Metro fares hike plan faces fight

Post staff report

 

Tom Luken is complaining about a "November Surprise" -- a proposal by Metro bus system officials to increase fares 53 percent, from 65 cents to $1.  Luken, a member of the board of trustees of the Southwest Ohio Regional Transit Authority (SORTA), the agency that operates Metro, says he was stunned by Metro's announcement of the fare hike proposal last week.

 

The former Cincinnati mayor and congressman is vowing to fight the proposed fare increase at Tuesday's meeting of the nine-member SORTA board.  "The jolting fare hike is SORTA's 'November Surprise,' " said Luken.  "As an inquiring SORTA board member who was unaware of even a hint of an impending hike, it was surprising.

 

"I thought that there was an informal agreement that the severe cuts in bus service effectuated in 2004 were an alternative to fare hikes."  Michael Setzer, Metro's general manager, said fare hikes are needed because of increasing costs of diesel fuel for buses, higher expenses of health care insurance for employees and lower than expected tax revenues from the city of Cincinnati.

 

About half of Metro's $73.5 million annual budget comes from an earnings tax paid by everyone who works or lives in the city.  Metro, which hasn't increased its base fare since January 1993, has proposed increasing the base fare from 65 cents to $1 and boosting the fare for disabled riders who use Metro's Access service outside the area Metro is required to serve under federal law from $1 to $5.

 

Read full article here:

http://www.cincypost.com/2004/11/08/metro110804.html

I've been expecting an increase in bus fares for a while, considering they are quite low compared to similar cities/systems. Instead of $1 or $1.25, they should set the base fare to .80-90 (which is now the rush hour fare) and the rush hour fare to $1.

The SORTA board approved it, and now there will be public hearings.

 

SORTA board approves fare increase for Metro

 

The Southwest Ohio Regional Transit Authority has approved a plan to increase fares for its Metro transit system and discontinue underfunded services for 2005.  Last week, Metro announced a series of fare increases and service changes intended to help offset soaring fuel costs, stagnant revenue and higher health insurance premiums for its workers. Metro is projecting a $2.6 million budget shortfall next year, and it also faces potential labor difficulties with the Amalgamated Transit Union Local 627, whose contract expires in January.

 

Read full article here:

http://cincinnati.bizjournals.com/cincinnati/dailyedition.html#4

Possibly DOA...from the 11/25/04 Enquirer (Local Briefs):

 

 

Cranley rejects fare increase

 

The chairman of Cincinnati City Council's Finance Committee declared Metro's proposal to boost bus fares dead on arrival Wednesday. Councilman John Cranley urged the Southwest Ohio Regional Transit Authority to draft a new budget with no fare increases, making up the difference by "cutting the fat" and demanding that suburban jurisdictions pay their fair share for the service. His comments to City Council came a day after 100 bus riders packed a public hearing to protest the fare hikes of up to 54 percent. Also, Councilman Christopher Smitherman said Wednesday that he would not support a fare increase until SORTA puts AIDS education advertisements on its buses.

 

http://news.enquirer.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20041125/NEWS01/411250344/1056/news01

Council nixes fare increase 5-4.

 

Council votes no to dollar bus fare

By Gregory Korte Enquirer staff writer

 

Cincinnati City Council rejected a fare increase for bus riders Wednesday, sending the bus system's annual budget back to square one.  The Southwest Ohio Regional Transit Authority will meet next week to decide what changes to make before resubmitting the $74 million operating budget. The system gets half its funding through a 0.3 percent earnings tax on city residents and workers.

 

City Council's resolution, authored by Finance Committee Chairman John Cranley, dictates that the new budget include no fare increases, no cuts in routes, and increased contributions from suburban jurisdictions.  Cranley has accused the transit authority of having a top-heavy management structure that recklessly handed out raises while the system was headed toward a financial crisis.

 

The proposed fare increase would have put the basic weekday fare at $1 regardless of the hour - up from 80 cents during rush hour and 65 cents at other times. It's unclear what SORTA's response to the city's action will be. Transit officials said they considered every option - including wage and hiring freezes - before resorting to a fare increase.

 

Read full article here:

http://news.enquirer.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20041209/NEWS01/412090344/1056

Bus system fights city constraints

By Gregory Korte Enquirer staff writer

 

The showdown over bus fares prompted the Southwest Ohio Regional Transit Authority to seek greater independence from Cincinnati on Friday - perhaps through a countywide sales tax levy that would shift the burden of Metro's tax subsidy away from workers in the city.

