The Portland Tribune has some great stuff in it today about that slight odor arising from the North Macadam development project in Southwest Portland. They're finally asking the right questions about the ridiculous aerial tram feature that's supposedly the key to the plans. Who will pay to build the tram? Of course, readers of this weblog have already been pondering this question for more than three months, after it was asked here on July 8.

Hey, Trib reporter Todd Murphy, nice going. But don't forget the follow-up question: Who will pay to operate the tram? There isn't a mass transit project in the country that turns a profit. So who will bear the loss on this one? Not OHSU or Homer Williams, that's for sure.

Another interesting tidbit in the Trib was apparent evidence that our mayor regarded the tram as a foregone conclusion more than a year and a half before she voted for it.

City Commissioner and electric-exec-wannabe Erik Sten provided an interesting attempt to change the subject:

City Commissioner Erik Sten suggested the focus on responsibility for paying for the tram may miss a more important point: how the city, OHSU and North Macadam landowners and developers divide the estimated $70 million in infrastructure costs.

"I think for the public to get a square deal on this thing, you have to analyze how much does the public put in the entire infrastructure down there," Sten said. "If we pay more for the tram, we should pay less for other things."