According to updated data released by the Colorado Department of Transportation, 576 jobs have been “created or sustained” in the state as a result of money allocated under the American Reinvestment and Recovery Act through June, with a total payroll of $661,621. But critics of the stimulus plan say the jobs claimed by the state aren't likely to help grow the economy in the long run.
COLORADO'S FRONTPAGE
Face the State
Content Index: Transportation
Follow this topic by RSS1/27: $2,000 signs 'educate' taxpayers?
Here we go again: yet more evidence of uncontrolled stimulus pork.
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Solar rays bend Denver's rules
A Face the State Staff Report
August 3, 2009Nearly a year has passed since a $13 million, 7.5 acre solar panel project was dedicated at Denver International Airport. A Face the State Investigation reveals a project marred by a lax bidding process, missing records, lack of oversight and and bureaucratic finger pointing for those shortfalls.
FTS on 600 KCOL: DIA solar panels; Southwest eyes Frontier
Face The State managing editor Brad Jones visits with 600 KCOL's Keith & Gail. What's up with those solar panels at DIA, and did the city rush to build them out with little regard for their usual bidding process? Plus, Southwest Airlines eyes Frontier for a takeover. Home-town pride could - but shouldn't - get in the way of a potential sale.
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CDOT stimulus payroll $661k through June
July 29, 20097/1: Not too stimulating
Just how stimulating is the federal stimulus bill?
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Is the federal stimulus creating jobs?
Is the federal stimulus package, passed earlier this year to jump-start the economy, having its intended effect? As FTS staff writer Kate Melvin discovered, state data indicates few jobs, if any, are truly "created" by upping transportation spending.
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CDOT so far claims 65 jobs, $83k payroll from stimulus
A Face the State Staff Report
June 24, 2009
Face The State has obtained data from the Colorado Department of Transportation claiming 65 jobs "created or sustained" as a result of the federal stimulus package through May, though a breakout of new jobs is unavailable. According to CDOT spokeswoman Stacey Stegman, "the stimulus really saved jobs more than it created them."
Lakewood couple tells of eminent domain struggle in new video
June 17, 2009
After years of fighting with the Regional Transportation District of Denver to prevent the loss of their home and business to eminent domain, Lakewood property owners Kim Snyder and Galen Foster have settled and plan to relocate. The couple recently sat down with Independence Institute President Jon Caldara to film a final video in the series: "The Human Cost of FasTracks."
Segment 1 - The week's news: (Nearly) naked Boulderites; Does tolling = conservation?
FTS managing editor Brad Jones and staff writer Kate Melvin look at two stories from the week in Colorado news: Two north Boulder residents are causing a stir by gardening wearing only thongs and pasties. The behavior isn't illegal, but neighbors wish it were. And the Colorado Conservation Voters want to push you off the road by increasing tolls on existing highways.
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RTD one step closer to a state audit
A Face the State Staff Report
June 8, 2009
The Legislative Audit Committee unanimously voted today to proceed an audit of Denver's Regional Transportation District, but only once its scope can be pared down to a more manageable size.
FTS Humor: Congratulations, graduates
Face The State Humor
June 1, 2009
By Gov. Bill Ritter, Jr.
Welcome, members of the class of 2009, and thank you for wanting me to speak to you today. I’m sure this invitation was based solely on my prestigious role as the leader of this state, and not because your college president is trying to suck up for more education funding.
CoPIRG doesn't get it on rail
FTS Opinion
May 26, 2009
In recent weeks, the Regional Transportation District has received a lot of mixed media coverage regarding the departure of RTD General Manager Cal Marsella. The sources of concern stem from a "sometimes bumpy ride," including a delay in a vote on an additional tax increase for FasTracks and a potential "railroading" of a viable business to build a bus maintenance facility. Despite this, the state director of the liberal Colorado Public Interest Research Group, or CoPIRG, authored a guest opinion piece in The Denver Post urging voters to "climb aboard high speed rail."
'The Buzz' on 1310 KFKA, 5/26/09 - Ritter's $1,200 greeting card; Dem intern goes GOP
FTS managing editor Brad Jones visits with 1310 KFKA talk show host Amy Oliver. Up today: Gov. Bill Ritter's administration spends over $1,200 on a self-congratulating sign at a one-month roads project in Denver, and junior U.S. Sen. Michael Bennet is a little too excited about the stimulus package. Also, a Democrat state capitol intern switches parties after seeing the legislative process first-hand.
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Ritter's $1,237 thank you card
May 22, 2009This week Gov. Bill Ritter commemorated the start of Colorado’s first highway project funded through the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act, better known the Obama stimulus plan.
