http://raillife.com/blog/2009/03/18/politics-posturing-and-proposals-continue-with-light-rail-discussions/ Phoenix Light Rail news and information Mon, 14 May 2012 19:48:13 +0000 hourly 1 http://wordpress.org/?v=3.3.2 http://raillife.com/blog/2009/03/18/politics-posturing-and-proposals-continue-with-light-rail-discussions/#comment-137 David SB Wed, 18 Mar 2009 13:20:35 +0000 /blog/post/2009/03/18/Politics-posturing-and-proposals-continue-with-light-rail-discussions.aspx#comment-137 Ideally, I'd like to see a line that serves both Downtown Glendale and Westgate, but I think that's unlikely given Glendale's apparent desire to pay as little as possible for rail within its borders. If a choice must be made between the two destinations, I'd favor Downtown Glendale. Why? Because a walkable downtown full of independent shops and restaurants is timeless. It will always add value to a city. A stadium and an adjacent activity center, on the other hand, are tied to professional sports organizations that may not always be around. What a waste it would be to build light rail to Westgate only to have a team move to another city, have an extended player strike, or even have an entire sports league go out of business. All of those have happened in recent memory. Ideally, I’d like to see a line that serves both Downtown Glendale and Westgate, but I think that’s unlikely given Glendale’s apparent desire to pay as little as possible for rail within its borders. If a choice must be made between the two destinations, I’d favor Downtown Glendale. Why? Because a walkable downtown full of independent shops and restaurants is timeless. It will always add value to a city. A stadium and an adjacent activity center, on the other hand, are tied to professional sports organizations that may not always be around. What a waste it would be to build light rail to Westgate only to have a team move to another city, have an extended player strike, or even have an entire sports league go out of business. All of those have happened in recent memory.

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