Arlington streetcar forum gets raucous The fate of the Columbia Pike streetcar project may be in the hands this spring of federal transit authorities who are deciding whether to fund it, but for the 350-plus Arlingtonians who turned out to a information-packed and sometimes raucous forum Wednesday night, the issue was all about local choices. The construction of a $250 million streetcar system from Baileys Crossroads to Pentagon City has been in planning stages for 15 years and twice has been endorsed by both the all-Democratic Arlington County Board and the Fairfax County Board of Supervisors. The county has been upgrading streetlights and burying utilities along the street for the past few years, and a new zoning plan is in effect to help handle the expected development that the streetcar may bring to the 4.5-mile corridor. But as the county awaits word on federal funding, opposition to building a streetcar line has grown and organized, based on the argument that a modern bus rapid transit system would do nearly the same job and would be as much as $200 million cheaper. Pro- and anti-streetcar factions had it out in Kenmore Middle School Wednesday night, as a moderator struggled to keep the rowdy crowd in control. Hostile questions and shouts periodically interrupted the County Board and staff presentations, an audience member called for all opponents of the streetcar to stand, and one resident, incensed that the event was ending at 9 p.m. before all questions were asked, tried to shout down board chairman J. Walter Tejada. "I spent my whole evening here and wasn't able to tell the County Board what I thought," said Josh Ruebner, a Pike-area resident for 14 years. This is simply a gentrification scheme to benefit developers. The county staff and four of the five elected board members said a streetcar line is needed along Columbia Pike because it can carry about twice as many passengers as a bus can, and if population estimates are correct, 14,000 new apartments and condos will be built in the area in the next decade or two. Moving those new residents between home, work, shopping and entertainment could be a nightmare if they opt to drive, transportation officials say, so an improved mass transit system is necessary. The buses that ply the road every two minutes during rush hours, are at capacity, carrying 16,000 riders a day. Many current Columbia Pike residents, who pay some of the most affordable rents in the county, worry that a streetcar line and increased development will drive them from their homes. County board members crafted a plan last summer designed to keep the same number of affordable units in the area by allowing developers to build taller and more dense housing in exchange for creating some lower-cost apartments. That huge, detailed plan seemed to come as news to some members of the audience, who arrived to encounter an electioneering-style array of interest groups distributing their perspectives in the school's hallway. Participants ranged from the local Tea Party to the regional Coalition for Smarter Growth, and both Arlingtonians for Sensible Transit and StreetcarNow.org issued press statements immediately after the event.