THE COPS ARE ROBBERS, AND THE ARCH RENOVATORS ARE THIEVES

(EDIT: I changed the title of this post.  The title was "The Police are theives, and the arch renovators are robbers"... I was thinking of the song "Police and Thieves."  Then I realized robbery is done with a gun, and the new title was more accurate.  The blog post address still reflects the old title.  Sorry.)

The Arch Grounds Renovation and the new Police Headquarters can tell transit riders a lot.

Metro is a private-public partnership.  Public-private partnerships are really just another way for business developers to get more government funding for their own purposes.

And the City Arch River foundation is a great example of the "boondogglery" and misinformation that accompany these partnerships.

http://www.cityarchriver.org/about-the-project/about-us/http://www.cityarchriver.org/about-the-project/about-us/

What is really shocking is how little real investigation is done by the media.  I get that global entities like Serco are difficult to track, but just skimming these articles the misinformation and statistical manipulation leaps out at the reader.  And these are all locally recognizable names and companies.

Take a wee peek at the people that are on the Board, and the companies that benefit.  Do the Ralston Purina heirs really need their names plastered anywhere else?  Look at the blatant pleas for more "donor recognition."

The biggest lie about the Arch Grounds Renovation is this:

"The lion's share of the funding is coming from private sources."

Take a close look at the actual private monies being donated --not a lion's share, by any means, and not actual money or even the "investors" own money, in the case of tax credits. Out of a $380 million dollar budget, private sources were supposed to donate $209 million.  $91 million comes from federal funding, and the rest-- and a whole lot more, about $500 million, for many, many years after the renovation is completed-- comes from that Prop P sales tax increase.  (They are gonna milk that cash cow to death.)

Now, kick in 14 months behind schedule, lagging private donations and additional $15 million dollar tax credit incentive (the government gives the donor a big tax credit, say for a million dollars, and the donor sells that credit for seventy cents on the dollar and kicks in a matching contribution... and the government wonders why they are insolvent??? Take the money to the racetrack and they'd get better odds and payoffs).

And, the truth is, the Arch is really not that vital to our city.  Sorry.  For real, read this link even if you don't read any of the others: http://nextstl.com/2013/03/the-missing-conversation-about-arch-grounds-attendance/

This is outright theft.  

The money from the tax and the federal funds could be used for something the city really needs: a north to south Metrolink.  The budget for that is $800 million.  (I believe that estimate is deliberately inflated, but regardless, that $718 million would pay for most of it, and Prop A's county proceeds in 14 months would cover the rest.)

http://www.stltoday.com/news/local/govt-and-politics/missouri-taxpayers-may-kick-in-million-for-arch-museum-renovation/article_88adab79-c4ae-5ba8-be22-eae487adc0f1.html

http://news.stlpublicradio.org/post/missouri-development-finance-board-approves-15-million-tax-credits-museum-under-gateway-arch

http://www.stltoday.com/news/local/metro/key-part-of-gateway-arch-grounds-renovation-underway/article_67cef0cd-4528-5564-a61c-c2326b24533a.html

http://www.stltoday.com/news/opinion/editorial-close-the-taxpayers-spigot-for-the-arch-grounds-project/article_a0a9122b-014e-5b4d-95fc-8dab9ba6027a.html

http://www.stltoday.com/news/opinion/columns/the-platform/editorial-a-million-little-pieces-to-arch-parks-project-and/article_05e140d2-02f8-5cb7-b8dc-028611168804.html

http://www.stltoday.com/news/local/metro/arch-grounds-renovation-now-months-behind-schedule/article_bd34b21d-77da-50e6-aeb9-fef32a10993e.html

http://www.stltoday.com/news/opinion/columns/the-platform/editorial-a-million-little-pieces-to-arch-parks-project-and/article_05e140d2-02f8-5cb7-b8dc-028611168804.html

That Roy Blunt supports public-private partnerships is just another confirmation they are a very bad idea:
http://www.stltoday.com/news/opinion/columns/second-century-of-our-national-parks-should-be-defined-by/article_8db27654-c764-55db-9be9-dda85e9a8564.html

Now, about that new police headquarters.  Here is another term for theft that a lot of people aren't aware of: asset forfeiture money.

The department bought a nine-story building once used by financial services firm A.G. Edwards for $2.7 million using asset forfeiture money.

http://www.kmov.com/news/local/New-police-headquarters-to-open-in-St-Louis-267144381.html

http://www.kmov.com/news/local/New-headquarters-being-built-for-St-Louis-police-without-taxpayer-money-267252551.html

With asset forfeiture, your money is guilty until proven innocent.  It is outright theft.  And as with all theft, it is the poorest who are most vulnerable.

The police don't have to report the money.  If they think your money is "dirty" they can keep it. And good luck getting it back. 

http://www.policestateusa.com/2014/tan-nguyen-nevada/
 
http://www.legal-aid.org/en/ineedhelp/ineedhelp/criminalproblem/faq/howdoigetmystuffback.aspx

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2012/05/20/asset-forfeiture-wisconsin-bail-confiscated_n_1522328.html

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Asset_forfeiture

http://www.ij.org/policing-for-profit-the-abuse-of-civil-asset-forfeiture-4

http://www.npr.org/series/91856663/dirty-money-asset-seizures-and-forfeitures

https://www.aclu.org/criminal-law-reform/civil-asset-forfeiture

Hey, St. Louis, do you like being robbed?

AMENDMENT 7 SHOWDOWN

I can't seem to shut up about Amendment 7.  It is not just an outrage and highway robbery, but also a very clear example of the kind of widespread insolvency our governments are facing nationally.  (It might seem that it started in 2008, but our current corporate plutocracy and income inequality actually go back to 1981 and Reagan.)

I don't even need to point out that it is no coincidence that this comes during the "fight" to pass the highway transportation bill.

http://www.rollcall.com/news/holden_pass_the_highway_transportation_bill-222461-1.html?pg=2&dczone=opinion

The Laborers International Union of North America have joined the construction cartels and made themselves into panhandlers for the proposed statewide sales tax increase. 

http://www.stltoday.com/news/local/govt-and-politics/money-flowing-to-missouri-transportation-tax-group/article_5905897d-aa61-55da-814a-fa1faf4c8a6a.html

Theatrical panhandlers with a scare tactic.  They are traveling around with a bus that has a bridge (foam sculpture) crashing down on top of it. 

http://kplr11.com/2014/07/14/local-group-to-use-bus-wreck-to-support-transportation-tax-hike/

I don't blame these guys for working it to get some work.  And I support the unions.  But this sales tax increase is panhandling.  These workers are just some of the recipients of the beggar's cup, even though they know they, too, will pay for it.

