Robert Dean, know for his humorous posts here concerning the state of our community in regards to CRC also has very serious side and is very serious on concerns of the potential damage this massive, overly expensive project could cause our community.
With the release of Forensic Accountant Tiffany Couch’s assessment of CRC handling of financing and seeing how WSDOT and CRC are going into damage control mode, we taxpayers who will be forced to pay for this monstrosity deserve answers, not more rhetoric.
In that light, Dean has addressed many of these concerns with Congresswoman Jaime Herrera Beutler in a letter he has authorized to be shared with the public.
January 20, 2012
The Honorable Jaime Herrera Beutler,
United States House of RepresentativesDear Ms. Herrera Beutler,
As you contemplate the merits of funding the CRC project please factor in the true costs in terms of costs to the impacted communities – indirect costs. It does not take much imagination to realize that if Downtown Vancouver and Jantzen Beach are torn up with construction for 6.3 years, businesses will suffer – residents will be inconvenienced or their health and well being will be compromised.
“The National Environmental Policy Act of 1969 (NEPA) requires the same level evaluation for both (direct and indirect effects), including disclosure and determination of significance.” Interstate 5 Columbia River Crossing Indirect Effects Technical Report for the Final Environmental Impact Statement Section 1.2 Page 1-11
I know you must have serious reservations about the project yourself, as I do. If you and your staff have questions you would like to ask CRC staff please draw inspiration from the above quote and from those I have compiled here. Please also ask CRC staff the following questions on my behalf:
1) Has the CRC FEIS given indirect effects on communities, commerce and the human environment the same level of evaluation and study as it has given to direct effects?
2) Has the CRC tabulated each business in the project influence area with an estimate of potential direct impacts from construction of the project?
3) Has the CRC tabulated each business in the project influence area with an estimate of potential indirect impacts from construction of the project?
4) Will businesses and residents in the project influence area be financially compensated for indirect effects?
5) Has the CRC FEIS studied the possible indirect effects of construction on the health and well being of residents within the project influence area and is there a monetary estimate of the claims that might be submitted if the government were required to compensate for those indirect effects?
6) Does the CRC FEIS have an estimate for the total amount of compensation that would be due to businesses and residents in the project influence area if all claims for compensation for indirect effects were required to be paid?
7) Does the CRC FEIS have an estimate for indirect effects on commerce within the project influence area of traffic diversions away from the project influence area during 6.3 years of construction?
8) Does the CRC FEIS have an estimate for how long each business in the project influence area can endure during construction?
9) Has the CRC FEIS compiled a comprehensive list of possible indirect effects with estimates of the likelihood of each one occurring and the likelihood of each business in the project influence area being affected?
10) Under present law is the government permitted to financially compensate residents and businesses for indirect effects?
11) What legislative changes would be required to allow the government to financially compensate residents and businesses for indirect effects?
12) Did the City of Vancouver, as a condition of approval of the LPA, require the CRC to study indirect effects and provide financial aid to affected businesses (Resolution M3663 Attachment A pages 10 and 11 “Construction Disruption”)?
13) Did the CRC FEIS address each of the concerns raised in Resolution M3663 Attachment A pages 10 and 11 “Construction Disruption” and is that analysis published?
14) Will the government compensate businesses or otherwise fully mitigate for loss of on-street parking?
15) Has the CRC planned for truck detours and haul roads to divert construction traffic away from businesses and residential areas?
16) Will the government compensate businesses or otherwise fully mitigate for loss of general access to businesses during construction?
17) Has the CRC coordinated with other agencies to predict the likelihood of cumulative effects from other construction projects that may further isolate communities and businesses within the project influence area during the 6.3 years of construction?
18) Does the CRC FEIS have an estimate for the indirect effects of construction on property values within the project influence area and in the greater region during the 6.3 years of construction?
19) Does the CRC FEIS have an estimate for the indirect effects of construction on federal, state and local tax revenues from within the project influence area and from the greater region during the 6.3 years of construction?
20) Does the CRC FEIS have an estimate for the indirect effects on the regional transportation network of traffic diversion from within the project influence area to the greater region during the 6.3 years of construction?
21) Does the estimated $3.2 billion project cost include direct effects that must be mitigated or compensated under the Uniform Act?
22) Does the estimated $3.2 billion project cost include indirect effects that are not required to be mitigated or compensated under the Uniform Act?
23) Did the CRC obtain approval of the FEIS in principle from the 4 local agencies before the FEIS was published and released to the public?
24) What reasoning drove the decision to obtain approval of the FEIS in principle from the 4 local agencies before the FEIS was published and released to the public?
25) Did the CRC staff discuss the legal imperatives that Washington joint operating agencies, such as CTran and RTC, must conduct business openly and with public input (RCW 43.52.383 The legislature intends that the business and deliberations of joint operating agencies conducted by their boards of directors, executive boards, committees and subcommittees be conducted openly and with opportunity for public input.)?
26) Has the CRC considered the advisability of constructing detours or adding capacity to the transportation system before disrupting the vital I-5 corridor with 6.3 years of construction?
27) Has the CRC revisited previously rejected alternatives as possible solutions to apparently insurmountable obstacles in the way of indirect effects of construction on the human environment?
28) What is the true cost of building the CRC?
Please ask the CRC staff to respond in writing and allow follow up questions. If the CRC does not answer these basic questions to your satisfaction please consider withholding any funds for construction until the studies of indirect impacts on commerce and the human environment have been done. Please hold the contractors to the terms of their agreements. Then, when the amounts are known, please consider amending the law so that citizens, landowners, and businesses may be compensated for indirect impacts due to construction of the CRC project.
Thank you for your service to our community.
Respectfully,Robert G. Dean
Vancouver, WA 98662
