"Section 8 housing to be torn down" The Columbus Dispatch

Link: Section 8 housing to be torn down
Mark Ferenchik and Jonathon Riskind
The Columbus Dispatch
May 8, 2008

The company redeveloping the Columbus Coated Fabrics site into apartments and condominiums plans to build unsubsidized housing along E. 11th Avenue to create a gateway to the old industrial site.

But to do it, it will need the help of Congress and the president.

Wagenbrenner Development plans to tear down 96 units of blighted, government-subsidized housing along 11th Avenue owned by the nonprofit Ohio Capital Corporation for Housing, said Eric Wagenbrenner, company vice president...

"Symphony will shut down for summer with future in doubt" The Columbus Dispatch

Link: Symphony will shut down for summer with future in doubt
Jeffrey Sheban
The Columbus Dispatch
May 8, 2008

Citing a lack of funds, the Columbus Symphony plans to shut down June 1 and will not perform its Picnic with the Pops and Popcorn Pops summer series, the board said today.

The upcoming indoor season, which starts in October, also is in doubt, the board said in a statement.

“Whether the CSO will be able to perform its tentatively scheduled 2008-09 season … will depend on whether and when it is able to reach agreement with the musicians' union on a new contract to take effect Sept. 1,” said the board in a statement...

"YOU'RE WELCOME" The Other Paper

Link: YOU'RE WELCOME
Lyndsey Teter
The Other Paper
May 8, 2008

...Although “I’ve never heard the mayor say ‘I read this on a blog,’” Brown said, he himself reads Columbus Underground and arguably the second-most popular online news aggregate, Columbus RetroMetro, every day. Other popular local blogs, including columbusING and Xing Columbus, a transportation blog, are “hit or miss,” he said...

...One reason Coleman might love the energy is that bloggers have embraced his pet proposal: streetcars. The online community has been more supportive than the public at large for the mayor’s plan, which is now stalled, to run a streetcar line between Downtown and campus.

Many bloggers have put “My blog supports Columbus Streetcars” icons on their websites. RetroMetro’s Paul Bonneville has launched Columbus-streetcars.com, the “unofficial citizen support site for the Columbus Streetcars.”...

"Task Force To Examine Transportation System" WBNS-10TV

Link: Task Force To Examine Transportation System
ONN
WBNS 10TV
May 8, 2008

COLUMBUS, Ohio — Ohio Gov. Ted Strickland launched a statewide task force Wednesday to look at Ohio's transportation future.

At their first meeting in Columbus, the 60 members of the task force were told to explore all options, including unpopular steps such as calling for increases in gasoline taxes to fund improvements in roads, bridges and public transit, ONN's Dan Weist reported...

"Transportation-policy group sees trains, bikes, boats in Ohio's future" The Columbus Dispatch

Link: Transportation-policy group sees trains, bikes, boats in Ohio's future
James Nash
The Columbus Dispatch
May 8, 2008

...Beasley, the director of the Ohio Department of Transportation since March 2007, outlined a vision of a less car-centric state at a summit yesterday to plan Ohio's transportation future.

Trains could carry more passengers and freight. Rivers aren't used to their potential as conduits of goods. Even bikes ought to be seen as a means to commute rather than simply as recreation.

Those points were raised during the first meeting of the Ohio 21st Century Transportation Priorities Task Force, a 62-member panel that's supposed to sketch the future of transportation in the state.

The buzzword was "multimodal" -- a seamless web of roads, airports, rail lines, bus and bike routes, and even boats...

Ohio Statehouse to Hold Civil War Encampment

press release
Friday, May 9 and Saturday, May 10, 2008 on the Lawn of the Statehouse
See you at the People’s House!

FUN FOR THE WHOLE FAMILY - 1st Ohio Statehouse Light Artillery, Battery A Civil War re-enactors will offer living history lessons during an 1860s-era encampment of Union Army Troops on the West lawn of the Ohio Statehouse; Friday, May 9 and Saturday, May 10 from 9 a.m. until 2 p.m.  This event is free and open to the public.  The events will recreate proceedings very similar to the actual camp life at the Statehouse during the Civil War.  Union Army Troops used the Ohio Statehouse grounds and interior as they awaited their orders to depart for combat between 1861 and 1864 at the height of the American Civil War.

Continue reading "Ohio Statehouse to Hold Civil War Encampment"

"House OKs $15B to buy and fix up foreclosed properties" The Columbus Dispatch

Link: House OKs $15B to buy and fix up foreclosed properties
Julie Hirschfeld Davis
Associated Press
The Columbus Dispatch
May 8, 2008

The House has approved sending states $15 billion to buy and fix up foreclosed properties. The vote Thursday was 239-188 to approve the bill, which most Republicans opposed. It would provide loans and grants to areas hit hardest by the housing crisis.

Supporters say the legislation will prevent neighborhoods around foreclosed homes from sliding into blight.

The measure is separate from a broader housing package to provide $300 billion in refinanced mortgages for struggling homeowners. The House was expected to vote on that bill later Thursday...