Government officials want to do everything BUT raise taxes on the wealthy and increase effective tax rates on the corporate oligarchs.  None of our great leaders is the least bit interested in doing what is right for the people.  All they want is their nice fat campaign contributions and lobbyist gifts to keep coming.

As I-- and many others-- have said before, Metro is not about public transit.  Public Transit is just the excuse for Bi-State Development Agency to funnel government funds for business development and political networking.

The Government is not about Government services, including transportation infrastructure.  Government services are just the excuse for extracting more tax money.

If the government and big business wants more of our (coin) change, they need to create some real change!

Amendment 7 is a good opportunity for we, the people, to demand real change!

These threats of infrastructure collapse and bus crashes, these are scare tactics.  They need to be afraid of us!

“When the people fear the government there is tyranny, when the government fears the people there is liberty.”  -John Basil Barnill

 

“People should not be afraid of their governments. Governments should be afraid of their people.” -V For Vendetta


OPTINSTL'S previous posts on Amendment 7:

http://optinstl.blogspot.com/2014/07/why-you-should-vote-no-on-proposed.html

http://optinstl.blogspot.com/2014/07/more-on-amendment-7-highway-robbery.html

http://optinstl.blogspot.com/2014/06/vote-no-on-amendment-7-proposed.html

http://optinstl.blogspot.com/2014/05/sales-tax-is-new-cash-cow.html

WHY YOU SHOULD VOTE NO ON THE PROPOSED STATE WIDE SALES TAX INCREASE

OPTINSTL'S previous posts on Amendment 7, the proposed statewide sales tax increase of 3/4 of a cent, on the ballot in August.

http://optinstl.blogspot.com/2014/05/sales-tax-is-new-cash-cow.html

http://optinstl.blogspot.com/2014/06/vote-no-on-amendment-7-proposed.html

http://optinstl.blogspot.com/2014/07/more-on-amendment-7-highway-robbery.html

Today, MO DOT listed the approved projects.  Look no further for proof that this is a huge waste of taxpayer money.

http://bloximages.newyork1.vip.townnews.com/stltoday.com/content/tncms/assets/v3/editorial/8/47/84795b7f-b8a5-5bbc-9f7b-97b3292ef291/53bb17bf2521f.pdf.pdf

St. Louis starts on about page 14, depending on what you consider St. Louis.

I suggest ever single person--whether you are a registered voter, whether you ride public transit--  reads this very carefully.

First of all, there isn't a lot of public transit on this list. (Only 18% is Public Transit related, according to a NextSTL tweet.)

"Public Transportation" does not always mean buses and Metrolink, or even para-transit.  It includes walking and bike paths, and A LOT of support services.

Below are some OPTINSTL highlights:

St Louis / St Louis City

Fixed funding contribution to Metro for bus rapid transit route

from downtown St Louis to Chesterfield along I-64. Project

delivery is contingent upon $20 million contribution from

Metro.

Public Transportation

$18.00

$20 Million contribution from Metro!!! HAHAHA!  Oh wait, a minute, this is in Chesterfield, so they will rob some other fund to pay for this.

This is Metro CEO John Nations doing his job to make sure no convenient Metrolink service is available to his hometown.  It's okay if "people" ride buses for two or three hours to come from "urban" neighborhoods to bus tables and clean houses. But he doesn't want to many "people" coming from "urban" neighborhoods quickly and easily, for entertainment and shopping, because, you know how those "people" are.

Nations is pretty open about only getting involved with Metro to resolve the "maid crisis" of the 2009 bus lines cuts.  His unemployed, wealthy constituents were suddenly faced with the prospect of cleaning their own houses, because the maids couldn't get to Chesterfield.

(There are LOTS of unemployed people in Chesterfield, but they are called "stay at home mom's" and "investors".  Being unemployed is only bad if you don't have money.  Being poor is the only true crime in the "Land of the Free", the richest country in the world.)

Of course, it is unlikely that a similar Florissant project will get funded. Metro will have to come up with ANOTHER $20 million.   (Again, once MO DOT has the money, they will do whatever they want with it.)

St Louis / St Louis City

Fixed funding contribution to Metro for the bus rapid transit

route from downtown St Louis to I-270 along West Florissant

Ave and Natural Bridge Road. Project delivery is contingent

upon Metro providing $20 million to complete the

improvement.

Public Transportation

$18.00

Yes, you read that right.  They allocate the same amount to West Florissant as Chesterfield.  They have, at least, twice, and probably three times, the amount of riders waiting along West Florissant as Chesterfield.

Even if MO DOT and Metro and our other brilliant leaders were aware of this, and they should be, their own statistics prove it, I doubt Florissant would get the play it deserves.

And with both of these: NO MORE BUSES! These should be Metrolinks.  This is ridiculous.  Really.  These two projects alone should be enough for public transit riders to vote no!

St Louis / St Louis City

Future light rail station

Public Transportation

$8.90

$8.9 Million.  Why yes, that would be the exact amount of money Cortex needs to rip down the old Central West End Metrolink station and move it a few blocks, so they can "realize their business ideal." Cortex is actually a consortium corporation formed by Barnes Jewish, SLU Medical, Washington University and MOBOT/Monsanto.  (Barnes Jewish is tired of transit riders using their bathrooms and cafeterias.) And this will satisfy the other Cortex proponents that Barnes Jewish isn't unfairly served by Metrolink. 

Cortex won't have to pay one red cent to put their big corporate name on the new Metrolink station stop.

 http://optinstl.blogspot.com/2014/04/citizens-for-modern-transit-more-rich.html 

St Louis / St Louis City

Studies for light rail expansion and funding scenarios for next

phase

Public Transportation

$2.00

$2 million dollars FOR STUDIES.  They did all these same tired studies for the Madison County and St. Charles Proposed Metrolink expansion and what did it get us?  Nothing.  They don't do the right kind of studies, and they don't make public transit for the people that use it most.  Public transit is developed where corporate and construction developers can make the most money, and Metro executives can keep the biggest slush funds for their bonuses. 

We don't need anymore expensive studies.  It is obvious where the light rail needs to go, and we need a plan.  They keep wasting our money with these feasibility and funding scenarios.  They are inept or corrupt or both.

And this NEW streetcar plan! What a joke!  It mostly runs parallel to the Metrolink, and only adds 2 miles of North/South transit, from downtown to Old North.  And who are these people?  Mostly SLU folk, the same lot that is in on Citizens for Modern Transit and part of the Cortex scam, and they are hungry to suck up federal funds:

St Louis City
Provide fixed funding contribution toward phase I of the St Louis Streetcar system. Project delivery is contingent upon St Louis Streetcar Company providing $271.5 million contribution from other sources, including federal funds and rider fees.
Public Transportation
$25.02

I'd love a streetcar in Old North, but the rest of the plan is just crap.  And that $271.5 million that they are going to contribute is all federal funds.  RIDICULOUS!  This is just robbery that should go to a North South Metrolink.  in fact, that is about third of the money needed to complete a light rail system from the tip of North county to the bottom of South County!!

