Trolley Petition Drive Becomes More Urgent

Mayor throws down gauntlet in defense of wasteful rail proposal

Mayor Mallory vows to fight
WeDemandAVote.Com coalition on streetcars
COAST says “bring in on”

The WeDemandAVote.Com coalition, led by Christopher Smitherman and the NAACP, announced in January their first project for 2009: a petition drive that will force any spending for trolleys and streetcars in Cincinnati to a public vote. In February, Mayor Mark Mallory issued his State of the City speech, and said that the $200 million trolley plan was the City’s top priority for 2009, a direct challenge to what he called trolley “naysayers.”

“Mayor Mallory has thrown down the gauntlet on trolleys in Cincinnati, calling out COASTers and their WeDemandAVote.Com partners on this important issue,” said COAST Chairman Jason Gloyd. “The City’s $200 million plan is a spending boondoggle, like so many before it, and we think it should be submitted to a public vote before committing these funds to something that just is simply not a priority for our community. So, Mayor Mallory, we accept the challenge. Bring it on.”

COAST has endorsed the WeDemandaVote.Com petition drive, and will be sending out volunteers to hit the streets as soon as the weather warms. COAST needs volunteers to do its part for this petition drive. Contact Jason Gloyd to get involved at Jason.gloyd@cbws.com or 513-240-4996.

This is the third year of concerted political action for the WeDemandAVote.Com coalition. In 2007 it placed on the ballot and defeated the Todd Portune’s and David Pepper’s Super-Sized Jail Tax, and in 2008 it placed on the ballot both a Charter Amendment banning Red Light Cameras, and a new plan for electing City Council called Proportional Representation. The Red Light Camera ban passed, the proportional representation proposal failed.