"It's a huge response, and that's no surprise, given what we've proposed to do," PAT spokesman Bob Grove said. "We're encouraging public feedback and want as many people as possible to comment." (Joe Grata, P-G)But shaking down the state for more support is still the furthest thing from our minds.
Well, go get 'em. Pre-register to speak at a public hearing by calling 412-566-5437, or submit written testimony hyah.
A completely separate Grata/P-G offering points up the problems of backing out of the Wabash Tunnel or the North Shore Connector in order to save money and maintain the status quo. We would still owe the federal government for money already spent, or for depreciation. We'd still owe the contractors for planning and design.
Onorato frequently cites the federal money we "receive" for these projects as a strong reason to carry them forward. The Comet wonders, in the absense of local demand for these improvements, how Pittsburgh came to be blessed with such largese. Did it begin as those notorious "earmarks"? Did our congressional pugilists Arlen Specter, Rick Santorum, or Melissa Joan Hart wrest these on our behalf? Was it the contractors themselves that got the ball rolling?
The origin of the Wabash Tunnel and who is to blame starts more than 100 years ago. It used to be a rail road tunnel. It was built -- and then that rail line went out of business.
ReplyDeleteThen it was to be a tunnel that flowed right into a bridge, much like Liberty tunnel/bridge and Ft. Pitt tunnel/bridge. But the problem was landing the road on the downtown side.
And, there wasn't a demand nor the money too. But demand and available funds are the fartherest from their minds in terms of doing a deal, or not.
When in doubt as to who to blame, pick Tom Murphy, former mayor. He was in charge for more than 12 years. A dozen in the Mayor's office. Plus before that he was in Harrisburg as a state rep. He is the root of much of our trouble.
If that doesn't work for you or the situation -- blame the Democrats. The D party has held every office in the city for more than 70 years. Can't go wrong there. And, Tom Murphy was the top D in the city for 12 years.
I should note that I named three GOP pols simply because, in my earmark hypothesis, it would have been GOP pols with almost all the federal earmarkmaking authority in the past six years. And their campaigns always had heavy doses of "We fight for you!"
ReplyDelete"When in doubt on who to blame, pick Tom Murphy." Priceless!