But too many of these people sit on the East West Gateway Council.  They don't care about making public transit better for people that actually ride it the most.  It's all Shoemal, he's not mayor anymore but he is still running public transit into the ground.

More on St. Louis Streetcar:

http://blogs.riverfronttimes.com/dailyrft/2014/01/st_louis_streetcar_proposed_tr.php

http://www.downtownstl.org/docs/StLouisStreetcarFeasibilityStudy-Final.pdf

https://www.facebook.com/stlstreetcar/info

What do we have next? Here is a cleverly disguised $18 million grant to the Loop "Folley Trolley":

St Louis City
Funding for Delmar/Forest Park-DeBaliviere Metrolink station improvements, sidewalk/non-motorized improvements along Hodiamont Ave, Delmar Blvd, De Giverville Ave and Des Peres Ave, and connect Ruth Porter Trail to Forest Park
Sidewalk / Non-Motorized
$18.77

http://optinstl.blogspot.com/2014/03/the-loop-trolley-is-about-getting.html

http://optinstl.blogspot.com/2014/03/the-loop-trolley-sucking-up-more.html

http://optinstl.blogspot.com/2014/03/loop-trolley-police-state.html

There is so much more to get into on this list, and I will add to it as I have the time and investigate, but this should be enough for any voter, particularly transit riders, to vote no on Amendment 7.

You will see more crap like this, as the governments local, state and national try to get support for their insolvency and mismanagement of funds:

http://www.stltoday.com/news/traffic/along-for-the-ride/report-america-s-rural-roads-see-too-many-deadly-crashes/article_36dd7c6f-33ad-5e58-b3d9-c88e772323d4.html

Don't believe the hype.

And, seriously, MO DOT is lame.  This is just one example:

http://www.kmov.com/news/local/MoDOT-has-no-solution-for-asphalt-rising-on-Poplar-Street-Bridge-266838601.html

So is the street services department.  And the coordination with utilities and contractors is beyond lame.  It is downright dangerous!  (Again, this is just one example.)

http://www.kmov.com/news/mobile/Hanley-Hills-residents-concerned-about-dozens-of-deep-trenches-in-city-266822951.html

The people in charge are running our city and state into the ground.  TIME FOR CHANGE!

Start by voting NO on AMENDMENT 7!
 

MORE ON AMENDMENT 7: HIGHWAY ROBBERY BENEFITS ONLY THE CONCRETE AND CONSTRUCTION "CARTELS"

OPTINSTL'S previous post about Amendment 7:
http://optinstl.blogspot.com/2014/06/vote-no-on-amendment-7-proposed.html

The St. Louis Post Dispatch and their St. Louis Today website have been running some really good opinion pieces and articles on the proposed increased sales tax. 
http://www.stltoday.com/news/opinion/columns/the-platform/editorial-modot-s-list-of-shiny-objects-can-t-obscure/article_20186cfd-9edc-5782-bb59-8b4d54dd2f9b.html

Both terms in this post's title, "Highway Robbery" and "Concrete Cartels", come from this brilliant and well-written Op-Ed:
http://www.stltoday.com/news/opinion/stop-missouri-s-highway-robbery/article_68a94d5c-22e8-5af5-b854-a1e0ea14d1b7.html 

And this one is great on who is paying for the "pro" Amendment 7 campaign:
http://www.stltoday.com/news/local/govt-and-politics/kevin-mcdermott/transportation-interests-donated-k-to-key-sales-tax-proponent/article_f41d8c5e-cdbc-584d-820f-ea9e7ec2ffce.html

Many people have written in that what we need to do is increase gasoline tax-- ours is the lowest in the nation! Let the trucking companies that use the highways the most pay for the roads!
http://www.stltoday.com/news/opinion/mailbag/letters-to-the-editor/no-to-raising-missouri-s-transportation-sales-tax/article_ce043f0d-546f-54f9-a27c-d2a3aeb318bc.html

This is great opinion letter, from a transit rider:
http://www.stltoday.com/news/opinion/mailbag/letters-to-the-editor/public-transit-rider-can-t-support-higher-sales-tax/article_87bf77c3-6966-51dc-ab2f-acdd03f577f1.html

And this great piece really spells out the ridiculousness of the few transit related items on the City's wishlist. 
http://www.stltoday.com/news/opinion/mailbag/letters-to-the-editor/slay-gives-city-residents-reason-to-oppose-transportation-tax/article_b4674df1-ea0f-5eaa-b18a-ee691fc711ef.html 

On the project list biking and pedestrian paths are considered "public transit".  So you might see a lot of X marks in the transit column but read the descriptions carefully. The few that actually deal with bus, trains and streetcars are nothing more than government subsidies to private developers, such as the Loop Trolley, McKee's Northside "Redevelopment" and a Lindell street car that runs parallel to the Metrolink!
https://stlouis-mo.gov/government/departments/mayor/documents/loader.cfm?csModule=security/getfile&pageid=402539

MO DOT has released their final "wishlist" draft, but it isn't readily available to the public, which is just OUTRAGEOUS.  We are being asked to pay for something, but don't get to see the details? A reporter from Associated Press had to file a Sunshine Act request to get the project, and even then, he only reports on what is in it, we do not get to see the actual list.
http://www.stltoday.com/news/local/metro/missouri-updates-project-list-for-transportation-tax/article_a5dfaf8f-496c-5e1e-9959-a05bd4466c6a.html

And even if we did see the wishlist, that is all it is.  Once they get the money they will do whatever they want with it.  Let's not forget April 2010's Prop A.  It was going to "save" Metro.  And look what they have done with it.  Nothing.  They get the 11 million a year from the city for the Metrolink, but County Executive Charlie Dooley controls the purse strings on the $78 million the county collects.  And even if he is does allot some to Metro, they are still insolvent!

SAY NO TO HIGHWAY ROBBERY!!!!

