CHARLES STREET TROLLEY

WHY CHARLES STREET? Charles Street—one of the oldest thoroughfares in North America­—is the spine of Baltimore City, connecting residents and visitors with historic neighborhoods, world-class cultural, religious, and educational institutions, and a wide variety of retail businesses. Charles Street is one of only four federally designated urban scenic byways in the country. “A trek along Charles Street is an allinclusive way to experience the heart of Baltimore. It’s an adventure that captures 400 years of historic transformations, including the exciting urban renewal of the Inner Harbor and Charles Center that grew into a phenomenon and spread to cities around the world. Linking the Inner Harbor

CONNECTS EVERYTHING YOU » IN BALTIMORE

and its attractions to many of Baltimore’s world-renowned destinations, the byway travels through an eclectic mix of urban and suburban neighborhoods; great places to sight-see, shop, and dine. Visit Charles Street and you’ll want to stay a while.” EXCERPT FROM WWW.BYWAYS.ORG

The Charles Street Trolley will build upon this history and transform Charles Street into one of the grand avenues of America, attracting residents, tourists and students to new and exciting places to live, work, and play.

BOARD OF DIRECTORS

DOREEN BOLGER JENNIFER ERICKSON DAVID M. FUNK HENRY G. HAGAN MICHAEL HAYNIE BISHOP DENNIS MADDEN JAMES T. MCGILL DANA PETERSEN MOORE TOM NOONAN MICHAEL SHECTER STEVEN SHEN KAREN STOKES SHELONDA STOKES BILL STRUEVER EX OFFICIO

HENRY KAY JAMIE KENDRICK EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR

KRISTIN SPEAKER 4

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The Case for a Trolley on Charles Street

The Case for a Trolley on Charles Street CREDIT: NC3D.COM

WHY FIXED-RAIL? 2

A fixed-rail trolley system with visible tracks reassures new riders and particularly visitors from out of town that the trolley is predictable, its routes do not change, and it is here for the long term as a viable transportation option.

At least forty-six cities in Canada and the United States, including major cities such as Atlanta, St. Louis, Fort Worth, Cincinnati, Charlotte and the District of Columbia, have embarked on streetcar planning initiatives. This trend in modern urban transit is growing and America’s cities are growing as a result. Cities with established trolley lines develop a lively street life and booming businesses, becoming destinations for people from all over the area. Improved walkability and transit ridership reduce pollution, increase use of city institutions, support entertainment venues, and boost retail development.

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The Case for a Trolley on Charles Street

The Case for a Trolley on Charles Street

Fixed-rail transportation demonstrates permanence and commitment that encourages private investment. By whatever measure—ridership, revenue generation, tourism, or private investment and economic development­—a fixed-rail trolley is more likely to succeed than a rubber-tire trolley or bus. Experience in other cities with fixed-rail systems, such as Portland, Dallas, Tampa, Seattle, Little Rock, and Memphis, proves this point.

Fixed-rail trolleys create a smoother ride because the vehicles are easier to get into and out of, do not lurch in and out of traffic, are less threatening to pedestrians, are quieter than buses and do not smell of exhaust. Because of the smoother ride and the amenities on modern vehicles, streetcars are seen as an extension of the sidewalk.

CHARLES STREET TROLLEY TRANSFORMS CHARLES STREET & BUILDS CIVIC PRIDE

INVESTMENT DEVELOPMENT TOURISM BUSINESSES CONNECTIVITY SUSTAINABILITY CIVIC PRIDE

LINKS DESTINATIONS & ENHANCES URBAN LIVABILITY

CULTURAL EDUCATIONAL RELIGIOUS ARCHITECTURE NEIGHBORHOODS DOWNTOWN MOUNT VERNON CHARLES NORTH OLD GOUCHER CHARLES VILLAGE

CONNECTS EVERYTHING YOU » IN BALTIMORE

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PRIVATE INVESTMENT AND ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT

Transforming Charles Street

The permanence of fixed-rail investment gives developers, residents, and property owners faith that the Trolley will remain in place for years to come and will encourage investors and developers to invest in the Charles Street Corridor. Existing property values will increase, and new development will occur at a faster pace. Currently, more than 40 acres of undeveloped property lie along the route served by the Charles Street Trolley—mostly surface parking lots. Estimates are that more than $1 billion in new private investment will be realized from the Trolley.

