WidenI77 set for response to consultant report on HOT Lanes contract

Cornelius, N.C. – (July 17, 2017) – On Thursday, July 20^th Widen I-77 will be holding a town hall–style event to give their response to Mercator Advisor’s preliminary report on the I-77 toll lane project.  Widen I-77 held their last town hall meeting nearly 18 months ago, in March of 2016.

“We realize people value their time, which is why we don’t hold meetings unless there is a significant development,” said Kurt Naas, the group’s spokesman. “The consultant’s report is significant enough to warrant a meeting of this type.”

Mercator was hired by Gov. Roy Cooper’s Department of Transportation to study the impact of terminating the 50-year agreement with Cintra, changing the $655 million contract, or buying the toll lanes entirely and the right to collect toll revenue. Mercator is expected to give the DOT a range of the possible penalties for changing the contract at the Charlotte Regional Transportation Planning Organization meeting Wednesday night.

Widen I-77 has been evaluating the project and finding problems with the contract for almost five years.  It is because of the public outcry in the Lake Norman area that the study was commissioned. 

The meeting Thursday will consist of a twenty minute presentation followed by an extended question-and-answer session.  The public, elected officials, candidates and the media are invited to attend.

When:          Thursday, July 20^th 

Time:            7:00 pm

Where:        Cornelius Town Hall, 21445 Catawba Ave., Cornelius, N.C. 28031

Davidson Community Garden impacted by road work

Thursday morning, Connie and Eddie Beach sent out the below as part of the weekly message to volunteers at the Davidson Community Garden on Potts Street this week.

"Some of you have asked about the stakes that got placed in the garden recently.  To improve safety and visibility for pedestrians and vehicles, the Town of Davidson is adding sidewalks and crosswalks on Potts and Catawba.  This is requiring some street widening, which will have an impact on the perimeter of the garden.  We met this Wednesday with Doug Wright, Public Works Director for the Town.  Doug reassured us of the Town's intent to minimize the impact on the garden and to help with moving the plants and fences.  The timing of the project is still uncertain, but Doug said he would be happy to send out more information to the volunteers in the next few weeks.  As with any renovation, it will present its challenges, but we feel it will be an asset when it is finished.  It will be safer for the flower-tenders as they work outside the beds, keep the soil from washing, and also make the community garden more of a good walking destination."

aShortChronicle checked with Wright to see if we could find out more.  Regular readers may remember that the town and NCDOT had to do a bit of Three Card Monte to get the funding fully approved for this work.  See "Untangling the Bonus Allocation Riddle" from October 2016.  As part of this, the Town temporarily transferred Potts Street to the NCDOT so it could qualify for Federal matching dollars requiring the project be on a State road.  Once done the road will be transferred back to the Town.

We asked Wright if there were any NCDOT requirements that were impacting the project since this is technically a state road at this point.

Here's what he had to say:

"Potts is now a state-maintained road, to help administer the Potts-Beaty-Sloan project.  When that is done it comes back to the town, as the state is always interested in handing local roads to local municipalities.  I have not even spoken to the state about the project impacting the Community Garden.   Kimley-Horn is designing the PBS Corridor for the NCDOT; Dewberry has designed the Potts-Catawba intersection for the town.  The need for improvements exists now, and the critical dimension is the 5-ft width required for sidewalk."

So, while this project is happenings now largely as part of the larger I77 HOT Lanes Bonus Allocation funded Potts-Sloan-Beaty Connector project, this particular intersection work is apparently being handled by the town.  While aShortChronicle does not disagree this intersection needs some work, we do have to wonder if the town could not do it with less impact to what has become a real gem of Davidson.

If there is any good news out of this, it is that based on the stakes that have been placed, it does not appear the loss of space will significantly impact the garden's production.  The DCG has become the main source of fresh produce for the food pantry st the Ada Jenkins Center, so at least people in need won't be impacted by this project.

Check out the below pictures to see exactly what will need to be moved.  Anything on the street side of the orange flagged stakes will need to go which includes most of the mature flower on the site.

Exit 30 development topics on agenda for Davidson Board this Tuesday.

Davidson Commissioners meet for their last Board meeting of 2016 on Tuesday, and issues related to development will dominate the discussion.  This time the area of focus will be the Circles@30 part of town.

As the I77 Hot Lanes construction barrels forward work on the new Exit 30 bridge is set to commence.  A presentation from I77 Mobility Partners (aka Cintra) will cover the details.

"The presenter will share the project timeline, and information on lane configurations/alternative routes for the Exit 30 project, so our motorists, bicyclists, and pedestrians are informed and will remain safe during this year-long construction process."

Here are the slides.

The focus of the meeting stays at Exit 30 with a discussion of the Small Area Plan (or lack thereof) for the area which has become the focus of intense development pressure.

During the October Chat at The Egg restaurant, it was brought up that a Small Area Plan, though completed, was never approved by the Town Board.

The lack of completion of this plan prior to considering projects like the proposed Hotel next to CSD has become an issue of major concern for residents and activists in that part of town.

Here are the first slides from that presentation.

Head over to Town Hall Tuesday night for the full details on these important efforts.  Meeting stars at 630pm.

Untangling the Bonus Allocation Riddle

Riddle me this dear readers…

Some call it a sweetener.  Others call it an incentive.  It has also been called a bribe.  When necessary, it has been used as a hammer.  What is “it”?

