Antone's Nightclub
Project Not Connecting
RECEIVED Fri., March 24, 2023
Dear Editor,
Voters approved the Project Connect plan because we were presented with a comprehensive system, with several new light and commuter rail lines, and several new rapid bus lines going all over the city. Most parts of town would benefit from that planned system, which is why it won approval at the ballot box.
Now Project Connect is proposing very limited plans, which do not serve all the areas of North, South, East, and Southeast Austin which the original plans would have reached. This seems like a "bait and switch,” where voters were promised a comprehensive system, and now will receive something far short of that for our tax dollars.
Republican state representatives may be enacting a law whereby Project Connect would have to come before the voters for another approval vote before moving forward with the system. If Project Connect is moving forward on one of the five very limited plans which are now being proposed, I think it's likely that the system would not pass that vote, because not enough Austin residents would see benefits to their neighborhood from the project.
I think Project Connect should stick with the original plan, but spread out the implementation over a longer timeline than was originally proposed. My understanding is that we have a permanent increase of our property taxes to pay for the system. If that is the case, after enough time has passed there will eventually be enough funds accumulated for a comprehensive system.
Voters approved the Project Connect plan because we were presented with a comprehensive system, with several new light and commuter rail lines, and several new rapid bus lines going all over the city. Most parts of town would benefit from that planned system, which is why it won approval at the ballot box.
Now Project Connect is proposing very limited plans, which do not serve all the areas of North, South, East, and Southeast Austin which the original plans would have reached. This seems like a "bait and switch,” where voters were promised a comprehensive system, and now will receive something far short of that for our tax dollars.
Republican state representatives may be enacting a law whereby Project Connect would have to come before the voters for another approval vote before moving forward with the system. If Project Connect is moving forward on one of the five very limited plans which are now being proposed, I think it's likely that the system would not pass that vote, because not enough Austin residents would see benefits to their neighborhood from the project.
I think Project Connect should stick with the original plan, but spread out the implementation over a longer timeline than was originally proposed. My understanding is that we have a permanent increase of our property taxes to pay for the system. If that is the case, after enough time has passed there will eventually be enough funds accumulated for a comprehensive system.
Paul Kevin Smith