I attended the Verona Road project last Thursday.
I've been attending public forums on this project about every other
year for the past decade. The approved project is just as horrific as
I imagined 10 years ago.
The meeting was opened by Fitchburg mayor Pfaff who was very excited
about this project. He thinks this will be 'a renaissance' for the
area. He concluded by saying something like "We thank the taxpayers
for their generosity".
"Generosity"???
Stage 1 and Stage 2 will cost (at least ) $175 Million. That money
doesn't come from passing the hat around. It doesn't come from
selfless donors giving of their own volition.
No, it comes from taxes. Its a subsidy for public transportation. Just
like the high speed rail that we don't have, or the regional light
rail we don't have. It might be a practical necessity, or an abuse of
the public trust. But its not 'generosity'.
Also in the works is Stage 3. Its not approved yet, but its likely
going to cost (at least) another $230 Million.
Note that all of this is just for one single intersection. Meanwhile,
DOT is currently studying the *entire* Beltline. No doubt they will
discover the need for many absolutely essential improvements. How much
will that cost? Start saving, because you're paying for it, whether
you're feeling generous or not.
What if we had spent the last 10 years looking at regional
transportation more broadly, and considered modes other than single
occupant vehicles? Well we did, and those ideas also came up at every
one of the public meetings I attended. But we know how that went.
So, in answer to George's question:
"are there any processes available to the public that can result in
project changes at this late date? "
The answer is no, and there never was.
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