 

That proposal came from SORTA Vice Chairman Lamont Taylor, who said he will lead an effort to find a long-term solution to the bus system's budget troubles.  But Cincinnati and the bus system made little progress Friday on the short-term impasse over bus fares, after City Council voted 5-4 Wednesday to reject SORTA's request for a $1 base fare. Metro General Manager Mike Setzer blames rising fuel and health care costs for the proposed fare increase, the first in 12 years.

 

The $1 flat fare - regardless of the day or hour - would replace a structure of 80 cents during rush hours, 65 cents weekdays and 50 cents weekends. SORTA also has proposed doubling its fare for its Access service.  The proposal would raise the fare for the disabled to $2 for city travel and $3 outside the city.

 

Read full article here:

http://news.enquirer.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20041211/NEWS01/412110372/1056/news01

Metro to halt Sunday buses

19,000 must find new rides

By Gregory Korte Enquirer staff writer

 

Riders get on a Metro bus Tuesday at Government Square, downtown, bound for the Mariemont area. Sunday bus riders could face elimination of service in March.  The Southwest Ohio Regional Transit Authority plans a public hearing for Thursday, Jan. 6, on its plan to eliminate Sunday service. The hearing will be 3:30 p.m. to 6 p.m. at the Cinergy Center (formerly the Albert B. Sabin Cincinnati Convention Center), Fifth and Elm streets, downtown.

 

Comments can also be sent to SORTA by e-mail at [email protected], by fax to (513) 621-5291 or by mail to 1014 Vine St., Suite 2000, Cincinnati, OH 45202. Comment cards will also be available on buses.  Do you ride the Metro bus? Tell us what you think of a proposal to eliminate Sunday bus service. Or pass along other comments about Metro bus service. Email reporter Steve Kemme at [email protected].

 

Cincinnati's Metro bus system said Tuesday that it would cancel all Sunday bus service unless Cincinnati City Council approves its proposed fare increases.  Unless Council reverses its position today, the board of the city's transit authority voted Tuesday to cancel Sunday bus service starting March 6.

 

Read full article here:

http://news.enquirer.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20041215/NEWS01/412150381

What a horrible idea.  We shouldn't be making transit less convenient.

I didn't know the city gave so much money to SORTA. How much do the burbs pay?

bullshit.

I have a feeling this is a bluff...i.e., legalized extortion.

 

UNUSUALFIRE--I don't know how much the burbs pay, but it's been said time and again that it's not enough.  According to the SORTA website, about half of the $73.5M budget comes from "local" sources.  However, it doesn't break that down into city, county, suburb, etc.

According to the Enquirer today half of the SORTA budget of $74 million comes from the city.  I don't know how much money management is paying themselves but the Metro bus fare is pretty low compared to other cities.  I do think that the surrounding counties could chip in more but for city council to decide what is wasteful spending is a joke.  That $37 million that they give to SORTA comes from a fraction of the money they collect from the 2.1% income tax they charge residents as well as people who work but don't live in the city.  So in a way the residents of all the suburbs who work in the city(and pay a tax to a city they receive no services from) are already paying for a good portion of SORTA's budget.

Bus fix made, but only to Feb. 1

Transit agency still considering cuts

By Gregory Korte Enquirer staff writer

 

Cincinnati City Council voted Wednesday to fund the city's bus system at least through January, giving both sides in the showdown over bus fares another month to work out their differences.  City Council voted 5-4 to give the Southwest Ohio Regional Transit Authority $3.8 million on the condition that SORTA not raise fares or reduce routes until at least Feb. 1. The city provides about half of the bus system's $74 million annual operating budget.

 

The council action cools down the escalating tension that had SORTA threatening this week to end Sunday service and some city officials suggesting a city takeover of the 30-year-old bus system.  Still, transit officials said both fare increases and the Sunday route cuts must remain on the table, and SORTA will not cancel its Jan. 6 public hearing on eliminating Sunday service.

 

SORTA, which operates the Metro bus system and the Access service for the dis-abled, had proposed a fare increase effective Feb. 1. Metro fares in Cincinnati would increase to a flat $1, from a more complicated rate of 50 cents to 80 cents depending on time and day. Access fares would double, to as much as $3 a trip outside the city of Cincinnati.  Metro General Manager Mike Setzer blamed the fare increases - the first increase in the base Metro fare in 12 years - on a rise in fuel and health care costs.

