How to Pay For Metro -- "..install large vacuum cleaners"

If you don't think anybody gets what is going on with the Dulles Toll Road/Silverline scam, reading some of these comments to the article might convince you otherwise.

Keep in mind VDOT could retake control of the Dulles Toll Road and restore order by cutting MWAA out of the process. That would require that leaders exert the political will and act on behalf of the people instead of the many special interests who would resist that action.

How? Go here to see the operating permit

The MWAA waste factor, read it and weep:

click on the title to go to the article

Dulles toll could double by 2015

We should install large vacuum cleaners to automatically suck out our wallets as we pass notable raodway landmarks, then ticket people for not having their wallets. When will this nonsense end!


This is one of the  most avoidable premeditated mistakes of all time


You're not "in" traffic. You are traffic.


A good road ruined by a government boondoggle. The silver line is correctly named. It will line the pockets of lots of inside the beltway thugs with silver.


This is really just a revenue grab wrapped in whatever rationalization makes you feel better. At the end of the day, $4.50 for tolls will probably be less than the fare card for the same trip. Someone did the math and realized that without the toll increase, there would be a disincentive to use the Metro line to Dulles.

Loudoun's Metro Future is Certain

Now that the votes have been cast there are some people who just won't let it go. What is their problem? It is over folks! Let it go!

Well no, it really has just begun for Loudoun. But we have a window to the future called Fairfax County, if we just look across the border. However keep one thing in mind. While Loudoun may be able to brag about a high average income, Fairfax County's economic base dwarfs Loudoun County's economic base. Note that much of the economic development in Fairfax and Loudoun came before they were shackled to the Metro, go figure.

For Loudoun, the Metro is like the Titanic 2 and it just set sail headed for a terrible fate. Kenedict Reid untied the rope and pushed it off. He and a few have lifeboats reserved but not us.

No to Metro Say Ashburn Broadlands Leesburg Sterling

 

These are just two of many people who live in the areas that will be most affected if Metro... Metro taxes, Metro crime, Metro toll increases, Metro gridlock come. 

Their voices are being ignored. 

Dear Mr. Reid and Ms. Volpe:

Not now, not ever...please don't bankrupt Loudoun w/the Silver Line.  We are counting on you to do the right thing for the citizens...not the big businesses.  Exactly who stands to benefit from a mile or two of rail, at how much, for how many years to come, with maintenance ongoing till the cows come home?  Not our citizens. 

Please don't be blinded by the talk, the smoke and mirrors...check it out for yourself... is Metro a boon, or a boondoggle?  Having used it on and off for years...I've hated it!  Hated the bums at the entrances, urinating on walls, turning people into animals as they push and shove to enter trains that are hot, dangerous, and poorly maintained.  Do we want to buy into a system that has a PROVEN Track Record of mismanagement, accidents, insufficient budgets, operators that fall asleep at the helm, text and chat while on the job?  Nope.  No thanks. 

Loudoun has always been the kinder/gentler County.  Why ask for the rif-raff that comes with Metro.  Why fund a problem that has been festering for years?  They grew it...let them lift it.  Please do the right thing for those of us who have long been part of the heritage of this great County.  Take a pass on Metro...OPT OUT for our good, and the good of our grandchildren.

Sincere Thanks,

-------------------

Ken-

Just to throw in my two cents on the Metro Project, there really is no funding option which appeals to me, because I don't favor Metro in Loudoun at all.  I like and want to maintain the bedroom community which Loudoun is.  I moved from just down the street of a Metro station out to Leesburg to get away from exactly what could be happening here now. 

Study after study shows the Metro out to Ashburn will be severely underutilized by the population it's trying to serve.  I could see a potential usefulness in going out to Dulles and could compromise there, however beyond Dulles seems ridiculous.  As a Loudouner I don't want to be part of the metro area.  What I experienced in Sprigfield, I don't want to see again. 

For those in favor of Metro, I would suggest they seek a good real estate agent, and uproot themselves to a Metro stop, the same uprooting I did to get away from it.  In the letter below you state Metro out to Loudoun would not alleviate congestion nor would it be utilized by more than 10% of Loudouners.  Adding insult to injury, Leesburg would be losing $1 million from the gas revenue, even with this special class of tax payers the Board is considering.  

I would hope under NO circumstances would the Metro out to Ashburn be built, and under NO circumstances would you support it. 