Why, ‘it” is the I77 HOT Lanes Bonus Allocation funding of course!

As the I77 HOT Lanes project was being “sold” or “marketed” or “rammed through” the process, one of the biggest selling points by those supporting the tolls both locally and in Raleigh has been the idea that the area would be getting extra money (aka Bonus Allocation) to fund a grab bag of projects long sought after by local Town Halls.

Like any promise that sounds too good to be true, this one has turned out to be just that.

One would think something intended to induce a positive response would not come with strings attached, but nothing could be further from the truth in this case.   Instead, Bonus dollars could only be spent on certain categories of projects – many of which were priorities of NCDOT.  To make matters worse, when the list of Bonus Allocation projects was first approved by CRTPO it included projects that by all rights should have been included in the HOT lanes project itself.  Two Bonus projects were actually direct access ramps to funnel more customers onto the HOT Lanes.  Those projects alone totaled $77 million and accounted for half of the Bonus allocation money.

In fact, if it wasn’t for work that should have been part of the toll project itself being spun off as a “bonus”, it’s easy to see how the controversial project might not have happened at all.  When the HOT lanes debt was rated, it received bond ratings one level above “junk bond” status.  If $77 million in access ramps had been added to that debt load, it’s easy to see how “junk” status would have been the result.

Junk status for the debt very well may have killed the project financially.  The State throwing in $77 million more in equity certainly could have killed it politically.  The solution?  Put the money in the bonus allocation and tell the public it’s what they want.

“Bonus” dollars used to support a project the locals don’t want doesn’t sound like much of a bonus now does it?

Unfortunately, the tangled web doesn’t stop there.  No, those were just the big ticket items involved in the twisted path down the bonus allocation road.  Even some small things have required, shall we say, “flexible” thinking to get them done.  Take what’s happening in Davidson for example.

Davidson is slated for two of these bonus projects.

One involves new roundabouts bookending the new Exit 30 bridge built as part of the HOT Lanes project.   Arguably, these too should have been part of the HOT Lanes project itself just like the direct access ramps mentioned above.

The other project planned to receive funds is one long desired by Davidson Town Hall.  It’s called the Potts-Sloan-Beaty Connector.  The bonus money is relatively small amount at about $2.2 million to be used as matching funds to connect Potts Street and Sloan street in Davidson’s West Side neighborhood.  This will provide a bypass of Main Street for through traffic on NC115.  The problem with this second project?  As a town owned road it was not eligible for the matching funds.

Never fear however.  The Town and NCDOT solved that little problem by temporarily transferring control of the street to the State making it eligible.  Once the project is done, the State will transfer it back to the Town.  This plan unanimously flew through Davidson’s Town Board back in July.

By way of comparison, try moving ownership of some of your real estate holdings with the unwritten promise to transfer it back once funding is secured for a future project and see how that works out for you.  That’s effectively what was done here – all to get access to some money that was supposed to be a bonus.

Maybe untangling a “riddle” was the wrong metaphor for this column.  A game of Three Card Monte might have been better.

This post first appeared in the Herald Weekly at HuntersvilleHerald.com.

Cooper zings McCrory in first debate with I77 storyline originally detailed at aShortChronicle

Stories broken at aShortChronicle a year ago appear to have resonated with the Roy Cooper Campaign.

Last Summer, aShortChronicle broke the story regarding connections between Cintra, the NCGOP, and the McCrory Campaign in posts here and here.  These posts are both top five of all posts at aShortChronicle.

During the debate last Friday after McCrory danced and deflected a question regarding the I77 Toll project, Cooper answered directly saying the contract with Cintra should be cancelled.  Then he zinged McCrory for the very connections outlined in those posts.  Cooper says "Governor McCrory's campaign staff was hired by this company" - meaning Cintra.  If you listen closely you can hear an uncomfortable chuckle come from McCrory immediately after that line.

Check out the exchange starting at the 23:30 mark of this video from Charlotte's ABC11 affiliate.

We here at aShortChronicle wouldn't be presumptuous enough to think the Cooper campaign wouldn't have known about these connections otherwise.  Finding out this stuff is Opposition Research 101 for any big time political campaign.  However, it is an example how the blogosphere can be well ahead of the mainstream media on what might eventually be important stories.

It could be telling that the Cooper Campaign threw this punch right off the bat in the first debate.  Did that happen only because the debate was in Charlotte? Or, do they plan to make a bigger issue of this in the campaign?

Only time will tell, but remember you heard it here first.

A ghost(writer) in Davidson Town Hall!?!?

This week's edition of the Lake Norman Citizen features a piece on last week's Davidson Town Board meeting where Commissioners addressed Mayor John Woods's June 8th trip to Raleigh to meet with Senator Berger regarding the recently deceased HB954.

While The Citizen depicted the Board's comments as a harsh rebuke of the Mayor's actions, but the Board's actions could be more accurately described as a slap on the wrist.  A good bit of the article was devoted to a transcript of the Mayor's statement attempting to explain himself.

A little digging would have shown the whole exchange for the kabuki theater it actually was.

Fortunately for readers, aShortChronicle has done that digging.  A public records request was done on the subject meeting and the results - as usual - show there is more to the story.