 

Read full article here:

http://news.enquirer.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20041216/NEWS01/412160378/1077/NEWS01

As much as I'm pro-transit, when I read this:

 

"$1, from 80 cents rush-hour, 50 cents weekend and 65 cents at other times."

 

I live one block from a major route and ride the bus to work 4 out of 5 days of the week - $1.50 each way. $1???  One measly dollar? Sorry but it's no wonder the Cincy bus system is having issues.

I am pretty sure Chicago is $1.75 now after ten years at $1.50

(but you get an extra $1 for every $10 you put on your transit card!)

A strike would cramp my style this winter.

Well, with the county involved it just has to work better, huh?  :D  BTW> I added the public hearing to the calendar.

 

County wants bus role

Portune: 'We bear a lot of responsibility'

By Cindi Andrews Enquirer staff writer

 

Hamilton County commissioners, criticizing Cincinnati City Council's oversight of the Metro bus system, signaled Wednesday that they plan to play a bigger role in shaping public transit's future.  "We cannot as a county afford to sit on the sidelines and allow these decisions to be made around us," Commissioner Todd Portune said. "We bear a lot of responsibility."

 

Calling the region's transit system "messed up," Portune suggested that the commissioners take part in a Jan. 6 public hearing of the Southwest Ohio Regional Transit Authority.  The meeting will be held from 3:30 p.m. to 6:30 p.m. at the Cinergy Center, downtown Cincinnati, to get feedback on a proposal to eliminate Sunday bus service.

 

SORTA is suggesting ending Sunday bus service in March as an alternative to raising base fares for the first time in 12 years. Metro says it faces a $2.6 million shortfall in 2005 unless it gets more revenue. City Council rejected the fare increase as unnecessary and asked for an audit.

 

Read full article here:

http://news.enquirer.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20041223/NEWS01/412230363/1056

Wait a minute - the city gives SORTA $38MM, the county gives SORTA $550K, and yet the county appoints a majority of the board?  I have GOT to be reading that wrong...

 

Just checked SORTA's funding breakdown from their website, and it shows:

 

2004

Federal*   $11.2 million

State 1.1 million

Local** 37.3 million

Local operating*** 22.1 million

Other local (contract service) 1.7 million

Deferral of capital projects .1 million

GRAND TOTAL $73.5 million

* Federal operating assistance was eliminated in 1999. We can now use formula funds to support our preventative maintenance expenses.

** About half of Metro's &73.5 million operating budget comes from 3/10 of 1% of the earnings tax collected by the City of Cincinnati. The earnings tax is paid by everyone who works or lives in the city.

*** Local operating includes fares, Cincinnati Public Schools contract, and misc. income

 

How on earth can this have happened?  And where does Heimlich get off complaining about council wanting to audit something they give thirty eight MILLION dollars to?  That ain't a funny position, Phil, that's their fiscal responsibility.  I'm shocked that it doesn't already happen annually.

 

And how can they even open their mouths when they give only 1% of the amount the city gives?  How on earth does that happen?  This is crazy - I must be missing something here.

I'd like to see what comes out of this hearing and the possible audit.  It doesn't add up for me, either.

Hearing puts bus riders in middle

Lots of shouting about higher fares

By Gregory Korte  enquirer staff writer

 

Faced with rising fuel and health-care costs, the Queen City Metro bus system gave riders a choice: pay higher fares, or shut down the buses on Sundays.  Rowdy bus riders at a tumultuous public hearing Thursday weren't willing to accept either.

 

"It would create a hardship for me," said Geraldine Price, 58, a physical therapy aide from Mount Airy. "I'm part of the working poor."  Metro is operated by the Southwest Ohio Regional Transit Authority.  "I feel SORTA is making a threat, like either-or - that you should either accept the rate hike or lose Sunday service. It sounds like another Paul Brown (Stadium) to me," Price said.

 

The hearing at the Cinergy Center lasted more than three hours and featured threats, shouts and insults - and that was from the public officials in the room.  SORTA Chairman Benjamin Gettler was on one side, and Councilman John Cranley and former Mayor Thomas A. Luken were on the other.  The three principals in the debate took turns interrupting each other and accusing the other side of lies and deception.