MORE ON AMENDMENT 7:
http://www.stltoday.com/news/opinion/mailbag/letters-to-the-editor/transportation-tax-is-the-wrong-means-to-the-wrong-ends/article_8013b86e-ced2-5e7a-980b-520559989dec.html

http://www.stltoday.com/news/opinion/mailbag/letters-to-the-editor/increase-the-gasoline-tax-to-pay-for-publicly-maintained-roads/article_05cce727-f345-53d6-8481-84c8f87d6dcb.html

http://www.stltoday.com/news/national/nixon-opposes-missouri-transportation-sales-tax/article_c1ced8f4-3ee6-55db-b05f-269c0ac54195.html

VOTE NO ON AMENDMENT 7, PROPOSED STATEWIDE SALES TAX INCREASE

EDIT: St. Louis Today posted this great article on Sunday, June 22nd:
http://www.stltoday.com/news/local/govt-and-politics/political-fix/coming-to-a-tv-screen-near-you-missouri-s-sales/article_2b9096df-ce44-5307-9cd2-d1bd34df70bf.html

I have more to say about this topic, but this is the text of the statement to our "leaders" and the leaflet I will be taking to the open hearing tomorrow at the Central Library.  (There is also a hearing today at UMSL and one on Thursday in Cottleville. http://news.stlpublicradio.org/post/modot-kicks-public-meetings-transportation-tax-list)
 

17 June 2014

Dear St. Louis City and County, and Missouri “leaders”:

     I find it reprehensible that this state is asking its citizens for MORE MONEY! Especially for “roads and bridges”! One thing we have quite enough of here in St. Louis is road, highway, and bridge construction. We need improved public transit, especially in the areas that use it the most. We need a metrolink that runs from north county to south county. We need high speed rail connecting Saint Louis to Jefferson City, Kansas City, and Columbia.

     These “wish lists” are just fantasy to sell this tax hike to voters. And even the fantasy allocates only $12 million of the $500 million budget to public transit. Once you get our money you will do whatever you want with it. We were told in April of 2010 that Prop A was going to save Metro. In 2013 Prop A collected $78 million in the county and $11 million in the city. Yet all that money has done is pay off the interest on Metro's outrageous debt for the Shrewbury Metrolink extension. Fares are being increased in July and Metro faces continued insolvency.

     And you didn't tell us, back in 2010, that County Executive Charlie Dooley could withhold that $78 million he collects on Prop A and allocate it instead to more roads and bridges. And let's just consider what all this construction is really about: making wealthy companies like Clayco wealthier. Which, of course, makes their contributions to your political campaign funds larger, but does absolutely nothing for the public.

     Why are we being asked to make the already wealthy contractors and developers and engineers of this city even wealthier, when by U-6 numbers we have 10% unemployment, and our schools are failing? I keep hearing about how “attracting talented young professionals” is the key to St. Louis economic growth. This is not only ridiculous, it is offensive.

     Obviously, you do not think that the youth of St. Louis have the capability to become “talented young professionals” with an “entreupreneurial spirit.” If you did you would save our schools, create jobs and internship opportunities, invest in more day care, and give the same investment incentives and tax breaks to local small businesses that you give to these big corporations (who often put the locals out of business!).

     If you believed in your citizens, you would be working to abolish right-to-work legislation, increase the state's minimum wage, and make this a better state for workers. Low wage jobs are the only part of the job sector that is growing. I don't trust a state that makes it more difficult to get unemployment so that it can use the unemployment fund to pay off its debts, and keeps milking sales tax like it is a cash cow.

     We, the people, deserve real leaders. We do not need a County Executive that gives a museum director a half a million dollar a year salary. We do not need a Mayor that governs only the southern, “white” half of the city. We do not need a Metro CEO that supports “right to work”, refuses to negotiate a new union contract with his drivers, is paid $250,000 a year, and gives $5 million a year in “contributions to outside entities.”

     Everything about this city and state's “economic development” is backward and mismanaged (and possibly corrupt). If you can't increase the well being of the people currently living here, with the vast amounts of money we are already giving you, why should we trust you with more money? Why would more people want to move here?

     What are you doing to make the quality of our lives better? For the WHOLE city, not just the middle and upper class citizens. What are you doing to close the $32,000 a year income gap, the “Delmar Divide”, where the median income in north St. Louis is just $8,000 a year, and the south is $40,000?
     The northern half of this city is treated like a reservation or concentration camp, filled with hostile natives, incarcerated by lack of job opportunity, poverty, crumbling neighborhoods, and miserable public transit options. We don't need more Ballpark Villages and Cortex communities. All this does is shift the wealth, it doesn't create more. (Cortex is especially insulting. That they were given DOT TIGER funding, when the obvious outcome of this development is gentrification. And $9 million of taxpayer money to tear down the existing CWE Metrolink station to build a new one a few blocks away? OUTRAGEOUS!)

     We don't need more roads and bridges. We don't need another sales tax increase. We need leaders that can effectively manage the money they have now, and who address the real problems facing our city and state.  

THE PEOPLE SAY “NO” TO AMENDMENT 7!!! 

 

VOTE NO ON “AMENDMENT 7”

THE PROPOSED MISSOURI STATEWIDE SALES TAX INCREASE ON THE BALLOT AUGUST 2014 !

Your vote counts in local and state elections! And even if you cannot vote, you are still a sales tax paying citizen of this state! And St. Louis city and county already have the highest sales tax rates in the state!

Call your local and state representatives and tell them you are against Amendment 7. Tell them you what we need to make this city and state more economically viable! MAKE YOUR VOICE HEARD!

WHAT ABOUT OUR SCHOOLS?! Where is all that lottery money going? Why are they asking us for more money for highways and bridges when our kids are suffering in unaccredited and crowded school districts? Where is the funding for after-school and youth programs? Internship opportunities? Scholarships?

WHAT ABOUT PUBLIC TRANSIT AND HIGH SPEED RAIL? In 2010 voters agreed to Prop A to “save” Metro, and yet they are still insolvent! They are raising fares on July 1^st and have not put in a single foot of new Metrolink track in 8 years! We need a statewide speed rail system that links St. Louis, Kansas City, Jefferson City, and Columbia. We don't need more highways!

WHAT ABOUT HOUSING? One hundred thousand homes and lots sit vacant in St. Louis city and county, many bank or city/county owned, and yet we have thousands of homeless. The problem is much larger than just 26 houses in the Ranken Technical College neighborhood! And at the least the vacant lots could be turned into urban farms or “edible” parks, and playgrounds!

WHAT ABOUT JOBS? We need more jobs, and better jobs! More job training! A higher minimum wage! More protection for workers! Stronger unions! More daycare!

GET INVOLVED! THIS IS YOUR MONEY! THIS IS YOUR CITY! THIS IS YOUR STATE!

Governor Jay Nixon: (573) 751-3222

Mayor Francis Slay: (314) 534-2009   mayorslay@mayorslay.com

Board of Aldermen: (314) 622-3287       

County Executive Charlie Dooley: (314) 615-7016

Learn more about Amendment 7 and the proposed projects:

http://www.stltoday.com/news/opinion/columns/the-platform/editorial-ten-good-reasons-to-vote-against-the-transportation-sales/article_48a47c71-3a4c-5e0e-b7c2-59d45740bf86.html

http://nextstl.com/2014/05/st-louis-city-produces-project-list-possible-sales-tax-revenue/

http://nextstl.com/2014/06/modot-produces-draft-sales-tax-transportation-project-list/

Join the movement for better public transit: This leaflet was produced by Occupy Public Transportation in St. Louis (OPTINSTL). If you ride public transit, consider boycotting Metro in protest of the fare increase! 

