Tag Archives: Alabama

Folks, we need real funding for transit

Posted on December 17, 2008 by | 1 comment

 

If the $1.7 million in question for BJCTA paratransit service is taken from that which is already in the city’s budget for BJCTA this fiscal year and is not in addition to the amount set aside, our local transit authority would be forced to make reductions to its existing bus service (viewed as underfinanced and underperforming by many).

It’s disappointing to see the city continue to struggle to find ways to maintain a functioning bus service – particularly in light of the business fee increase supported by the business community and passed last December, which according to a several reports, including this one from us last year on November 19, included transit funding.

There still seems to be more name calling than action when it involves mass transit. The issue is of particular importance to me again as I sit in a hospital waiting room in New York City knowing that reliable mass transit continues to make it easy for me to get around my home town without worry.

Recently moving from downtown Birmingham also marks the first time that I did not stick to my personal rule of living within a block of a bus or train station stop. I just knew that my car or my bike was becoming more reliable.

My level of faith in the future of the BJCTA is not completely lost – their new website and the interim executive director provide a glimmer of hope that the system can be fixed, or at least wants to be.

My faith of future funding sources – from both the City of Birmingham and those other cities in the community that need to be providing substantial funding for it – is.

If we couldn’t get it done or at least really get it going when gas was approaching $4/gallon, I’m nervous about whether or not more than a temporary patch can be applied to our transit issue.

While folks already complain about the evening commute along Highway 280, I’m not quite sure folks out there are ready for the types of delays that folks from those cities our civic leaders always compare us to, like Denver, Austin and Atlanta already deal with. Waiting to do something could very well lead us to that point and then it will be too late.

It is especially disturbing considering that it is paratransit that is now involved in this shell game of funding sources.

Making that evening commute on the bus won’t look so bad in the near future – and shouldn’t (if we still have a working system to make that commute on). 

André Natta is the managing editor of The Terminal.

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A road to somewhere… soon

Posted on November 13, 2008 by | Leave a comment

Several things pop into my mind when thinking about our regional Chamber of Commerce’s plans to form a not-for-profit to push for moving forward with the Northern Beltline. When I boarded the airplane back from Denver, I was in agreement with John Archibald and the mayor about the timing of the renewed focus. As the last flight made its final approach however, I was reminded about my recent trip out west and just what a completed beltway would mean for Birmingham and the region. I may be late to the party (blame that stomach virus), but hear me out.

I’m cruising back in on the Interstate to Denver International Airport after a peaceful weekend in Fort Collins, complete with hiking and microbrews that we can’t enjoy here because of the stupid alcohol content amendment (but that’s for another post) to pick up one of the other resource team members so we can start the 5-hour drive to our next assignment on Monday morning and I drove past, with some trepidation, the exit for E-470, the toll-based portion of Denver’s yet to be completed beltline (BTW – it may never be). This is where I remind folks that the Chamber’s BIG Trip in 2007 was to Denver.

About 5 miles later, I had to turn back around and give in to the need for speed (I was driving a Pontiac G6 after all) as I’d hit the wall of rush hour traffic with what would be estimated later to be another 45 minutes of driving – and I only had 20 minutes. Four dollars, 15 minutes, a stop at the gas station and three rounds of “Which level do you really pick up passengers on?” later, we were on our way – and ended up using a non-toll portion of the road for part of our trip to Southwest Colorado. There was steady traffic both ways, and there were also several other things that would be interesting to point out.

Park and ride locations were plentiful on this journey (and filled with cars) – meaning that folks were using the bus and had plans to use the light rail service being funded by the region’s FasTracks program when its supposed to be completed in 2012. There were also newly built shopping centers and renovated historic properties along the way as well, meaning there was some level of smart growth being observed, especially taking into account some of the surroundings.

Fast forward – as my plane made its final approach into Birmingham-Shuttlesworth International Airport last week from the north (Nashville), I was able to immediately pick out Corridor X/Interstate 22 from the air – it was the one with the last bit of road unfinished and a couple of the exits closed. Our current road to somewhere has been planned and due to be for completed for years with the best of intentions – and we’ve still got some time before we can truly say it’s done. Despite the length of time it would take to complete the beltline, I’m hoping that if I must see it, that it happen in my lifetime.

My involvement with two organizations (see below) would (and should) lead folks to believe that I’m not necessarily thrilled with the current plans for the location of the Northern Beltline, or I-959.

I will admit however that as Birmingham’s metropolitan area continues to expand (despite warnings from all corners that our recent dip in oil prices is temporary), the development of a road to ease traffic congestion for those choosing to move farther out must be considered as part of a comprehensive transportaion plan.