 

Gettler said Cranley had made "a very serious and a very ugly accusation" in charging that the transit board covered up raises given to management even as it cut routes.  Cranley said SORTA has never released numbers to rebut his allegations and has pushed the city to audit the transit agency.  "Where is the evidence? Where is the proof? Where is the documentation?" Cranley demanded. "When I make allegations, I have evidence to back them up."

 

Read full article here:

http://news.enquirer.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20050107/NEWS01/501070389/1077/news01

"I bet you guys have Cadillacs and BMWs and are living high off the hog," said Judy Martin-Carr of the West End. "If you don't be careful, you're going to have a 1955 bus boycott like Rosa Parks did, and we'll shut you down."

 

^

That's a pretty cool statement.

Now here's an idea.  How about some cooperation on both?

 

Luken seeks bus-sewer swap

City, county would trade agency control

By Gregory Korte Enquirer staff writer

 

Cincinnati Mayor Charlie Luken is proposing a blockbuster regional trade with Hamilton County Commissioners: Buses for sewers.  Frustrated by the impasse over bus fares and encouraged by a new spirit of regional cooperation coming from the county administration building, Luken said last week that he wants to discuss a city takeover of Metro, wresting control of the bus system from the Southwest Ohio Regional Transit Authority, a county agency.

 

In exchange, Luken said he's willing to give up the Metropolitan Sewer District, which is owned by the county but run by the city manager.  Both agencies are the product of the last great era in regional cooperation, when Republicans controlled both City Hall and the county courthouse.

 

Both were created in 1968 as a way to allow the growing suburbs a greater voice in decisions traditionally made by the city.  But the Democratic mayor said those arrangements are no longer working.  "They're half accountable to the city and half to the county - and Lord knows the city doesn't pay attention to MSD. When was the last time you heard City Council talk about sewers?" Luken said Friday. "It's not on City Council's agenda, so it's not on the city manager's agenda."

 

Read full article here:

http://news.enquirer.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20050109/NEWS01/501090363/1056/news01

Bus compromise collapses

Angry words follow rejection of offer

By Gregory Korte Enquirer staff writer

 

A compromise to head off bus fare increases or route cuts fell apart Monday, on the eve of this morning's vote by Metro's governing board to eliminate Sunday service starting March 6.  Cincinnati Councilman John Cranley and Hamilton County Commissioner Todd Portune were so disappointed in the last offer by the Southwest Ohio Regional Transit Authority that they began to take steps Monday to disband the authority - which could lead to city takeover of the bus system.

 

Transit officials say rising fuel costs and a new labor contract will result in a $2.6 million deficit in 2005, and have proposed raising fares to $1 from 65 cents off-peak and 80 cents during rush hour for in-city travel.  The fare increases - the first base fare increase since 1992 - would still leave Metro's fares the lowest in the state, and a quarter less than the Transit Authority of Northern Kentucky.

 

But City Council vetoed that fare increase last month, saying Metro couldn't demonstrate that it had taken steps to cut its overhead. So Metro proposed cutting Sunday service, resulting in a contentious public hearing last week.

 

The compromise offered by Cranley and Portune would have contributed $700,000 from the city and $265,000 from the county in exchange for a SORTA commitment to reduce operating costs, freeze fares for a year and maintain its current level of service.  SORTA Vice Chairman Lamont Taylor agreed to take all of that to his board - except for the promise to freeze fares.

 

Read full article here:

http://news.enquirer.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20050117/NEWS01/501170344/1056

But Taylor said it was the politicians bargaining in bad faith.

 

"They're not giving me a proposal. They're giving me a directive," Taylor said. "It's almost come down to a control thing."

 

You're goddamn right they're giving you a directive - THEY GIVE YOU THIRTY EIGHT MILLION DOLLARS EVERY YEAR!!!!!!!!!  Where in the hell did this idea come from that City Council ought not tell the bus service that they pay for what to do?  What the hell is with these people?  This is what you get when one entity pays the bills and another entity appoints the board...just insane.

Here's the Enquirer's story.  Most shocking line to me:

 

"I told John: 'We're not going to negotiate. You put a gun to our head for a long time and never pulled the trigger,'" Taylor said Wednesday night.

