Assessment puts cost of Omaha streetcar at $156M suggests ways to make project pay for itself

People have talked about a modern Omaha streetcar off and on for at least 20 years, but now the discussion is starting to get real.

A financial assessment done for the city lays out numerous options for paying to build a streetcar line, to put trains on the tracks and to operate them.

The analysis, made public here for the first time, is on the Omaha City Council agenda for Tuesday. It estimates it would cost $156 million to build and equip a streetcar line from TD Ameritrade Park in downtown Omaha to 42nd and Farnam Streets in midtown Omaha. It would cost about $7.5 million a year to operate the line.

The assessment leans toward using an assortment of local funding sources, including city money, philanthropic donations and tax-increment financing from real estate developments along the streetcar route.

Read more: http://www.omaha.com/news/metro/assessment-puts-cost-of-omaha-streetcar-at-million-suggests-ways/article_e18effd5-df6c-543a-b6df-5f09ebf74c17.html