Smedes York & Tom Bradshaw to Talk About the Importance of the Housing and Transit Bonds

September, 23, 2011 , by David

Supporters and those curious about the implications of the two bonds on the local ballots can get more information from two Raleigh leaders on Monday. Organized by WakeUP, Smedes York and Tom Bradshaw will talk about the benefits of the bonds and what the money will be allocated for.

The event starts at 9am on Monday morning at the Raleigh Chamber of Commerce, 800 South Salisbury St. Raleigh, NC 27601

Later today RaleighBonds.com will launch to educate voters on the benefits of the bonds. In the meantime, here are some of the major points of support:

$40M in Transportation Bonds that will:

    Keep things running smoothly by resurfacing streets and repairing potholes.
    Build and repair sidewalks.
    Improve our bus stops, shelters, benches and transit stations.
    Create more bike lines giving commuters another option for safe transit.
    Widen roads and plan new corridors making it easier and faster to get from place to place.

$16M in Housing Bonds that will:

    Help our neighbors continue to repair their homes after the April tornado.

    Revitalize our neighborhoods and preserve historic architecture.
    Build housing for seniors, families and persons with disabilities through public-private partnerships.
    Make homeownership possible for first-time buyers like young professionals, fireman, policemen and teachers.

Affordable, cost-saving improvements to our city.

These bonds will create hundreds of jobs, helping many get back on their feet after the recession.

Greenways – This is the final link in the 100+ miles of interconnected greenways running throughout the City. This section connects Walnut Creek Greenway (south of the City) from the Wetland Center to the Neuse River Greenway (that will soon span 30 miles along the Neuse River including 5 canoe launches by the end of 2012 becoming the longest Greenway in North Carolina.) Amazing, and this will make the connection along the Walnut Creek Greenway connecting to downtown. It’s a very Big Deal.

Bike Lanes – Receiving “Bike Friendly Community” Status Bronze from the League of American Bicyclist first time out is no easy feat. And we did it and are on our way. We have a completed Comprehensive Bike Plan, an empowered Bicycle Pedestrian Advisory Commission that reports to the City Council and staffed by City Professional Staff and a comprehensive list of bike projects to complete as funding becomes available, much of which is downtown because that is where most of the bike traffic is and the greatest need.

Sidewalks – We’ve made a major shift in thinking about sidewalks in that now for the first time in almost fifty years, sidewalks are once again considered part of the transportation network. Duh!!! For that reason, a new city policy is in place that the entire cost of the sidewalk will now be paid for by the City vs. split between the City and the Property Owner as it has been done in the past. Due to decades of poor planning, zoning, and regulations, we are way behind on our sidewalk infrastructure which is why this bond is so important. There is close to $12M in sidewalk funds including $4M in sidewalk repair. This is a huge commitment by the City in recognizing that Citizens deserve more than one way to move around their City and walking has become rediscovered and the new cool.

Transit – We continue to need major upgrades to our Transit system of which this bond will pay for benches, shelters and an upgrade to the Moore’s Square Transit Center as well as our $3M in bond investment will leverage $17M in federal funds to begin the design and construction of the new transit center, Union Station, which is the old Dillon Supply Warehouses in the Warehouse District of downtown. Once renovated, this is going to be HUGE for downtown.