Un-be-lievable!

The Albuquerque Journal reported Tuesday that (as we've been telling you) The Almighty Alcalde is back on track to build his choo choo. Like a child whose mind is set on a shiny new toy, Chavez is desperately trying to find an argument that will convince the public and the council that he should have the object of his desire.

The streetcar would run along Central Avenue, then by Isotopes Park on its way to the airport.

Adams said the project would help tourists get around the Rio Grande Valley without stepping into a car. They could fly in, take the streetcar to Downtown Albuquerque, then ride the Rail Runner to Santa Fe. Or someone from Santa Fe could come down for a ballgame without having to drive.

- ABQ Journal (Subscription)

Previously, Marty was arguing that the trolley would service the throngs of mythical riders along Central Avenue and provide another way to get across the river. Now, he's arguing that tourists need a $130 MILLION way to get to the ballpark!

If you're a parent these shifting arguments probably sound familiar. Next little Marty will probably argue that "everyone else is doing it." Uh, wait... never mind, he's doing that too.

Chávez said cities across the country are launching rail projects. He predicted Albuquerque will join them, even if it doesn't happen while he's in office.

- ABQ Journal (Subscription)

Fortunately, there seem to be some adults on the council who have rightfully determined that the public isn't all that hot on the idea of spending over $130 MILLION to ferry tourists to ballgames.

"Unless somebody drops $300 million on us, it's going to go to the voters some day," City Council President Isaac Benton said in an interview. But "I don't see any immediate movement on it."

- ABQ Journal (Subscription)

Councilor Sally Mayer said her Northeast Heights constituents are "angry that we're even considering it." She said that even if the federal government gave Albuquerque $50 million, that wouldn't pay for two miles of track.

"This is extraordinarily expensive, and I don't see a need for it," Mayer said.

Councilor Brad Winter said the city should focus on other transportation needs, such as the reconstruction of the Paseo del Norte and Interstate 25 interchange.

"I don't think we need another study," Winter said of the streetcar. "It ought to be dead."

- ABQ Journal (Subscription)

Councilor Winter brings up a good point - one that we have maintained for some time. Even if $300 MILLION should fall from Obama on high, it should be spent on transportation issues like the Paseo del Norte I-25 interchange that services hundreds of thousands of Albuquerque taxpayers on a daily basis not some tourist trolley for people who don't pay to keep the city afloat.

O'Malley said the route of the system shouldn't be "subject to somebody's whimsy. We're talking about millions of dollars."

- ABQ Journal (Subscription)

Actually, we're talking about HUNDREDS OF MILLIONS OF DOLLARS not only to build it but to run it in perpetuity.

Even if Councilor O'Malley favors building a $400 MILLION money pit, errr... arena, she's got the right idea here. The Valley councilor is planning on introducing legislation to force the tracks of any trolley to go directly through the council chambers.

Any unnecessary expenditure that will obligate taxpayers to hundreds of millions of dollars of debt and operation costs should at the very least be approved by the people upon whom that obligation will be laid.

The Almighty Alcalde up on his perch on the 11th floor simply doesn't get it. It's unbelievable that an elected official would so blatantly ignore the wishes of his constituents. Of course, that can be fixed this October.

Taking Another Train

"Streetcar Tax Is Repealed!"
(Exclamation Point Added)

So declares the headline in today's Yellow Pages (Albuquerque Journal - Subscription Required). Finally, the Council has listened to us... or so it seems.

What really happened last night is the council co-opted Councilor Winter's repeal and stuck it into Councilor Benton's "study." Yes, the Transportation Infrastructure Tax is repealed, but it will be back because the "study" proposed by trolley proponent Benton is really a 19th Century Streetcar marketing group co-chaired by none other than the less than neutral councilor himself.

Understand that government generally studies things that it doesn't want to do or things that it's trying to sell you. Such is the case with Councilor Benton's "task force." It's make up is heavily weighted towards supporters of mass transit in general and 19th Century Streetcars in particular.

The "task force" (a.k.a. Marketing Group) includes Council District representatives, Business and Community Development representatives, and Support Organization representatives. Council District representatives will be chosen to support the views of the councilor doing the choosing (At least 6 for and 3 against). The Businesses and Community Development Groups listed are not just directly impacted; they see themselves as beneficiaries of a $300 MILLION trolley. The Support Organizations which includes Rails, Inc. (Gee we wonder if they support a rail system?), all lean heavily and often publicly toward mass transit by rail.