It may come as a surprise (or not) that Mayor Woods's speech was not entirely his own words.  He engaged a ghost writer for a little fancy wordsmithery.

According to the records request, on or about June 12th Woods engaged a local firm called "A Way With Words" - run by long-time former Commissioner Margot Williams - to spice up his presentation.

Williams served as a Davidson Commissioner from 1995 to 2011.  In 2007, she along with Woods voted unanimously with the rest of the Board at the time to form Mi-Connection, so it's maybe not all that surprising to see her helping him with the current hot topic of the I77 HOT lanes.

The wording of the draft speech was so that Woods could own his "authority as mayor".  To that Woods responded "Excellent! Thank you!"  The draft included these lines.

"I voiced my own opinions, based on hundreds of interactions with citizens and law enforcement, on the need to improve traffic congestion in our region.  As mayor I am accessible in town and constantly approached by citizens about the current crisis, placing me in a unique position to gather information and concerns on a daily basis."

While Woods spared citizens those lines in his town hall speech, he did use them in at least one response to a supporter per the public record.

While Woods clings to the position throughout his comments that he was only expressing his opinion and not acting as "mayor", these missing lines from his comments at the town board meeting show that his opinion was formed precisely because of his position as mayor.  His response of "Excellent!" to the idea that the wordsmithery was done to "subtly" have him own his "authority as mayor" also belies the true situation.

It's hard to believe that a ghost writer was needed for small town politics.  It's really a sad statement on current affairs.  What's next - a TelePrompTer at Town Hall??

However, there is a lesson in it.

Remember to not always believe what you hear.  There might be a ghost in the room.

#Davidson Mayor John Woods responds regarding Raleigh meeting

Yesterday, we told you about the trip Davidson Mayor John Woods and Cornelius Mayor Chuck Travis made to Raleigh on Wednesday to speak with Senate President Pro Tem Phil Berger on the I77 HOT lanes.

From reading reports on social media and speaking with those familiar with the meeting, it was a damaging trip directed at thwarting the efforts of citizens attempting to stop the toll project

Well, now Mayor Woods has finally responded.

Here's what he has to say in in an noontime email response to aShortChronicle.

"I went to Raleigh on June 8, 2016 and met with Senators Berger, Tarte, Curtis, and several others. At no time did I speak on behalf of the Davidson Board of Commissioners or the citizens of Davidson; I voiced my own opinions on the need to improve traffic congestion in our region."

Ok.  So in other words, nothing to see here.

Mayor Woods was not speaking as "Mayor Woods" or for the Town Board when he went to see arguably the most powerful elected official in the Great State of North Carolina.  No.  He was just good ol' "John Woods" voicing his "own opinions".

How about you or I try to get a meeting with that group of officials?  Do you think we'd even get the time of day if it was just to give our "opinions".

To say this is not a credible response from Mayor Woods is being generous.  Davidson's Board should not, must not, accept it.

You can be sure citizens won't.

Ambush of Anti-Toll efforts on #NCGA Town Day - AGAIN!

This is like a bad dream...

Over three years ago aShortChronicle posted an article about an ambush of anti-toll activists by then Speaker Thom Tillis during the annual NCGA Town Day in Raleigh

That post, titled "HOT Lanes: The Empire Strikes Back", was the first post on the site to get what could be called a significant number of page views in a single day.  It hit a nerve.  It exposed the kind of behaviour individuals within government were capable of stooping to in order to pursue their dream of HOT lanes.  It was the first of many posts that would continually expose that fact.

Yesterday, that type of ambush happened again.

Late Wednesday/early Thursday word began leaking out of something hard to believe.

Mayor Woods and Mayor Travis traveled to Raleigh on Wednesday during this year's Town Day event and met with Senate President Phil Berger to strongly advocate for the HOT lanes project.

They did so behind the backs of their respective Boards. They did so against the will of their constituents.  They did so when they knew it would hurt the most.

This level of betrayal of the public trust when clearly an overwhelming majority of the public opposes the HOT lanes project is shocking.  It is hard to believe.  Even after all the underhanded and dishonest actions by the pro-tollers over many years, this one earns these elected officials a special place in the hall of fame for bad faith actors.

Benedict Arnold has nothing on these two.

In a conversation with Davidson Mayor Pro Tem, Beth Cashion, it was confirmed that none of the Davidson Board was made aware of the meeting prior to its occurrence or that Mayor Woods would attend.  In fact the plan was that Davidson was not sending anyone to Town Day this year.

Cashion went on to say that based on what is being communicated by those who were in the room, Mayor Woods was not accurately representing the position of the Board or the Town of Davidson.

In other words Mayor Woods was spreading "misinformation".

Woods loves to accuse people of spending so called misinformation.  It's his polite way of calling people liars when he disagrees with them.  See here for more on that.

Today, it looks like he was engaging in spreading misinformation himself at the expense of those he supposedly represents.

As the dust settles on this one, Davidson's Board will need to decide what to do with the Mayor.  If he misrepresented their wishes to one of the highest officials in the state, there must be consequences.

Woods has not returned multiple requests for comment from aShortChronicle and as of earlier today he supposedly was not returning calls from Commissioners either.  The town Public Information Officer also says he is unavailable.

The cone of silence has descended.

If mayor Woods or the town responds, there will be an update.