Name removed

Leesburg, VA  20176

Sent: Thursday, June 28, 2012 9:12 AM

To: Clarke, Janet; Volpe, Suzanne; Buona, Ralph; York, Scott; Williams, Shawn; Higgins, Geary; Letourneau, Matt; Reid, Ken; Delgaudio, Eugene

Subject: Silver line view from the center left

Sent: Friday, June 29, 2012 10:05:26 AM (UTC-05:00) Eastern Time (US & Canada)
To: BOS
Subject: Your Election Year Campaign Pledge to Lower Taxes

Dear Board of Supervisors,
It is now known that four supervisors will break their election year campaign pledge to be fisically responsible and LOWER TAXES on July 3, 2012.
Which of the five remaining supervisors will join in breaking their commitment to lower taxes during their election year campaigning?
Don't Fairfax Loudoun. If you or the people you represent like Fairfax so much -- MOVE THERE.
Don't be known as the supervisor who promised lower taxes but gave Loudoun its biggest tax increase in the history of the county.
Vote NO to Metro. We don't need more housing, more crime, and more cars on the road. We don't need to pay for West Virginia's Metro stations anymore than Fairfax wants to pay for Loudoun's.
Now, we have supervisors who don't want to tax those closest to the stations even though their home values may increase and they are more likly to use Metro.  How is this fair to residents of Leesburg, Western Loudoun, Northern Loudoun, Sterling?
Mike Hudak
   -- anyone of you can call me. I would enjoy the conversation. Afterall, I am just a dumb finance executive who does not "get it."
Loudoun Resident since 1992.  I moved to Loudoun to escape Fairfax. Don't Fairfax Loudoun!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Dear members of the Board; 
   Duty will again have me out of the country during next week’s meeting on the extension of the Silver Line, so I thought to provide my thoughts via e-mail.   Initially, I did not pay much attention to this issue, as I see little impact to my family’s commuting arrangements (we carpool and/or use the Loudoun County bus service.)  However after listening to my neighbors, I sought to learn more about this extension. Let me add that on no other issue have I heard such anger expressed by those in my neighborhood (Broadlands).
I agree Dulles IAD could benefit from a rail line, but that would not be used by most of the people in Loudoun, many who live in close driving distance to the airport anyhow.  The anti-rail group has circulated a flyer stating the two-mile Rail District proposed tax rate of .09 to .21 would increase our taxes (I believe my Broadlands residence falls into this proposed tax zone) by $450-$1050. My family cannot afford this.  (Has the board provided home-owners any information on funding this project to the contrary? )  To push this ahead without identifying how the Country is to pay for it is reckless; business and development will benefit and should pay, if there is to be a tax levied it needs to be universal for the County, and not targeted to an handful of the unwilling. 
I have to agree on this point; to hear my neighbors, the imposition of a tax burden unduly leveled on a selected geographic area from which questionable benefit will accrue will in all likelihood generate a class action suit against the Board and possible individual suits.  The irony is of course, that our present tax dollars will go towards defending the Board members as well as challenging this decision.  Tax-payer losses either way amid the cost and legal gridlock.
There must come a point where this Board stops viewing constituent taxation as an bottomless well.  Many of you were in fact elected to curb the excesses of the previous Board to include some of the current incumbents.  Please stand by those principles.  We are so upside down on our mortgage to market value that we cannot afford to move out of Loudoun County, much less pay forward for a questionable project of which we will never see the benefit.  My realtor advised me that the additional tax burden may further negatively impact our ability to sell our Broadlands residence while the benefit of metro proximity will not be realized until the installation is complete in the coming years.  This is of key concern for already distressed homeowners. 
Please be sage and transparent with our money. 

name deleted
Broadlands VA
20148

_______________________________________________

Board of Supervisors, As a homeowner and taxpayer in Loudoun County and as an Ashburn resident I ask that you VOTE DOWN THE METRO COMING TO LOUDOUN.  The costs far outweigh the benefits of this proposed Metro expansion for Loudoun County. Stop the Metro at Dulles and build some commuter lots - done! Why would you want to put the Metro into a beautiful suburban area such as Ashburn. No one moves to Ashburn saying "I want to move there for the Metro". People move to Ashburn to get away from the congestion the Metro will bring, they move to Ashburn to raise a family in a safe and quiet environment. If we wanted to live near a Metro we would be living in Fairfax, Arlington or Montgomery Counties. Leave Loudoun the way it is and leave the Metro at Dulles Airport! Those of you on the BOS in favor of the Metro speak how it will bring profit and make Loudoun more appealing to businesses. How does that work for the whole county when the metro will only go to part of Ashburn?  Not Leesburg, not Aldie, not Purceville, etc... It is clear that those BOS members in favor of the Metro are looking out more for their best interests in the political arena, not those of who you represent. Who will be paying for this project - the taxpayers!  Raised taxes, higher tolls, more contruction, more traffic - why not use these funds to work towards lowering the tolls to take traffic off such roads as Rt. 28, Rt. 7 and Waxpool. That would be met with great acceptance county wide. Let the residents make the decision on this particular issue - WE VOTE NO TO THE METRO EXPANSION INTO LOUDOUN! Sincerely,name deleted

Metro-Loudoun Crime Wave Coming...Unintended Consequences?