Councilor Winter wisely voted against this "repeal" recognizing it for what it really is... a sham. Proving that politics makes strange bedfellows, joining Councilor Winter in opposition were Councilors Mayer, O'Malley, and Loy.

The simple truth is this... proponents of the 19th Century Streetcar including Almighty Marty himself, have not given up, they've simply taken another train.

Trash, Trolleys, and Ticket Takers: The Mayer to Clear Up "Misinformation"

Councilor Mayer (The Mayer) takes particular pleasure in telling constituents about her "Heart of the Heights" monthly meetings. They're typically a dog and pony show with some city official giving a presentation about their particular area of expertise. The Councilor herself sets the agenda and is rarely exposed to criticism.

Our Eyes just got on an email previewing The Mayer's next show. Her "agenda" contains two things that you've read extensively about here... Red Light Cameras and the Transportation Infrastructure Tax extension. In addition Leonard Garcia, Director of Solid Waste is going to tell the audience how the recent disposal of recyclables in the city's landfill is an aberration and how it will never happen again. (We know of at least one other time where the city found it more convenient to dump your contribution to saving the environment in the landfill, rather than recycling it.) The Mayer's email Missive:

Hello Everyone,

I just wanted to remind everyone about the Heart of the Heights meeting this coming Thursday, March 15 @ 7:00pm. It will be at the Sheraton Uptown as usual.

Leonard Garcia, the Director of Solid Waste, will be our guest speaker. He will be able to answer any questions you might have about recycling. It should be really interesting considering what has been in the news lately. After recycling I want to take some time to talk about the Transportation Tax and the Red Light cameras. There is a lot of misinformation out there on both those subjects.

I hope you will try to come. The next meetings are both on Thursdays - April 19th and

May 17th - mark your calendars.

Sincerely, Sally

If you can make it through the trash talk and the recyclable ramble, she's going to address the "misinformation out there," regarding the Red Light Cameras and the Transportation Infrastructure Tax extension, both of which she supports. You'll remember that The Mayer was responsible for spiking the transportation tax repeal in committee and then for leading the charge to defer it in open council Monday night. It should be entertaining to watch the councilor with the Texas twang try to twist the truth into something that lets her off the hook.

Remember, these meetings are open to the public... if you'd like to ask about all of that "misinformation."

A New Way to Spell Betrayal: Deferred

be·tray (b-tr)tr.v. be·trayed, be·tray·ing, be·trays
6. To lead astray; deceive. See Synonyms at deceive.

It started right at the beginning of the meeting... Public Input bill: Deferred, Councilor Harris' Transportation Study: Deferred, Councilor Benton's Study: Deferred, Councilor Winter's Transportation Study: Deferred. By 6:00 PM there hardly seemed to be anything left of the Council's Agenda and the only Trolley bill left was the promised repeal of the Transportation Infrastructure Tax. Surely that bill would quickly move through the Council with a minimum of debate and be approved.

WRONG! The Council once again showed its true colors by deferring the one bill that the Mayor and the Council all claim to be in favor of... repealing the Transportation Infrastructure Tax extension. This is the type of ham-fisted political maneuvering that causes us to see red.

The truth is that this Council (with the exception of Councilor Winter) wants to keep the money provided by the Transportation Infrastructure Tax in order to fund their plunge back to the 19th century. The easiest way to achieve that goal is to betray their promises by deferring the repeal until their opposition loses interest or determination. Then they'll quietly roll the 19th Century Trolley through a City Council meeting and "all aboard! Next stop... New Taxationville!"

-----UPDATE-----

We want to make sure to give credit where credit is due. Councilors Cadigan, Harris, and Winter all voted to repeal the Transportation Infrastructure Tax. (ABQ Journal - Subscription Required) But we stand by the assertion that the Council is trying to find a way to implement the 19th Century Streetcar. By the way... who does The Mayer (Councilor Mayer) think she's fooling? She tables the repeal in committee, votes to bring it out of committee two weeks ago, and then claims we've got plenty of time and votes to defer it. She voted against it, before she voted for it, before she voted against it?!

