[mobglob-discuss] Fw: [pr-x] RAV mess sign of 'Mr. Muscle' at work

[Liz]

This is a very good piece of political information.
Liz
----- Original Message -----
From: <shniad at sfu.ca>
To: <shniad at sfu.ca>
Sent: Tuesday, May 25, 2004 1:15 PM
Subject: [pr-x] RAV mess sign of 'Mr. Muscle' at work


> Vancouver Courier     May 19, 2004
>
> RAV mess sign of 'Mr. Muscle' at work
>
> By Allen Garr
>
> The absolute mess we find ourselves in over the RAV line has Ken Dobell's
> fingerprints all over it. It was not some faceless force that drove the
> majority of the TransLink board to stop the Richmond Airport Vancouver
rapid
> transit project in its tracks. It was not some provincial committee that
> spooked the TransLink directors. It was not "Victoria" or "the Province."
>
> It was Dobell, deputy minister to Premier Gordon Campbell and arguably the
> most powerful man in government. A man known among senior regional
> bureaucrats as the man behind the screw-ups on everything from E-Comm, the
> emergency coordination centre for southwest B.C., to the disaster over the
> vehicle levy.
>
> The RAV line has been Dobell's baby from the beginning, from the days when
> he was CEO of TransLink. He chose the route up Cambie and the Skytrain
> technology. He decided it would be a P3, a public-private partnership. His
> disciple, Jane Bird, was put in charge of the project and, guess what? She
> concluded Dobell's plan was the best. Dobell set the deadlines and
literally
> dictated the wording of a motion to senior GVRD staff so the GVRD board
> could pass it and comply with legislation he orchestrated.
>
> Call him "Mr. Muscle." It best describes the way he operates. He "jams"
> people, as one staffer put it. He puts people in a corner with no options
> but those he offers. When it works, you don't hear anything. But when it
> doesn't, you get seismic explosions like those that occurred when he
jammed
> the vehicle levy to the point where it was finally dumped by a queasy NDP
> government under pressure from the car lobby. As a result, we suffered bus
> service cuts and a bloody long strike that have taken years to get over.
>
> Consider RAV the latest jamming incident. Remember that critical financial
> information was withheld from elected officials who were expected to vote
on
> the project. The excuse was that it was a P3. Private sector involvement
> meant a lot of information had to be kept under wraps.
>
> Then there was the lack of certainty about funding and even more
uncertainty
> about fiscal liability. The ridership numbers to make the deal work,
100,000
> a day, were likely as elusive as those weapons of mass destruction.
>
> Finally there were the threats. Get rid of the P3 and the province will
pull
> out of the deal. And it must be built in time for the 2010 Olympics.
> Publicly, Gordon Campbell was saying the decision was up to the GVRD.
>
> Privately, Dobell was jerking everyone's chain. Local politicians who were
> willing to go along and take a risk lost their enthusiasm, while Dobell's
> boss started sliding in the polls.
>
> Finally, on the day before the vote that rejected the project, Dobell sent
> all the TransLink directors a "comfort letter." Don't worry, he said - if
> RAV goes over budget, we'll kick in another $50 million. And by the way,
> that $50 million would come from money already promised for transit to the
> northeast sector of the region, the project he elbowed out of the way so
RAV
> would get built first.
>
> It was enough to put on-side people off-side and you saw the results.
>
> Now Dobell and his pals are trying to recover with a series of threats and
> promises: promises of another $170 million for the northeast, threats that
> legislation to allow for a region-wide parking-stall tax and tolls on a
> third crossing of the Fraser River will never see the light of day.
> Provincial transit money will evaporate. TransLink's longterm financing
plan
> will collapse.
>
> For all the pressure, don't be surprised if TransLink decides against
> reversing its decision on RAV at today's meeting. But the acrimony and
> uncertainty created by Mr. Muscle will take a long time for the region to
> overcome.
>
>
>
> Project-X list:
> initiated for the (re)building of the Left.
>