From a former prosecutor...

"Loudoun will draw its first serious crime wave ever just from people riding the Metro from D.C. and P.G. County"

Daniel M. Gray, Esquire 

There is an possibility that Metro will have an impact on the quiet neighborhoods that surround the stations. If crime does increase, how far will it reach beyond the station areas? Hopefully Supervisors are weighing this as they form their opinions on whether Metro is good for Loudoun or not.

Loudoun Metro Tax Advisory Committee Formed

Loudoun  Metro Tax Advisory Committee

Dulles Corridor Metrorail Project

Summary of Proposed Loudoun Taxes and Alternative Scenarios

Commercial & Industrial (C&I) Tax

Board-presented options: $0.10- $0.17 (8%-13.7% increase over $1.235 base rate)

Note: statutory limit of $0.125 until June 30, 2013, then increases to $0.25

Loudoun County Chamber of Commerce Resolution: $0.10/$100 (8% increase over $1.235 base rate)

Problems with this proposed tax:

-Most of the western 2/3 of Loudoun is zoned AR1 or AR2, which has been declared by the Zoning Administrator and County Attorney to be commercial. The county is only allowed to exempt up to 15% of potentially impacted properties, so AR1 and AR2 will be hit by the C&I tax if this option is chosen by BOS.

-This funding proposition amounts to asking all businesses countywide to finance a shift of business development to rail station areas.

-A county-wide C&I property tax will be passed on to consumers, increasing the costs of all goods and services purchased in Loudoun County, and driving business out of Loudoun County.

-You may be told these taxes will go away eventually. The promise was made that the Dulles Toll Road tolls would go away. Instead DTR tolls will be soaring to new highs, as these taxes will in the future.

1-Mile Rail Service District

Board-presented options: $0.09- $0.20 (7.2%-16% increase over $1.235 base rate)

Loudoun County Chamber of Commerce Resolution: $0.20/$100 (16% increase over $1.235 base rate)

Problems with this proposed tax:

-The 1-mile tax district will cause businesses to consider locating just outside the line, reducing the projected revenues from the tax district, while undermining the intent of transit-oriented development to consolidate in high-density cores. Loudoun has not studied this; tax districts were not factored into RCLCO’s Dulles Rail Fiscal Impact analysis.

-You may be told these taxes will go away eventually. The promise was made that the Dulles Toll Road tolls would go away. Instead DTR tolls will be soaring to new highs, as these taxes will in the future.

-Creation of a tax district would likely require approval by the Virginia General Assembly, meaning any districts could not go into effect for some time, probably mid-2013 at the earliest, if ever. (waiting for official verification)

Conclusion

-Loudoun’s Supervisors were...

Loudoun Get to Know Metro Before Saying "I Do"

Getting to know your new Metro partner: Part 1

Getting to know your new Metro partner: Part 2

Yes, the Metro is the same relic that Loudouners are told is the key to achieving Loudoun's economic destiny. Wow!

We'll need Metro advocate, Dr. Fuller (pronounced full-of-it), to explain how Tysons Corner became the 12th largest employment center in the United States without Metro. Fuller works as an advisor to the development community. Fuller has appeared on the scene recently trying to insert his unsubstantiated opinions by lobbying through Scott York with contrived info-nuggets from a yet-to-be-released study commissioned by we don't know who. Fuller's spectacular claims contradict the clear and credible forecast (RCLCO Study) that is in the hands of Loudoun officials. The Lesser study shows Metro to Loudoun as a financial disaster for Loudouns taxpayers.

Loudoun Budget Report: Schools To Be Cancelled?

If You Want This...

Expect this...

Bringing Metro into Loudoun County sounds good but do not overlook that you absolutely will give up plenty to pay for it. It is not free, in fact the payments will be huge, and they will never stop, NEVER.

If Loudoun opts in to Rail to Loudoun, each and every year after it is completed, Loudoun County will get a bill from Metro for $100 million or more. Loudoun will also write a $25 million check every year for about 30 years to pay the mortgage on the construction costs for Rail to Loudoun. That is roughly equal to the cost of 4 new schools every year. It is time to do a reality check on this spending because our accounts are already overdrawn.

$175 Million - is the cost per year to service Loudoun's current debt.

$1.4 billion - Loudoun’s current debt plus approved bond issues.

Tim Hemstreet just proposed a $1.27 FY13 Tax Rate. That sounds good. But what happens when the big rail bills start coming in? It’s pretty clear from our supervisors’ recent campaigns that raising taxes is off the table.