Streetcar extensions’ preliminary engineering work brings hope for development, jobs and more

Plans announced yesterday by Mayor Barrett to push forward with extending The Hop streetcar outward from downtown have early support from Alderwoman Milele A. Coggs and Alderman Russell W. Stamper, II.

During an announcement yesterday (Thursday, May 2) at Gee’s Clippers on N. Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. Dr. in Bronzeville, Mayor Barrett outlined plans to fund construction of an extension of the streetcar to the Wisconsin Center (convention center) and to fund engineering and planning work on extensions to Bronzeville along N. Martin Luther King, Jr. Dr. and W. North Ave. and to Walker’s Point along S. 1st St. and W. Pittsburgh Ave. via N. Milwaukee St.

The extension work will require legislation that must be approved by the Common Council. If approved, funding would come from a variety of sources, including Tax Incremental Financing district payments and federal grants.

Alderwoman Coggs, Chair of the Finance and Personnel Committee, said the extension to Bronzeville (via N. Vel R. Phillips Ave. and the Fiserv Forum) would bring development and jobs along N. MLK Dr. and its corridor.

“The extensions are the first step in bringing the streetcar beyond downtown and into the community, and it is something that I have supported all along,” Alderwoman Coggs said. “I look forward to residents, business owners and neighborhood stakeholders benefitting from it, and I think there is a palpable degree of excitement about it in the community.”

The City of Milwaukee spent more than 13 months conducting a Transit Oriented Design study with regular public feedback sessions in Bronzeville and in Walker’s Point, and the input received during those sessions is helping to guide the work going into planning the streetcar extensions, Alderwoman Coggs said.

“The impact of extending the streetcar has been laid out in the city’s sessions, and the public has provided helpful comments and feedback that will ultimately help to ensure that those living along and near the streetcar route will benefit and feel the positive impact to the community,” she said.

Alderman Stamper, Chair of the Community and Economic Development Committee, said the extensions would mean ongoing, additional job opportunities for community members. “The current downtown streetcar route has captured 38% minority contractor participation and we anticipate that level continuing on the extensions,” he said.

“We see the streetcar extensions bringing a constant buzz of job opportunities for the community in construction and the trades, and those jobs will benefit families, businesses and neighborhoods across our city,” Alderman Stamper said.

“Extending the streetcar into the community will be a true win-win-win for Milwaukee,” he said.

NOTE: This press release was submitted to Urban Milwaukee and was not written by an Urban Milwaukee writer. While it is believed to be reliable, Urban Milwaukee does not guarantee its accuracy or completeness.

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