Contact your #NCGA Senators - Help stop I77 tolls!

Last week, the effort to cancel the 50 year contract and stop the I77 HOT lanes project achieved the unthinkable.  HB954 passed the NC House by a vote of 81-27.

As you can see, the vote was overwhelmingly bi-partisan with support across the state.  8 of 12 Mecklenburg County representatives supported the bill with one being absent during last Thursday's vote.

Now comes the hard part - the NC Senate.

For various reasons the Senate seems significantly less keen on the idea of cancelling the contract.  The bill is sitting in the Senate Transportation Committee, but if it stays there it will be dead by the end of the month.

aShortChronicle was started in large part to encourage citizen activism.  This moment may be the most important one since the site's inception.  Please take this moment to send a brief message to the below list of NC Senators.  Ask them to support HB954.  Mention HB954 in the subject line.  Be polite and be brief.

This is as close as this effort has ever been to stopping this project.  Help make that happen!

NC Senate
Andrew.Brock@ncleg.net,
Andy.Wells@ncleg.net,
Angela.Bryant@ncleg.net,
Ben.Clark@ncleg.net,
Bill.Cook@ncleg.net,
Bill.Rabon@ncleg.net,
David.Curtis@ncleg.net,
Brent.Jackson@ncleg.net,
Buck.Newton@ncleg.net,
Chad.Barefoot@ncleg.net,
Dan.Blue@ncleg.net,
Bob.Rucho@ncleg.net,
Don.Davis@ncleg.net,
Erica.Smith-Ingram@ncleg.net,
Fletcher.Hartsell@ncleg.net,
Floyd.McKissick@ncleg.net,
Gladys.Robinson@ncleg.net,
Harry.Brown@ncleg.net,
Harry.Brown@ncleg.net,
Jane.Smith@ncleg.net,
Jay.Chaudhuri@ncleg.net,
Jeff.Jackson@ncleg.net,
Jeff.Tarte@ncleg.net,
Jerry.Tillman@ncleg.net,
Jim.Davis@ncleg.net,
Joel.Ford@ncleg.net,
John.Alexander@ncleg.net,
Joyce.Krawiec@ncleg.net,
Joyce.Waddell@ncleg.net,
Kathy.Harrington@ncleg.net,
Louis.Pate@ncleg.net,
Michael.Lee@ncleg.net,
Mike.Woodard@ncleg.net,
Norman.Sanderson@ncleg.net,
Paul.Lowe@ncleg.net,
Phil.Berger@ncleg.net,
Ralph.Hise@ncleg.net,
Rick.Gunn@ncleg.net,
Ron.Rabin@ncleg.net,
Shirley.Randleman@ncleg.net,
Stan.Bingham@ncleg.net,
Tamara.Barringer@ncleg.net,
Terry.VanDuyn@ncleg.net,
Tom.Apodaca@ncleg.net,
Tom.McInnis@ncleg.net,
Tommy.Tucker@ncleg.net,
Trudy.Wade@ncleg.net,
Valerie.Foushee@ncleg.net,
Warren.Daniel@ncleg.net,
Wesley.Meredith@ncleg.net,

Toll contract cancellation bill passes NC House committees

On Wednesday, HB954 passed the first of several major milestones on its way to becoming law.  The bill, filed by Huntersville Rep Charles Jeter as soon as the session opened, would cancel the contract with Cintra to build the I77 HOT lanes.

After weeks since filing, the bill was finally heard in the NC House Transportation and Appropriations Committees.

In both cases the bill passed on voice votes.

Here is what Rep John Bradford had to say after the bill passed these hurdles.  The Appropriations Committee was the second committee vote of the day.

Rep Bradford's excitement is very understandable.  That's because the Committee process is where unpopular or controversial bills often go to die.

Committee rooms are where the political sausage is made.  Amendments are proposed. Voice votes are taken.  Much of the action is often not documented all that well.  If a bill is going to be stabbed in the back, this is where it happens.

Passing through that gauntlet intact is no small achievement and all those involved deserve the community's hearty appreciation.

As a frame of reference, check out the stories on HB267 back in 2013.  See here and here.  That bill would have required a vote by the General Assembly on each toll toad project.  The bill went into committee as an anti-toll effort and came out as a pro-toll bill.  The legislature never had to go on record voting for this specific project.

Three long years later, the first of those on-record floor votes at the NCGA for this project will happen Thursday when HB954 heads to the House floor.

Correction: The original post got the days off.  The bill passed committee on Wednesday, not Tuesday.  It heads to the House floor on Thursday.

I-77 dominates local elections...again!

This article first appeared in the Herald Weekly at HuntersvilleHerald.com

It seems like it was just yesterday that anti-toll activists were basking in the glory of victories at the ballot box, but that was actually four whole months ago. A lot can happen in that amount of time, and when it comes to the controversy surrounding the plan for High Occupancy Toll (HOT) Lanes on I77, a lot certainly has – not all of it good.

In the subsequent months, the WidenI77.org lawsuit was heard with the end result being the courts failing to provide an injunction, the NCDOT inspector general issued a report effectively saying “move along, there’s nothing for you to see here” when it comes to the legal troubles of the I77 contractor (Cintra) and its parent company (Ferrovial) in Spain, and construction has continued with the clearcutting of trees in the road’s median – providing a daily reminder the project is still moving forward.

