 |
| Barking up a misguided "megaproject" tree. |
Harold Hamilton, the Anoka County Watchdog, is someone I agree with often about fiscal conservatism - in terms of spending lots of public money foolishly being a very bad practice.
Other times, he's on the other end of the spectrum from what I'd say or do. But in an email I challenged Harold over only barking up some trees, other times being more lapdog than watchdog.
However, here is an instance where I admit, publicly, he's barking up the proper tree, and doing it convincingly.
[...] While boosting ridership on Erhart's Folly is one purpose of the proposed Ramsey station, another rationale relates to yet another failed government megaproject, this one being the Ramsey Town Center, AKA the "COR" (Center of Ramsey).
Readers will recall that this attempt by government to manufacture a utopian downtown in Ramsey where none existed before has been a hot mess.
As city fathers attempt to salvage the project, they have increasingly hung their hopes on a train station, giving this Potemkin downtown the label of a "transit-oriented" development.
Now it may be true that some developers have an interest in the COR only if a train station is first built.
On the other hand, some of the economic development reasons ring a bit hallow.[sic]
For example, city officials claim that a train station could be a boost to big box retailers. It doesn't make a whole lot of sense to the Watchdog that folks coming to a Home Depot or a Super Target would find the train convenient.
Picking up a few hundred shingles to redo the roof? Buying a week's worth of groceries? Just carry it on the train!
Another example is the new Veterans' Administration clinic. Yes, some vets need help getting to and from their appointments.
The cost-effective solution is to shuttle them from an existing station or to move them by vehicle from their homes.
In any case, spending $20 million on a train platform in order to pursue salvation for the moribund COR project doesn't seem real cost effective.
[...] Moreover, look for GOP leaders in 2012 to take a very close look at every bonding project before whipping out the state's credit card.
It's time for the backers of this station to step away from the platform. While salvaging two misguided "megaprojects" has become the duty of those elected officials left to clean up the mess of the previous regimes, this course of action just doesn't look viable.
But Darren says ... Uh, huh. Darren says a lot. Verbose, you might say. Talk and productivity are different things.
Actually, Harold misses one key point of emphasis. The train only runs as a commuter train, downtown in the morning (with one reverse run to bring laborers from downtown to the 'burbs), and to the 'burbs in the evening (again, with one reverse run). That makes the big-box shopping, and the VA attendee argument that much more ridiculous. Beyond the due riducle the Watchdog has barked.
Read his entire email on the "wisdom" of dumping tons more of cash into the failed Clown Center and the imagined Crystal Palace train stop. He has substantially more to his argument than I have quoted.
The names of the parade of town savants who have put their imprimatur upon the effort could be cataloged and presented, but that would only detract from the wisdom the business world understands: "Cut your losses and don't make further spending decisions based upon sunk capital. If you lose something on each item, don't expect to make it up with volume."
Three of the Ramsey city council members own a business. You do not see them spending thier own money on foolish business decisions, do you? What does that suggest in terms of responsibility toward tax dollars? Should it be any different? Would either of the three, Ramsey, Wise, or McGlone hire Landform out of their own pocket? I don't know what they'd say in answer. So far, neither of the three has given Landform any personal business consulting contract. That's true.
In fairness, the Watchdog did not specifically mention spending on Landform. In my view, he should have. I do not think that in general he is a big fan of spending tax money on consultants. Has any reader heard him barking, ever, on there being too few consultants hired by local government?