Thursday, March 21, 2013
A report commissioned by American Public Transportation Association and the National Association of Realtors found that homes with access to transit weather downturns better.
Transit services like light rail bolster housing prices and decrease the amount households spend on transportation, according to a report released to the public Thursday. “The real estate mantra of ‘location, location, location’ is more important than ever,” the study concluded. “Moving beyond the traditional arguments that good schools and neighborhood amenities impact housing prices, emerging research has indicated that urban form and transportation options have played a key role in the ability of residential properties to maintain their value since the onset of the recession.” The American Public Transportation Association and the National Association of Realtors commissioned the study, titled “The New Real-Estate Mantra: Location near …
Thursday, February 28, 2013
Minneapolis Sen. Bobby Joe Champion and Brooklyn Park Rep. Melissa Hortman introduced bills Thursday that would also help people walking, bicycling, or using wheelchairs.
A pair of legislators on Thursday introduced a $332 million proposal with a new transit tax, adding to the growing number of proposals to fund transit. Minneapolis Sen. Bobby Joe Champion (DFL District 59) and Brooklyn Park Rep. Melissa Hortman (DFL-District 36B) are proposing to spend an additional $300 million per year in the metro and $32 million in Greater Minnesota on transit and connections for people walking, bicycling or using wheelchairs. Click on the PDFs to the right of this article to read the full bills. "Across the state, people want more options and support investment in public transportation. And they want bicycling and walking to be part of that investment,” a news release quoted Hortman, the chief author of the bill in …
Wednesday, January 30, 2013
Supporters have historically pushed for funding in the state’s bonding bills, but a proposed tax increase raises questions about whether that’s the right path this year.
Southwest Light Rail Transit supporters have largely praised the governor’s proposal for a quarter-cent sales tax increase that would set up a dedicated revenue stream for transit, but the proposal has created uncertainty about what the Legislature’s role is in moving the project forward this session. In the past, Rep. Steve Simon and Sen. Ron Latz, whose districts includes Hopkins and St. Louis Park, have been the chief authors on bills that would have provided money for the project. But Gov. Mark Dayton’s proposal aims to remove transit funding from the hands of the Legislature—where it’s sparked intense debate and faced repeated setbacks. With Dayton’s proposal still under discussion, though, there’s some confusion about what the …
Thursday, January 24, 2013
The neighborhood would benefit from moving the proposed light rail station closer to Blake Road, but a development panel thought the area is a great spot for housing.
The Blake Station on the proposed Southwest Light Rail Transit line is a “prime site” for housing and has incredible development potential—but it will require the continued improvement of the Blake Road corridor that the city envisions. That’s the conclusion a panel of developers, market specialists and urban designers arrived at after a multi-part workshop examining five key station areas on the line: Mitchell and Golden Triangle stations in Eden Prairie, Blake Station in Hopkins, Beltline Station in St. Louis Park and Penn Station in Minneapolis. The panel also opted to look at the Town Center station in Eden Prairie. Click on the PDF to the right of this article to view the station locations. The goal of the Southwest Corridor …
Thursday, January 3, 2013
A look at the details for the four light rail projects closest to completion.
Whether you like it or not, light rail is the talk of the metro at the moment. Businesses along the Central Corridor have another year of construction to look forward to. St. Louis Park residents are protesting the proposed relocation of freight rail in respone to the Southwest Transitway project as supporters continue to seek the necessary funding. In Golden Valley, residents are waiting to see what their City Council will do when it comes to supporting a resolution that would send a light rail train through their community. Many Golden Valley residents urged the City Council to vote no on the resolution that would allow more studies to be conducted about the Bottineau Transitway’s locally preferred alternative (LPA). Meanwhile, the …
Monday, September 5, 2011
This is the first step in construction of light rail through Hopkins.
The Federal Transit Administration has approved preliminary engineering to begin on the Southwest Corridor—a 15-mile light-rail transit line that would from downtown Minneapolis through Hopkins and Minnetonka to Eden Prairie. This approval is the first step in turning light rail in the southwest suburbs from theory to reality. Gail Dorfman, a Hennepin County commissioner, noted this nod from the FTA reduced the number of communities around the country competing to begin engineering light-rail projects from 100 to about a dozen. “This is a milestone to celebrate," Dorfman wrote in a press release issued Friday. "The Southwest LRT project is now real, after more than a decade of hard work and commitment.” The Southwest Corridor would become …
Anita
10:18 pm on Sunday, March 24, 2013
Why do Golden Valley residents think they are more important than North Mpls residents? That is ridiculous. Personally, I've always thought of Golden Valley as a rather crappy place to live. I fully support LRT in Golden Valley. more ›