"States Get In on Calls for a Gas Tax Holiday" New York Times

Link: States Get In on Calls for a Gas Tax Holiday
Damien Cave
New York Times
May 6, 2008

...Since 2000, four states have enacted gas tax holidays: Florida, Georgia, Illinois and Indiana. In general, retailers did not pass on all of the intended savings.

When Illinois and Indiana suspended about 7 cents of their state gas taxes in the summer of 2000, prices fell by an average of only 4 cents, according to a study by the American Road and Transportation Builders Association, which opposed the plans. Drivers saved no more than $2.50 a month, while each state lost tens of millions of dollars in tax revenue.

Previous gas tax holidays caused other problems, too. During the last gas tax suspension in Florida in 2004, people hoarded gasoline, driving up demand and prices...

"Streetcars are big success in Houston" The Columbus Dispatch

Link: Streetcars are big success in Houston
Letter to the Editor
The Columbus Dispatch
May 7, 2008

In 2001, I moved from Houston to Columbus to attend Ohio State University. During that time, Houston was in the process of breaking ground on a light-rail project that was met with heavy criticism. As a homeowner in the University District, I can't help but feel that Columbus would be remiss if it didn't at least give the streetcar a chance.

Those who fail to see the need should stop and look at the big picture.

We need a green alternative to transportation in the city, an opportunity to bring economic development to Downtown and a chance to connect the 50,000-plus students and residents of the University District to the city's core...

"Newly approved city budget sets aside much debated streetcar cash" The Lantern

Link: Newly approved city budget sets aside much debated streetcar cash
Anna Gerber
The Lantern
May 7, 2008

City council members unanimously voted to pass a $1.1 billion Capital Improvements Budget Monday night, but the five-year financial plan does not include funds for Columbus Mayor Michael B. Coleman's proposed streetcar line.

The budget originally earmarked $2 million for the design of a streetcar that would run on High Street from Mound Street to the Ohio State campus. The line would be finished in time for the city's bicentennial celebration in 2012. The $2 million for the project is still included in the budget, but is included as part of the funding for "miscellaneous economic development."...

"City council debates streetcar network" KING5.com

Link: City council debates streetcar network
Charlotte Starck
KING5.com
May 6, 2008

SEATTLE - No planes, trains, or automobiles - streetcars are the transportation proposal of choice in front of a Seattle City Council committee Tuesday.

The Seattle City Council Transportation Committee are debating the feasibility of a citywide streetcar network.

About a thousand people a day ride the South Lake Union Line. Now it seems it may be possible to build streetcar lines connecting neighborhoods with downtown and stadiums to move people around Seattle...

"Once bulletproof housing markets lose some luster" CNNMoney.com

Link: Once bulletproof housing markets lose some luster
Les Christie
CNNMoney.com
May. 6, 2008

NEW YORK (CNNMoney.com) -- Some of the last, best housing markets - the ones that continued to climb even as the rest of the country cratered - have turned south lately.

Seattle, Portland Ore., Charlotte, NC, and Salt Lake City all posted home price gains during 2007, even as more than half of the 150 markets tracked by the National Association of Realtors registered declines. Now they've joined the losers.

"What the numbers are saying is that the trend is broadening out," said Michael Larson, a real estate analyst with Weiss Research. "[The downturn started with] the markets that had flown the highest. When the speculative bubble popped, those got hit first. These [bulletproof] markets are now getting hit for traditional economic reasons."...

"Study: Expect home sales improvement soon" Business First of Columbus

Link: Study: Expect home sales improvement soon
Business First of Columbus
May 7, 2008

A new National Association of Realtors study shows existing-home sales remained soft in March, but the organization is forecasting sales will begin to improve over the summer.

The association's Pending Home Sales Index, a key measure of contract activity, dropped 1 percent to 83 in March from the month before and was 20 percent lower than the index level a year ago. The Midwest saw the strongest index decline among all four regions of the U.S., the score slipping 10 percent from February to 74.1, down more than 22 percent from the pace a year ago...

"Council delays $2M for streetcar plan" Business First of Columbus

Link: Council delays $2M for streetcar plan
Matt Burns
Business First of Columbus
May 6, 2008

A $2 million appropriation for design and engineering work on the proposed downtown streetcar line is still on the table, but it might be harder to find in the $1.1 billion capital improvement budget approved by Columbus City Council Monday night.

Responding to criticism of the $103 million streetcar plan, Mayor Michael Coleman asked that the $2 million earmark be delayed.

"Frankly, we are not ready to spend these resources," Coleman wrote in a memo to Council President Michael Mentel. "We have an obligation to further educate the public on this proposal's connection to a more comprehensive rail and transit plan citywide."...

"Request for streetcar design is shelved" The Columbus Dispatch

Link: Request for streetcar design is shelved
Robert Vitale
The Columbus Dispatch
May 6, 2008

In a public-works budget approved last night by Columbus City Council, streetcars are now known only as "miscellaneous economic development."

Bowing to criticism from council members who've complained about being left out of the debate and responding to concerns of residents and businesses, Mayor Michael B. Coleman removed a request to begin design of a High Street route and acknowledged he has more selling to do.

In a memo to Council President Michael C. Mentel pitching his $103 million idea as a catalyst for economic development, Coleman said, "While these issues are clear to me, our public needs more information."...