In the face these setbacks, one might get the impression the last round of local elections may represent something of a high water mark for the effort to stop tolls from coming to the Lake Norman region. However, if that’s the case activists opposing the project must not have gotten the memo. They have kept up the pressure on local electeds and kept the issue at the top of the local political agenda.

In response, incumbent politicians who were previously all but silent on opposing the tolls have come out of the woodwork to champion their defeat.

NC House 92 Representative, Charles Jeter of Huntersville, announced immediately after the November election that he would be asking for a House Select Committee to be formed to look at the issue. What has happened with that committee? Well, a committee was formed, but instead of it being focused on I77, it’s a committee to look at all sorts of strategic transportation issues - from ports to mass transit to yes, toll roads. To date this committee has done nothing to directly impact the I77 project.

NC Senate 44 Senator, David Curtis of Denver, has also made an aggressive 180 when it comes to tolls. As recently as last spring, he was in the “it’s a done deal” camp – buying into NCDOT’s threat of a $100 million penalty if the state cancelled the contract. Days after the November election he told the Charlotte Observer he no longer thought that was the case and was part of a group of lawmakers asking Governor McCrory to void the contract.

Even Attorney General Roy Cooper has gotten in on the act. Cooper, whose office reviewed the contract with Cintra before it was signed, gave no strong indications of where he stood until recently. Now, at every opportunity Cooper is saying the contract never would have been signed if he was governor.

What do all of these elected officials have in common? They’re all facing stiff election challenges this cycle.

Jeter and Curtis are involved in primaries against fellow Republicans where the toll issue the driving issue in their respective races. Jeter faces a rematch of his 2012 contest against Tom Davis of Charlotte. Davis even goes as far a to mention the toll issue on his campaign signs.

Curtis also faces a rematch against a former 2012 electoral foe, Chris Carney of Mooresville. The sharpest barbs of that current campaign have revolved around the toll issue.

As for Cooper, his big day will have to wait until November when he’s the odds on favorite to face Pat McCrory. That race is expected to be very close and any inroads he makes in the solidly Republican Lake Norman are could be a real difference maker. Cooper no doubt sees the enthusiasm here locally for Mooresville’s Robert Brawley who is challenging McCrory in the Republican primary on an anti-toll message and would like nothing more than to piggyback on that in the fall if McCrory escapes the primary victorious.

Rather than seeing Jeter, Curtis and Cooper opposing the idea of tolls now, wouldn’t it have been nice to have seen them actually fighting the toll back when the public really needed their support – before the contract was signed?!?!

Something to remember when heading to the polls this coming Tuesday.

Anti-toll activism election opportunity

Anti-toll activists have posted an interesting opportunity prior to next Tuesday's primary elections.  It's a good ol' fashioned flyer handout.

If you want to help hand out flyers, head over to Signup Genius and take a neighborhood.  There are options for all 4 Lake Norman area towns.

It will be a great way to enjoy the weather, do a little civic duty, and fight the tolls!!!

The Texas con of Mayberry starts to come undone

Mayberry con man "Dan Caldwell"

Once again, the warnings of anti-toll activists seem to be coming true.

With Cintra's announcement that its SH 130 toll operation in Texas is headed to bankruptcy court, the future of the I77 project is becoming even more clear if it is allowed to go forward - as in "this can happen here."

Cintra's US operation is based in Texas.  As we've pointed out here, there are Texas connections to our toll project in Lake Norman that lead all the way to Governor McCrory.  Now, Governor Pat - in a completely transparent effort at damage control during campaign season - is dispatching NCDOT to Texas to "reassess" what can be done about NC's contract with Cintra on the very similar I77 project. .

Readers will remember that just late last year, Mayors Travis and Woods from Cornelius and Davidson also travelled to Texas to review Cintra's operations.  They came back with a glowing report of a road that is nothing like what's planned for Lake Norman - the North Tarrant Express.

Like Barney Fife, they bought the bait and switch con.

Fortunately, all of our local electeds aren't so gullible.

Mecklenburg County Commissioner Jim Puckett, playing the role of the sensible Sheriff Andy Taylor, provided the below comment to aShortChronicle.

"This action in Texas is just the latest in a series of defaults, bankruptcies and systematic failures for Cintra and their partners. While the bankruptcy in Texas is not directly linked to the I-77 project the similarities in design and the projected revenues etc. have long been offered by NCDOT as an example of why they choose to go this route.  I and the majority of my fellow commissioners have long been opposed to this plan and have repeatedly asked for first a delay in signing the contract and after the fact asking for cancellation. I hope I speak for all of us when I say that while our wisdom and subsequent request have heretofore been ignored I hope NCDOT and the governor will now follow our official request and cancel this contract.  Attorney General Cooper told me personally that he would "vigorously" fight for the citizens of NC in fighting any lawsuits that may arise from cancellation and I have no reason to doubt his resolve and skills in working with the governor and the legislature to bring this to a quick and affordable conclusion."

Like an old episode of the Andy Griffith show, let's hope this con is finally foiled by our own various versions of Sheriff Taylor before it's too late!

#NCGA - Pro-Toll Mayor Travis continues support of Pro-Toll Rep Fraley

There are lots of sayings in the rough and tumble game of running for public office.  One of them is “money is the mother’s milk of politics.”