 

Who in the fuck is this guy?  I'm like a broken record now, but the city pays THIRTY EIGHT MILLION DOLLARS to SORTA every year, the county pays $500K for a couple special projects, but the county appoints 5 of the 9 board members.  That is completely screwed up, and leads to this kind of nonsense - like Heimlich saying Council ought not audit SORTA - excuse me, sir, but I think THIRTY EIGHT MILLION DOLLARS gives you the right to audit the colonic cavity of every last janitor if you want to.  And Taylor saying "We're not going to negotiate" - excuse me?  You just told your number one funding source to fuck off?  I really wish these people spent a little time in the real world now and then...

Yippee for the fare increase! Now bums will ask me for 20 cents more than they used to.

I waited 40 minutes in the snow last week both ways to catch the 11 and go maybe 3 miles.  With that kind of service and a higher fare, people (including myself) will stop riding.

It seems rare to hear much about good service.  You always hear the horror stories of when someone was inconvenienced, but you never hear about the many positive stories (kind of like it doesn't makes the news when your house doesn't burn down).

 

I'd really like to see an audit.  This whole deal is a mess.

Speak loudly and carry a tiny stick...

From the 9/19/05 Cincinnati Post:

 

 

PHOTO: James Hart, 28, of Mt. Lookout, waits for the bus on Fifth Street near Fountain Square downtown. JASON D. GEIL/The Post

 

Gas prices are fueling bus ridership

Commuters fighting back

By Luke E. Saladin

Post staff reporter

 

Jerry Dressman and Kerry Durbin are among an increasing number of area residents who have responded to the spike in gasoline prices by parking their vehicles and taking the bus to work.

 

Dressman, of Crescent Springs, Ky., spent most of his adult life driving his own vehicle to work. That was until a few weeks ago when driving his Dodge Ram 1500 truck just became too expensive for his conscience when gas crossed the $3-a-gallon barrier after Hurricane Katrina hit the Gulf Coast late last month.

 

He's been using the Transit Authority of Northern Kentucky's park and ride on Buttermilk pike ever since.

 

Read More...

 

Bus passengers say Metro has room for improvement

2,500 riders respond to survey on quality of public transit system

By Dan Klepal  Enquirer staff writer

 

The Metro bus service isn't exactly on the honor roll.  Riders were asked to grade the bus service on a scale of A through F during the last few months of 2005. The results, released Tuesday, show that 2,500 riders think Cincinnati's public bus service is a B/C student.

 

About two-thirds of the people who responded to the survey were women, with 35 percent of those surveyed ages 35-49 - easily the largest age group that responded. Sixty-five percent of the people surveyed said they ride the bus every day.  Anita Kumar is one of them. A Liberty Township woman, Kumar rides the bus downtown and back home for work every weekday. She is satisfied with the bus service, but would like to see more buses.

 

Read full article here:

http://news.enquirer.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20060111/NEWS01/601110362/1056

Anita Kumar is one of them. A Liberty Township woman, Kumar rides the bus downtown and back home for work every weekday. She is satisfied with the bus service, but would like to see more buses.

 

"The buses are always loaded in the morning - and on the way home, there are at least 13 people standing," Kumar said. "That's a long ride to stand."

 

Live closer to your job.

 

Hey, at least they're using public transportation. Metro sucks and needs an overhaul and if suburbanites want to use it and then bitch about specific issues then I see no problem with that.

^ Absolutely.  The fact that she's being more responsible and riding the bus is the only reason I didn't totally tear into her.

I live in the city, fortunately I don't have to stand all day at work any more because getting a seat on a bus that (supposedly) runs every ten minutes is difficult.

It is especially aggravating after waiting 20+ minutes for that "every 10 minutes" bus.

I am talking about the 17.

It kills me to hear people mock the "always empty" buses.

For the most part I agreed with people's comments in the article. The buses are a lot cleaner than they were 15-20 years ago.

I have stood on the express buses before. There is something kinda nuts about standing in a box hurtling down the road at 60 mph. :-)

 

Mark

 

    When I used to ride the bus, the first 5 miles were nearly empty, but it filled up in the last 5 miles. I've seen the 17 so full that the bus doesn't even stop to pick up more people. Sometimes people had to fight like a pig to get off the bus. My initial reaction is that a better use of resources would be to cut off that first 5 miles in the suburbs, and double up on the second 5 miles in the city. I would have been the one to lose my ride, however.