JULY 1^st! STRIKE CITYWIDE! DON'T RIDE!

please print and share this leaflet

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SALES TAX IS THE NEW CASH COW

http://news.stlpublicradio.org/post/proposed-missouri-transportation-tax-headed-ballot

Instead of taxing corporations, and while "business developments" like Ballpark Village are being given salex tax "credits" (Ballpark Village gets to keep 17 million dollars worth of sales tax collected), the public is continually being asked to pay for more and more, with less and less say in what the money is used for.

Let's talk about my one of my favorite issues: public toilets.

Going for a weekend vacation 2 hour drive along a highway?  There are rest stops with public toilets. 

Going on a DAILY 2 hour bus trip, one way, to your job?  No public toilets.

The same developers and construction companies are going to get this money, and they are going to get richer.  They will be using that money to fund campaigns of politicians that will support more "transportation projects."

It's not just their fault, though.  It's ours, too.  We should be telling them what to do.  NOT ASKING, TELLING.  It is our money. 

If someone stole $416 from you, you would call the police and report the robbery.  At the minimum, that is what you are giving the government in sales tax every year.  (Assuming all you buy is basic food and necessities at $100 a week for a year, and pay 8 percent on those purchases.)

Call Governor Nixon, Mayor Slay, and your local Alderman and let them know you are AGAINST any further increases to sales tax.

METRO IS JUGGLING A LOT OF BONDS

I've been going through the audit report Claire McCaskill had done on Metro after the Shrewsbury lawsuit fiasco.

http://optinstl.blogspot.com/2014/04/more-on-metro-lawsuit-against-original.html

I wish there was some sort of honorary degree in Public Transit I could get from a university. Just reading through the legalese in these things is ridiculous.

I admit I have to read slowly, and re-read a lot. But it is not completely incomprehensible. Let's look at this paragraph from page 8 of the document, which is page 12 of the PDF web page file:

http://auditor.mo.gov/press/2008-58.pdf

The Cross County Extension Project exceeded the original project budget by nearly $126 million and resulted in the issuance of an additional $150 million in bonds in 2005 to finance the project and $20.8 million in bonds in 2007 to refinance a portion of the debt service payments due in 2008 and 2009. The total debt service costs over the life of these additional bonds will exceed $293.5 million and will not be fully paid until 2036. The additional debt service must be funded by the Proposition M sales tax and as a result Proposition M sales tax funds available for funding operations will be reduced. A proposal to increase the Proposition M sales tax rate by ¼ cent had been placed on the February 2008 ballot in St. Louis County. However, that proposal was removed from the ballot by county officials following the unfavorable outcome of the Metro lawsuit against the CCC. Also, in early 2008, Metro was informed that St. Louis County would reduce Metro's funding from the ½ cent transportation sales tax by $8.5 million for fiscal year 2009 and $10 million for fiscal year 2010.

Now, those $150 million in extra bonds is a problem. Not only did they go way over budget, end up in litigation, lose the court case, end up paying a lot in legal fees and settlements, they also created a bunch of debt for themselves (a bond is essentially a way to borrow money, a big IOU).

And some of these bonds were to refinance the debt service payments due in 2008 and 2009 on other bonds!

They planned to repay this IOU (the "additional debt service") by Proposition M, which actually never made it to the ballot. (So, I was wrong that Prop A was a bond measure re-packaged to voters, the Transportation Bond failed. Prop A was just a quarter cent increase and three years later version of Prop M.)

And it seems that any monies that come from the County on Transportation Sales Tax IS decided by the County Executive. In both 2009 and 2010 they are looking at increasing reductions in the amount of money they can ask for.

So that explains A LOT about Prop A.

It also explains why Metro was hit so hard by the sub-prime mortgage fiasco that hit all the banks, and in turn, all bonds. The report continues with this:

As of April 30, 2008, Metro reported holding cash and investments of approximately $131 million and various trustees held $41 million. In March 2008, Metro prepared an analysis of cash and investments that indicated about $71 million would be available to fund operating deficits that were expected in fiscal years 2008, 2009, and 2010, if additional revenue sources could not be identified. The analysis predicted that cash and investments available to fund operations would be about $12 million by the end of fiscal year 2010. Also as of April 30, 2008, Metro and its trustees were holding $28.2 million in Missouri Higher Education Loan Authority (MOHELA) securities that they have been unable to sell due to disruptions in the financial markets. The remainder of Metro's cash and investments, about $72.8 million held by Metro and its trustees, are restricted and unavailable to fund operating deficits.

As early as April 2002, Metro's former Chief Executive Officer (CEO) informed the St. Louis County Council that Metro was facing serious shortfalls in operating the region's mass transit system. In the fall of 2006 and spring of 2007, the former CEO and executives of St. Louis County met with legislative leadership to discuss new state funding to abate the pending financial shortfall. In May 2008, Metro adopted the budget for fiscal year 2009 that included a projected budget deficit of $10.8 million for fiscal year 2009, and also included $8.3 million in budgeted "other revenue sources" which were described as "the amount needed to balance the budget. The additional needed revenue could come from a successful tax referendum in St. Louis County, passenger fare increases, and/or revenues not yet determined. If no other revenues are identified, service reductions will be planned and implemented" during fiscal year 2009. The budget also projected a deficit of $45.8 million for fiscal year 2010. The planned spending for capital improvements was also reduced from $360.6 million in fiscal year 2009 to $68.6 million in fiscal year 2010. Metro has scheduled a series of public hearings regarding various options for fare increases that may become effective in January 2009. Those options range from increasing the cost of all passes and transfers to increasing all fares, passes, transfers and cutting service.

The second is obscene, considering what the former CEO was paid. In 2002 they KNEW BEFORE THE FINANCIAL CRISIS that they were already FACING SHORTFALL!

What did they do? They jacked up the public for more sales tax and higher fares.

SOUND FAMILIAR? (Yes, City voters, you have ANOTHER Transportation tax in the coming election. Alderman Lewis Reed was conducting a survey about it in the Missouri History Museum a few weeks ago. The survey asked voters to choose what they wanted to spend it on. Metro was one of the choices. I haven't had a chance to look into the City yet at all, but I bet that money doesn't go straight to Metro for basic operating expenses. I bet there are a lot of restrictions on it. And Council and Commission approvals. The people they should be asking, the riders, are not even considered except as an afterthought.)

Metro has all the earmarks of Lehman Brothers in September of 2008.