MAP ILLUSTRATING 40+ ACRES OF DEVELOPMENT OPPORTUNITIES IN THE CHARLES STREET CORRIDOR

When I went to Baltimore, we started downtown and moved up along the street to Johns Hopkins University, and they want to put the streetcar there. I sat in a room with developers and property owners and big businesses, and they said, how is this going to work? I just wanted to run out of the door and find the first for-sale sign on the alignment, because if they put a streetcar there, I know what it’s going to do. JOHN CARROLL PORTLAND DEVELOPER & FOUNDER OF PORTLAND STREETCAR INC.

TOURISM The Trolley creates a vital connection, linking some of the City’s most dynamic assets, including the Inner Harbor, the Basilica, Mount Vernon Cultural District, the Walters Art Museum, Penn Station, the Lyric Opera House, Meyerhoff Symphony Hall, the Baltimore Museum of Art, and the Baltimore Convention Center and Hotel Community. The Trolley itself will be another exciting attraction for Baltimore, as well as a convenient and accessible mode of transportation for tourists and locals alike. 8

TOM NOONAN PRESIDENT AND CEO VISIT BALTIMORE

Transforming Charles Street

NATIONAL AQUARIUM | INNER HARBOR

CREDIT: MARK SWISHER

In 2009, Baltimore welcomed more than 20 million visitors. The Charles Street Trolley will provide a convenient connection and a reliable and enjoyable means of public transportation for these visitors, carrying them from the Inner Harbor to the cultural institutions, restaurants, and entertainment venues. It offers a predictable route, measured pace, and the romantic image associated with streetcars as a historic means of travel. Like the cable cars in San Francisco or the streetcars in New Orleans, the Charles Street Trolley could become a tourist attraction in its own right.

MEYERHOFF SYMPHONY HALL | MOUNT VERNON

RETAIL BUSINESSES Currently, Eddie’s Market is a neighborhood operation supported by the Johns Hopkins and Charles Village communities. A trolley will open the doors to a City-wide audience, creating a new market for businesses by making travel more accessible to visitors coming up and down the Corridor.

OWNER OF EDDIE’S MARKET IN CHARLES VILLAGE

Charles Street is a center for local businesses —unique retail establishments, eclectic restaurants, and a vibrant nightlife. These businesses rely on people walking through their doors, but parking can be a challenge, and the walk “up” Charles Street from the Inner Harbor discourages foot traffic. The Charles Street Trolley will bring residents and visitors to the doors of these establishments and will make Charles Street a more attractive destination for shopping and dining. A VIEW OF CHARLES STREET | NORTHBOUND | MOUNT VERNON

Transforming Charles Street

JERRY GORDON

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CONNECTIVITY

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Transforming Charles Street

A VIEW OF HOMES IN CHARLES VILLAGE

CREDIT: ADAM FRIEDBERG

The Charles Street Trolley is all about circulation and connectivity. Not only will the Trolley connect neighborhoods and destinations, but it will seamlessly connect riders to the City’s existing transit systems, such as Amtrak, the Metro, the Light Rail, the Charm City Circulator, and the future Red Line, allowing riders to reach other means of transportation for longer trips and easier travel to neighborhoods and destinations outside the Corridor.

THE WALTERS ART MUSUEM | MOUNT VERNON

SUSTAINABILITY

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THE PORTLAND STREETCAR SYSTEM

Transforming Charles Street

The Charles Street Trolley will produce significant environmental benefits by shifting travel from individual automobiles to mass transit and by attracting residents from suburban, automobile-oriented locations to a more urban, transit supported corridor. It will prompt infill development, which is “greener” than new urban or suburban sprawl. The Charles Street Trolley will leave a far smaller carbon footprint on the City than do cars, trucks, and buses. Operating as a wireless system, the Trolley will use batteries and capacitors, capturing and storing energy every time a vehicle brakes.

