County not on Board with Train Financing
September 15, 2008
The chairman of the Livingston County Board of Commissioners
says the county will neither fund a proposed commuter rail line nor
be a part of any taxing authority.
Bill Rogers said county officials have told coalition members
with the Washtenaw Livingston Line — WALLY, for short — that the
board cannot afford to finance the project that aims to create a
Howell-to-Ann Arbor rail link. Officials have estimated annual
funding from each county ranging from $75,000-$150,000.
"Not that we're not in favor of mass transit or participating,
but I just don't think it's economically feasible today," said
Rogers, who anticipates the county still being involved in WALLY
talks. "We're just not going to have the cash."
Meanwhile, supporters of the line have said they'll press ahead
with the plan, which is aimed to relieve pressure on the U.S. 23
traffic artery that links Livingston and Washtenaw counties.
Anticipated startup costs for the proposed 27-mile route came in
at $32.4 million in a recent feasibility study. Meanwhile, Rogers
and other commissioners were busy trimming 1.7 percent from all
departments financed by general fund money and are trying to deal
with additional anticipated cuts in coming years.
Rogers said he would prefer not to lay off people in order to
finance WALLY and that he's not certain if the community would go
for a tax-levying authority. The county has not taken any formal
action on funding WALLY further.
Rogers' Washtenaw County counterpart, Jeff Irwin, said
establishing the line is still feasible without Livingston County's
help.
"It's going to make it a little bit more complicated," Irwin
said. "It would have been much cleaner to go with the two counties,
but there are still always ways of making it happen."
Pam McConeghy, president and CEO of the Greater Brighton Area
Chamber of Commerce, said she understands county commissioners'
concerns and is still optimistic about the project.
"The budgets are very tight ...so they really have to analyze
where every dollar goes," McConeghy said of the commissioners.
"That's understandable — they're cautious."
Irwin said coalition members must now look into how to plug the
hole, which could mean more funding from private or public
sources.
Meanwhile, Terri Blackmore, director of the Washtenaw Area
Transportation Study, said coalition members are discussing how to
go about forming an authority for the project. Blackmore said there
were no concrete numbers for any possible millages an authority
would levy.
This comes on the heels of a meeting this month with U.S. Rep.
John Dingell, D-Dearborn, where the lawmaker told WALLY leaders
that a financing structure was needed in order to secure federal
money.
Blackmore said an authority in the immediate future could be
limited to Washtenaw County or the Ann Arbor Transportation
Authority could expand to include WALLY. Livingston County
participants could join later.
"It doesn't take everybody wanting to wait for everybody to act
on it," Blackmore said. "It has to be an official action. It's just
quicker."
Ann Arbor Area Chamber of Commerce President and CEO Jesse
Bernstein hopes an authority will be up and running by the end of
the year.
Bernstein said the project is too important to abandon now.
"Our feeling is we need that link to both help Livingston County
and Ann Arbor because we want to have your folks coming here for
jobs and shopping and entertainment, and we want to go up to Howell
for the Melon Festival," Bernstein said. "It's a two-way
street."
Howell City Manager Shea Charles said his community is still on
board, too.
"The city still is pursuing the project," Charles said. "We see
the viability and importance of it. The county's position was
articulated to us recently, and we'll continue to work on it.
Hopefully, the county will be able to join us at a future
date."
Contact Daily Press & Argus reporter Kristofer Karol at
517.552.2835 or at
kkarol@gannett.com.
