Dear Charlie, Steve, and Leah,
We are writing in response to recent media coverage of the Portland Business Journal event where Mayor Hales described ongoing discussions around extending the streetcar up NE MLK Blvd and west on Killingsworth to Interstate Ave (Hales, Novick Explore Eastside Streetcar Line Extension, PBJ, 9/23/13).
The King Neighborhood Association would like to extend its enthusiastic yet qualified support for this idea. As you are likely well aware, NE MLK is an auto-centric street that has long failed to live up to the aspirations that its name implies. It can be a difficult and frequently unpleasant place to walk, bike, or do business. It also acts as a barrier between the residential neighborhoods on either side rather than as the “Main Street” gathering place various planning documents have identified it as being.
MLK was tagged as a 1st Level Concept Corridor in the 2009 Streetcar System Plan and, for a variety of reasons, it is an ideal candidate for the next streetcar extension. There are many vacant and underutilized parcels available for high-density mixed-use development; a re-balancing of transportation modes would make the street more attractive to pedestrians and commerce; as mentioned above, it is a designated “Main Street”; a streetcar line would maximize connectivity between the central city, the Innovation Quadrant (OHSU/PSU/OMSI), inner Northeast, the PCC Cascade campus, and Interstate MAX; and, lastly, there is the potential to increase social equity in neighborhoods that historically have been the subject of institutional racism and neglect.
We do want to inject a note of caution around the subject of social equity. Though streetcar implementation would likely reduce vehicle dependency and lead to an improved atmosphere for local residents and businesses, there is also the risk that the ongoing effects of gentrification through rising property values and increased rents could be amplified. We strongly encourage planners and elected officials to further explore strategies to mitigate this process of “secondary displacement”. A successful extension of the streetcar up MLK would require a sustained effort to ensure that current residents are able to remain in their homes and enjoy the benefits of a more accessible and healthy urban landscape.
Additionally, an MLK streetcar project could be coordinated with the BTA’s ‘Blueprint for World Class Bicycling’, which identifies NE 7th Ave as a potential neighborhood greenway connecting NE Alberta to a new bike/ped bridge over I-84 and points south (see btaoregon.org/blueprint).
Thanks. We look forward to working you.