Civvik

Speaking of actual class acts, I think congratulations are in order to John Schneider on behalf of the forum. You have persisted in this campaign far longer than I would have. Every time I see a streetcar go by in Cincinnati I will think of the years you have put into this.

I believe he was also the sole dissenter in fast-tracking the streetcar vote today so it wouldn't be dragged out in multiple council sessions. And his commentary before the vote was hostile. What a class act.

The city still has a long way to go, and being single and almost 30 makes it not an option. In spite of what Forbes says its a pretty terrible place to marry late. There are a lot of bizarre social cultural things that make it tough to live in as a young single person. I would like to see Cranley and his ilk politically beaten into submission, I think this is their last stand, but we'll see how it unfolds in the next 4 years (or less). I'm happy to be a strong cheerleader and to promote Cincy as a weekend tourist destination in Chicago though :) Also I think living in a positive social environment makes a lot of my arguments stronger than if I was constantly surrounded by strong cynicism - I actually got in a discussion on the enquirer boards with a streetcar opponent who conceded that he couldn't believe how positive I was about what its effects would be on the city. I think Cincy needs that and its best served (for now) outside of the bubble ;) I lived in Chicago for a year and barely made any friends, dated a guy who turned out to be already in a relationship, and dated a guy who turned out to be mentally ill. Several years later I had to move back to Cincinnati with family when I got laid off and was applying to grad schools, and within a year met the person that I may turn out to spend the rest of my life with. I don't believe in the "cities for singles" rankings. Mass transit does many amazing things, but trains do not poop out wives and husbands.

This. Don't be overly confident this is the end, people. We've seen a ton of "ends" to this. I'm willing to stake my personal and professional opinion that this is the end of the streetcar construction debate. You've already seen significant voices in the community start to change their tune based on the enormous amount of money that would have been wasted had they stopped now. Stopping next year would be a non-starter. Truly the only challenge now will be to make it a successful project.

I think this entire thread needs to be retired, with the Oprah gif being the final post.

That. Is epic.

Done deal.

The press conference area has been packed up and media is moving to council chambers instead.

Flynn still a mystery...

There is a reason they call him Windbag.

Will all the cancellation costs have to come out of the operating budget?

There are only two unknowns here: the actual cancellation cost, which Cranley accepts as unknown so he chooses an average, and the ROI, which Cranley accepts as unknown so he chooses zero. Someone should bring that up to council today. Blatant double standard that nobody can talk their way out of.

Hmm. I don't think you have Flynn. Unless they are playing some game of chicken with some other big private interests to get them to step in tomorrow in some eleventh hour revelation, it looks like bad news. Sorry guys. That sucks. :(

What a show. He's still in campaign mode. I think he senses the sentiment turning against him. The real question is what is Flynn doing there?

This drama is way, way better than anything on TV right now.

^This Enquirer article doesn't sound positive to me. I don't think the independent audit is even going to matter, it will come down to Flynn and Mann sensing that there actually turned out to be a lot of community anxiety over walking away from a half-built project. That and Haile has really sweetened the pot. I mean really, who turns away an offer like that. Most cities would kill for a foundation to step up and just fork out operating budget subsidies.

A few years back, I stopped calling it "car culture" and started calling it "automobile addiction." There's a difference between owning a car, loving a car, and being addicted to a car. There are people who honestly believe that they would not be able to live without a car, and they are willing to sacrifice so much to retain ownership of their personal vehicle. They are willing to harm themselves physically and financially to keep this ideal. These are classic signs of addiction, but its not popularly recognized because the sheer volume of people who are addicted. I'm not sure this is directly related to the streetcar in any way, but my point is that we need leaders who are willing to move beyond populism and help us see the alternatives to life in a car. It's not an addiction. It's just a cultural paradigm...the way people see the world. Cars are part of people's world. When you put people in a new environment where cars are not so mandatory and often a liability, people quickly adapt. I got rid of my car in 5 months in Chicago. In the UK we had a car for 3 days and couldn't wait to get rid of it. I truly believe people just make rational decisions based on their environment. It's the environment that is the problem, not the people or the cars. The real addiction is the retailer who wants 400 spaces out front, or the DOT that's just an asphalt lobby.

I actually think the MLK interchange is a higher priority than Union Terminal. I think that the museum center should be given a new, modern location and the terminal should be vacated and structurally stabilized pending real rail service to Chicago. The way I see it: -biotech/research development at new MLK interchange -streetcar to uptown -modern rail service to Chicago -modern museum center facility in a high profile location What a legacy that would be for a new mayor.

No I don't think you're being pessimistic. That source seems clear that they want no operating cost burden. I don't understand the contradiction with other media sources. Maybe nobody does right now?

That doesn't make any sense, natininja. From what I've read, the new administration wants the operating costs underwritten, not subsidized. That directly implies that the city will pay unless they get insufficient increase in tax return. Which means they aren't rejecting ROI, they just won't put their faith in it.

Will be interesting to see what Haile and friends can pull together in a week.

No. These are projects by the firm that is building the new Anna Louise Inn.

It's right there in the Business Courier article...

Add to that the $400 million sent back in connection with the 3C passenger rail project we end up with a total of $495 million. Public transportation has a 5:1 economic activity/cost ratio, making that about $2.5 billion in economic activity lost statewide. Each billion adds about 20,000 jobs, so we have also lost about 50,000 jobs. If these numbers sound inflated, keep in mind that Forest City Enterprises was set to spend $180 million in tiny Riverside (Air Force Museum) and create 6,000 jobs in just this one project. As if Ohio can afford to throw that away. There are some real dimbulb officials out there. A the state level they are not dimbulbs, they are corrupt with power. The TRAC grant reversal was corrupt men flowing money where they wanted it to go to serve themselves. The Streetcar pause is more dimbulb. That is truly the result of people who will not benefit from cancelling it, they are just filled with fear and anger over it.

I still think they're going to finish it. And I can't imagine that the new administration hates city progress that much. But maybe I just live in a world where it would be so unfathomably irrational to pay money to waste money that I refuse to believe it.