With last Friday’s deadline for submitting campaign finance reports now in the rear view mirror, we get the first glimpse at how candidates are doing in this phase of the run-up to next month’s primaries.  That should definitely provide some interesting fodder in coming weeks for those who follow local elections closely.

With so much going on with the I77 tolls project recently, it seemed like a good idea to check up on the report for NC House 95 Representative, John Fraley.  Fraley is currently the only Lake Norman area member of the General Assembly still openly supporting the project and its controversial contract with Spanish firm Cintra’s local subsidiary -  I77 Mobility Partners.

When Fraley challenged Mooresville’s Robert Brawley for the seat back in 2014, his candidacy was widely speculated to be an effort supported by Raleigh power brokers backing the tolling project – people such as Thom Tillis, then the Speaker of the NC House.  Back then, Brawley had been involved in a very public spat with the Speaker largely over the plan to put HOT lanes on I77.

Fraley’s 2014 campaign finance reports were highlighted by huge loans to his campaign from his own personal funds totaling over $80,000.  He also raked in 10s of thousands of dollars more in contributions with much of that coming from out of state sources.  Much of that war-chest, to the tune of over $64,0000, was spent with a high powered and well connected Raleigh political consulting outfit called The Stewart Group.  Fraley’s campaign treasurer also happened to be the same firm used by most Republican US Federal candidates, a firm named CM&CO, out of Raleigh.  One of that firm’s largest clients that cycle according to OpenSecrets.com just happened to also be the Thom Tillis US Senate campaign.

With all that political fire power backing him, Fraley eked out the primary election victory against Brawley by a mere 106 votes.

However, all of that may not be the most interesting thing about Fraley's reports that cycle.  The most interesting was one donation from an address in Cornelius.  That address would match the address on Cornelius Mayor Chuck Travis’s campaign reports.  However, the name on the donation was not that of the Mayor, instead it was from his wife.  In fact, the $2000 donation was one of the largest individual donations Fraley received last go-round.

All of that just provides a little background.  What does it have to do with this cycle, you may be asking?

Here are two things.

First, Fraley has raised and spent much less this time – a mere $20,000 raised and less than $3,000 spent – leaving him with cash on hand of about $23,000.  Things could certainly change after this report, but that’s a clear indication he believes he has little to fear from his primary challenger this time.  That would be political newcomer and anti-toll candidate David W Thomson of Mooresville.

The second is that one of his biggest donors, continues to come from that same address linked to Cornelius Mayor and HOT lanes supporter, Chuck Travis.  This time though, there is really no mistaking where that money originated.  The name on the check is Travis’s, or more specifically the “Chuck Travis for Mayor” campaign committee.  Travis raised an unusual amount of money last time for someone running unopposed – over $35,000.  It was many times what he'd raised for his previous local campaigns.

Travis serves on the state's Turnpike Authority Board, so sending some of his leftover campaign cash to a fellow toll supporter to use in this cycle somehow seems sort of fitting.
That brings to mind another saying…
“Birds of a feather….”

Roy Cooper's Political Bombshell

This past weekend the good folks over at WidenI77.org made public an Investigative Demand letter sent from AG Roy Cooper's office to I77 Mobility Partners/Cintra.

It's a very interesting read.

16 different demands for documents are made covering 3 main categoies.

• Information about I77 Mobility Partners' public communications plan.  For a project that was supposedly a "done deal" the firm has been sending out a lot of ads and press releases still "selling" the plan.
• Cintra's other failed projects in North America.  This would seem to be largely in reference to the issues brought up by Cornelius resident Diane Gilroy in a letter to Governor McCrory. Read the previous coverage at aShortChronicle on Gilroy's research here and here.
• Financial related questions about the project.  The AG's office wants to know more about how much money Cintra expects from the state as well as communications to the ratings agencies.  Read the previous coverage at aShortChronicle on the HOT lanes debt here.

All of these things have been questions/subjects aShortChronicle has been covering for months, so it's nice to see the AG's office finally catching up.

However, we want to point out something specific related to the first bullet listed above.  The one related to the ads.  The fifth demand is specific to lobbying and ad placement.

"5. All communications between You and Ross Communications, Mercury LLC, and any other firm engaged to advertise, lobby, or communicate to the public or third parties regarding the I-77 Express Lanes project."

Regular readers of aShortChronicle will recognize the name Mercury LLC.  The firm and its "man in NC", Russell Peck, have been covered here, here, and here over the past several months.

If Peck's name is ringing a bell more recently, that may be because he's reprising his role from 2012 as Governor Pat McCrory's campaign manager.

Having your campaign manager's firm involved in an official investigation conducted by your opponent can not be a good thing!

If/when that political bombshell gets dropped on the campaign trail by the mainstream media, it will be fun to watch.

Time to put our local mayors on a short leash?

Recently, several events in the swirl of activity around the I77 HOT lanes project have shaken the confidence of Lake Norman residents.
We’ve seen the Charlotte City Council throw its regional weight around by pushing the project forward in the face of overwhelming opposition from the residents most impacted by it.  We’ve seen the mayor of Cornelius reprimanded by a unanimous vote of his board for supporting the project in ways that misrepresent the Board’s official opposition to it.  We’ve seen the governor pass the buck and stand by watching as a political and economic disaster unfolds.