CIVIC PRIDE Streetcars create a positive image for surrounding neighborhoods. A high-quality trolley system is something in which a whole city can take pride, and provides physical evidence of a strong political and business commitment to overall economic health and vitality. 16

Transforming Charles Street

An attractive and efficient public transit system will increase the number of pedestrians, putting more eyes on the street, which has been shown to be a major deterrent to street-level crime. The Trolley itself can be monitored to ensure the safety of its riders and the streets and sidewalks it serves.

THE WASHINGTON MONUMENT | MOUNT VERNON

EDUCATIONAL AND CULTUR AL

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Linking World - Class Destinations

Charles Street is home to 44,000 of the region’s 120,000 students. Johns Hopkins University and the University of Baltimore are on the Trolley line. Within easy walking distance are Loyola University, the College of Notre Dame, the Maryland Institute College of Art, and the Baltimore campus of the University of Maryland. The Trolley will allow students to connect more easily to the Inner Harbor and other downtown destinations.

Charles Street connects so much of Baltimore’s best; the Trolley will make those connections far more direct. It will give our students at Homewood and Peabody—and employees like me who live in the Charles Street Corridor—easy access to great arts and entertainment, restaurants and shopping, and all the other attractions on or near our City’s main street. I can’t wait to ride it myself. RON DANIELS PRESIDENT JOHNS HOPKINS UNIVERSITY

Charles Street links many of the City’s most renowned cultural attractions, one after the other, almost like a string of pearls. Residents and tourists alike can move easily along a clear path from the Inner Harbor to an amazing roster of arts, historic, and educational organization—The Walters Art Museum, Peabody Institute, Baltimore Symphony Orchestra, Maryland Institute College of Art, Maryland Historical Society, and The Baltimore Museum of Art, to name a few. DOREEN BOLGER DIRECTOR BALTIMORE MUSEUM OF ART

JOHNS HOPKINS UNIVERSITY | CHARLES VILLAGE

BALTIMORE MUSEUM OF ART | CHARLES VILLAGE

RELIGIOUS AND ARCHITECTURE

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Linking World - Class Destinations

The Charles Street corridor is home to historic churches representing many faiths—Old St. Paul’s Episcopal Church and rectory; the Basilica of the National Shrine of the Blessed Virgin Mary, America’s First Roman Catholic Cathedral, and Archbishop’s residence; the First Unitarian Church, which was the first building for Unitarians in America; and Lovely Lane Methodist Church, the mother church of the Methodist Episcopal Church in America.

The Mount Vernon area of the city is the most culturally, architecturally and spiritually rich area of Baltimore. It is also home to some of the most historic and significant religious institutions, including the Basilica of the National Shrine of the Blessed Virgin Mary, America’s First Cathedral. The Archdiocese of Baltimore is excited about the promise the trolley holds, as it will provide greater and improved access to these world-class institutions for both residents and visitors alike, something long needed in our city.

Charles Street is the 5th Avenue of Baltimore. The architecture on the Corridor has everything­— medieval churches, Greek Temples, Art Deco office buildings, Gilded Age townhouses to carriage house and garage. From human scale store fronts of the mid 19th century to towering 20th century monoliths, Charles Street has it all. A walk up Charles Street is a walk in time showing clearly in its architecture the development of Baltimore. WALTER G. SCHAMU FAIA, PRESIDENT, SCHAMU MACHOWSKI GRECO ARCHITECTS

ARCHBISHOP EDWIN O’BRIEN ARCHDIOCESE OF BALTIMORE

MOUNT VERNON PLACE UNITED METHODIST

THE BASILICA | MOUNT VERNON

DOWNTOWN At the southern end of the Corridor are major office buildings, whose many employees seek ways to connect more easily to restaurants and retail outlets during lunch and after work. The Charles Street Trolley will provide office workers a dependable source of transportation from the Central Business District northward for daytime meetings and afterhours entertainment.

Downtown Baltimore is the heart of the city and the center of commercial activity in the region. Connecting this business district to the Charles Street corridor with an urban amenity like the Charles Street Trolley would increase the value of our downtown location. Our clients, employees, and student interns could all use this convenient transportation. The Trolley is an investment in the city’s future and will improve the economic health and vibrancy of the downtown and the city as a whole."

