Streetcars (Atlanta: real estate, apartments, rent)

[Motion]

Youtube

These things look kinda cool.

[plessthanpointohfive]

I really like the idea of those things. However one of the moms on my sons soccer team lives in Ansley Park and she said the residents along the streetcar avenues are the ones who are going to have to pay for it...which doesn't seem fair....I think the local businesses should have to pay for it...

[Motion]

ajc (broken link)

Here's an article on the funding of the streetcars.

[Vampgrrl]

I hope they look a bit different than just street level MARTA trains.

[plessthanpointohfive]

Thanks for the article though I had to laugh at this "Here are some pinions about streetcars in Atlanta:"

In my pinion I think really only businesses should be taxed since they're the ones who bring all those people to Peachtree - not the residents.

It is also my pinion that only certain mutlifamily homes should be included, those with a certain number of units. I don't hink it's fair for an owner occupied property, which is elible for homestead exemption, be included. Unless it's an owner occupied property with >10 units, or something similar.

I say that because there are a lot of people with apartments attached to their homes, like me. What if someone is not renting that out and only using it as an in-law suite?

Or simply that owner-occupied duplexes and triplexes are usually a financial scheme to allow someone, like myself, to afford a home in a neighborhood they normally wouldn't be able to.

In our case our home was right under 400K. At that time my husband was a post-doctoral fellow. We knew that our income would be sufficient to afford it in a few years but not just yet. AND we though the price MIGHT get less affordable over time despite a rise in our income (oh how I wish I had a crystal ball with the real estate crunch). So we decided to get the duplex and rent it out until we were at the right income.

So, yes, we're investors but only in the Amercian Dream. I don't think I want people having that path to the American Dream blocked for them....

But at the same time I doubt there are many schemers on Peachtree like us...

[plessthanpointohfive]

It would be great if they made them look like the old streetcars. Or make them so they can be open-air on nice days!

[atlantagreg30127]

Unfortunately, the photos they showed at one time in the online edition of the paper showed some pretty ugly RED streetcars that were the ones they were considering.

A spur of that AJC article shows how suburban leaders are unwilling to work to get regional transit options in place as well. Some of the Commissioners are very "old south" and certainly not helping things any. Article: Big rate hike a ploy to kill Gwinnett transit? | ajc.com (http://www.ajc.com/metro/content/metro/gwinnett/stories/2008/02/13/busfares_0213.html?cxntlid=inform - broken link)

[plessthanpointohfive]

I saw that article, too...and I can't beleive those old white men would continue on that stance when evidence shows their communities support transit...

[CityFan]

Originally Posted by plessthanpointohfive

I saw that article, too...and I can't beleive those old white men would continue on that stance when evidence shows their communities support transit...

Those old folks may have stakes in auto makers and worried about reduction in car uses. This country lives on auto and related industries and can't do away with automobles.

[plessthanpointohfive]

Or stakes in building roads....