The Midtown Museum District continues to do a lot of really great things for their area. From it’s relatively small beginnings, Margaret and Julia have grown this organization into something to truly be reckoned with. Along with some good help and a lot of grit, determination and shoe leather they are doing what communities all over town should consider. They are reaching out and making a difference. Already, they have had an impressive list of guest speakers at their association meetings and have made great strides in many projects. For instance, there has now been efforts and bids to create a block watch, they are looking into contacting ADOT for having Midtown Museum District Neighborhood signage at the freeways to help people come to the area, they are having social events in the area and a long list of other community related things. Keep in mind, the meeting minutes from last month show the Association’s funds stood at $134.70.
I was given permission to share information from the minutes of the last meeting where Vice Mayor Tom Simplot discussed aspects of light rail. One of the many topics of discussion was advertising on the light rail. According to their notes, the advertising or wraps of the light rail cars brought essential revenue to the city during difficult financial times.
“The Board Members for the Light Rail had asked for a range of advertising options that could be used both inside and outside the cars, and also on the platforms, and to be given an estimate of the income this could bring. It was hoped that extra income could be used to extend the length of time the trains run (especially at night). He reported that the number of people riding the trains had already far-exceeded the original estimates by around 9,000 more people during the week. Although it was still early days, ticket inspectors had found less than 1% of passengers not paying the fare. There are cameras at each door that are used to count passengers on and off the trains and this information will be used in the future to schedule trains based on demand. The fares on the buses and the Light Rail will be increased to $1.75 for a single journey (or reduced fare all day pass) and $3.50 for a full all day pass. These passes can be used on both the Light Rail and the buses. There would be a strong incentive to purchase the tickets at the stations as buying an all day ticket on the bus will be $5.25.” (source, MMDNA minutes)
I am looking forward to attending the next MMDNA meeting on Wednesday April 29th at 6.30 pm. the guest speaker will be Phillip McNeely Phoenix Environmental Sustainability Program Manager. Philip will talk about the City of Phoenix Environmental Sustainability Program. I hope you can join us!
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