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FRANK TURNER SENIOR VICE PRESIDENT THE WASHINGTON MONUMENT | MOUNT VERNON

PNC BANK

MOUNT VERNON Mount Vernon is one of the oldest and most historic neighborhoods in Baltimore and has been designated a Historic District on the National Register of Historic Places. The centerpiece of this beautiful and distinctive urban neighborhood is the renowned monument from the State of Maryland to George Washington – the most recognizable monument in the City and the defining symbol of Charles Street.

The Charles Street Trolley will be a wonderful development for the Walters Art Museum. Not only will it link the Walters and beautiful Mount Vernon with the Harbor, with its millions of out-of-town visitors, it will connect Baltimore’s two great art museums, the BMA and the Walters, which together offer one of the richest art experiences in America. GARY VIKAN DIRECTOR WALTERS ART MUSEUM

Enhancing Urban Livability

CITY CENTER | DOWNTOWN

CHARLES NORTH Charles North, lying at the busy and historic intersection of Charles Street and North Avenue, is a burgeoning arts district and cultural center. The youthful energy drawn to this community makes it a vibrant neighborhood full of exciting night life and avantgarde art.

The Trolley will enhance the Charles North community and create an experience for more people to come to work, live, and be entertained. The Trolley will provide an economic incentive to the community, and will be an asset to the whole City. We already have a lot to offer, but we can have more. REVEREND DALE DUSMAN CHARLES NORTH COMMUNITY ASSOCIATION

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Enhancing Urban Livability

THE CHARLES THEATRE | STATION NORTH / CHARLES NORTH

OLD GOUCHER

CHARLES VILL AGE

Goucher College, then a Methodist college for women associated with Lovely Lane Methodist Church, was originally located in the Charles Street Corridor south of 25th Street. The original academic buildings and dormitories dot the landscape of the Old Goucher neighborhood – today, a prime target of private investment and ripe for infill development.

Charles Village, an established residential and commercial neighborhood developed in the early 20th Century, is heavily influenced by its close proximity to Hopkins, giving it the feel of an academic community and a college town.

The Charles Street Trolley will tie our neighborhood to Downtown, the Harbor, Mount Vernon, and Penn Station in a way that we have never been connected before. In fact, the Trolley should make our neighborhood’s real estate desirable enough to assure the development of our underused parcels and eventually make us one of Baltimore’s premier locations.

PETER DUVALL OLD GOUCHER COMMUNITY ASSOCIATION

The Charles Street Trolley will be good for the Charles Village community, providing residents another option for traveling from University Parkway to the Inner Harbor seven days a week, eighteen hours a day. The Trolley will also reduce the need for additional cars and enhance development along the Trolley route, increasing the likelihood that tourists will discover historic Charles Village, its retail areas, and neighboring institutions. JENNIFER ERICKSON CHARLES VILLAGE CIVIC ASSOCIATION

PORTL AND Portland, Oregon, whose streetcar system opened in 2001, is the poster child for trolley success. NEW DEVELOPMENT/PRIVATE INVESTMENT

PORTLAND

DALLAS

Our first and still our primary form of public transportation in the Pearl District is the Portland Streetcar. Hundreds of thousands ride the Streetcar each year. It is a landmark and a destination for tourists and locals alike. Most of all, it reduces the demands on public parking and traffic congestion and connects our residential and business communities—many people that live and work in the Pearl do not need to use a car because of the reliability and affordability of the streetcar.”

When the trolley was first envisioned, the area now known as Uptown was the largest collection of undeveloped real estate adjacent to a major Downtown in North America. The trolley, as a fulcrum for economic redevelopment, has proven successful beyond our wildest dreams with the total real estate value in Uptown now at 3 billion dollars. Our ridership base used to be mostly tourists or families. You still see plenty of those folks, but now we have an established base of daily commuters, as well as club-hoppers and Uptown residents riding to restaurants and shopping along the line.”

