No surprise that the Tampa Historic Streetcar board will have to go hat in hand to Hillsborough County for funding help.
Ridership is down–along with service. Investment for station- and car-naming rights has waned. Special assessment revenue was adversely impacted by the down economy. The insurance premium for the CSX rail crossing is still exorbitant. The endowment that was expected to last more than another decade won’t; it will be used up in fiscal 2014.
The consequent move to seek financial support from the county’s Tourist Development Council makes eminent sense. While transportation progressives have always seen the streetcar as a light-rail starter set, the reality has been a decade-long disappointment. Recall the referendumb of 2010. Tampa is still mired in mess transit.
But the streetcar is certainly an economic-development tool and a visitor amenity. It’s a prime item in convention-pitch Power Point presentations. It’s also an ongoing TV marketing staple every time the national networks come to town to cover the Bucs, Lightning, USF, the Outback Bowl or a particularly notable convention.
Hopefully the streetcar’s future lies no less in meaningful, resident transportation. But for now, it is what it is–and a proper funding source would be the entity that oversees bed tax collections and disbursements.