Albuquerque Gets a Laurel

The wonderful thing about the Internet is that there is sooo much information out here in cyberspace. The terrible thing about the Internet is that there is sooo much information out here in cyberspace. While surfing around we found a blog called Laurels and Lances, a blog devoted to transit. Lo and behold who do we find gets a Laurel for derailing the Trolley back in November... yep, the residents of Albuquerque. (Read about it here.)

Tricks for Trolleys

If you happened to be perusing the Metro Section of today's Journal you will note that the administration has had to admit that the Transportation Infrastructure Tax is still in place. (Something we told you about last week.) So, what happened? Wasn't the repeal tabled?

The answer is yes, it was tabled. And yes, unless Councilor Winter's bill (which he plans to be re-introduced on Wednesday) passes, the Transportation Infrastructure Tax will remain in place. According to the Journal Council President Debbie O'Malley indicated that they were "behind a rock and a hard place. ... I don't think we have any choice except to repeal it." (ABQ Journal - Subscription Required). In addition, Mayor Chavez is now pushing for a repeal stating, "it rightly ought to be repealed."

(Sidebar)
Hey Marty, we're with you on this one! But, forgive us if we're not quite buying it. First, you try with the aid of your accomplices on the council, to railroad us by ramming it through council the day before a hotly contested national election. Second, our Eyes on the Inside tell us you agreed to accept a repeal only after Councilors Heinrich and Benton let you know that the issue was too hot for them and they were pulling their support. Third, one of your biggest supporters Councilor Sally Mayer, manages to get the repeal tabled in the council's finance committee last week. What's the saying? "Fool me once, shame on you. Fool me THREE TIMES..."
(End Sidebar)

The fact is that Mayor Chavez is bound and determined to have a trolley and he'll use any trick that he can think of to make sure it will happen. It's legacy building writ large and payed for by our tax dollars. One thing that the Mayor didn't count on is organized and determined opposition to his plan.

Our Eyes tell us that SWAT (Stop Wasting Albuquerque's Taxes) sent out an action alert to a huge number of members, and civic leaders over the weekend. That email ended with the following appeal:

"We ask you to email all of the city councilors and the mayor and reiterate your objection to this project without an unbiased, comprehensive study and the direct consent of the voters. Let them know in clear terms that responsible voter-taxpayers passed the original tax, that we haven't approved a street car system, and that we demand the this issue be decided by voters at the municipal election this fall."

Apparently, their efforts generated enough heat to have Mayor Chavez in damage control mode on Monday, claiming that he sent a letter last week to the council asking for a repeal, and for the Council to feel "boxed in." If the Mayor truly wanted to have the Transportation Infrastructure Tax repealed he could have done it with a phone call to Councilor Mayer (a.k.a. The Mayer) and to Councilor (Remember I Held a $500 a Head Fundraiser To Pay Off Your Campaign Debts) Harris, and at the very least gotten it through committee.

The bottom line... Tricks for Trolleys. This isn't the first one and if history is any indication, it won't be the last one.

Trolley Still On-Track: Tax Extension Still In Place

About a month and a half ago we were told by City Councilor Martin Heinrich and Mayor Martin Chavez that they would seek to repeal the extension of the Transportation Infrastructure Tax (O-06-49) that had been passed in order to fund Albuquerque's trolley. (ABQ Journal - Subscription Required) Councilor Brad Winter introduced a bill to do just that and to force any extension of the tax to go before the voters. The problem... Councilor Winter's bill was tabled in the Finance Committee last night by Councilor Mayer a supporter of the tax extension and founding member of the Chavez 3.

It's common knowledge that the mayor has set his sites on a shiny new trolley and is determined to get one at any cost (to us). His first step was to hire a slick snake oil salesman to promote his dream in the form of Transportation Director Greg Payne. His second was to try and railroad the voters by slipping a tax extension (tax hike actually) through the City Council the day before the November election (ABQ Journal - Subscription Required). Now, despite promises of repealing the tax extension, task forces, and placing the issue before the voters, the bill that does exactly that, is tabled.

So as of right now, the passed and signed extension of the Transportation Infrastructure Tax is the law of the land with no change in sight. And the light you see at the end of the tunnel is really a trolley on the fast track... again.

Eye On Your Money - The Reasoning of a Child

"A baby is an alimentary canal with a loud voice at one end and no responsibility at the other. " - Ronald Reagan

There's no better description of what Albuquerque's city government has become. On one end we have the loud voice of the mayor and the council telling us that we need, need, need. On the other we are constantly dumped on by having to pay for the consequences of that insatiable desire.

