STREETCAR SOCIAL - JULY

An outpouring of support for the Cincinnati Streetcar gathered at Rhinegeist Brewery in Over The Rhine for July's Streetcar Social, hosted by Cincinnatians For Progress. The group organized a monthly meetup for transit advocates to mingle and discuss current events happening in the city. The success of last month's meeting garnered the attention of Cincinnati Mayor Mark Mallory, who reached out to be the featured speaker for the latest Streetcar Social.

“We’ve decided to name the maintenance facility the Center of Advanced Streetcar Technology, or COAST for short,” Mallory quipped to an amused audience, as he commented about the anti-streetcar group with the same acronym.

 

The Mayor's presentation was complimented by visuals of progress, including utility relocation along the route, the interior design of a CAF-manufactured streetcar, and facility renderings. He explained how Cincinnait's streetcar will have state-of-the-art technology that will be the first of its kind to operate in North America. With the construction contract officially signed with Messer, citizens can expect rail to be laid in city streets starting this fall. 

Rendering of the streetcar maintenance facility to be built on Henry Street.

 
Among the crowd of over 200 streetcar supporters in attendance were City Councilmembers Chris Seelbach, Wendell Young, and Laure Quinlivan, as well as representatives for Vice Mayor Roxanne Qualls and City Council Candidate Mike Moroski.

Cincinnatians For Progress selected Rhinegeist for their July meeting, as it is one of the latest businesses to open along the streetcar route. Formerly the Christian Moerlein brewery, this location is one of many abandoned historic structures to be rehabilitated due to the promise of the rail transportation.

A crowd gathers at Rhinegeist for the Streetcar Social

Cincinnatians For Progress Co-Chair Derek Bauman greets guests at Rhinegeist

Prior to his presentation,  Mayor Mallory sat down with guests to answer questions about the streetcar

City Councilmember Chris Seelbach chats with
Michael Moore from Cincinnati's Dept. of Transportation & Engineering

UrbanCincy technologist, Travis Estell, and City Councilmember Laure Quinlivan
listen to The Mayor's presentation at the Streetcar Social

 

City Councilmember Wendell Young waves hello at the Streetcar Social

Streetcar supporters mingle before Mayor Mallory's presentation

Copies of City Beat's Top 10 Misrepresentations of the Cincinnati Streetcar Project were distributed at the meeting.

STREETCAR SOCIAL

Regardless of what side you're on, one question in the forefront of everyone's mind is: "What's going on with the Cincinnati Streetcar?"  

To help keep people updated on current events, Cincinnatians For Progress hosted their first Streetcar Social at The Lackman. Over 70 guests attended for discussion and drinks with streetcar advocate, John Schneider, and information sharing with those wanting to learn more. Among those in attendance were Cincinnati City Council candidate Mike Moroski, and campaign managers representing Councilmembers Chris Seelbach and Yvette Simpson.

 

This spring, City Manager Milton Dohoney announced that the project would need an additional $17 million to proceed due to inflation. Two failed ballot initiatives meant to derail the Cincinnati Streetcar, and the revocation of $51 million from the State of Ohio's TRAC have delayed the project for years and contributed to the increased cost.

While it is understandable to not award any project a blank check, the consequence of failing to invest $17 million in the Cincinnati Streetcar is having to lose $72 million in funds already spent, including Federal funds that have been allocated to Cincinnati. Additionally, the city would lose a Net Profit Value of $200 million in future opportunities that the streetcar would generate through development.

For more on what's at stake, check out this article on UrbanCincy.com or watch a video of the presentation that Milton Dohoney gave to City Council:





Some interesting talking points highlighted at the Streetcar Social included:

 - No modern streetcar system has ever failed. In fact, every new streetcar system has added expansions in the past two years.

- Why can't we just buy a bunch of buses? Rail-based transportation cannot easily be moved. Neither can I-75 or the street in front of your house. The community value of transportation improvement is its permanence, not its flexibility. It represents investment.

- Streetcar bonds will be paid off with property taxes from higher values in the streetcar zone. New revenue based on payroll tax, sales tax, and local spending from thousands of new residents will be shared across all of Cincinnati's 52 neighborhoods.

- Streetcars promote repopulation. According to the last census, Cincinnati was losing eight residents a day. Fewer people means less taxpayers, which contributes to the city's budget deficit. In Tacoma, Seattle, and Portland, these cities' starter streetcar lines grew the population by an average of 47% between 2001 and 2010.

- If Cincinnati were to abandon the streetcar, the city may be viewed as an unreliable partner of the U.S. Department of Transportation.  This could have minor implications for the new Brent Spence Bridge, and major implications for improving our bus system using Federal funds. It could also affect Cincinnati's chances of applying for federal funds with HUD and the EPA.

- Cincinnati is the only city in the Top 41 metropolitan areas in the U.S. that does not have rail transit. If the city were to walk away from the streetcar project now, it is likely that we will not implement light rail for another generation, thus putting us behind other cities in similar size and competitive nature.



Interested in staying up to date on the Cincinnati Streetcar? Follow Cincinnatians For Progress on Twitter and Facebook, or support them by making a donation to their non-profit organization.