via by FOX6 NEWS AND BEVERLY TAYLOR
MILWAUKEE -- Mayor Tom Barrett announced on Tuesday, Oct. 2 property values within one-quarter mile of the Milwaukee streetcar route have climbed almost 28 percent since the streetcar was given the green light in 2015. Those values have grown at twice the rate of property value growth citywide.
"It tells me there is keen interest in economic development along the streetcar line. That's something we had anticipated. That's something we had hoped for -- and something we had planned for as well," said Barrett.
Barrett was joined by developers and the head of the Milwaukee Downtown Business Improvement District during a news conference on Tuesday. The location of the news conference was the streetcar station at the corner of Broadway and Wells Street, where multiple development projects are planned or underway.
Critics of the Milwaukee streetcar often point to the cost of the $120 million project -- even though nearly $70 million comes from federal grants designed specifically for transportation projects.