People that think the current system is "doing the best it can" and "Metro is similar to other Transit Agencies in cities of a similar size" need to consider the lesson of Lehman Brothers. What they did was no worse than Bear Stearns.

Metro might be doing what everyone else is doing, but that doesn't mean they are doing what they SHOULD BE doing.

Metro needs to be re-structured. It needs another public audit. REAL SOLUTIONS need to be found. Those solutions might be unique to St. Louis. Metro likes to brag that it is the only public transit agency of its' kind in the country (still trying to figure out exactly what this means-- something about the way they are structured and the partnership with the two states). If it is the only one of its' kind it shouldn't be too difficult to actually make it work for the people that ride it.

And actually, right now, it is not working for anyone.

DEAR COUNTY EXECUTIVE CHARLIE DOOLEY

Mr. Dooley:

You are lucky to have your staff.  They believe in you.  I don't.  I have heard too many stories about you that include the words "scandal".

But today, after a number of calls to your office asking for accounting of the monies from Prop A, I was finally connected to someone.

Probably because I called the MO Department of Revenue and asked for the sales tax collected.  DOR sent me a report with the breakdown for 2011, 2012, 2013 and the first three months of 2014.

Prop A has collected about 78 million dollars a year for 11, 12, and 13. (Apparently it was not a bond measure, it was just revenue.  Which makes a lot more sense, and I wish someone had explained that earlier.)

I called your office, Mr. Dooley, to find out how much of that went to Metro.  A man explained to me that Metro has to submit a request for funds, and the request is put before the county board.  The man was not certain if all of the money collected was for Metro or not.  But apparently, either way, it doesn't go straight to Metro for them to decide what to do with it.

The people in your office also went out of their way to tell me what a great guy you are and how you only have the public interest at heart.

I hope that is true.  (EDIT: It is possible that all of the smear comes from former Metro CEO Larry Salci, although a lot of his allegations against you do ring true: http://optinstl.blogspot.com/2014/04/more-on-metro-lawsuit-against-original.html    EDIT THE EDIT:  I am going to give you the "Hollywood movie" version of the benefit of the doubt, too, that occurred to me as I walked in a truly cinematic St. Louis sunset, that you are the beleaguered good guy, trying to work the corruption for the people, and being vilified for it.  I don't know that I feel that way, but it did occur to me, that you could be pushing your guys because there was no other trustworthy option. But for that to be true, you would need to make financial affairs much more transparent, and available to the public in a way that is understandable to the average person.  Taxpayers should not need an advanced degree to understanding where their money is being spent.)


If that is true I promise to apologize.  If it is true, than I hope you will work with the public to make sure that Metro is spending its' funds wisely and well.  I hope you will look at some of the suggestions I have made for improving transit and that you will do what you can to make this a city with a world class public transportation system.

http://optinstl.blogspot.com/2014/04/what-metro-is-doing-with-your-money-and.html

http://optinstl.blogspot.com/2014/04/call-for-public-audit-of-metro-bi-state.html

http://optinstl.blogspot.com/2014/04/prop-what-you-voted-on.html

http://optinstl.blogspot.com/2014/04/again-metro-has-long-history-of.html

http://optinstl.blogspot.com/2014/04/dear-federal-transit-authority.html

I hope you will encourage voters to ask more questions about what our money is being used for, and to educate the public on what the right questions are.

I will leave this space below to be filled in with the numbers on where these monies went, including a list of what Metro requested.

From MO DOR, Tax Type 383, effective July 2010:

Total collected, 2011: $ 78,047,485.91

Total collected, 2012: $ 76,835,569.43

Total collected, 2013: $ 78,780,868.07

We pay very high sales tax rates: http://www.stltoday.com/business/local/sales-taxes-in-st-louis-relentlessly-on-the-rise/article_41ecea42-069a-5b6d-9736-1c02d71225dc.html

This does not include the .25% collected solely for Metrolink:  
http://ww5.stlouisco.com/taxes/muntax.html

Three principal sources of municipal revenue in St. Louis County are sales taxes, property taxes and taxes on utilities. Rates vary among the 91 cities in St. Louis County, but all cities receive a substantial portion of their revenues from these sources.

Sales taxes: Retail sales in St. Louis County are subject to state sales tax (4.225%), a transportation sales tax (0.5%), a mass transit sales tax for Metrolink (0.25%) a children's services sales tax (0.25%),and a Regional Parks and Trails sales tax (0.1%) plus a one percent (1%) local sales tax that is distributed among the 91 municipalities and St. Louis County. St. Louis County's share is based on the unincorporated population of St. Louis County. Thus, the base retail sales tax rate throughout St. Louis County is 6.325%. Local Sales Tax rates are monitored by the Missouri Department of Revenue, which is responsible for the collection of sales taxes.

Sales tax distribution: A complex set of rules governs the distribution of the one percent local sales tax in St. Louis County. Some cities, designated point-of-sale or "A" cities, retain most of the sales tax revenues collected from businesses within their boundaries. These are cities that had had local sales taxes before the countywide levy was enacted. Other cities, designated pool or "B" cities, share revenues with others in the pool on a per capita basis. Unincorporated St. Louis County is part of the pool. Legislation passed in 1993 provides for some sharing of revenues by point-of-sale cities: a sliding scale is used to calculate amounts contributed to the pool by point-of-sale cities. Finally, areas annexed by point-of-sale cities after 1995 remain in the sales tax pool. As a result, some cities have both point-of-sale and pool portions and are thus designated "A/B" cities.
Local sales tax rates: In addition to the one percent local retail sales tax that is collected countywide, there are five local option sales taxes that individual cities may levy. (1) The 1993 revenue reform legislation allows cities to levy an additional one quarter percent tax. Twelve and one-half (12.5) percent of that additional money is shared with the members of the one cent pool. (2) Cities may levy an additional 0.5 percent for capital improvements projects. For this tax, cities elect to participate in a revenue-sharing pool or retain 85 percent of revenue generated by this tax. (3) Another 0.5 percent sales tax may be levied for park and stormwater projects. (4) A .25 percent fire protection service sales tax for cities with fire protection responsibilities. (5) Up to 0.5% sales tax for economic development purposes If all of the above taxes are levied by a given city, the total retail sales tax rate is 8.325 percent. In addition, Transportation Development Districts can levy up to 1% in sales tax, and Community Improvement Districts can levy up to 1% in sales tax.
Property taxes: Most but not all St. Louis County municipalities levy a property tax for municipal purposes. Part of the reason for the wide range of municipal rates from zero to $1.27 is that twenty cities have their own fire departments paid for out of city revenues while most of the rest obtain their fire protection and ambulance service from fire protection districts which have separate property tax levies. A few cities use municipal revenues to contract for fire service from neighboring municipalities or fire protection districts. Cities also vary as to what services they pay for with city revenues; trash collection and parks and recreation services in some cases are provided at city expense and in many cases are not. Most cities tax personal as well as real property. Those which do not are indicated in the table as excluding personal property.
Utilities gross receipts taxes: Cities in Missouri are authorized to levy these taxes on utility bills paid to electric, gas, telephone, water and sewer companies. Cities have not levied them on sewer charges, however. For cities there is no maximum rate. Villages levy these charges on the electric utility only at a maximum rate of two percent. Some cities have different rates on different utilities, and some have different rates for residential and non-residential customers.

