Columbia River Crossing reaching out to groups and organizations

[Chief]

http://www.dailyinsider.info/2008/05_08_08.html

The Columbia River Crossing Task Force is accepting invitations from groups and organizations to make presentations explaining I-5 Columbia River bridge options during the current 60-day comment period on the draft Environmental Impact Statement released May 2.

Requests for presentations may be made by calling Audri Bomar, (360) 816-4038.

Public hearings and open houses are scheduled for 5 p.m. Wednesday, May 28, in the grand ballroom in the Red Lion Hotel at the Quay, and at 5 p.m. Thursday, May 29, in Hall D in the Portland Metropolitan Exposition Center, 2060 N. Marine Drive.

Additional informal question-and-answer sessions are also being offered. These meetings will be as follows: 6 to 8:30 p.m. Thursday, May 15, in the Jantzen Beach SuperCenter, 1405 N. Jantzen Beach Center; 9 a.m. to noon, Saturday, June 7, in the Firstenburg Community Center, 700 NE 136th Avenue; 12:30 to 3:30 p.m. Saturday, June 14, in the Beaverton Main Library, 12375 SW 5th Street; and 6 to 8:30 p.m. Thursday, June 19, in the community Room in Clark Public Utilities, 1200 Fort Vancouver Way.

Further information on the draft Environmental Impact Statement may be obtained by going to www.columbiarivercrossing.org.

[Waterbuffalo]

:-) So there is no question left if some one needs information, please attend one of these fine events or give them an email or a call right away!

[Chief]

Exactly right WB. I think part of what is spawning these announcements by the Project Office is the constant drumbeat by the members of C.A.V.E. to have a "debate" about the project, and a "public conversation" about it on their terms. None of them will be bothered to attend any of the public events that have been sponsored by the Project Office so far, and when they do attend, they tend to launch into diatribes instead of asking questions or holding conversations; but they still demand that the CRCP Office drop and do push-ups to meet their unreasonable demands.

I think you know who these people are, and many of them read this blog on a regular basis, or know someone who does and will tell them...

It's fair to acknowledge that the Project Staff has done one hell of a job documenting the many public contacts they have had. It is unfair to demonize the staff for the decisions of the Task Force though, and that is what I fear is going on.

We'll see, but I think the members of C.A.V.E. are marching to their own beat on this, many of them are just not interested in trying to understand what the real issues are, and that is going to be one of the factors that ultimately dooms this project to failure.

8)

[karma]

If they seriously think these NA are the route to go, then they too will fail to educate the Public just like the Port issues?????? Most NA is just a hand full of folks pushing their agendas, haven't they learned?????

[sensibilist]

Question.

C.A.V.E. means????

[Waterbuffalo]

Sensibilist: Certain members of Cascade Park that shall remain nameless for their verbal outrage and continuous misuse of misused Columbian quoting and railing as a main news source?

Cave = Citizens against virtually everything. Or NIMBY whinery x 1000 America's Vancouver Mayor political speeches with bullhorns sitting on a certain mail list with no concrete facts.

[Waterbuffalo]

Karma: I am going to ask you a VERY pointed questions since you've seemed to be off in your walled garden the past fall and winter while Chief and I have been attending virtually long hours and days of Regional Planning and transportation meetings that have been opened to the public.

Please tell me which RTC, C-tran Board, Board of Clark County transportation hearing, CRC TF, open house or Q and A sessions that mostly were ignored by the local media during the past six months? Which one did you attend?

I'd say I have seen Sensibilist at least once or may be a couple times.

[Waterbuffalo]

Note to Chief, I just got a nice bound notebook from C-tran.. Boy it has such wonderful things as how things are supposed to qualify for many of the same projects as the CRC LRT/BRT program..

Think you might want to holler over there and get yourself a free copy.

[sensibilist]

Thanks WB! So, we're talking about Patella, et. al. I would guess, eh?

Well, I personally think this is going to go down in flames for one simple reason. Their own math.

Even with the push by the city of spending massive taxpayer dollars for "public engagement" firms to advance this agenda, the city's own actions in the not distant past will prove to be its own demise and an insurmountable obstacle of fiscal fecklessness. Unless of course, they can figure out a way to do it in its entirety without a vote which I think is impossible.

BTW Chief what about spellcheck?

[Waterbuffalo]

?-) lol..

Don't get Chief going by simple failures sensibilist like that one.. I fail to repeatedly mention the above by leaps and bounds.

Yes, I'd say Chief has regularly failed to update the Misadventures of the Alzhiemers Kind for about three or more months while he and I pour over the CRC, RTC and many other documents... There simply isn't enough time in the day to waste on wheaties box crunchers who all they do is scream bloody murder at the sign they didn't get the prize in the box.

They're latest rant was about the E911 Taxes from VOIP, cell phones and other telephone access and why THESE could not pay for the Cresa needed improvements and radio communication. And no, I didn't bother to follow up with Larry on the subjectives of such ideals.

[Chief]

Patella may be the most frequent C.A.V.E. Spokesperson, but he's far from the only member...

Spellcheck is not available as an addon to vBulletin per se; there are enough other checkers out there for free that run on your browser that the vBulletin folks refuse to include a special one with or for the software.

Check out Firefox Ed. It has a built in spellchecker that isn't bad...

I do agree that their own math will shoot this project down in flames. It's scary what they are proposing for all of this and the implications of just how many ways it could go wrong. Ultimately, someone has to pay the light rail bills, and that someone would end up being every homeowner in Clark County, one way or another.