The disagreements over where this new portion of road will be constructed must be dealt with now and not later when some of that same green space that is attracting them to the region is torn up for the sake of more lanes for cars.

It would be nice to see a compromise reaches with those parties that are currently against the plan as proposed. That’s the trick behind the chamber’s efforts. One of the other Chamber initiatives, an expanded transit system, would still require a few more roads to be built. The historic structures, environmentalists and families that may one day be driving our sales tax based economy here in Jefferson County and Birmingham proper would be most appreciative if a bully in the china shop didn’t just blow in and demolish the very things that make us unique, environmental or otherwise. We’d just regret the mistakes we made… again.

André Natta is the managing editor of The Terminal. He also serves as the vice president of Ruffner Mountain Nature Center‘s board and as a city appointment to the Jefferson County Historical Commission.

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Why pay more?

Posted on October 21, 2008 by | Leave a comment

I hop on a plane and fly out to Colorado and hope that big news stories don’t happen while I’m in the air and getting settled in. Now that I’ve been reminded that news will never wait (and that inevitably there will be two stories)…

It will be extremely difficult for the city council to justify a raise for those that follow them into office next year, despite the best of intentions from Councilor Miriam Witherspoon. While the jobs are part-time, many in this current crop do treat it as full time work. Many would argue however that it as the price of being a public servant – doing the work of the people for a small amount of money and their gratitude.

The pay scale should be reviewed in the near future as there is some discrepancy in relation to what they do and what they receive as compensation. However one look at the financial situation that many of the city’s residents find themselves in suggests that if passed we would most certainly see faces change on the council dais next year as it would prove that our current crop were out of touch with what’s going on around them.

Councilor (soon to be County Commissioner) William Bell made the point that the council should not be able to increase their salaries. Those are words that should be heeded in this case. If the proposal was allowed to be presented in its current state it would  be extremely difficult to justify that 120% increase to many long time residents, especially those the who are about to watch one of their community’s anchors, albeit one that has been floundering for some time, begin the process of shutting down after 100 years. The two stories are in fact related (yes, they are).

The council should be encouraging the mayor to reach into the bag from which he’s already promised more than $1 billion in funds to find a way to keep Carraway‘s doors open or at least find a company that would be able to take over the hospital and fulfill its current plans for the area.

Before we go any further, we need to make clear the fact that the city has done what it could to try to help the facility stay open. The former Parisian warehouse at Carraway Boulevard and 12th Street North was torn down in June in hopes that a renaissance long promised to the area’s residents was about to be kicked into high gear. That renaissance was tied to a resurgent Carraway.

The pending closure of the facility, despite the “great” opportunity provided by having a piece of property ready for redevelopment (note sarcasm), is a situation that is tied to the current economic crisis but one that needs to be dealt with swiftly. Making sure that people in Birmingham are employed and that we’re continuing to go after the tax revenue that is desperately needed to complete many of the projects on the boards would go a long way towards influencing residents that our city council needs a pay raise, though it would make more sense to deal with such a raise after next year’s elections (perhaps by the voters).

Our city is currently much better off than other larger cities like San Diego, CA and Newark, NJ (two cities that come to mind as I watch an interview on television this morning with both cities’ mayors talking about their financial crises). For the council to reward itself financially for that accomplishment is definitely not the most effective way to demonstrate that fiscal responsibility.

While I’m starting my first day as a Main Street practitioner in more than 18 months about the time that the council will most likely begin to debate this issue, I’ll catch the highlights of the meeting later on today. I’m sure that most of the city will be doing the same to see how the first issue of the 2009 council race shakes out.

André Natta is the managing editor of The Terminal.

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Sweat that corner on the grand stage

Posted on October 7, 2008 by | Leave a comment

I was on my way to a meeting late last week, walking westbound along 1st Avenue North when I got to 22nd. I suddenly wished I’d had my camera with me because of the tableaux vivant before me – one that would definitely tell a story to Birmingham area residents. It would have been one that no doubt confused them and enraged them at the same time.

The easternmost lane of traffic was blocked off as city crews worked to restripe 22nd Street. The westernmost lane was occupied by one of the MAX buses that had been purchased right after I arrived in town four years ago – broken down at a bus stop. The driver was standing at the door to the bus, leaning on it and looking as though it had happened many times before. A passenger looked quite animated as he vented the frustration of all the others at the driver, who appeared as though he cared, but knew that he could do nothing.

In the background because of the angle one could look at The News’ new building and the cranes signaling construction on a much-needed garage addition next to former corporate headquarters soon to become a luxury hotel.

I said the scene would tell a story to Birmingham residents, though some who stumble across this post will no doubt wonder why, since some would argue that this scene takes place in cities across the world every day.

