While we watch the horror/comedy show that has become the Republican primary we have dropped the ball. Those of us in NH have created a situation where a single radical executive councilor can torpedo jobs creation and infrastructure improvement for our fine state. More below the fold.
It should have been simple. It should have been approved. A bill that was approved by the legislative branch, the governor and supported by various federal agencies who were ready to fund 89% of the project, was killed by the swing vote of David Wheeler. Even the 11% of the project that was to be paid by the state was being funded by bonds from a previous project. There was no out of pocket expense for the tax payers.
We just lost 3.2 million dollars in economic stimulus. It was slated for a NH based business which had won the bid to conduct a feasibility study to determine the cost to connect NH to the MA commuter rail system. This money would have created countless jobs, led to sub-contracts for other NH based businesses, and it would NOT HAVE COST TAX PAYERS A SINGLE RED CENT!!!
I guess we should have known this was bill was doomed when we lost sight of the local picture. The Governor is a strong Democratic leader. However, the Executive Council is all Republican. Although it should be noted that 2 of the 5 councilors voted to approve the funding. These jobs were lost when we lost the Executive Council.
I will leave the environmental issues for another day. Needless to say a commuter train through NH would take countless cars off the road reducing green house gases and pollution.
Anyone with an education beyond high school knows that transportation hubs create countless jobs and business opportunities. Companies try to locate near public transportation. Restaurants, B2B services, rental companies all want to be near off ramps and train stations. Next time you are at a train station look around at all the businesses within ½ mile and ask yourself, if thousands of people a day did not pass through this station, would those businesses be there.
As a commuter I have 3 choices to get to Boston.
1) I can sit in traffic for a couple of hours burning gallons of gas and then spend another hour trying to find affordable parking in Boston.
2) I can take the bus, which means I still sit in traffic.
3) The Train from Lowell to Boston. Driving to Lowell is no easy feat and parking there can be challenging at best.
Bottom line is we NEED better local representation. We need strong local democrats to take back the Council. With their ability to defund projects approved by the legislature and by the Governor they can stalemate government with the best of Republicans.
Sorry my thoughts are going back and forth between my disgust with the Council and my anger at the killing of NH jobs. However it is almost 5:30 and I have a fantastic commute back to NH to look forward to.
Link to article in local paper