Orange County Commissioners hears update on light rail funding gap -

The Orange County Board of Commissioners met Tuesday in Hillsborough to receive an update about the GoTriange Durham-Orange light rail transportation project.

Join us in following the Orange County Board of Commissioners meeting tonight, starting now!
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Though Jeff Mann, general manager of the project, said the rail system would serve several employers, reduce air pollution, and create jobs, several members of the public stated the light rail will not benefit all residents equally. Staff writer Doug Dubrowski live-tweeted the meeting.

Join us in following the Orange County Board of Commissioners meeting tonight, starting now!
— DTH City (@DTHCity) March 8, 2017

Public comments: one resident is voicing displeasure that his home value rose $100,000 - "you've become a band of mafia criminals"
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Commissioner Rich said that she wants to talk to Orange County schools about turning a bus into an internet hot-spot for rural schools
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Orange County Alcohol Beverage Control Board is presenting an update on their work - they've recently implemented a living wage
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The ABC Board is rooting for the Tar Heels to go far in March Madness, because that helps sales!
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BOCC has now moved to recognizing employees and organizations that served during Hurricane Matthew and the Western North Carolina Wildfires
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The BOCC next turns to a presentation on the GoTriangle Durham-Orange light rail transportation project
— DTH City (@DTHCity) March 8, 2017

Jeff Mann, General Manager of the GoTriangle project: the rail system would serve several employers, reduce air pollution, and create jobs
— DTH City (@DTHCity) March 8, 2017

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Mann: GoTriangle is facing a funding gap because of a 10% cap on light rail spending in the NC budget - appealing to the FTA for funds
— DTH City (@DTHCity) March 8, 2017

Mann: activity projected to be associated with the GoTriangle project is estimated to generate $175 million in total, new tax revenue
— DTH City (@DTHCity) March 8, 2017

Public comments now have begun on the GoTriangle presentation - there's a lot of speakers here tonight, eager to express their thoughts
— DTH City (@DTHCity) March 8, 2017

First public speaker: the GoTriangle project won't be active until 2028, and senior citizens won't benefit from their contributions
— DTH City (@DTHCity) March 8, 2017

Public comments: the GoTriangle project won't reach areas projected to see population growth, despite a large financial cost to these people
— DTH City (@DTHCity) March 8, 2017

Public comments: when finished, GoTriangle will serve only 3% of the Durham/OC population, at a $2.5b cost - debt payments until 2062
— DTH City (@DTHCity) March 8, 2017

Public comments: cost overruns, were they to occur, would be funded entirely by Durham and OC governments
— DTH City (@DTHCity) March 8, 2017

Public comments: to fund the project, GoTriangle hopes to create sales increases of 4% per year, and 45 years of consistent growth
— DTH City (@DTHCity) March 8, 2017

Public comments: total US bus and light rail usgae 20 years ago was around 6 billion riders per year - today, it's about the same
— DTH City (@DTHCity) March 8, 2017

Public comments: at the Gateway, Hamilton Rd, and Friday Center Drive stops, riders would have to cross busy roads to reach GoTriangle stops
— DTH City (@DTHCity) March 8, 2017

Public comments: NAACP requesting more bus service rather than light rail expansion, which takes longer at a higher cost
— DTH City (@DTHCity) March 8, 2017

Public comments: concerns about rising property values/rents as a result of GoTriangle, leading to displacement
— DTH City (@DTHCity) March 8, 2017

Public comments: train crossings would block car traffic for 50 seconds per crossing, 150 times per day, on 40 different streets
— DTH City (@DTHCity) March 8, 2017

Public comments: a speaker expresses concern that federal funding may not come
— DTH City (@DTHCity) March 8, 2017

Public comments: in helping the Research Triangle compete with the likes of Silicon Valley, GoTriangle could create 600,000+ jobs
— DTH City (@DTHCity) March 8, 2017

Public comments: GoTriangle serves a small portion of the population who would need it - "only 3 miles of Orange County track"
— DTH City (@DTHCity) March 8, 2017

Public comments: speakers continue to reiterate a shared concern of cost overruns and revenue/funding shortfalls
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Public comments: Southern Environmental Law Center supports light rail instead of cars to manage the transport demands of population growth
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Public comments: if cost overruns on GoTriangle occur, transportation will compete with education and other public services for OC funding
— DTH City (@DTHCity) March 8, 2017

Public comments: thousands of hours of bus service has been added in OC, and there strong public support for light rail
— DTH City (@DTHCity) March 8, 2017

Public comments: Victor Glover (leads Fathers on the Move, a local organization) supports GoTriangle to provide affordable transit and jobs
— DTH City (@DTHCity) March 8, 2017

Public comments: shared requests among numerous speakers for a public hearing to make analysis of the GoTriangle project transparent
— DTH City (@DTHCity) March 8, 2017

One speaker, supporting GoTriangle, says that buses can be more costly to maintain than light rail, and also struggle during rush hour
— DTH City (@DTHCity) March 8, 2017

Public comments: speaker argues against GoTriangle, saying the bus system is inadequate, not running enough at the right times
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Public comments ended on this note: "This project [GoTriangle] is a sexy-fixed line bus...Make the buses more sexy!"
— DTH City (@DTHCity) March 8, 2017

Commissioner Barry Jacobs supports a public hearing and is withholding judgement on GoTriangle until several questions are answered
— DTH City (@DTHCity) March 8, 2017

Commissioner McKee expresses displeasure that BOCC wasn't informed of the severity of FTA concerns with GoTriangle
— DTH City (@DTHCity) March 8, 2017

GoTriangle representatives explain that they had received FTA concerns hours before meeting with BOCC; inadequate to fully understand them
— DTH City (@DTHCity) March 8, 2017

Danny Rogers, Project Director of GoTriangle, states that the $2.5b cost does not include the interest accrued on debt after 2030
— DTH City (@DTHCity) March 8, 2017

Commissioner McKee responds to Rogers by saying that the total cost of GoTriangle will thus exceed $3 billion
— DTH City (@DTHCity) March 8, 2017

Commissioner McKee points out that cost overruns, if they occur, would be picked up entirely by local sources - Orange and Durham Counties
— DTH City (@DTHCity) March 8, 2017

When asked by Commissioner McKee, BOCC attorney was unsure what would occur if money for cost overruns couldn't be raised through sales tax
— DTH City (@DTHCity) March 8, 2017

BOCC just moved public hearings before the regular agenda into the future
— DTH City (@DTHCity) March 8, 2017

Motion passed to prohibit hunting while impaired, 7-0
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