In college one of my architectural history professors introduced me to a phrase I often use to describe urban life:

The city’s a stage.

All of life is a theatre, a play if you will, with some sets more dramatic than others. We’re all actors, whether intentionally or not. The big city is normally viewed as that stage – the place where you pull out all the stops. My favorite story from living on the coast is of Charleston’s mayor, Joe Riley, choosing the gravel for their waterfront park based on the sound it made under his feet. People still revel in his attention to detail as well as the constant examination of whether or not he was doing what was best for the city and its citizens. He has had his critics as well for other reasons but that’s more of a Dre’s Rambings post anyway…

Here in Birmingham there are some projects that will move forward visibly in the near future, among them those first two legs of the Three Parks Initiative, our new downtown hotels and the expansive campus green that now punctuates that you’re on an urban college campus on the city’s Southside. Improving that main stage of downtown is tempting and necessary, though perhaps it is more important to look at the realities of the situation and determine how to help the understudies – the folks that help the theater continue to run from day to day – enjoy their stages as well.

Some of the “realists” out there would say that paving city streets in the midst of an economic crisis doesn’t make sense. It makes perfect common sense however when streets without potholes make it easier for us to get from point A to point B without it tearing up our cars. This way we can earn money to keep a roof over our heads.

What the realists should question is the idea to stripe the same streets that you’re proposing to repave first as part of an ambitious infrastructure improvement campaign. Especially after stating that one of the reasons that you’re undertaking it involves some of the patch work done by work crews when servicing our utilities. Perhaps it will take a while for that project to be awarded (and winter is coming) but maybe folks need to have that explained to them.

We don’t even have to go into the bus situation and why it needs to be addressed.

As breathtaking and as necessary as some of these upgrades to our sets are going to be, we’ve got to pay attention to those “little” details while the big changes occur. While some will not care initially about the public’s opinion on this matter, they will eventually vote – with their wallets first as they continue to lament for the good old days and then in the booth.

André Natta is the managing editor of The Terminal.

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UPDATE: Keeping music in our hearts and our children's lives

Posted on October 1, 2008 by | Leave a comment

UPDATE: 10.1.2008, 6:15 p.m. Good news…

UPDATE: 10.1.2008, 4 p.m., We’ve received word that things may be getting worked out. We’d still encourage anyone who can to attend Saturday’s performance. We also thank those of you that did reach out.

Late last night, we received an email from organizers of this weekend’s Barrage concert at the BJCC. The event had been created to serve as a benefit for Scrollworks, a non-profit organized last year with a mission “to offer quality music education for children in the local community regardless of their ability to pay, with a focus on minorities and the under-served areas of Greater Birmingham.” The simple version is, they need our support now more than ever.

They informed us that they’d recently received the estimated bill for miscellaneous fees associated with the use of the concert hall after repeated requests for that information in order to determine how to budget for the event. They’ve now determined that even if the hall sells out at adult ticket prices, the $6,000 bill, covering security costs, first aid needs, and ushers, necessary for Saturday’s concert, which will include performances by young string players coming from Selma and Gadsden, will make it impossible to raise funds as a result of the event – it would in fact place the organization in dire straits.

They’ve sent messages to the BJCC’s Jack Fields, Birmingham City Councilor Roderick Royal and Mayor Langford’s chief of staff Deborah Vance (or at least the mayor’s office) to see if something could be done to help, especially considering the fact that the performance and educational session is scheduled for the end of the week.

Now I’m not necessarily sure of what I can ask our readership can do. There are two things though – well three. We could encourage all of you to attend the concert, beginning at 7 p.m. on Saturday, no matter where it ends up being held.

We could ask that you contact Scrollworks and see how you’d be able to help, either by offering to usher, providing additional funds to help offset the costs of the event or by seeing what else they need.

We could also ask that you add your voices to theirs in seeing if something could be done to reduce the cost to Scrollworks.

It is a lot to ask, especially considering the roller coaster that our national economy has been on in recent weeks. But the benefit to the children that will take part in this educational experience and who will have a chance to perform and showcase their musical talent is worth making a plea through our virtual hub for the city and to see what can happen.

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Riding towards the right solution

Posted on September 26, 2008 by | Leave a comment

I have this one habit that came to light when I worked for my previous employer that’s always led to some fun conversations (and smiling faces) when expense reports from trips came in. The best example of it was when we were planning for our first trip to Baltimore, MD. My boss decided that he needed to rent a car for the trip, while I said that I’d have no problem getting around on ground transit. I ended up riding in from BWI on their light rail service, eventually pulling up in front of Camden Yards (where I caught half an inning through the gates). I then rode the bus from the ballpark to the city’s Fell’s Point neighborhood, where I got a chance to explore one of the very communities I would be learning about during that conference while getting to our hotel. I walked the rest of the time there.

