Agenda - 05-02-2017 - 8-a - Minutes

Browse Search

Metadata

Thumbnails

Annotations

11 1 Mindy Taylor said the debt would be a general fund obligation of GoTriangle, and it 2 could be repaid with any revenue that is legally available to GoTriangle. She said one of the 3 benefits of the program that GoTriangle is using for its long-term issuance, the TIFIA program, 4 is that there are lots of options for refinancing. She said there is a lot of flexibility built into the 5 program. 6 Commissioner McKee said that is not the same answer that Davenport told the BOCC a 7 couple of weeks ago. 8 Commissioner Price clarified that GoTriangle incurs the debt and is responsible for 9 paying it. She asked if the counties' taxes pay GoTriangle. 10 Mindy Taylor said those revenues are issued directly to GoTriangle by the State, as the 11 sales tax monies were approved through a referendum. She said the funds are collected in the 12 counties. 13 14 15 PUBLIC COMMENT: 16 Ken Larsen provided a summary chart in a hand out, and on the screen, of 74 members 17 of the public speaking on light rail in the last months. He said of these speakers 70% were 18 against the plan, and 30% were for it; but all wanted a comprehensive transit plan for Orange 19 County. He said those who are against the light rail are concerned about the costs, and that it 20 will not solve the traffic issues. He said those who are in favor of light rail are not worried about 21 the costs, see growth as good, and want dense urban development along the route. 22 Maria DeBruyn provided a hand out, which she reviewed. She favors a comprehensive 23 transit plan that will serve all residents in, and all areas of, Orange County. She said she does 24 not see how LRT can achieve this, as it is expensive and limited in its reach. 25 John Hammond thanked the BOCC for their time, and provided a hand out. He said he 26 has lived here for several decades, and he fully supports the DO-LRT. He encouraged the 27 BOCC to be visionaries. 28 Jim Parker said he is a native North Carolinian, an Orange County resident and 29 business owner. He said his business in Hillsborough understands the transportation industry, 30 and is an integral part of improving the transportation infrastructure in the state. He said his 31 business supports the light rail. He said as a resident he has concerns that tax dollars not be 32 wasted on funding initiatives that would not be aligned with the goal of the taxes. He said he 33 would want to make sure that economic dollars are spent on direct economic growth. He said 34 he looks to the BOCC to govern those plans, and as a resident he supports light rail. 35 Sue Hunter thanked the BOCC for its work on this project, and asked it for its continued 36 support for light rail. She said she attended many light rail planning meetings 10 years ago, 37 and voted for the transit tax in 2012. She lives in Chapel Hill and commutes to work at Duke, 38 the largest employer in Durham County. She currently alternates between driving to work and 39 taking the 405 bus, depending on her schedule. She works in clinical research and is required 40 to meet regularly with faculty and students. She said working from home is not an option for 41 her, just as it is not for any of the clinicians working in the two large health systems in Orange 42 and Durham counties. 43 Sue Hunter said the data fully supports the proposed light rail path, connecting people to 44 the largest employers in these two counties, as well as three large local universities. She said 45 Wake County, Durham County, UNC and Duke all support commuter rail, and Orange County 46 is the lone outlier. She said she has supported this project for 10 years, and wants to see the 47 light rail built. She strongly encourages the BOCC to continue to work with Durham County to 48 negotiate down Orange County's portion of the light rail cost, and to develop a cost sharing 49 agreement for cost overruns. She said the majority of the voters approved the transit tax and