Tampa — TECO Trust Fund Takeover

Rail Transit Online, July 2009

The city council has agreed to assume control of the trust fund that helps subsidize the TECO Line streetcar. The endowment, until now controlled by the Tampa Historic Streetcar Inc. board of directors, started out with $4.75 million in 2003 and was expected to last 10 years.

But higher than expected costs along with the plummeting value of its investments during the past year dropped the remaining balance from about $3.3 million to $1.4 million.

The city's finance department will place the remaining money in low-risk investments such as treasury bills and certificates of deposit. The agreement with the city allows control of the endowment to revert back to the streetcar board at its request.

www.tecolinestreetcar.org