Summertime Local Business weighed in
and Collected Several Hundred
Signatures in a few weeks!
The leasing of Alligator Alley gets closer
Tyisha Fernandez FOX 4 8-25-08
The state wants to lease Alligator Alley (a 78 mile stretch of I-75) out to make some money. Some don't like the idea because it will cost you more money, tolls could go way up. Both sides met in Naples on Monday afternoon.
According to FDOT officials, gas prices are the reason why they're even considering leasing the alley. FDOT makes their money off gas taxes, and since gas sales are down, FDOT needs more money.
"We are not getting as much revenue towards transportation as we have in the past, the needs are continuing to grow," said FDOT Secretary Stan Cann.
FDOT chose 6 private companies that will compete against each other to lease the alley. They have to submit proposals and basically tell FDOT how many millions of dollars they're willing to give the state up front. Some people hate the idea.
"The governor is bringing this project in under the radar, he doesn't want public input, they're slamming this through as fast as they can," said Citizens Transportation Coalition Leader Gina Downs.
If Alligator Alley gets leased out, there's no question, you're going to pay more money at the tolls. How much more money? Nobody knows right now because its going to be totally up to the company that gets the lease.
Elected officials were the only ones allowed to speak at the meeting. Collier County Commissioner Frank Halas doesn't understand why the state is even talking about this.
"My concern is, why are we selling the assets of The United States to foreign companies?" said Commissioner Halas.
State Senator Burt Saunders is against it too, "I leave you with the question of not whether or not these firms can do this, but why do this at all, and I would urge the governor to re-think this."
The 6 companies have until December to submit proposals. Meantime, The Citizens Transportation Coaltion is considering filing a law suit.
CTC Participates in July 4th, 2008 Parade
Downtown Naples
Thousands Cheer CTC as they kick off No Lease 'Message' Month
'Messages' opposing the sale of the Alley are being faxed to Gov Crist daily
To date, 4000+ 'messages' have been faxed
See more parade pictures, compliments of RL Caron: http://naplesimagingcenter.com/ctc4thparade/ ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Read about more Public Involvement in NDN: Federal transportation authorities get an earful from Collier residents
Naples Daily News article By I.M. STACKEL (Contact) 9:39 p.m., Thursday, June 12, 2008
June 6, 2008 Lt Gov Kottkamp spoke at
Republican Men's Club Breakfast
Photos compliments of Naples Imaging
CTC Plans Strategy With Community Leaders
June 9, 2008
Gary Eidson, member of the Citizens Transportation Coalition, addresses a gathering of some 20 community leaders on Monday evening .
Among those attending were: District 2 County Commissioner Frank Halas, Phil Tindall of the Collier County Metropolitan Planning Organization, Heidi Kulpa of the Coastal Advisory Committee, Jim Burke, a member of the Pelican Bay Services Division, Gina Downs of the Collier County Productivity Committee, Donna Reed Caron of the Collier County Planning Commission, and Joe Hessling, representing the North Naples Fire Department.
The meeting was called to discuss ongoing efforts to engage national media attention to Governor Crist’s plan to lease Alligator Alley.
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**(CTC Note: The following is a copy of a very welcome letter sent on behalf of East Naples Civic Associaiton. This is exactly the kind of public participation we are promoting!! Get your community to weigh in on this issue before it is too late! E-mail us a copy so that we may add your protest to our website!
You may contact CTC to make arrangements for a public speaker at your next meeting to share with your community our knowledge of the project. Power point presentations available ranging from 10 minutes to 45 minutes.)
I am writing this letter to you on behalf of the board of the East Naples Civic Association, an organization within whose boundaries some 83,000 people live, working and playing and using our roads and often the road that is the subject of this letter.This association has an active membership of over 400 caring souls who want you to know that the leasing of “Alligator Alley,” that portion of I-75 from Naples to Ft. Lauderdale, is without question a poor choice for our government to make.
As our chief executive, we have entrusted you to preserve this State‘s resources, as well as seeing to it that the annual budget is in balance.This is not the means we see as appropriate to achieving those ends; it is shortsighted and above all places the issue of trust as a question in the minds of all with whom we have spoken regarding this matter.
