Comments on: Gresham MAX station could spark growth /news/2010/11/17/gresham-max-station-could-spark-growth/ Building and Construction News in Portland, Oregon and the Pacific Northwest Sat, 27 Nov 2010 16:44:41 +0000 hourly 1 https://wordpress.org/?v=6.6.6 By: NativePDX /news/2010/11/17/gresham-max-station-could-spark-growth/#comment-45879 Sat, 27 Nov 2010 16:44:41 +0000 /?p=62336#comment-45879 If they do it without urban renewal or tax breaks, public backed low interest loans or any other kind of subsidy or publc paid for planning and staff time.

I might believe it.

]]> By: A Perspective /news/2010/11/17/gresham-max-station-could-spark-growth/#comment-45211 Thu, 18 Nov 2010 18:43:56 +0000 /?p=62336#comment-45211 “We decided (to) get the station in first, and that will help revitalize the Civic neighborhood area.” [Gresham planning director].

Or the other view.

““It was a promise of a future station once there was enough development to warrant it,” Fetsch said.”

Seems like rationalization and covering your bets. Put the station in first to provide a catalyst; or wait until there is enough demand. In some ironic sense – Trimet’s Fetsch has it nearly right. There is little evidence to support the catalyst theory, i.e., MAX provides incentive to development.

The area in the neighborhood of the new station appears to have grown with little help from MAX. But, will there ever be a ROI? How many new riders must MAX attract to pay for this $3 mil station? How many new permanent jobs were created by this station? How much development will occur that can be directly connected to MAX, i.e., cause and effect?

But, it will be interesting to watch the development in the Civic area. There is little evidence that the development mice are in fact hungry. In most cases, they have to be encouraged by massive tax incentives to even to nibble.

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