More than a hundred people gathered at Johnson C. Smith University on Wednesday night in support of the streetcar extension project.

It was the first uniting of east and west Charlotte activists and residents behind the $119 million project.

"This is kind of a historical event, to have the east side and the west side coming together for a common goal," Charlotte City Councilman John Autry said.

Supporters said now is the time to push city leaders for the funding.

"We really need the streetcar in this neighborhood," Michelle Blackwell said.

Six councilmembers came to the meeting. Several, like Autry, made a case for the project. But there were also critics, like Andy Dulin. He's a big no when it comes to Mayor Anthony Foxx's idea of raising property taxes for the project.

"Until he backs off of the streetcar construction, I'm not backing down either," he said.

Dulin said the project is holding up the rest of the city's Capital Investment Plan, which failed to pass last year.

"I think he needs to go to his supporters and say, 'I'm sorry, we're going to come back and fight the streetcar battle another day,'" he said.

Supporters told the crowd if the city spends your dollars to build it, the developers will come, injecting money back into Charlotte's economy.

"If you have tracks embedded in the road, that provides them the certainty that that route is going to be there," Autry said.

Michelle Blackwell believes with east and west Charlotte now working together, council will have to listen.

"I think they will see that we mean business and that we do care," she said.

Foxx invited the mayor of Atlanta and Charlotte's lobbyist to the city council retreat Thursday to talk about transportation and the streetcar project.