No Light Rail in Vancouver!

Who Really Wants Light Rail? Follow The Money

Who wants light rail enough to actually put their money where their mouth is? We got a look at these people in Oregon in 1996 when they had to become public with the money they spent promoting light rail at the ballot box. Most of the supporters are posed to make a lot on money off of the construction and operation of light rail.

Who Put up Money to Support Rail 1996?

The building of a north-south light rail system was voted on in 1996. Here are some of the big contributors

Light rail hucksters & profiteers usually try to stay out of the public view, but the Willamette Week recently had a rare look inside the murky world of the streetcar profiteers and their “bought and paid for politicians” that rake in the contributions.

Excerpts from the Willamette Week, Sep 19th, 2007  (Emphasis added):

...They include Michael Powell of bookstore fame, who has given $12,000 over the years to Blumenauer and his PAC; Hank Ashforth, a large Lloyd District property owner, who gave $7,500; Rick Parker, an eastside businessman who, with his wife, gave $38,000; Pearl District developer John Carroll, who gave $21,000; and another developer, Dick Cooley, who with a few of his employees gave a total of $17,700.

All sit on the board of Portland Streetcar Inc., the nonprofit that oversees the streetcar for the city. And all have a stake in the streetcar’s success, because having a transit line nearby adds value to their properties.“

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The largest donor was Stacy&Witbeck construction, which also had the single largest streetcar contract: $34 million to lay track on the west side. Two of its top executives, John Bollier and Ronald Wells, have given nearly $70,000 to Blumenauer’s funds. (In 1994, Stacy&Witbeck was banned from contracting with the City of San Francisco for overcharging, only to have the ban rescinded after hiring a lobbyist close to the mayor. The company went on to win a $118 million contract to build a new streetcar line.)

Employees of LTK engineering and Zimmer Gunsul Frasca architects have contributed $23,500 to Blumenauer over the years. LTK has overseen manufacture of the cars themselves, and ZGF has helped with planning and design.