Trolleys, arenas, even decorative pots... We are told that we need these things. We as voters often approve the shiny new toy because like an envious teenager, we are told that all the other kids our size have them. Today we have a perfect example of both ends of the governmental baby. Amazingly enough the justification for the need and the consequences are both the same.

Mayor Chavez made his State of the City address yesterday at the NAIOP luncheon. In it he reportedly referred to the recent defeat of his Desire Named Streetcar and noted that he lost by just one vote. Well the mayor is back on track pushing to get this thing out of the station. (We apologize for the overuse of the ridiculous railroad metaphors, but they're no more ridiculous than the project itself.) The justification used... other cities our size have one and if we want to be like everyone else we should have one too!

The other end of the governmental baby made its presence known earlier in the morning. According to the Albuquerque Journal we will all be paying more for parking at the airport if city officials have their way. Read the Journal report here. (Subscription Required) The move would raise an estimated $1.7 million according to airport spokesman Daniel Jiron. Surprise, surprise the justification given for increasing parking fees... other cities our size charge more than we do! Blogger Mario Burgos nails this one when he notes:

"Mr. Jiron is not saying we need additional revenue to cover costs. Instead, he is saying that he just wants to bump up the costs because other municipalities charge more. Would somebody please explain to the goofballs what it means to have a competitive advantage?"

At first glance there doesn't seem to be any real justification for the additional revenue. But once you start taking a look at both ends of the baby you'll find that the city needs all the money it can get if it is to continue to spend like teenagers set loose with their parents no limit credit card. $270 million for a train, $10 million just for the land for an arena, and budget shortfalls, all require cash. Unfortunately, we're the ones they send the bill to. $3.5 million from red light cameras, $1.7 million from increased parking rates, alarm permit fees, extensions of taxes that are set to expire, are all indications that the city is doing all it can to increase the flow of money into its coffers and out of our pockets.

There's no doubt that the city baby is active and dumping on us with no sense of responsibility whatsoever.

----- UPDATE -----

Last night we were a bit bleary eyed and were unable to find the recent journal article that announces the city's budget shortfall. In the bright light of the morning, The Eye spotted the remembered journal article about the predicted $22 million budget shortfall for 2008. The article points out that the city's spending is $125 million ahead of inflation since Mayor Chavez took office. You can read about it here. (Subscription Required). Is it really any wonder that the city is squeezing revenue from every possible source?

Streetcar May Be Back On Track

Albuquerque's streetcar may be back on track and is scheduled to arrive in the City Council station in early February. Back in November the Mayor and his confederates on the council tried and succeeded in ram rodding a 10 year extension to Albuquerque's Transportation Infrastructure Tax to help pay for Marty's folly trolley. The $270 million dollar amusement park ride would link Nob Hill to Coors & Atrisco. The move timed to be taken up and passed the day before the November election backfired and resulted in the creation of SWAT (Stop Wasting Albuquerque's Taxes), a group dedicated to keeping an eye on how the city spends our tax dollars. The extension of the Transportation Infrastructure Tax was initially passed by council and then later withdrawn when even sponsors Heinrich and Benton received so much pressure from their constituents that they had no choice. The trolley jumped the tracks.

The result of all of this hulla baloo was two bills to study the trolley. One sponsored by Councilor Harris, called for a $50,000 appropriation for an independent cost-benefit analysis. The second sponsored by Councilor Winter, called for the formulation of a task force to study the problem. Both bills appear to have serious problems. The $50,000 "independent" analysis could easily be handed to streetcar contractor HDR and we all know how that would turn out. Not to mention that believe it or not $50,000 is not near enough to perform the type of comprehensive transportation study necessary to determine what the future of transportation in Albuquerque will be and whether or not a trolley should be a part of that future. The task force approach sounds good but our Eyes tell us that its make up will include an inordinate number of declared streetcar proponents which would likely make the outcome a foregone conclusion.

Call it a lack of trust or perhaps a healthy skepticism, we believe that Mayor Chavez and most of the council would like to put this back on the fast track regardless of whether it's a good idea, would actually improve Albuquerque's transportation future, or even whether anyone would even ride it. As always we'll keep our eye on it.

Remember, we're always looking for more Eyes on the Inside. If you have a tip, don't hesitate to leave a comment or email the Eye at editor@eyeonalbuquerque.com.