Congress gave the City of Tacoma and Sound Transit a reason to celebrate the end of 2015 with a gift of nearly $75 million in funding from the Federal Transportation Administration’s (FTA) Small Starts program. According to the DOT website, Sound Transit will use the funds to “more than double the existing streetcar system in Tacoma, better connecting the downtown to major employment, medical, education, and other institutions.”
Leland Consulting Group (LCG)’s Chris Zahas and Ted Kamp worked with CH2M Hill to prepare the economic development element of the FTA Small Starts grant application for the implementation of this 2.4-mile extension of Tacoma’s Link Light Rail system. They provided detailed GIS and land use analysis as well as outreach to the development community to secure letters of support for the grant application.
Additional funding for the project came in November with a $15 million TIGER grant award from the U.S. Department of Transportation. Service for this new stretch of rail is scheduled to begin in 2021 and will include stops along Stadium Way and the Hilltop District.