Our board, representing the general membership, after seeking that membership’s advice, unanimously states its desire that the Alligator Alley portion of I-75 remain as status quo, with the FDOT retaining direct responsibility for and control of the road, its appurtenances, its amenities, and its revenue producing means, tolls.
There are many angry people here who see what our government either fails to see or chooses not to see, the foolhardiness of “expending” an asset for the short term gain at the loss of the long term gain derived through prudent management and appropriate revenue production.We are certain that under private management tolls will rise and perhaps precipitously, certainly in the not too distant future significantly.The monies derived from the lease of this asset will be gone in an instant …and then what?
Every now and then a new fad comes along, this seems as one.The public is aware that this has been tried and failed in another state where the cost burden on the taxpayers was dreadful; this must not happen here!As you are well aware, this community votes heavily for Republican candidates.I can’t think of anything more likely to cause pause for consideration of whether to continue that support in the future should this wasteful program go forward.
For the ENCA,
Bob Murray
Fighting Alligator Alley Lease Proposal Certain state officials are trying to lease Alligator Alley out to a foreign investor. The state will get billions of dollars up front for it, but some argue, we'll end up paying in the end.
The CTC -- Citizens' Transportation Coalition thinks the state is pulling a fast one on Floridians, and they're reaching out to the governor for help. Saturday, they were out at The Orange Blossom Library trying to collect signatures, so they can send 'a message to the governor' that people don't want this.
"He wants to sell a total of 4 roads, and he's considering selling the lottery, he rakes in billions of dollars to be spent now at the cost of future generations," CTC Director Gina Downs said about Governor Crist.
And the governor will have the final say without your permission.
The state has already accepted 6 proposals from foreign investors, and if 16 people on The State Budget Commission agree on one -- it's a done deal.
"Our elected representatives on both coasts are already aware and seem to be fighting against it, they just need more input from the public," said Downs.
They've already collected and sent 1200 signatures to Governor Crist, and they say surprisingly, they haven't heard back from him yet. They collected about 200 at the library alone on Saturday, and they're going to fax them to Crist soon.
The next step -- the state narrows the proposals down to 1 or 2 favorites, and if that happens without the governor shooting this whole thing down, CTC says they'll come out in full force to fight it.
Reporting: Tyesha Fernandes Fox 4 NewsJuly 26, 2008
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Plan to lease Alligator Alley runs into resistance
About 60 people attended a Weston forum, with several expressing doubts about a plan to lease Alligator Alley to a private company.
BY DIANA MOSKOVITZ May 30, 2008The Miami Herald
Protests of a plan by state transportation officials to lease Alligator Alley to a private company began to stir at public hearings this week on both coasts of Florida.
The Florida Department of Transportation wants to put a 78-mile section of I-75 that connects Southwest and Southeast Florida, currently managed by the state as a toll road, into private hands. It's the main east-west roadway south of Lake Okeechobee.
The state would still own it, but the private company -- yet to be found -- would operate and maintain it, governed by a lease of 50 years or more. An analysis last year estimated that leasing the roadway for half a century would generate about $504 million in short-term revenue for a cash-strapped state facing heavy budget cuts.
The plan would create money for improving South Florida roadways, Jim Wolfe, FDOT secretary for the district that includes the Alley, said Thursday at a public forum in Weston. But it's unknown how taking the Weston-to-Naples segment of I-75 private would affect consumers, who currently pay $2 in tolls with a SunPass and $2.50 without.
Using the public-private partnership would provide more upfront money for transportation projects than traditional sources, such as tax dollars, FDOT officials say. ''Either we accept tolls and build more facilities, or those facilities won't happen,'' Wolfe said.
Beyond the tolls, speakers at Thursday's meeting expressed concern that money generated by the Alley will be used for other roads and asked why the state is interested in leasing a profitable roadway. ''We're selling our assets for a short-term cash infusion,'' said Gina Downs of Naples, a member of the political action committee Citizen Transportation Coalition of Collier County, which is fighting the idea.
Mark Olsen, 53, of Fort Lauderdale, who owns property near the Alley and therefore drives it often, said he was worried his dollars would end up paying for improvements on roads he never uses. ''Why, because I use all of the Alley all the time, should I pay for something else,'' Olsen said.