MORE ON THE METRO LAWSUIT AGAINST THE ORIGINAL SHREWSBURY CONTRACTORS

The more I look into the Shrewsbury Metrolink extension, the more I want to see EVERY SINGLE Metro financial transaction.

I didn't live here then, but there is SUCH an obvious link between this fiasco and the Metro financial crisis in 2009 that resulted in 24 bus lines being shut down and a 30% reduction in services.

Look at this audit: http://auditor.mo.gov/press/2008-58.pdf
(This is the report, I think, that Salci tried to block McCaskill from conducting.)

Please, public transit rider, read this article.  It is VERY revealing about how Metro does it's dirty business.

https://enr.construction.com/news/transportation/archives/060124.asp

Here's a few more:

http://www.stlamerican.com/news/local_news/article_4ba7ba62-9d73-5509-be3a-fa0be34ab4e7.html?mode=jqm

http://www.dowdbennett.com/tag/trial-practice/page/2/

http://blogs.riverfronttimes.com/dailyrft/2008/12/another_larry_salci_trainwreck_metro_metrolink_colorado_railcar_st_louis.php

We are "clowns" as the former Metro CEO says, for letting guys like him run our transit agency:
http://www.stlamerican.com/business/local_business/article_b1f3a6ef-3183-5bb6-bfe1-bafb3c13586a.html?mode=jqm

http://www.stlouiscnr.com/features/article/kwames_tony_thompson_when_being_right_is_not_enough/

http://www.constructionequipmentguide.com/St-Louis-MetroLink-Takes-Shape-Despite-Delays/5874/

If further investigation leads me to conclude that all the scandal directed at Dooley's office comes from Salci I will rescind my accusations:
http://www.stltoday.com/news/local/metro/ex-metro-chief-cites-st-louis-county-pressure-on-parking/article_22de1ea0-3ccd-5013-abc1-15b8b818a568.html

OH WOW, and this one on Salci-- just WOW, what an a**hole!:
http://www.riverfronttimes.com/2005-08-03/news/metro-messy/

From the article:
In August 2004, in a move transit officials call unprecedented, he fired and sued the Cross County Collaborative, a group of four firms charged with designing the 8.2-mile MetroLink extension that will connect Forest Park and Shrewsbury by way of Clayton. The CCC countersued Metro three months later.
Then, earlier this year, Salci raised eyebrows by recommending that Metro refuse an audit requested by state auditor Claire McCaskill. Salci said it would jeopardize the agency's lawsuit. Salci lost the skirmish, and Missouri auditors are expected this week to begin a year-long financial audit to determine why cost overruns on the $550 million MetroLink project might total $126 million. The completion date for the new line was scheduled for May but has been pushed back to the fall of 2006.

Should have known he worked for Gephardt before Metro!
No more of these fancy businessmen and politcians as Metro CEOs!

Don't use this man's consulting services, EVER! http://www.salciconsult.com/Contact.aspx

METRO REFUSES TO SUPPLY THE PUBLIC WITH A BOND WE VOTED ON, THE CONTENTS OF PROPOSITION A

So Shirley**, at Metro, refused to take my call today and said that I had to file in writing to get a copy of Proposition A, the bond that we the public were told was a half cent sales tax increase to go to Metro.  (Actually it was a transportation bond, the one that failed in 2008 and was repackaged to sound better.)

(See this: http://optinstl.blogspot.com/2014/04/call-for-public-audit-of-metro-bi-state.html

I called the nice people at the Board of Elections.  They can only supply me with what was on the ballot.   They told me Metro "should have a copy."

Ridiculous.

Just called Charlie Dooley's office.  They have to get back to me.  Apparently after something gets voted on in St. Louis they hide it from the public.

I told the lady at the County Executive office that not only did I want the actual language of the Prop A, but I was also gonna need a break down of how much money that half cent has added up to, and how much of those funds made it to Metro.

St. Louis PLEASE!  WE HAVE TO START OCCUPYING THIS CITY AND ASKING THE RIGHT QUESTIONS!

THIS CITY SHOULD NOT BE RUN BY THE LOCAL 1% GOOD OLE BOY NETWORK!

WE VOTED ON THIS BECAUSE WE WANTED THE TAX TO GO TO TRANSIT!

OPTINSTL NOW!!!!

**Shirley made $55,000 four years ago.  Wonder if she has had a raise?  Wonder if all these Metro employees appreciate the fact that the transit riding public is who they answer to?  Shirley, WE pay your salary.

http://www.stltoday.com/news/local/govt-and-politics/metro-transit-agency-employee-payroll/html_1396d59c-088b-11e0-ad1c-0017a4a78c22.html?appSession=066100520353457

Bryant, Shirley A

Legal Counsel

Paralegal/Specialist Exempt

$55,076.75

WHAT METRO IS DOING WITH YOUR MONEY- AND WHY PROP A WAS NOT ABOUT METRO

EDIT: The court case looks like it was taken out of court and settled privately.  This seems to be common knowledge in the community and among former and current Metro employees, but finding it the huge pile of Metro litigation may take me awhile. EDIT EDIT: Part of the story below is the "telephone line" of third party information.  The suit paid out 8 million to Cross Country, but it appears Metro's overall costs were $39 million.  Still trying to find the contractors that were turned away- which looks like it was rolled up in the Mokun suit in 2010.  It is a tangled web, but I will unweave it.  http://www.dowdbennett.com/news/jury-orders-transit-agency-to-pay-the-firms-it-sued/

Hey St. Louis, remember back in 2010 when Metro told you to vote on Prop. A for the half cent sales tax for the buses and trains?

You know, that EXTRA half cent they needed, on top of the quarter cent from the city and half cent from the county that they were ALREADY getting?

Well, that was just a big fat lie.  That bond was not for PUBLIC TRANSIT.  It was for TRANSPORTATION, which includes bridges, roads, and other stuff that Metro has nothing to do with.

Why did Metro agree to pull the wool over your eyes?

To cozy up to the County Executive Officer.  That's the government official that actually controls Metro's checkbook.

