Fabricantes Brasileños “ Maderas Parana”.

In most cities, the private sector looms large as a principal force pushing for streetcar development, with representatives of the development community, property owners, and local business leaders playing particularly important roles. Even in the one case in which the public sector drove streetcar implementation (Memphis), the private sector played an important supportive role. The importance of very active private sector involvement is perhaps not surprising given the primary stated objectives of streetcar implementation that are discussed in the following sections.

Little Rock. Key informants emphasized the presence of a diverse coalition of interests,

including representatives of the business, tourism, and development communities as well as key political leaders in, as the transit planning informant noted, “creating the momentum” for River Rail’s implementation. The regional planning informant emphasized the “existence of a streetcar working group early on that included business and development interests, the metropolitan planning organization, the local transit agency, and important local political figures (including the mayors of Little Rock and North Little Rock and a county judge).” This working group commissioned a downtown redevelopment plan prepared by the Urban Land Institute that proved critical for streetcar implementation, as it emphasized a streetcar’s potential development effects. A River Rail streetcar can be seen in Figure 7.

Figure 7. Riders Leave a River Rail Streetcar53

Memphis. Key informants emphasized the leading role played by the public sector behind

implementation of The Trolley, while noting that the private sector was more passively supportive than actively engaged in streetcar advocacy. The transit planning informant

noted that the city of Memphis was the key force and there was little active role played by the private sector, which tended to be “supportive but not advocates.” A local business leader agreed that the private sector played more of a supporting role, particularly with respect to aiding the city in promoting the streetcar as a device that might aid the redevelopment of downtown and help to give an identity to local neighborhoods that lacked one. A third informant noted the importance of private sector development interests in supporting the city, after streetcar implementation, by making key real estate investments in properties located near the streetcar lines. Thus, while the public sector took the lead in streetcar advocacy and promotion, the private sector, particularly local development and business interests, served as key allies.

Portland. In contrast to the Memphis experience, the key informants emphasized the

leading role of the private sector in initiating and driving the push for the streetcar lines in Portland. A local business leader recalled that “six people, all from the private sector, constituted the (key streetcar advocacy) organization.” Land owners, developers, and business owners were key figures in this organization, with most participants motivated by downtown revitalization goals. A local land use planner placed particular emphasis on the key roles played by major property owners who led the push for a local improvement district to help finance the first phase of streetcar implementation. The business leader characterized the local improvement district as a “financial and political strategy” that demonstrated strong private sector commitment to the idea of a streetcar. An important local streetcar advocate emphasized the important roles played by “six to eight key developers” in the initial push for the streetcar. According to this informant, the “property owners put (the) money together to build the streetcar.” The local land use planner concurred that the property owners played an important role by contributing about $12.5 million in property tax revenues, through the local improvement district, toward streetcar finance. Thus, in Portland, the private sector looms large as a strong force particularly early in the story of streetcar implementation due to its advocacy and its willingness to make a financial commitment to the streetcar, as it pursued a particular vision for the redevelopment of the downtown areas through which the streetcar operated.

Seattle. In Seattle, the role of the private sector is especially important with major land

owners such as Vulcan, Inc. (owned by billionaire former Microsoft executive Paul Allen) and major companies such as Amazon (owned by billionaire Jeff Bezos) looming particularly large in the story of the South Lake Union line. According to the development informants, Vulcan executives participated in the Build the Streetcar committee that led the push for the construction of the streetcar, and they helped to promote the creation of the local improvement district to help finance it. The development informants recalled that Build the Streetcar ran its promotional efforts “like a political campaign” that utilized door- to-door advocacy with local business owners, targeted marketing and outreach to property owners, created a website, and implemented a public advertising campaign. Vulcan also participated in a formalized “community” advocacy group called South Lake Union Friends and Neighbors (SLUFAN) that includes representation from the business community and other developers. The transit planning informant noted the subsequent involvement of Amazon, which moved its operations into the neighborhood, and institutional actors such as the Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center as promoters and partial funders of streetcar service improvements. The informants also noted the importance of Portland’s streetcar experience as an inspiration and model for Seattle’s streetcar activities.

Tampa. Key informants emphasized the joint public-private role in promoting the creation

of the TECO Line streetcar. One business leader noted the role of the local business community, and particularly the downtown business improvement district (Tampa Downtown Partnership), as a key advocate for the streetcar. Another business leader commented on the role of that entity’s Ybor City counterpart (Ybor City Development Corporation) as a key advocacy group. This latter informant characterized the group as “cheerleaders for the streetcar.” A local streetcar advocate emphasized the important early role played by the privately run Tampa and Ybor City Streetcar Society, the predecessor of today’s non-profit Tampa Historic Streetcar, Inc., which manages the TECO Line, as an advocacy group that placed the idea of returning a streetcar to Tampa on the local transportation agenda. This individual emphasized the partnerships between the advocacy group and key public officials, including the former director of the transit agency and the former mayor of Tampa, in procuring the federal funding needed to build the streetcar line.