As part of the groundbreaking ceremony, Ritter unveiled the highway signs that will mark each stimulus-funded project.
Segment 1 - The week's news: Durango's 'bridge to nowhere,' Ritter confused on energy
Managing editor Brad Jones and staff writer Kate Melvin take a look at a few stories from the week in Colorado news. Does Colorado have its own "bridge to nowhere" outside Durango? Is Gov. Bill Ritter doing an about-face on energy taxes, or is he just confused? And does Fort Collins really need another tax increase for public transit?
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Experts forecast future of eminent domain abuse in Colorado
A Face the State Staff Report
May 13, 2009At an Independence Institute event Tuesday evening, property rights expert Jessica Peck Corry and land use attorney Bob Hoban presented their latest findings about eminent domain in a "post-Kelo" world. They say RTD's potential takings for transit-oriented development could usher in a new era of eminent domain abuse in Colorado.
GOP leaders recap the session
A Face the State Staff Report
May 5, 2009With just one day remaining in the state legislative session, Republican leaders are calling the current session a "fiscal train wreck" and "extremely partisan."
RTD's Cal Marsella will tout rail transit in private sector
A Face the State Staff Report
April 29, 2009RTD General Manager Cal Marsella announced Tuesday he will resign effective July 31. While some critics see the decision as "jumping ship" of sorts, Marsella says the move is about what's best for him and his family.
RTD talking points detail how to organize against property owners
A Face the State Staff Report
April 23, 2009
A 2008 presentation by a top Regional Transportation District official is spurring questions about the transit authority's use of taxpayer dollars to teach other agencies how to effectively prevail against property owners in future disputes.
Left and Right unite to say no transit condemnation power
A Face the State Staff Report
April 15, 2009
During a House debate Tuesday over Senate Bill 94, which would create a new transit bureaucracy within the Colorado Department of Transportation for "planning, development, operation, and integration of transit and rail into the statewide transportation system,” an amendment was offered that would deny the new division condemnation authority over private property on the eastern plains.
The nanny strikes again
April 8, 2009That ever-present nanny who lurks around the Capitol just waiting to take away personal liberties has struck again! This time, the nanny is one step closer to taking away your right to use your cell phone while driving.
RTD General Manager contract gets sweeter every year
A Face the State Staff Report
March 31, 2009Recent documents obtained by Face the State show that RTD General Manager Cal Marsella has a base salary of $290,286, nearly a three-fold increase from his original base pay of $107,500 in 1995. In addition to his salary, Marsella's bonus in 2008 was $33,707, up nearly eight times from his original bonus of $4,456.
3/26: Just say no to another RTD tax hike
Denver's transit district is moving toward another tax hike. And one city is already fighting back.
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Segment 5 - Lakewood eminent domain case draws to a close
Lakewood business owners Kim Snyder and Galen Foster announced Friday they had reached a settlement with Denver's Regional Transportation District over the taking of their land for the district's FasTracks rail expansion project. The case sets important precedent for other Coloradans facing eminent domain condemnation proceedings. Darren Copeland reports.
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You'll take it and you'll like it!
FTS Opinion
March 20, 2009The RTD board of directors has rejected General Manager Cal Marsella's request to defer $14,000 his salary raise and $36,000 bonus. The board's excuse for this incomprehensible decision? "Transparency," the buzz word of 2009. But in reality, taxpayers will be the ones who pay for this bad decision.
Conflicts of interest get personal for state legislators
A Face the State Staff Report
March 16, 2009The world of Colorado politics is small and within its citizen legislature, conflicts of interest arise every year. It is largely up to individual lawmakers, however, to judge whether to recuse themselves from a vote.
FTS Humor: A brief history of Colorado's transportation woes
Face The State Humor
March 7, 2009The money is flowing into the Capitol at a furious pace. The gas tax, rental car tax, toll booths, the TABOR grab, registration fee hike. Tired, broke, and beaten down, you ask the state a last question. "Do you really think I can keep handing money over to you at this pace?"
3/2: 'FASTER' bill paves way for higher taxes
The state transportation bill is larded up with fee hikes, and paves the way for a big tax increase, too.
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RTD charges dinner cruise, beachfront hotel to taxpayers
A Face the State Staff Report
February 19, 2009According to records obtained by Face the State, the RTD board of directors spent more than $54,000 on travel in 2008, including a trip to China, nights in a beachfront hotel and a dinner cruise. Records also indicate that members avoided RTD buses and light rail, opting instead to charge taxpayers for taxi rides and airport parking. Some of the spending may be in conflict with the board's own policies.
2/12: Ever-increasing vehicle registration fees
Get ready for a big ol' tax - I mean, fee increase - on your automobile.
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