How to Make Friends the Political Way – Part II
2011-10-10 - by
The other borrowing the Raleigh City Council has put on the ballot is a Transportation Bond. Which sounds like the Council wants to borrow money to repair potholes and build new streets. Except the newspaper reported three-fourths of the money isn’t for roads.
Almost everyone it seems is for this bond too. And if anything its supporters are more excited than the advocates of the Council’s home loan financing bonds.
The Transportation Bond, its supporters say, is going to make Raleigh the ‘Number One Best City in America’ by paying for miles of greenways and bike paths (which are essential to Raleigh being a ‘Bike Friendly Community’ which is essential to Raleigh attracting a brilliant “creative class of young professionals”).
The bond supporters also say the plan will pay for more sidewalks which are essential parts of any first class city’s transportation system – just like newer benches and shelters at bus stops.
Best of all, they say, as soon as the bond passes the City Council can take $3 million of its newly borrowed money and ‘leverage’ it to get $20 million in state and federal matching funds to renovate an old warehouse downtown into a sparkling new train station for $23 million.
This is a great country: The state’s broke, Washington’s broke, Raleigh’s a billion dollars in debt and the City Council can borrow $3 million and get its hands on $20 million in state and federal money to build a train station.
Of course, there’s a bit of politics at work here too: Spending money on greenways and bike paths is another sure way to make friends who will hopefully remember you on Election Day – and renovating a warehouse downtown is almost sure to be helpful when it comes to raising campaign contributions from downtown developers.
How to Make Friends the Political Way – Part II
2011-10-10/
The other borrowing the Raleigh City Council has put on the ballot is a Transportation Bond. Which sounds like the Council wants to borrow money to repair potholes and build new streets. Except the newspaper reported three-fourths of the money isn’t for roads.
Almost everyone it seems is for this bond too. And if anything its supporters are more excited than the advocates of the Council’s home loan financing bonds.
The Transportation Bond, its supporters say, is going to make Raleigh the ‘Number One Best City in America’ by paying for miles of greenways and bike paths (which are essential to Raleigh being a ‘Bike Friendly Community’ which is essential to Raleigh attracting a brilliant “creative class of young professionals”).
The bond supporters also say the plan will pay for more sidewalks which are essential parts of any first class city’s transportation system – just like newer benches and shelters at bus stops.
Best of all, they say, as soon as the bond passes the City Council can take $3 million of its newly borrowed money and ‘leverage’ it to get $20 million in state and federal matching funds to renovate an old warehouse downtown into a sparkling new train station for $23 million.
This is a great country: The state’s broke, Washington’s broke, Raleigh’s a billion dollars in debt and the City Council can borrow $3 million and get its hands on $20 million in state and federal money to build a train station.
Of course, there’s a bit of politics at work here too: Spending money on greenways and bike paths is another sure way to make friends who will hopefully remember you on Election Day – and renovating a warehouse downtown is almost sure to be helpful when it comes to raising campaign contributions from downtown developers.