A Desire Named Streetcar, Part 2

The Cincy streetcar project isn't dead yet.

Despite the loss of state funding, Cincinnati's streetcar project is moving forward, albeit on a modified route.

City Manager Milton Dohoney announced that the new route will take riders between Fifth Street and Henry Street, essentially connecting Fountain Square with Findlay Market, using five streetcars instead of the originally planned seven.

The route will also take riders near the city's casino, which is now slated to open in 2013.

The revised route will cost $95 million to build, plus whatever it costs to relocate utilities.

But the biggest opponent of the streetcar project remains the Cincy chapter of the NAACP, who claims that the funding for the project is being taken away from other urban infrastructure and renewal projects for the city.

That doesn't add up to NAACP President Chris Smitherman, who's trying to get a public vote in six months in hopes of killing the project.

"We don't want another stadium deal," Smitherman said, referring to an oft-criticized agreement between the county and the Cincinnati Bengals. "We don't want to be left holding a bag on something we can't afford."

Smitherman does have a point that Cincy's infrastructure budget is a zero sum game at this point.  Would the money be better spent elsewhere?  It's possible.  I personally would like to see the streetcar downtown myself, but I'm far more worried about the effects of the new casino smack in the middle of downtown.

We'll see.