PRIVATE INVESTMENT/MILE

$87.5 MILLION

$875 MILLION

$3.5 BILLION

10 YEARS

4.0 MILES

PRIVATE INVESTMENT/MILE/YEAR

JOSHUA RYAN EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR PEARL DISTRICT BUSINESS ASSOCIATION

| SCALE: in Billions, over 10 years |

Portland’s commitment to public transportation and its visionary streetcar system has made it one of the most livable, sustainable and economically vibrant cities in America.

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Building on the success of other Streetcar cities

RAY LAHOOD U.S. SECRETARY OF TRANSPORTATION

DALL AS The McKinney Avenue Trolley has played a major role in the economic development and growth of Uptown Dallas. Before the trolley, McKinney Avenue and Uptown Dallas were blighted. Today they are vibrant. PROPERTY VALUATION:

DEMOGRAPHICS AS OF 2006:

1992 2000 2010

5,751 RESIDENTIAL 1,014 BUSINESSES

$900 MILLION $1.6 BILLION $3 BILLION

JOHN LANDRUM UPTOWN DALLAS, INC.

SEATTLE

TAMPA

The Seattle Streetcar has played a crucial role in our revitalization of Seattle’s fast-growing South Lake Union neighborhood. By linking South Lake Union to the downtown core, housing, retail and other regional transit options, the streetcar has helped transform a formerly industrial district into a magnet for new employees, residents and visitors. The presence of a streetcar line solidified the decision for several major tenants to locate and grow in the neighborhood, including Amazon.com, Microsoft and Group Health Cooperative.

The historic streetcar is successful because of the destinations that it serves and the new neighborhoods filling in between them. There are almost 3,000 residential and condominium units that have been built along the route and 100,000 square feet of ground level retail in those buildings since the streetcar was built.

TAMPA Tampa’s streetcar system runs between downtown and historic Ybor City. Thanks to the streetcar, today Ybor City has some of the best nightlife in Tampa.

BOB MCDONAUGH MANAGER CHANNEL DISTRICT & DOWNTOWN CRAS

NEW DEVELOPMENT/PRIVATE INVESTMENT PRIVATE INVESTMENT/MILE

$95 MILLION

$666.7 MILLION

REAL ESTATE, VULCAN INC.

7 YEARS

1.5 MILES

ADA M. HEALEY VICE PRESIDENT

$1 BILLION

PRIVATE INVESTMENT/MILE/YEAR | SCALE: in Millions, over 7 years |

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The Seattle streetcar is an integral part of the planning process for the City’s South Lake Union Strategy. The goal of the plan is to change a distressed neighborhood into a vibrant employment and residential center. NEW DEVELOPMENT/PRIVATE INVESTMENT PRIVATE INVESTMENT/MILE

$615 MILLION

$2.46 BILLION

$3.2 BILLION

4 YEARS

CREDIT: KEITH BROFSKY

1.3 MILES

PRIVATE INVESTMENT/MILE/YEAR | SCALE: in Billions, over 4 years |

Building on the success of other Streetcar cities

SEAT TLE

LITTLE ROCK

LIT TLE ROCK The Little Rock streetcar line was originally built as a tourist attraction using vintage cars, but the City has found that the alignment has attracted substantial economic development and ridership among residents. NEW DEVELOPMENT/PRIVATE INVESTMENT

Since its opening in November 2004, there has been close to $1 billion in development in the downtown areas of Little Rock and North Little Rock, either directly on the route or in close proximity. River Rail has become a developer’s darling as another enticement for investing in downtown. At the same time it adds ambience to the downtown, is fun for residents and visitors alike, and is an attractive marketing tool for convention and conference hotels.

