Atlanta Mayor tells Charlotte to invest in a streetcar system

[thelakelander]

Can this guy come speak to Jacksonville and Councilman Richard Clark?

With the Charlotte City Council deadlocked over whether to build 2.5 miles of a streetcar line, Mayor Anthony Foxx invited Atlanta Mayor Kasim Reed to speak to council members Thursday about his decision to support a new east-west streetcar in Atlanta.

Reed told council members that they should support spending $119 million to extend the city’s streetcar, saying it would pay off with new economic investment.

“People who want to use the economy as a reason not to invest will be proven wrong,” Reed said. He added that “everywhere people have done streetcars, capital has followed.”

full story: http://www.charlotteobserver.com/2013/02/08/3839728/atlanta-mayor-streetcar-is-smart.html#storylink=cpy

[fsujax]

There is a big fight going on right now in Charlotte about the streetcar, mostly between the Mayor and Governor of NC.

[tufsu1]

Mayor Brown is good friends with Mayor Reed....perhaps a personal invite is in order

[fsujax]

I doubt our mayor is interested in spending money on a streetcar or really anything for that matter. I mean turning off streetlights to save money is something he supports.

[fsquid]

There is a big fight going on right now in Charlotte about the streetcar, mostly between the Mayor and Governor of NC.

The Governor's point is that if Charlotte builds it, it will be hard for them to get other state money for whatever reason.

[nemo594]

While I'm very supportive of transits improvements in general,  it's still a guess whether Atlanta's street car line will be successful. 

Can this guy come speak to Jacksonville and Councilman Richard Clark?

With the Charlotte City Council deadlocked over whether to build 2.5 miles of a streetcar line, Mayor Anthony Foxx invited Atlanta Mayor Kasim Reed to speak to council members Thursday about his decision to support a new east-west streetcar in Atlanta.

Reed told council members that they should support spending $119 million to extend the city’s streetcar, saying it would pay off with new economic investment.

“People who want to use the economy as a reason not to invest will be proven wrong,” Reed said. He added that “everywhere people have done streetcars, capital has followed.”

full story: http://www.charlotteobserver.com/2013/02/08/3839728/atlanta-mayor-streetcar-is-smart.html#storylink=cpy

[simms3]

Mayor Brown is good friends with Mayor Reed....perhaps a personal invite is in order

They're good friends?  In my opinion, he's *everything* Brown is not.  They are total opposites.  Reed even looks confident whereas Brown always looks like a fish out of water, unsure of himself.  Totally off topic, but Reed has a good reputation amongst the city's business leaders, and he has proven himself in nearly every way, on the education front and on the budget side.  Brown seems to have pissed off a ton of people and not really done anything, but again I don't watch the daily news in Jax so I could be missing something.  If they are friends, Brown needs a "come to Jesus" talk from Reed, especially if Brown wants to ensure he's not the *last* AA mayor to be elected in Jax (or Democrat for that matter).

While I'm very supportive of transits improvements in general,  it's still a guess whether Atlanta's street car line will be successful.

Atlanta's streetcar will be a dismal failure.  It has already spurred development (at least that's the cited reason for a few projects), but it goes nowhere and the AA community essentially in charge of the Sweet Auburn/Edgewood Historic District has blocked all new development/redevelopment prospects for the area in the guise that further gentrification will detract from the community's historic appeal.  The first streetcar proposal was not the best, but followed a route that would have been extremely useful (Peachtree) and would have at least been ridden.  It was shot down by the feds because there was no local funding support.

I ride streetcars every day now, hop on hop off, and can attest to how useful they are.  I think if Jacksonville is going to put any sort of system in, it needs to be prepared to build more densely, even in historic areas.  In Jacksonville's case, a plan to put in fixed rail should come with major public financial incentive of some sort to build TOD around the rail and certainly around the stations.  Presently where one can build, nobody will without incentive (LaVilla), and all other areas are taken up by historic SFR or blighted buildings (Avondale, Springfield) or land owned by groups with plans still halfway on the table (San Marco).

[thelakelander]

Here is a map of Atlanta's streetcar project for those not familiar with it.

Atlanta's streetcar will be a dismal failure.  It has already spurred development (at least that's the cited reason for a few projects), but it goes nowhere and the AA community essentially in charge of the Sweet Auburn/Edgewood Historic District has blocked all new development/redevelopment prospects for the area in the guise that further gentrification will detract from the community's historic appeal.  The first streetcar proposal was not the best, but followed a route that would have been extremely useful (Peachtree) and would have at least been ridden.  It was shot down by the feds because there was no local funding support.

Any reason why it goes in a short loop between the MLK site and downtown?  I've always thought that it makes more sense to get more bang out of your buck by going with single bi-directional lines (with passing sidings) because you can create a system that's twice as long for the same price. Thus, you have a chance at more infill TOD and higher ridership by covering twice as much land area.

I think if Jacksonville is going to put any sort of system in, it needs to be prepared to build more densely, even in historic areas.  In Jacksonville's case, a plan to put in fixed rail should come with major public financial incentive of some sort to build TOD around the rail and certainly around the stations.  Presently where one can build, nobody will without incentive (LaVilla), and all other areas are taken up by historic SFR or blighted buildings (Avondale, Springfield) or land owned by groups with plans still halfway on the table (San Marco).

I agree, that if Jax is to invest in a streetcar, it must be prepared to allow higher density and TOD along the majority of the rail corridors.  Looking at the Urban Core, LaVilla, Brooklyn, Sugar Hill, and the Cathedral District are four places where you won't encounter opposition to density.  They are also urban holes that if repopulated, seamlessly tie downtown with Riverside, Springfield and Durkeeville.  In Riverside and Springfield, increased density would have to be in the form of infill, such as new construction of St. Vincent's parking lots or on Main Street, which still resembles a moonscape.

[tufsu1]

They're good friends?  In my opinion, he's *everything* Brown is not.  They are total opposites.  Reed even looks confident whereas Brown always looks like a fish out of water, unsure of himself.  Totally off topic, but Reed has a good reputation amongst the city's business leaders, and he has proven himself in nearly every way, on the education front and on the budget side.  Brown seems to have pissed off a ton of people and not really done anything, but again I don't watch the daily news in Jax so I could be missing something. 

you could be right....but yours is a perspective from 3000 miles away....think you might in fact be missing some things.