Downtown Trolleys Nixed

Trolleys won’t be rolling through the streets of New Haven anytime soon, after aldermen decided $200,000 was too much to pay to receive $800,000.

The Board of Aldermen voted Monday night not to authorize the city to apply for a grant that would have helped pay for a $1 million study of the feasibility of installing a streetcar system in the city. The Federal Transit Administration would have put up $800,000. The city would have had to pay the remaining $200,000.

Under current economic conditions, the city can’t afford to put that amount of money toward trolleys, argued Hill Alderman Jorge Perez. He helped lead his colleagues in defeating the proposal.

The defeat was sandwiched on the agenda between two other items that will cost the city thousands of dollars, both of which were approved. 

First, over the objections of West Rock Alderman Darnell Goldson, aldermen voted to authorize the city to apply for a $670,000 grant to put in new ​“way-finding” signs for pedestrians downtown. The city will have to match that grant with $180,000. The city is expected to get that money from outside sources. There are plans to raise the money from the hospitals and Yale University.

Goldson made the same argument that Perez later made about the streetcar-study grant: the city can’t afford it. But he couldn’t not rally his colleagues behind him.

Later, alderman authorized the city to begin, with the state, the design phase of the construction of a new Grand Avenue bridge over the Quinnipiac River. That comes at a cost to the city of $175,000. It passed unanimously without a peep of discussion.

Street Signs Succeed

One of the first items on Monday evening’s agenda was a unanimously approved resolution put forward by Aldermen Perez and Dolores Colon, calling on the state’s congressional delegation to work to pass President Obama’s jobs bill.

Alderman Goldson made note of that when he stood to oppose the authorization of a grant application for $670,000 to pay for more signs for pedestrians downtown. The city needs to put its own resources towards putting people to work, Goldson said. Read more about the signs here.

The $670,000 signage grant would require the city to put up $180,000. That amount of money ​“could put 180 of our kids to work this summer,” he said. ​“Let’s spend money so our kids aren’t shooting each other by mistake or on purpose.”

East Rock Alderman Justin Elicker, the chair of the committee that recommended the grant authorization to the full board, said the signs will help bolster the economy ​“in the long run.”

The new signs will not create jobs, Goldson said. The city has to ​“say no to this stuff until the economy gets better,” he said.

Fair Haven Alderwoman Migdalia Castro asked if the city would lose the $670,000 if it doesn’t put up $180,000. Elicker said yes.

“You can’t lose something you don’t have,” exclaimed Goldson. He was among three aldermen to vote against the grant authorization; 22 aldermen voted for it.

Off The Rails

Elicker then stood to introduce the streetcar item. Read more about the streetcar plans here.

“I know I’m foolish getting up here, because it makes no difference,” said Goldson as he stood to oppose. ​“But this one is worse than the last.”

The debate didn’t go as Goldson expected, however, after the influential Alderman Perez joined him in opposition.

“I do agree with my colleague from the 30th Ward,” Perez said. If the streetcar study costs $1 million, imagine what the installation will cost, he said.

Elicker said he agrees that these are ​“tough fiscal times,” but many other cities are putting in streetcars. Permanent public transportation routes drive development, he said. ​“You spend X dollars in the beginning and get maybe X dollars times two” in taxes later, he said.

Elicker then fielded a number of other questions from his colleagues, about where the streetcars might go. ​“You all are making me earn my $2,000 a year tonight,” he quipped, after responding to several queries.

Quinnipiac Meadows Alderman Gerald Antunes said the city has already increased room on the streets for bikes. Now cars will have to share the road with a ​“third vehicle.” It ​“puts us in a quandary,” he said. ​“A situation where danger lurks.”

Antunes said he’d rather see increased bus service than a streetcar system.

“Be realistic,” Perez said, speaking again against the trolley plan. ​“We only have so much money,” and the city is already asking unions to provide concessions.

Other aldermen piled on with questions and critiques. The measure ultimately failed 16 to 6, with two aldermen declining to vote.

“I think it’s deeply unfortunate,” Elicker said after the vote against streetcar studying. The city has already spent ​“a good amount of money working on a design” for a streetcar system, he said.

Elicker said he doesn’t know now if the streetcar dream is dead. ​“We certainly lose out on $800,000 from the federal government.”