The 11 is very, very unreliable and usually packed. I remember one time waiting a good 40 minutes for it outside in the snow. It was fine but just a little frustrating.

There hasn't been much news about this in years, but it might be heating up again.

 

Here's an aerial of the area.  Look for the huge parking lot around 4th and York.  Just to the left of that parking lot is the World Peace Bell.  Across Fourth St. from that is the building mentioned:

http://maps.google.com/maps?hl=en&ll=39.092349,-84.496257&spn=0.004613,0.008497&t=h

 

Actually, I'll attach a better aerial at the end.  Geez...all of this effort for a story that's only tangentially related!

 

 

PHOTO: The Dickerson-Fennell building at 7 E. Fourth St. in Newport was built in the late 1800s for the Dickerson Fire Insurance Co. Preservation groups call it historic, with an active business and intact structure inside.  The Enquirer/Leigh Patton

 

Preservationists fear teardown

TANK trying to take over historic Newport building

BY MIKE RUTLEDGE | ENQUIRER STAFF WRITER

 

NEWPORT - Historic preservationists are concerned that if the Transit Authority of Northern Kentucky succeeds in buying

 

Newport's historic Dickerson-Fennell Building, TANK will raze it, because one of its lawyers told a judge in 2003 it might.

 

"I think tearing down the Dickerson Building for a parking lot will get a lot of people up in arms," said Bob Yoder, a Newport resident and president of Preservation Kentucky Inc., a nonprofit group that seeks to preserve historic resources.

 

"It's one of the oldest and tallest historic buildings left in Newport," Yoder said. "It's a very important building in Newport's history, and there's not much like that left in downtown Newport."

 

Click on link for article.

http://news.enquirer.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20060120/NEWS0103/601200453/1059/rss13

 

From the 2/22/06 Enquirer:

 

 

TANK denies plan to raze site

Historic building at center of eminent domain debate

BY MIKE RUTLEDGE | ENQUIRER STAFF WRITER

 

NEWPORT - Preservation Kentucky has added the historic Dickerson-Fennell building to its "Most Endangered" list, fearing the Transit Authority of Northern Kentucky might demolish it. But a TANK spokeswoman said there are no plans to raze the building.

 

"The original concept (of moving the building eastward along Fourth Street) is still what we're operating with today," said spokeswoman Gina Douthat. TANK wants to build a transit center on the site.

 

Click on link for article.

http://news.nky.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/AB/20060222/NEWS0103/602220361

 

It seems like there would be plenty of other perfectly good sites in Newport to place a TANK hub.  I'm glad they decided to back away from the historic building.

From the 5/28/06 Enquirer:

 

 

PHOTO: Brad (from left), Bill Jr., Bill Sr. and Beth Fennell stand in front of the building that their family has owned since 1901.  The Enquirer/Carrie Cochran

 

Fennell family won't sell

Newport group faces threat of losing its land

BY MIKE RUTLEDGE | ENQUIRER STAFF WRITER

 

NEWPORT - For nine years, the family of William Fennell Sr. has lived with fear the Transit Authority of Northern Kentucky might take its one-acre-plus of prime downtown property for a bus-transfer station at the northeast corner of Fourth and York streets.

 

Several years after TANK told the family eminent domain was being considered, TANK and Campbell County filed a lawsuit in early 2001 to take the property for the transit center.

 

Click on link for article.

http://news.enquirer.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20060528/NEWS0103/605280409/1059/rss13

 

From the 9/14/06 Enquirer:

 

 

TANK hearing on the way

BIF Inc. building issue to be settled

BY MIKE RUTLEDGE | ENQUIRER STAFF WRITER

 

NEWPORT - The Transit Authority of Northern Kentucky cannot afford to build a proposed $7.9 million transit center near Newport's Fourth and York streets, and TANK should face sanctions for "the destruction and/or loss of certain relevant documents" sought in a lawsuit over the site, attorneys have argued in court papers.

 

A key hearing is set to start Monday on whether TANK can force the family of William Fennell Sr. to sell more than an acre of land, including the historic 1880s Dickerson-Fennell building across from the World Peace Bell.

