Charlotte City Council Plans To Override Mayor's Veto For Street Car To Buy Votes....Where's The Money To Build It?

Charlotte Observer----


A plan to build a streetcar line through central Charlotte suffered a setback Monday night, when Charlotte Mayor Pat McCrory vetoed a decision to spend $4.5 million to design the line.

McCrory said he supports the streetcar, which would run from Beatties Ford Road to Eastland Mall, via uptown. But he wants the city to hold the $4.5 million in reserve until there is a plan to pay for it.

There is no money budgeted to build the line, which could cost as much as $500 million. The federal government is unlikely to pay for construction.

“We have to be pragmatic,” said McCrory, a Republican.

The veto may not last, however. Before the veto, Charlotte City Council members voted 7-4 Monday to spend the money, and seven votes are enough to override McCrory's veto.

The Republican minority on the council all voted against spending the $4.5 million.

Council member Nancy Carter, a Democrat and streetcar supporter, said the mayor's veto was “futile.”

The council could vote to overturn the veto at its next meeting in September.

The Charlotte Area Transit System originally said it could build the streetcar, along with a commuter rail line to Lake Norman and an 11-mile Lynx Blue Line extension. But rising construction costs, along with the recession, have made it difficult for CATS to fulfill those promises.

Last year, the city agreed to take the lead in building the streetcar. A city study found that new property tax revenue could only pay for 25 percent of construction costs.

Carter said other funding sources could come available, and that the $4.5 million is important to get the project moving. Council member Patsy Kinsey, also a Democrat, agreed with Carter, and said: “You have to start somewhere.”

The $4.5 million would go to URS Corp., which had planned to start designing the line this fall.

The streetcar would be different from the Lynx Blue Line, which opened nearly two years ago. The streetcar would be similar to a bus, operating in the same lanes as other traffic and stopping at red lights.

Boosters say a streetcar would spark economic development along the line.



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Sources: Charlotte Observer, Charmeck.org, Wikipedia, Google Maps