Cincinnati issues request for streetcar builder, operator

The City of Cincinnati has issued a request for qualifications (RFQ) to design, build, operate, and maintain its $150 million streetcar project.Applicants will be required to help plan the project’s second phase – an Uptown collector loop, and to demonstrate the capacity to fill a $91 million funding gap through private and public sources.RFQ applications are due by December 18, and consultants will give presentations to the city between January 5-9, 2009.By January 30, a short list will be chosen by a selection committee made up of representatives from the city departments and offices of Transportation and Engineering, Finance, Budget, Economic Development, City Manager, Community Development, and City Planning.In the meantime, Cincinnati officials continue to do their homework on the financing and construction of modern streetcar systems.On Friday, city manager Milton Dohoney led a delegation of city officials and business leaders to Portland, Oregon.The Cincinnatian’s Tour of the Portland Streetcar included a visit to that city’s Pearl District, a meeting with the Portland Development Commission, and a look at the ins and outs of streetcar construction.The group also viewed the streetcar’s economic impact firsthand on a streetcar tour with the city’s debt manager, and met with Oregon congressman Earl Blumenauer, a member of the House Ways and Means Committee and an advocate for transportation choice and livable communities.Writer: Kevin LeMasterSource: Tiffaney Hardy, City of Cincinnati