[sensibilist]

Chief, I have it on my board, which is the same...may be something as easy as enabling it in admin....been so long I ferrgit. nough said!!!!!!

Also forgot about the kneecap (patella http://dictionary.reference.com/browse/patella )
thing....me bad!!!!

[karma]

Why Master Buff, I have attended none and it appears you have no clue as to why?????
It's a Clark County Done Deal and if you don't get it a pure waste of time!!!!!! So come on here, they waited until those that were apposed to LR die or left to pull what they wanted to long ago. I don't see the screams for a vote and so bend over as this is going to be done like it or not. New Bridge and LR hand in hand no matter how many meeting anyone attends, this has been in the works for years and it's full steam ahead!! To keep the I-5 Bridge as it is now is stupid and long past it's prime, all one has to do is look at what they are moving forward with already?????? I saw this a coming when I went to all the prior meetings long before you two started, but whom is counting????????? I just love the attacks and those that don't know the history as to why things are being done now.

Hey Ed!!!

[Chief]

Nobody is attacking you karma, I am pointing out that there are a large group of people here in town who believe they know everything about everything, and refuse to discuss anything that might challenge their narrow view of the way things ought to be.

I'm not keen on all aspects of the CRCP either karma, but I do see the need for a bridge, while the members of CAVE (and I count you among them karma) would gleefully watch the present bridge fall into the river, and see nothing wrong with bitching about the Politicians who were unable to do anything about it, because people like you stuck monkey-wrenches in the gears for decades.

When this project gets shut down for good, I fully expect to hear you and others complain that nothing got done.

In any case karma, we are attempting to have an adult conversation about the many aspects of the Columbia Crossing Project here, among many other things, and if you don't think you can contribute anything meaningful to the conversations about it, then I suggest, (as I suggested to you before), that you exercise some self control, and confine yourself to the Home and Garden section of Clarkblog.org.

Tan kew.

8)

[Waterbuffalo]

Chief and I agree about one absolute truth about the CRCP, that the Interstate bridges need to come out of the river. To do otherwise, is just down right and inexcusable. The reasons are too many to explain as it would just be repeating it over and over again. if you need reference, just go through archives of what Chief and I have said over the past 18 months.

And to spend more money on another I-5 Bridge process and repeat the I-5 Partnership, CRC (if it becomes defunct) because of short sighedness of either side of the rivers political agenda cannot be covered grates my garden gnome.

Now where I disagree with others here at Clarkblog is what function of transit shall cross this bridge. I'm seeing forces on both Multnomah and Clark Counties forming up to resist any decent discussion or fools that love to run their mouths without any knowledge of any of the processes saying "No! light rail or Why can't we just run buses over the bridges or if the car is the only way one can make the connections.."

Honestly this bridge politically is going to come down the the choice of which transit choice will be coming across the river and into Portland.

One question that I have NOT heard asked at the Q and A sessions but have heard some political rumblings about Carpool and Vans.

But I have another idea, why not pay for Carpooling in cars or other ridershare agreements? I see a lot of it in the Seattle area and a lot of the tech companies up there pay for their workers to ride little buses from P & R lots to work or may be pay people's gas to ride with their co-workers to work. Four people to a car sure would be a lot more sense than say driving single cars to work.

Reminds me I need to speak with Matt Ransom about the subject or whomever at City Hall is coordinating the Vanpool and ride share stuff with Columbia Tech Center companies and Portland area businesses.

Bet you a Burgerville Dinner Chief that a lot of the Portland and Vancouver businesses would LOVE to have a way to economical way to get their workers to and from work in other modes than just Bike and Pedestrian but may be paying a stipend to drivers or each worker for carpooling? (This has been tried before here in the area.)

I'm looking to add MORE to this discussion on the CRCP and have not heard TOO much about this option... Why isn't there a coordinating agency (privately run would be best) not METRO that could come up with such a scheme.

Bet a Portland I-5 congestion bridge MINUTE that people would hop all over the idea to just sit on their butt while getting work done instead of sitting in traffic?

Chief I don't think I've heard enough about the Carpooling and Van Pooling options related to the CRCP. Have you heard any thing?

[Waterbuffalo]

And I have a sinking feeling this option would be a lot cheaper per year than Light Rail through the community that in 20 or 30 more years will be a 50+ year old technology? Who wants to ride Light Rail in 30 years that is a 50 year old technology?

[karma]

Chief, it's your tone as you put it, 'An Adult Conversation' that puts folks off. I will say this again, 'Clark County Done Deal' and when it's etched in stone and no one is going to stop the train wreck of those that have the mind set that they know what is in the best interest of the Public!! We whom follow the City/County/State/Federal issues as we do see these deals coming a mile off, nothing will stop it and when it fails all one can do is say I told you so!! What a waste of money, time and effort as these Powers That Be see these deals as Cash Cows and won't listen to the Public concerns.

To leave this I-5 bridge in it's place sends a message to the public it's still a good bridge, so if it's still a good bridge, then why replace it?? LR is another issue and more a Cash Cow than the effects it will bring. Besides we don't have a great bus system in place but again why say anything as they don't listen, this is a 'Clark County Done Deal!' They are not looking into the future and my bet is some 20 years down the road there will be more foolish changes to this area??? Remember the history of this area and the small thinkers that think they can become Portland?? The Leadership here has failed us in the past and the current one is no better. I just love the bridge to know where and catering to the select few?????