 

Click on link for article.

http://news.enquirer.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20060914/NEWS0103/609140411/1059/rss13

 

From the 9/20/06 Enquirer:

 

 

Carlisle testifies about plan to swap land

BY MIKE RUTLEDGE | ENQUIRER STAFF WRITER

 

NEWPORT - Northern Kentucky businessman Wayne Carlisle offered a land-and-building swap with William Fennell Sr. during the late 1990s for property across the street from Carlisle's proposed Millennium Monument tower. But he never asked local governments to force Fennell to sell, Carlisle testified Tuesday.

 

In a meeting at Carlisle's office, he had offered to construct a new building for Fennell's businesses anywhere on a 90-acre Wilder property owned by one of Carlisle's companies.

 

But Carlisle testified that Fennell, a longtime acquaintance, told him: "Wayne, you can stop right there. My place is not for sale."

 

Click on link for article.

http://news.enquirer.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20060920/NEWS0103/609200399/1059/rss13

 

From the 9/19/06 Enquirer:

 

 

Land sale for TANK center is rehashed

BY MIKE RUTLEDGE | ENQUIRER STAFF WRITER

 

Does the Transit Authority of Northern Kentucky have enough money to build a transit center in Newport? That was a central question in a hearing Monday as the family of William Fennell Sr. argued to keep TANK from buying its increasingly prime downtown property, including the 1800s Dickerson-Fennell building.

 

Click on link for article.

 

http://news.enquirer.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20060919/NEWS0103/609190358/1059/rss13

 

Is there any particular reason why TANK can't build the transfer center one White Castle's property or, perhaps, THAT GIGANTIC PARKING LOT.  Clearly Mr. Carlisle was coordinating with TANK to buy that property after they took it by eminent domain.

From the 9/23/06 Enquirer:

 

 

Campbell judge delays decision in TANK case

 

NEWPORT - Campbell Circuit Court Judge Julie Reinhardt Ward ruled Friday that she would wait on a decision in a case where TANK is trying to force the sale of the Dickerson-Fennell building on York and Fourth streets in Newport.

 

In 20 days, lawyers will provide briefs - the equivalent of closing arguments - and Ward will rule after reviewing those, she said.

 

Click on link for article.

http://news.nky.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/AB/20060923/NEWS0103/609230479

 

grasscat,

Thanks for all the info. We in Newport have been following this boondoggle since its inception. Carlisle and Hosea originally wanted the property as a walk through from their Millennium Monument to the shops at the Newport on the levee. Everyone involved either works for Carlisle or was involved in the MM project. TANK was used as the "public entity" that would be needed to steal the property. Donaghy the former GM of TANK was sent packing after the first ruling came back against TANK. He lied to east row about the studies done for the project, (he did none) and also their plans for the Dickerson Building. He claimed they were doing Historical review studies, required for the project, and for the federal funds paramount to completing the project, when in fact no study was ever started. The first hearing vetted those lies and he was shipped out. TANK almost lost their future federal funding. Claims have been made by BIF and Goodyear's attorneys that evidence was destroyed. Carlisle lied on the stand and was caught. Heard it was priceless. He had the city threaten eminent domain against someone he offered the same deal to as Fennel. I'm sure one of our illustrious Newport or County leaders knows the truth on that on. Apparently money talks though and no one is fessing up.

From the 10/13/06 Kentucky Post:

 

 

Gas prices rise, so do TANK's numbers

By Kerry Duke

Post staff reporter

 

As gasoline prices have climbed, so has the number of people opting to take the bus in Northern Kentucky.

 

The Transit Authority of Northern Kentucky saw ridership increase by 177,000 in the fiscal year that ended June 30, and gains of more than 30,000 riders in the first two months of the new budget year.

 

The 2006 figures were up 5 percent over 2005. In the first two months of the 2007 budget year, that pace has essentially been maintained as ridership grew by 4.9 percent.

 

Read More...

 

www.go-metro.com

 

The new website has a trip planner that gives you the correct bus routes, you can sort by time, walking distance, or cost.  The trip planner can't find my address, but it can find my street at an intersection.  If you want to ride the bus, but are baffled by the schedules, check this site out.

Oh, wonderful...having spent years needing to pick up printed copies of Cleveland's RTA schedules back in the 90's, having all the routes available via .pdf is fantastic, but still, I've been thinking how much the current system blows...

 

Just testing it now, and it's quite cool...they do have my address.  Of course, one of the options for going from Government Square to my house is getting a bus to Court & Main, then transferring to another bus.  Taking a bus three frickin' blocks?  Yeah, right...but they give a number of options...very nice.