In the face of all that voters are left asking “what can we do?”

In response, we've heard the common refrain of “throw the bums out” at the next election.  We've heard people ask about recall votes to remove certain elected officials from office.  We’ve even heard the suggestion of creating a new Lake Norman County.

Unfortunately, none of those things are easy to do.

Regular municipal elections are only held every two years - leaving plenty of time to make mischief between election cycles.  Recall elections are not allowed by law in North Carolina.  Forming a new county would require approval from the state – something not likely to come.

And in the end, these solutions might not address what has been one the biggest problems locally – the unresponsiveness of our mayors.

The office of the mayor serves as the face of each town.  They have a lot of power and authority both inside and outside of town hall.  The mayor’ offices also often serve as the initial stops where bad ideas get support.  The HOT lanes project has been a prime example of this.

On many occasions over the last few years, particularly as public opposition to the project has ramped up, our towns’ mayors have rushed to its rescue.  The mayors have served as something of a “HOT lanes bucket brigade” for NCDOT working to put out fires during the entire process
To date, only former Huntersville mayor Jill Swain has paid any sort of political price.  Mayors Travis, Woods, and Atkins are all still securely in place even though they have supported the project in various ways with the most recent example being Mooresville Mayor Atkins casting a tie breaking vote in its favor just this past week.

Fortunately, solving the problem with our mayors is something within the control of the town boards and/or the citizens.

Many people do not know this, but the town's have the authority to change various aspects of their municipal government charters.  They can not conduct a recall election for elected officials, but they can change how officials are elected  – including how the mayor is chosen.

One option the town's have is to not choose the mayor by direct election, but to instead have the office of mayor selected from the group of commissioners with the “mayor” serving at the pleasure of the board.

Basically, after each election the town commissioners would select which one of them would serve as mayor.  The mayor would “serve at the pleasure of the board”.  If the new mayor got out of line with the Board (like what has recently happened in Cornelius), the commissioners could simply demote the person back to a commissioner and replace the mayor with a different member of the board.
This new process is initiated through what is called a charter amendment.  The type of amendment mentioned here could be initiated by any of our town boards.  It can also be initiated by a citizen petition.

This may sound like an extreme example, but these type of charter amendments aren't unheard of even here locally.  In 2010/2011, Davidson considered a charter amendment to go to 4 year elected terms.  In 2012 Cornelius considered moving their elections from even odd years to even years.  Neither change occurred, but they were considered.

People are upset and looking for practical ways to impact change in our local government.

Considering a change that puts our mayors on a short leash is one way to do that.

This post first appeared in this week's Herald Weekly at huntersvilleherald.com

Media Watch: Excuse me ma'am, but your bias is showing.

In the long running back and forth between anti-toll activists and the good folks at the Lake Norman Citizen, there have been a lot of ups and downs.

Usually, it involves something like an event covered differently by the Citizen, activists pointing that out, and then the good folks over at the Citizen feigning indignation and claiming to be the only news outlet in the area that is covering this story accurately.

This has been going on since this story was posted back in January 2013 at aShortChronicle.

Recently, things have gotten a bit more personal and more obvious however.

Take this example.  Earlier this month, one prominent anti-toll activist posted on their Facebook page a comment thanking the speakers at the recent Charlotte City Council meeting for their efforts.  These speakers were called "heroes".

Somewhat oddly, staff writer Lori Helms from the Lake Norman Citizen chimed in saying that was an inappropriate use of the word "hero".  It seemed like an odd comment, but then again everyone is entitled to their opinion.

Now, to be very clear, Ms Helms did not say she was speaking on behalf of the Citizen or anything like that when she joined the conversation.  However, someone else on the thread subsequently brought up what they thought was Ms Helms's biased reporting and Ms Helms said this in response.

That would seem to be pretty clear wouldn't it?  No bias, EVER, in news stories and commentary stories are just COMMENTARY.

Right.  Ok.  Got it.

Now, fast forward to the very next week which just also happened to be the very next issue of the Citizen.

Check out this news story on the recent LKN Chamber annual awards gala and this commentary piece on the idea of a new Lake Norman county.

In the rundown of awards in the "news" piece, two awards were glaringly missing.  Both WidenI77.org and the I77 Business Plan organizations received Distinguished Service awards from the LKN Chamber for their efforts to stop the HOT lanes project.  The entire list of awards is on the LKN Chamber website.  Moreover, the Lake Norman Citizen was the sponsor of the event!  It would seem pretty likely they had access to the entire list.

A more glaring and literal example of bias by omission in a news story would be hard to find.

Now go read the commentary piece.

The editor of the Citizen rakes Charlotte Observer columnist, Mark Washburn, over the coals for suggesting the the LKN area consider pushing for it to become its own county.  Again, this is just the writer's opinion (based on a level of research) and everyone is entitled to their own opinion.

However, the aggressiveness of the editor's opinion and the high degree of snark with which it was delivered brings to mind the saying "tell us what your really think."

After reading that, I think it is safe to say the public knows.

When an editor allows a "news" piece into a publication with such a glaring ommission on a story where the ommission involves groups involved in the largest ongoing story in the area, and in that same edition the editor blasts away in a commentary piece involving that same issue, it's pretty easy to see why some in the area think the publication is "in the tank" on that issue.

