Even with lingering doubts about the City Council’s willingness to subsidize Amtrak, City Attorney Ricardo Woods said Tuesday that a funding agreement and ground lease allowing for a platform downtown are “pretty close.”

City Councilman Ben Reynolds, who has been a vocal opponent of using local tax funds to pay for the service between Mobile and New Orleans, asked for an update. Speaking at the agenda-setting session before the weekly public council meeting, Reynolds said he and Amtrak lawyers have traded drafts in recent days.