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The city of Seattle has secured funding to plan and design the First Hill Streetcar line's Broadway extension, Mayor Mike McGinn announced Tuesday.

With $850,000 in federal funds secured and another $900,000 pending final approval, the city will have enough dollars on hand to design a half-mile extension into the Broadway retail area, which would better support residents by moving the terminus from Denny Way to Roy Street or beyond, city officials said in a prepared statement.

"This is good news for expanding transit in Seattle," said McGinn.

The Seattle Department of Transportation (SDOT) is constructing the line with funding provided by Sound Transit from the Sound Transit 2 measure. The Capitol Hill community has called for an extension of the line to the north end of Broadway instead of its current terminus at the future Capitol Hill Link light-rail station.

Late last month, the Puget Sound Regional Council adopted its Regional Transportation Improvement program, which included $850,000 in Federal Transit Administration funds for the first phase of the Broadway extension. By securing these funds, SDOT can begin the extension design process in early 2013, city officials said.