PRIVATE INVESTMENT/MILE

$39 MILLION

$235 MILLION

$850 MILLION

6 YEARS

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1.7 MILES

PRIVATE INVESTMENT/MILE/YEAR | SCALE: in Millions, over 6 years |

Building on the success of other Streetcar cities

MEMPHIS More than $3 billion in development projects are recently completed, planned or underway along the route of the Memphis streetcar system. The trolley system has been an integral part of the renaissance of downtown Memphis over the past 17 years by supporting redevelopment of the core of the Central Business District, and jump starting new development on the fringes of downtown. WILLIAM HUDSON, JR. PRESIDENT & GENERAL MANAGER MEMPHIS AREA TRANSIT AUTHORITY

BETTY WINELAND EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR CENTRAL ARKANSAS TRANSIT

SUPPORT INSTITUTIONAL SUPPORT

ENDORSEMENTS

ARCHDIOCESE OF BALTIMORE

CHARLES VILLAGE CIVIC ASSOCIATION

BALTIMORE MUSEUM OF ART

OLD GOUCHER COMMUNITY ASSOCIATION

JOHNS HOPKINS UNIVERSITY

CHARLES NORTH COMMUNITY ASSOCIATION

MERCY MEDICAL CENTER

MOUNT VERNON BELVEDERE ASSOCIATION

WALTERS ART MUSEUM

DOWNTOWN PARTNERSHIP OF BALTIMORE BALTIMORE CONVENTION AND TOURISM BOARD CHARLES STREET DEVELOPMENT CORPORATION CHARLES VILLAGE BUSINESS ASSOCIATION

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Great cities need great transit. Baltimoreans know this and want streetcars on Charles Street. We’ve talked to thousands of residents at community events and neighborhood festivals, people’s eyes light up when they first see the trolley plans. The most common question—how soon can this happen? MARK COUNSELMAN FOUNDER OF FRIENDS OF THE TROLLEY

FRIENDS OF THE CHARLES STREET TROLLEY IS A GRASSROOTS BOOSTER ORGANIZATION FOR THE PROJECT. OVER 700 FRIENDS HAVE SIGNED UP AT FESTIVALS, EVENTS, AND ONLINE

“Under the Schmoke administration with a different set of priorities the trolleys disappeared. While the trolleys ran we saw a substantial increase in business from both downtown office workers and tourists at both lunch and dinner. When the trolley disappeared we saw a corresponding decline in the clientele. “This experience convinced me that a fixed-rail trolley was the only solution to knitting the retail and cultural institutions along Charles Street into a thriving urban destination. As I studied trolleys around the country, I found that development only occurred when trolleys were fixedrail. Rubber-wheeled circulators (like the one we have now), will never stimulate the redevelopment of the neighborhoods along Charles Street simply because no one is going to invest on the basis of something that can so easily disappear.” J I M MY R O U S E FO R M E R OWN E R LO U I E ’ S B O O K S TO R E C AF É

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Support for the Charles Street Trolley

Support for the Charles Street Trolley

FRIENDS OF THE TROLLEY

“When I ran Louie’s I became convinced that the only way to restore Charles Street was to address the transportation deficiencies along the Corridor. In the mid-eighties under Mayor Schaefer, the City ran for three years a rubber-wheeled trolley from the Inner Harbor to Mount Vernon.

C H A R L E S S T R E E T T R O L L E Y | CONNECTS EVERYTHING YOU

❤ IN BALTIMORE

UNIVERSITY PARKWAY

Johns Hopkins University

33RD STREET

Charles Village

ST. PAUL ST RE ET

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Union Memorial Hospital Baltimore Museum of Art

Old Goucher

25TH STREET

Lovely Lane United Methodist Church

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Charles North / Station North Arts District

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The Charles Theatre Everyman Theatre Maryland Institute College of Art University of Baltimore

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A M T RA K

MT. ROYAL AVENUE

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CHAR LES STR EET

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Mount Vernon

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Washington Monument Maryland Historical Society Contemporary Museum Walters Art Museum George Peabody Library Mercy Medical Center Garrett Jacobs Mansion Peabody Institute Enoch Pratt Free Library Basilica of the Assumption

CENTRE STREET

Westside University of Maryland Hippodrome Theatre Lexington Market 1st Mariner Arena Convention Center Oriole Park at Campden Yards Sports Legends Museum Ravens Stadium

REDWOOD STREET

MTA LI GH T RAIL

City Center

CONWAY STREET

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Inner Harbor Power Plant Live National Aquarium in Baltimore Harborplace Baltimore Visitor Center Maryland Science Center

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