA to advance this project.”

The 145 acre Assembly Square development district is slated to become home to over 2,100 new housing units, 1.75 million square feet of office space, 450,500 square feet of new retail and restaurant uses, a movie theater, a 200-room hotel and a 310,000 square foot IKEA store. Construction of the IKEA store is slated to begin in the spring of 2008.