Posted on 11/05/2013 6:41:43 AM PST by BenLurkin
LOS ANGELES (CBSLA.com) — LA City Councilman Jose Huizar on Monday defended a project to build a streetcar line in Downtown Los Angeles even though the cost of the project could double.
When property owners in downtown’s Broadway corridor voted overwhelmingly last year to tax themselves more than $62 million to build a streetcar line, it was estimated that the levy would cover half the entire cost of the project, estimated at about $125 million.
But the price is going up, partly because of the cost of relocating utility lines. How much the project ultimately will cost is unknown, but Huizar called some of the estimates alarmist.
“Some people have said that this is going to skyrocket up to $300 million. That’s a worst-case scenario,” Huizar said Monday night at a meeting called to discuss the project. Huizar noted that any transit project, such as the MTA’s regional connector, has worst-cases scenarios.
The downtown core, which once included a thriving and energetic theater zone, has seen better days. Businesses such as the new Figaro Bistro and Restaurant say a streetcar will help bring the customers and tourists back to Broadway.
“Broadway is coming back,” said Estaban Rios of Figaro Bistro. The streetcar “will help tremendously [with people] going to LA Live, coming back.”
Some critics, though, are charging that the original estimate was based on wishful thinking and flimsy evidence instead of realistic numbers, and that voters were lowballed on what the project would really cost.
Huizar strongly disagreed with those views. “For any critics who say it was a bait-and-switch, that’s absolutely not true,” he told KCAL9 Political Reporter Dave Bryan
The streetcar would be sleek and modern, not a re-creation of LA’s old Red Car trolley. It would travel from the Civic Center to South Park and LA Live and then through the Financial District back to the Civic Center. Some Angelenos who remember the Red Car say they support the streetcar no matter what the price.
“Oh, they’ve gotta bring back the streetcars,”Tom Liguori said. “They helped build Los Angeles. It’s a shame they took them out.”
Still, even supporters of the project are concerned about the price.
“It’s unreal, how much they wind up costing,” said Al Olivas. “Even though the estimates are low, all of a sudden, you know, they’re way up there.”
Huizar acknowledges the streetcar will be delayed. Construction, originally scheduled to start next year, will have to be pushed back to 2015 or 2016 because of the funding problems. But he insists the project will go forward
“The issue for the streetcar is not if it’s going to be built, it’s when it’s going to be built,” he said.
Huizar also said the amount that downtown business will pay for the project will not change; the $62 million assessment allotted from the special assessment district will not go up, he said. Huizar said he expected federal funding to fill the gap, but KCAL’s Bryan noted that with Republicans in charge of the House of Representatives, the prospect of additional money from Washington is questionable.
The hell you say!
En espanol, Diablos que dices!
Is this a prelude/metaphor for the California High Speed Rail project/boondoggle?
Washington DC bought some streetcars about 20 years ago but they didn’t have any use for them. They sat at the Manufacturers for many years. Already paid for. Since they owned them and didn’t know what to do with them they finally laid some tracks down H st. NE and they will start running the cars there .
We had them here in Pittsburgh up until the late 1980’s. While they have their charms, they also present an enormous traffic obstacle. Particularly if they break down or lose power.
Throwing money down the sewer. I worked in downtown LA for a year and there was already a bus shuttle service along the same route called DART. Downtown LA is not like Manhattan choked with traffic so this whole thing is a waste of money.
Streetcars are cool, but a stupid waste of public money. If you have the space to carve-out of your streets to add rail lines, you can just as easily make a simple, dedicated bus lane. And you can buy an awful lot of busses for $125 million! These folks probably could stand to review the history of their streetcar system for some clues about why they went away...
Even here in our little Northern California hamlet, I drove past the construction of a community college extension for over 5 years. The parking lot alone took over 2 years. And it's not a terribly large building.
Our church built a 20,000 sq. ft. multi-purpose building in just under 2 years and we did it with almost total volunteer help and most of the construction was done at night and on Saturdays.
Anyone who has visited Broadway during the day and evening knows that it is packed with thriving businesses and customers.
The problem is that they are the "wrong" businesses and customers. There are a lot of mom and pop shops selling T-shirts, electronics, jewelry, etc. It looks a lot like a street in Tijuana.
The city fathers would prefer if it were filled with California Pizza Kitchens, Cheesecake Factories, etc.
I'm sure that some of the more successful mom and pops go on to start larger businesses in other parts of Los Angeles. It's very Darwinian. I'm sure Ayn Rand would love it if she saw what was happening on Broadway.
It's a wonderful, ugly, capitalistic mess that we should all embrace!
Well, who could blame them for forgetting they'd have to move utilities?
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