Metro needed 42 million dollars a year to operate (they need 62 million now).  That includes the $250,000 a year paid in straight salary to former CEO Robert Baer and current CEO John Nations.  And the private company car costs, and  free membership to Missouri Athletic Club, and all the other perks they get for running Metro transit into the ground. (I don't know, but my estimate that Nations' benefits- including health care, pensions, and other perks like the car cost another $50-78,000 a year.  At least.)

A Metro CEO makes more than Mayor Slay $131,000; Slay's Chief of Staff, $156,000; Governor Nixon, $133,000; or County Executive Office Charlie Dooley, $144,000.  (And all those people are way overpaid for the work they do, too.)

You knew, didn't you, that political ambition is the only reason a man like Nations goes after the CEO position at Metro?  Nations apparently makes no secret of the fact that the ONLY reason he is at Metro is to build his campaign for a seat in the senate.  I have been asking for 2 weeks and found this out, so you folks that have been living here this whole time already knew that.

And let's not forget that the only reason Nations got involved was that the buses to Chesterfield were faltering and all the maids and busboys couldn't get to their jobs.

That 42 million a year figure also includes the $190,000 a year salary that every other person at Metro with a CEO title makes.  (I was right, that firing all the executives would make up that 2.5 million a year they want from their customers in fare increases.)  And the $100,000 a year salary to other executives.

So, back to Prop A and that 42 million a year in basic operating expenses.  See, Metro had gotten some big government grants for train development.  Now, we have already established that Metro really only wants to serve the wealthy, white suburbs and get more of those people to park and ride to Cardinals games.

So they set off for Alton and St. Charles/St. Peters, where the Metrolink was shut down by all the racist white people that live in those areas and went to the Town Hall meetings.  (Not saying all the people in those neighborhoods are racist, but obviously there either weren't enough of them that wanted a Metrolink.)

They had to spend that money or lose it, which is when Richard Gephardt stepped in and the Shrewsbury Metrolink extension was put in.

But you see, Metro hired some minority contractors, apparently mostly for hauling away debris from the construction sites, and when these black men showed up with their trucks to do the job they were hired for THEY WERE NOT ALLOWED TO DO THEIR JOB.

"Go away, Black Man."

So the contractors fought back with a lawsuit and WON 39 MILLION DOLLARS.

Bye-bye to almost an entire year's operating budget.  The County Executive Office, Charlie Dooley, refused to write Metro another check to cover the loss.

Somehow, the Good Ole Boy Network managed to hide all this from the press, or if it was covered, it was buried.  (I can't find any news coverage of this... YET.)

Metro decided to pressure their existing staff into working overtime, instead of hiring more drivers and Metrolink operators.  (Cheaper to pay overtime than pay for hiring and training, and benefits and pensions, for the new drivers they needed, etc.)

The bus drivers did not want to work more hours.  (I am sure that 40 hours a week driving a Metro bus is about all any sane person can handle!)  So Metro had to cut 24 bus line and 20-30% of Metro's other services (paratransit, special event shuttles, etc).

(People that don't ride public transit- this next part  is about you, too!)

So, along comes Prop A.  Metro hawked it to the public as a "Public Transit" bond, NOT what it really was, that is, a "Transportation" bond, in exchange for some more cash from Mr. Dooley.

At Mr. Dooley's discretion.

(I have not been able to find the text of Prop A, only the marketing propaganda written about it to get voter's to pass it.  This link does not even have the text of the Bond measure, and sites only news articles and opinion pieces. And that is not a mistake.  That is the Good Ole Boy Network in operation.  But if you read it carefully, look at the words "metro" and "Metro" and the vague wording.  This bond was all about "metro" and not very much about "Metro".  Detractors, feel free to prove me wrong by providing me with the ACTUAL BOND LANGUAGE.  OR, MR. DOOLEY, PLEASE PROVIDE THE PUBLIC WITH A BREAKDOWN OF HOW THAT MONEY IS BEING SPENT!)

Now, when Metro went to get all those bus lines back, they re-routed them.  They held Town Hall meetings (how many showed up at each? I would bet less than 40 people at each meeting).  They said "hey how about we run the bus lines this way?" and the people agreed.

Which is how Metro re-routed all the bus lines to the Metrolink, making many people's trips LONGER (I am one of them).

Metro needs to be separated from Bi-State Development Agency.  Metro needs to be about Public Transportation and NOT about CEO senatorial ambitions, and funneling government funds to the Good Ole Boy Network, and acquiring real estate.

WAKE UP ST. LOUIS! YOU HAVE BEEN ROBBED!

OCCUPY PUBLIC TRANSPORTATION IN ST. LOUIS!

EDIT: FROM METRO'S 2009 Report, page 14:

Missouri Sources

. Funding for Missouri projects comes from the City of St. Louis, St. Louis

County and the Missouri Department of Transportation (“MoDOT”). The City of St. Louis and

St. Louis County collect revenue from ½ cent and a ¼ cent local sales taxes. Both the City

and the County appropriate all of their receipts from the ¼ cent sales tax to Metro. The City of

St. Louis appropriates virtually all of its revenues from the ½ cent sales tax to Metro. St. Louis

County splits revenue collected from the ½ cent sales tax between Metro and funding road

and bridge projects within the county. The County appropriated approximately $40 million to

Metro in FY 2009. From FY 2002 through FY 2008, the County’s ½ cent sales tax

appropriation to Metro was indexed with the Consumer Price Index. At least two percent of

the appropriations to Metro from the ½ cent sales tax must be used for transportation for

developmentally disadvantaged persons. The balance is usually required to fund Missouri

operations. MoDOT provides Metro with limited operating and FTA discretionary capital

assistance.

Still going through the report-- but the B.S. about Prop A is actually "hiding right out in the open" in that paragraph.


EDIT: These records are from 2010, and you have to search by individual names, but here it is:
http://www.stltoday.com/news/local/govt-and-politics/metro-transit-agency-employee-payroll/html_1396d59c-088b-11e0-ad1c-0017a4a78c22.html

Robert Joseph Baer, CEO, John Nations predecessor: $190,000

Ray Friem: Chief Oper Ofcr-Transit Serv/Chief Operations Officer $174,350.00

Jessica Mefford Miller:  Chief of System planning and development: $86,000.00

Bus driver I knew the name of: $43,784.00


Still looking into these matters: http://stlouis.cbslocal.com/2012/05/01/former-metro-ceo-says-dooley-adminstration-meddled-with-metro-contracts/

http://m.stlamerican.com/news/political_eye/article_77825bd0-5d5b-11e3-923b-0019bb2963f4.html?mode=jqm

http://photographyisnotacrime.com/2013/11/07/st-louis-metrolink-claims-video-justifying-arres/ 

EDIT: http://blogs.riverfronttimes.com/dailyrft/2010/04/former_st_louis_mayor_sues_metro_freeman_bosley_jr.php