"Bill Cullen" writes:
a) What exactly are the changes to 35W? What will be destroyed, what will be added? I probably need a picture to grasp it.
http://www.phillipspartnership.org/35w.html
You'll probably want more than what's available at that site. First, key documents are perhaps conveniently missing. Second, the whole site reads like propaganda for the pro-Excess conspiracy. Lastly, the "Phillips Partnership" is not some community or neighborhood generated organization. Just read the names of the Partnership members -- a virtually who's who of corporate interests and their government lapdogs who do not represent the common man on the street, or the majority, by any stretch of the imagination.
Sure. And I have a bridge in Brooklyn for sale.b) How will we add two lanes to 35W? Are we loosing
homes, businesses etc?
Two lanes are not added. Bridges are re-built so that
later HOV lanes could be added.
HOV lanes in Minnesota are like the last few dinosaurs, in case you hadn't noticed. Pawlenty and company are about to turn the first HOV lane in Minnesota into a toll road.
Additionally, this is clearly segmentation on the part of MNDOT, a practice that is against federal law. Only because they keep denying it, and no doubt carefully avoid making it completely obvious -- well, it IS completely obvious -- by using weasel words are they avoiding a court prosecution. If I had a million dollars burning a hole in my pocket, I'd have MNDOT in court so fast it'd make their heads spin. Unfortunately, most of us don't have that kind of cash to hire the big guns law firm it will take to push a federal case. The research and discovery will take months and months and vast piles of steaming cash. You can't fight city hall and the press at the same time and win, and this is a good example of that.
Due to the access from Lake St to North-bound 35W, aI think I'll burn down your house and a few of your neighbors. Don't worry, it'll only be a handful, not the 8 I had originally planned. 4, I think.**
few houses will be lost north of the McDonalds, on the
half-block facing the freeway. The latest plan does
not remove all (8) of them only a handful (4, I
think).
The way I count it, it looks like 16 homes and 5 businesses, but since the "latest plan" cannot be found on the Phillips Partnership website, it's tough to be sure.
That's a completely disingenuous statement. If the M&E committee removed it two years ago, why did they wait until late last year to make that change public? I refer you to an article published August 21, 2003 in the Southwest Journal titled "I-35W 'flyover' ramp design may change" (http://www.swjournal.com/archives/index.inn?loc=detail&doc=/2003/August/21-1506-news08.txt).c) How will the exit to 28th be added? What is a "flyover ramp?" What does it flyover?
The 28th St exit will depart the freeway "mainline"
north of Lake. There is no flyover. That design was
eliminated by the Mitigation and Enhancement committee
two years ago.
Either the committee is a secretive bunch, or your math skills need some brushing up. Five months is not equal to two years.
Corporations are not capable of being good or evil. They're not moral entities. However, corporate structure in America today selects for and encourages long series of decisions on the parts of all managers and executives which tend to lead to short-term thinking, short-term gain, over long-term well-being, and the intentional displacement of long term costs onto other parties -- i.e. externalities.d) Allina and Wells Fargo are painted as evil on
this board. But, they must have real problems
that need to be solved -- no business looks for
this kind of investment without some reason.
You are very insightful. They are not evil, they want
to grow and stay in the neighborhood. They are a
great source for local, good-paying employment.
Corporations are all about making profits, not helping their neighborhoods. If they can get government (aka the taxpayers) to pay for improvements, no matter the cost compared to any small incremental gain, they naturally select for taking that route.
And again, the false premise that Allina is going to provide local, good-paying employment. They are moving existing staff to a new building; they are NOT creating new jobs. What part of this do you not understand?
Wells Fargo is hip-deep in major construction on their site. They are not about to up and move to another city just because they don't get their ramp. Anyway, I'm completely baffled as to why they care at all. The CURRENT exit ramp and continuation along 2nd Avenue leads right to their parking lots. What more do they want? A heated and air-conditioned tunnel directly from the highway to their executive underground heated parking? What is so terrifying about having to drive 2 whole blocks on an out-of-the-way city street? Is it the McDonalds restaurant? Is it seeing "those" people?
Of course they do. This is their project, after all. It's not for our benefit, it's for theirs.e) Why isn't Wells Fargo and Allina out here
telling us what they need/want?
I believe they have. Both companies have
representatives on the Project Advisory Committee. They attend regularly and always share their needs,
desires, and opinions.
Chris Johnson Fulton
** The statement about arson is known as parody, a form of humor. No other meaning was intended or implied.
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