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<br /> C. Light Rail Brings Business and Boosts Economic Development
<br /> As alluded to above, the proposed light rail system will draw concentrated economic
<br /> development.'? Large companies are deliberately investing in and developing areas connected to
<br /> permanent public transit systems like light rail. Mercedez-Benz relocated to downtown Atlanta,18
<br /> and Kaiser-Permanente decided on Georgia over Colorado because of the public transit options
<br /> available, specifically the rail system in the Midtown area.19 Indeed, The Charlotte Lynx System
<br /> has proven to be an enormous economic success for the area: "From 2005 to-date, the Blue Line
<br /> has generated approximately $900M in development projects completed within a 1/2 mile of the
<br /> Blue Line Stations."20 This has "transformed portions of the community from vacant or
<br /> underutilized parcels to vibrant,pedestrian friendly communities including housing, restaurants,
<br /> retail and small businesses."21 Charlotte Area Transit System staff project an additional $500
<br /> million-worth of development in the coming years.22 The Blue Line Extension, which is set to
<br /> begin operations in 2017, has already attracted more than $200 million in new,private
<br /> development projects along the future route.23 Clean Air Carolina, which is based in Charlotte,
<br /> has witnessed first-hand these positive community—not to mention environmental and health—
<br /> benefits of the Lynx system. While this success story from within our State is particularly
<br /> impressive, it is not an isolated instance. Light rail systems across the country, in metropolitan
<br /> regions similar to the D-O corridor, have likewise experienced substantial economic benefits.
<br /> These include systems in Portland, Oregon; Dallas, Texas; Denver, Colorado; Santa Clara
<br /> County, California; and St. Paul-Minneapolis, Minnesota.24
<br /> Notably, bus service, including bus rapid transit("BRT"), has not and cannot spur such
<br /> economic benefits precisely because of its unpredictable, ever-changing routes.25 A BRT system
<br /> includes fixed guideways for buses, thus removing segments of bus service from mixed-use
<br /> traffic to enable quicker travel times. However, BRT is still characterized by flexibility in route
<br /> 17 See DEIS at 1-22; id.at Table 8.1-1:Project Need Performance Summary for No Build,NEPA Preferred, and
<br /> Project Element Alternatives.
<br /> 18 Matt Kempner and J. Scott Trubey,MARTA A Sudden Factor in Company Moves,THE ATLANTA JOURNAL-
<br /> CONSTITUTION,Jan. 16,2015,http://www myajc.com/news/business/marta-a-sudden-factor-in-company-
<br /> moves/njpnF/.
<br /> 19 Maria Saporta, Transit and Walkability Key Factors in Kaiser Permanente's Decision to Put 900 New Jobs in
<br /> Midtwon, SAPORTAREPORT,Apr. 17,2015,http://saportareport.com/transit-and-walkability-key-factors-in-kaiser-
<br /> permanente s-decision-to-put-900-new-j obs-in-midtown/.
<br /> 20 E-mail from Tina Votaw,Transit Oriented Dev. Specialist, Charlotte Area Transit Sys.,to Kym Hunter, Staff
<br /> Attorney, S.Envtl Law Ctr. (April 22,2015);see also Alternatives Analysis at 5-86("North Carolina's first LRT
<br /> line,the Blue Line,has been a catalyst for almost$1.5 billion of new or planned development along Charlotte's
<br /> South Corridor,a formerly underutilized railroad corridor.").
<br /> 21 E-mail from Tina Votaw,supra note 20.
<br /> 22 Id.
<br /> 23 Id.
<br /> 24 Alternatives Analysis,at 5-86-5-87 (listing the significant economic benefits which have accrued to the areas
<br /> surrounding the respective light rail systems).
<br /> 25 Alternatives Analysis,at 5-88 (citing limited available studies on BRT and noting that potential economic benefits
<br /> of BRT are unproven and speculative,unlike light rail's demonstrated positive effects).
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