San Antonio — Tax District Dropped

January 2013

San Antonio's City Council voted on January 10 to drop the idea of a special tax district to help fund its streetcar system, the Express-News reports. The lost $15 million will be replaced from other sources. The two-route streetcar network could cost up to $200 million and would be operational in 2016 or 2017.

The vote was 8-3 in favor of eliminating the private sector's $15 million share of VIA Metropolitan Transit's downtown streetcar project. The city will still contribute $40 million to the project and the transit authority will still be able to build the line.

City officials said that the private sector still supports the streetcar project but other government funds became available after the tax distict had been proposed.

Final routing of the proposed north-south and east-west lines has not yet been determined, but may be decided by summer of 2013.