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Broadway Trustees Approve Streetcar Non-Profit

By Eric Richardson
Published: Friday, August 15, 2008, at 05:10PM
Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa Eric Richardson []

File Photo: The Broadway Trustees are introduced at the Los Angeles Theatre in January, 2008.

DOWNTOWN LOS ANGELES — The concept of a Downtown streetcar took another step forward Friday, as the Bringing Back Broadway Trustees voted to create LA Streetcar, Inc. The organization would be a sole purpose non-profit that would design, build and operate a streetcar system Downtown.

Jim Atkins of the South Group was involved in the creation of the Portland streetcar, where a similar non-profit entity was created to manage the project. He led the effort to write the proposal that was in front of the Trustees on Friday, after having been discussed at length in the effort's Streetcar, Parking and Transportation committee.

Over its first eighteen months, LA Streetcar, Inc., would look to raise just under $400,000. The money would be used to advocate and coordinate the streetcar effort.

The Bringing Back Broadway Trustees is a group of more than two dozen stakeholders, made up of property owners, city departments, preservation interests and local business groups. The Bringing Back Broadway project, run out of Councilman Jose Huizar's CD14 office, recently named Jessica Wethington Mclean as its Executive Director.

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Conversation

Guest 1

Westbrook on August 16, 2008, at 11:30AM – #1

So this is going to take years to get done... like 20 years?


Guest 2

BG on August 16, 2008, at 12:57PM – #2

No, I think they're saying 6 to 8 years. It's moved forward a lot in six months and now it looks like the private sector is on board to help pay for it.


Guest 3

Scott Mercer on August 16, 2008, at 01:24PM – #3

It should connect L.A. Live in the Southwest to Union Station in the northeast of Downtown.

In between, I supposed you could hit various areas but I think you'd probably want to stay on Broadway for most of it. Maybe a jog down Seventh Streeth, then down Figueroa to L.A. Live and Staples.


Guest 4

Dan in LA on August 16, 2008, at 01:38PM – #4

Wouldn't it be nice if the Broadway part of the route could include a green belt . A tree covered, grass path median that could link the civic park in the north to one of the southern parks in South Park... Just thinking out loud.


Guest 5

Ray on August 17, 2008, at 04:59AM – #5

This will give Antonio Villaraigosa the chance to show everyone just how pro-transit he is. He can act on his own - without having MTA overly-involved or LA County meddling. Let's see him and the council put some serious LA City $ behind this initiative. There is no need to wait. It's pretty easy to do.


Guest 6

Scott Piotrowski on August 17, 2008, at 09:30AM – #6

A streetcar down old Route 66 in the heart of Los Angeles' Theater District! I love it. Nothing can be better and nothing says "historic preservation" more than bringing back a streetcar in a downtown metropolis. What would be REALLY nice is if it ran on rails and had the right of way over the cars on the road!


Eric Richardson () on August 17, 2008, at 10:43AM – #7

Scott: The streetcar is certainly conceived to run on rails. Typical modern streetcar operation occurs in the flow of traffic, though, not in a dedicated lane.


Guest 7

ChattyCathy on August 18, 2008, at 01:05PM – #8

6-8 years???? You've got to be kidding? Obviously, no-one is prioritizing this project. Last week, my husband and I walked out of the Orpheum at 10pm after having seen the "The Midnight Kiss" movie that premiered the first annual downtown film festival. About 50 of us left the theatre and headed north down Broadway. Most of the women were in heels and dresses, the men were equally coiffed. There we were, a little gaggle of theatregoers, strolling down the street, past the trash, the gum-stained sidewalks, the urine puddles, and the empty treepots, now being used as trashcans. Other than our group, as we gradually peeled off Broadway to our destinations, there was very few others on the street. We looked so out of place, being dressed so nicely.Other than the Broadway bar, we had no other post-theatre Broadway destination. So,... in my opinion , who wants to wait 6-8 years for the needed streetcars to take our theatre revival to the next level? Does anyone know why we can't put a rush job on this?


Guest 8

Russell Brown on August 24, 2008, at 06:11PM – #9

Downtown News Article on Streetcar moving forward.

http://www.downtownnews.com/articles/2008/08/25/news/-news04.txt



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