Old news by now, but the vote was indeed unanimous. Major kudos to Fortworthology on this one, who instead of gloating wisely decided to bite their tongue (this time). See their post on the proceedings:
We’ll save the analysis, and the correcting of certain council members, for another time. For now, we’ll just say “thank you” to the supporters who spent a long night in council chambers and a “thank you” to all those in the public and private sectors who have worked to get us this far. All your support had a very real impact on how this vote went.
Now the real brain damage can start: how to pay for the construction of something that, like all transportation, rarely pays for itself, has high initial startup costs, and a return that is disconnected from its investment. Because it does generate returns for landowners near to lines, increased tax base for cities, development opportunities for private investment, and eventually increased mobility due to the associated high density development that accompanies new streetcar lines, we are confident that it will take creative public-private partnerships to see the vision through.
I look forward to tracking HDR’s progress on this project.