By the time he met me for dinner that evening, he’d sat in “baseball traffic” for more than 2 hours while trying to get in from the airport. I’d gotten into town in about 40 minutes (including a walk that could have easily been a transfer to another bus to get me there).

My trip to Seattle, WA was already booked before I resigned from that job, so I attended the conference anyway (looking back it was one of the best decisions I ever made). Residents in that region enjoy knowing that you can take an express or a local bus from the airport into downtown for $1.25 – each way. My counterparts were paying $15 each way to get into the city using a charter bus service. People from all walks were on the bus – flight attendants, business people heading to the Boeing plant, travelers and residents all sitting next to each other. Yes, they were building a light rail line from SEA-TAC, but it was due primarily because of the impressive use of the bus service already available, which was slated to continue.

While I’ve always had to scramble to find a ride to get to and from the airport here, since I’ve lived here I’ve never not used mass transit to get where I need to from the airports of the cities I’ve flown into.

Growing up in New York probably helped shape my belief that buses are fine way to get around (if they can get you where you want to go). For many people in my hometown, despite the availability of subway service in some of the denser areas of the city, the bus is an important piece of their commutes. It’s safe to say that they are the workhorses of most mass transit networks. Some communities appear to want the cart before the horse, including ours.

At the end of Regional Planning Commission director of transportation and community planning Bill Foisy’s presentation to attendees at Thursday’s ONB Breakfast Briefing about work being done to deal with increasing traffic congestion in Birmingham, someone raised their hand and asked if we would ever see light rail service in Birmingham. Foisy tried to explain that normally you’d see such services connecting cities and not just within a city and that any rail system that returned to metro Birmingham (we did have a pretty well-respected streetcar system at one point) would not be successful until we fixed our bus system. I’m still picturing those faces among the crowd having this puzzled “Well, why can’t we just replace the buses with light rail; they’re cooler?” looks on their faces.

It doesn’t make sense to build a system if those that need to be riding don’t use the current system. If those that need to be riding look down on the current system as something not good enough for them. If they don’t realize that the buses will give them a way to get from that light rail station to their homes if needed.

Call me crazy, but normally if a city wasn’t built like a New York or a Chicago by rail service you normally look to light rail as an upgrade to a system that is functional and that enjoys fair ridership. As far as who is to blame for Birmingham’s current system’s plight, I’ll leave that to everybody else and I won’t even get into whether or not those that currently ride the system are treated fairly or given adequate service.

My point is that fixing the problems with our system (especially with gas prices poised to rise), whether they be new buses, revamping the routes taken by buses, their frequency and their reliability is more important now than ever. It must be addressed and those riding now satisfied before delusions of grandeur are sought that we are not prepared for. We can’t build our way out of traffic issues either, and since our funds are beginning to dry up, wouldn’t a shift in philosophy towards assisting in transit improvements be better?

I’ll be thinking about that during my trip to Chicago in the spring, as I ride in from the airport on the El – and then take the bus.

André Natta is the managing editor of bhamterminal.com.

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Respect all that use the roads, including bikes

Posted on September 18, 2008 by | 4 comments

NOTE: We got this letter in earlier today and thought it was appropriate with all of the talk about transportation. Daniel Tenpas reminds us that we need to be aware of what’s around us.

So, I’m riding my bike to the grocery store down Crestwood Blvd. As I was turning left onto Oporto Way behind 2 cars-the driver of the car in front of me makes eye contact with me in her rearview mirror-then promptly slams on her brakes. And I promptly ran into her passenger side rear fender-with my body and my bike. I go over the handle bars, slide on my back in the middle of the intersection of Crestwood Blvd. and Oporto Madrid. I’m a little shocked as she drives away. Thankfully, the car behind me stopped, waited for me to get up and leave the busy intersection and to make sure I was okay. I was then asked by two other drivers who witnessed the accident if I was okay. Which, I am-barring a couple of scrapes, strains and bruises.

Aside from the fact that the driver in front of me left the scene of an accident-I would just like your readers to be conscious of cyclists on the road. I am a son, a brother and a husband and I don’t want to lose my life in this city or any other because of reckless and careless drivers. Traffic law warrants that cyclists ride on the road (not the sidewalk.) Because of our state’s lack of bike lanes, drivers should use due diligence and share the road. Life is too important and too short. Can we have some respect for our fellow citizens?

BTW – you have a letter or an editorial you want to share? Send it into info@bhamterminal.com.

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