For the record, this post - as are all posts at aShortChronicle - is just a piece of COMMENTARY. Please don't confuse it with NEWS.

Mooresville Mayor repeating history with vote on HOT lanes project?

The saying "if we don't learn from history we are doomed to repeat it" could not be more true after last night's vote in Mooresville to approve the I77 HOT lanes project.

In a 3-3 tie vote, broken by Mooresville Mayor Miles Atkins in favor of going forward with the terribly flawed Cintra contact, Mooresville voted on Tuesday to support the CRTPO long-range transportation plan that includes the horribly unpopular toll project.  The critical CRTPO vote came Wednesday night where where it also passed.

The situation in Mooresville on Tuesday was eerily similar to the 2007 vote where former Mooresville Mayor Bill Thunberg cast a tie breaking vote that effectively created MI-Connection - the money losing cable company owned by Mooresville and Davidson.  That vote effectively ended Thunberg's elected career when he narrowly lost reelection in 2009 once it started to become apparent MI-Connection was going to be a financial disaster.

Here is Mayor Atkins's post on his Facebook page to explain his tie breaking vote.  What do you think voters will say next time he has to face them?

Charlotte's snub of suburbs over tolls threatens to boil over into other issues

Well, that didn't take long...

After Monday's vote where Charlotte City Council decided to snub North Mecklenburg and participate in the cramming of the HOT lanes down the throats of LKN voters, talk is already turning to "payback".

One area that had been previously mentioned was a possible second attempt at repealing the county's transit tax.  Theoretically, a repeal of the tax would leave the transit chieftains at CATS (a department of the City) without a mechanism to pay for building more trains.  The City would be on the hook for paying for mass transit all by itself without help from the burbs.

North Meck and the other suburbs were promised rail transit when the 2030 plan was originally put together and then again during the 2007 repeal effort.  Those promises have turned out to be lies, and the thinking goes that a second attempt may have more success.

Having been heavily involved in the failed 2007 effort, I'd have to say this is going to be a heavy lift. However, if done right and with more finesse, it's possible.

I have been a faithful bus rider since before the last repeal effort.  The reason repeal is a good idea is because the transit plan is fundamentally dishonest (just like the HOT plan), and was doomed to fail from the start because of its focus on rail rather than buses.

A repeal effort that forced the City away from its self serving rail plans towards buses could be pulled off.

The Observer at least seems concerned about the possibility, posting this editorial on Wednesday.

A second area where suburban rebellion might be seen is more unexpected.  That's with CMS's upcoming student reassignment plans.  While not directly related, Charlotte's actions Monday night threatens to pour gasoline on what was already a smoldering fire.

Like almost all urban areas, Charlotte struggles with its schools.  CMS has large numbers of schools with high concentrations of poverty - mostly within the city limits.  One way to "fix" that problem is to shift students around by manipulating student assignment in various ways - usually at the expense of the suburbs.

This tension comes to the surface every time CMS has to look at its boundaries about every 6 years.

Check out this article and its comments from Thursday's Charlotte Observer.  It is clear that the HOT lanes decision will be boiling over into this high-stakes process as well.

With many more people now understanding that Charlotte only gives lip service to the idea of regionalism, push back against its bullying could and should be more aggressive.

Charlotte's divisive leadership may be about to reap what it has sown.

Big week for I77 tolls issue...buckle up!

This coming week will be big - maybe the biggest in the 3-year saga of the anti-toll movement fighting the proposed I77 HOT lanes.

In just 1 1/2 days this past week, activists raised nearly $10,000 from over 150 donors to place an ad in the Sunday Observer.  The ad intends to educate the Charlotte region on the toll issue.

"This fund is to pay for an ad in the Charlotte Observer to inform the citizens of Charlotte about the specifics of the toll road controversy as many are completely unaware. Private citizens are supporting their own effort to inform the general public as many elected officials, along with the NCDOT are not forthcoming with the details that affect the lives and communities in this region."

This type of ad should combat the pro-toll propaganda being put out by NCDOT/Cintra and broaden the reach of the anti-toll movement .

The fundraising campaign was led by activist Michelle Ferlauto of Cornelius.  Due to deadline issues, as of this writing it is unclear whether or not it will be this Sunday (Jan-3) or next.  Regardless of when this hits the presses, it is highly impressive that an impromptu effort like this could be so successful during the holiday season.

On Facebook, Kurt Naas with WidenI77.org had this to say....

"Thank you Michelle Ferlauto for all you have done on this!  Even though the timing didn't work out perfectly, this is just an incredible show of support by our community."

And that support will be needed this coming week.

On Monday, Jan-4, Charlotte officials will be discussing the upcoming vote on the project at CRTPO planned for later this month on Jan-20.  With Charlotte carrying 46% of the vote on that body, its position is critical.

Bookending this coming work week will be the long-awaited leagal hearing in the WidenI77.org effort to stop the project.

The group is encouraging people to head down to the Mecklenburg County Courthouse FrIday morning as a show of support.  The group is looking to pack the 100 seats available.  Here are the details.

January 8, 2016 at 10:00 a.m. 

Mecklenburg County Courthouse
Courtroom 6170

    832 East Fourth Street

    Charlotte, North Carolina 28202

Carpools are also being formed at all Lane Norman exits if anyone needs a ride.

Buckle up!  This week could be a wild ride.