At the hearings, opponents waved signs such as ''I-75; Charlie's Cash Cow,'' and ``Privatization: Corporations WIN, we LOSE.''
Proposals from private companies are being accepted, and a final decision may not be made until the fall, FDOT says. According to the project's website, how much tolls would change with privatization hasn't been determined. ''There have been a lot of different scenarios thrown out in the last few months, but we don't know what it will ultimately be,'' said FDOT spokeswoman Barbara Kelleher.
At Thursday's forum, Gary L. Eidson, chairman of the Collier County citizens' PAC, emphasized the risk of toll increases. ''We've got to stop this,'' Eidson said. ''We're here because we wanted you to tell your people and get adamant,'' he implored the crowd -- including FDOT officials present.
The state is dabbling in public-private partnerships to handle road building, including a plan to improve Interstate 595, the main east-west highway through Broward County, Kelleher said. Llready, a segment of I-75 in Collier and Lee counties is being widened through such an arrangement, she said.
The Naples-to-Weston route, built with $17 million in bond money in the late 1960s as a two-lane toll road, was originally called the Everglades Parkway. The roadway was widened to four lanes beginning in the 1980s. To pay for it, the state raised $55.2 million in bond money.
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We're on road to ruin -- and it's taking a toll
Mike ThomasOrlando Sentinel9/25/2007
Sep. 25--Florida for sale!
Want to buy a bridge? How about an expressway?
Faced with cutting Florida's budget back to the Stone Age, Gov. Charlie Crist is contemplating plans to sell our way out of the current fiscal crisis.
Private investors would buy decades-long leases on our toll roads for a bucket of up-front cash. Then they would make their money back, plus a fat profit, by gouging motorists at the tollgates.
In some cases, tolls eventually could go up fivefold.
"I think it could be a very good opportunity for Florida. . . . I'm just trying to be innovative and not raise taxes," Crist said.
Not raise taxes?
It would be one whopper of a tax increase for anyone using the roads.
And a whopper of a deal for the investors.
After Indiana rented out a 157-mile toll road for $3.8 billion, Merrill Lynch reported investors could make up to $21 billion in profits during their 75-year lease.
That's the lure of public infrastructure on the open market. It's a monopoly asset with captive customers.
It's why the big-money vultures already are circling Tallahassee, lobbying to get in on the action.
These are people who deal in the long term while politicians deal in shortsighted solutions.
The toll roads that may go up for sale include Alligator Alley in South Florida, the Sunshine Skyway Bridge and a section of the BeachLine.
Remember when the original intent of a toll was to pay for a specific road? And then the purpose was expanded to include funding for other roads.
Now we could be headed to the next level -- a profit-based venture under which tolls would be based on what the market can bear.
At least it meshes with Florida's philosophy of taxing those least able to afford it.
And that takes us to another cash cow that could go on the auction block -- the Florida Lottery.
What is so wrong with this?
The poor spend a disproportionate share of their money on lottery tickets, lured by the dream of escaping their plight. The state already has been accused of exploiting this by saturating lower-income neighborhoods with lottery vendors.
A private company, under pressure to increase sales and make its investment pay off, wouldn't be leashed by any such moral qualms. Nor could it be forced to answer to the public.
There would be relentless ad campaigns aimed at those least able to afford lottery tickets.
We also have Crist working on a deal with the Seminoles to vastly increase gambling in the state as long as we get a cut of the action.
Save Florida! Take the nearest toll road to a casino and blow your paycheck at the blackjack table.
Lose it all? Don't worry. Pick up a Lotto ticket on the way home.
Is this really how we envision our future?
We have an immediate need for $1 billion, the amount of the current budget shortfall in Tallahassee.
We probably will face more deficits because of the housing recession. This could go on through Crist's entire first term.
So what's next? Do we lease Florida's Turnpike? How about Wekiwa Springs State Park?
The budget crisis comes from politicians who can't save for a rainy day when times are good, and a narrowly assessed sales tax riddled with special-interest exemptions.
We are driving down the road toward a fiscal calamity in this state. The solution is not raising the tolls.
Local Business weighed in
CTC Plans Strategy With Community Leaders
