Leppert Snubs Hunt From Leadership
Submitted by Allen Gwinn on Wed, 09/12/2007 - 07:32.
In what may underscore Mayor Tom Leppert's frustration with Dallas City Council Member Angela Hunt, and her petition to restrict a high-speed tollroad down the middle of the Trinity River, Leppert has tossed Hunt from all city committee leadership positions.
Angela Hunt: Breath of Sanity
I'm from Oregon, but I've had family continuously in Texas since the 1850s. In the 1970s Portland, Oregon scrapped a planned freeway in favor of light rail and other mass transit programs. Portland is now one of the most livable cities in the US.
And as for the traffic problem in Downtown Dallas that I recently heard Mayor Leppert mention on one of the local TV news programs, I don't know what his eyesight is, but mine is 20-20. I've been in Downtown Dallas at various times of the day from before 6AM to after midnight over the last 18 months. Compared to other large cities, Dallas has no traffic problem in the downtown core area. Anyone who has ever been in Downtown Seattle knows bad traffic! NYC is thinking of copying central London's idea of congestion pricing in parts of Manhattan because of the traffic. I'm sure some in NYC would love to have the "traffic problem" that our Mayor thinks we have!
More roads only beget more cars on them. Mass Transit is the answer - a toll road inside of a flood plain (not to mention the levees) is NOT the answer! I can only pray that a majority of Dallas voters are smart enough to side with Councilwoman Hunt and not her toll road crazy colleagues.
[Ed Note: I agree with you that there needs to be a philosophical change, and the city staff probably needs to do a better job of communicating with council/public. However, Dallas is a completely different city when it comes to transportation. We're much more spread out and people must travel further distances to "get home."
But I'm not sold on putting a tollroad down the middle of what was to be a nice city park.
The only thing I'm hearing from "Leppert, Kirk and Company" is fearmongering and back-door-isms using city staff to raise money for propaganda campaigns.
Let's see what the next couple of weeks bring.]
Bus/Light Rail
Yes, Dallas is full of sprawl due to a total lack of vision on the part of city leaders in Dallas, the suburbs, and the governor. I'd love to get home on a bus or light rail instead of sitting in my car for an hour adding to the global warming problem, and I totally agree that the more roads that are built, the more congested we will become.
The rest of the world moved past the "build more roads" solutions decades ago. The DART light rail in Plano was filled in 2-3 days after it opened. Does that give anyone a CLUE?
Since the governor is using Bush science to delude himself on the toxic air problem in DFW, the only solutions will have to come from local leadership. Building more tollroads is not a solution. The extension of the Dallas North Tollroad farther north is another example of short-sighted stupidity.
[Ed Note: Oh no you aren't! We're not dragging Dallas.Org into the global warming debate! We could, however, get into the tollroad-overall debate.]
Hunt Making Life Miserable?
Angela Hunt is going out of her way to make life miserable for everyone on the Council while she chases after windmills.
What a colossal waste of money for something the voters already approved.
Good for Leppert!
[Ed Note: Funny, but I never saw such a tollroad running down the middle of the river between the levies when I voted for the project 10 years ago. Speaking of that, where is the park? The boats? The picnics? Maybe Hunt's not chasing windmills at all.]
Never Voted for Tollway
I agree, we NEVER voted for a TOLLWAY. How many people picnic along the George Bush Turnpike? How many people walk beside the North Dallas Tollway?
It is not a waste of time. It is a wake up call to the little group of power brokers that their days are ending.
Leppert showed what a little man he is.
He even violated Sun Tsu's credo of keeping your enemies closer.
He should have showered her with attention.
Instead, he punishes her. That is okay. We are keeping tabs on every thing he does.
[Ed Note: We sure are keeping tabs! There's lots more to come on the tollroad subject. We'll at least give folks some questions to ask.]
An Ozone Picnic
I love the analogy of sitting beneath George Bush or the Tollway and having a picnic. The air in DFW is so filthy that being out in it for extended times is bad for your health, but strolling beneath a tollroad? HA! Only in Texas and only in DFW.
[Ed Note: When I think of an elevated tollroad, I think of homeless shanties built under bridges!]
Leppert snubs Hunt
Our new mayor has just shown his true colors.
His actions are like those of one of my 3 young children.
I'm not even in Angela Hunts district, but I do believe she is doing what SHE believes is the right thing for her constituents/citizens of Dallas.
Tom would have gained much more respect from the general public if he would have appointed her to the Trinity River commission or even one of the appointed commissions.
But, to fully exclude her, the only city council candidate, was poor judgement.
As I tell my children, when you make a bad decision, there will be consequences you will have to face.
Leppert and Voters
What I really wonder about is what happens if Hunt's petition passes? Will Leppert punish the voters? Maybe no trash pickup for 3 weeks?
[Ed Note: *chuckle* ... Maybe he just won't sleep with his favorite teddy bear anymore :) ]
Support Angela's Petition!
We aren't quite there yet.
Rest assured that sock puppets Leppert, Kirk & Company will pull out all the stops trying to dissuade voters this time around; it could even get violent, I fear. Their moneyed masters are going to put the pressure on.
When Kirk was more publicly dancing to their tune while he was Mayor it was downright embarrassing to see him so blatantly prostituting his name for the pet projects of those who pull his strings. Even though we know what Leppert, Kirk and others are up to, personally I hope Leppert exhibits a bit more class.
We need to keep the subject of the Trinity Tollway on the front burner and not be distracted by any tactics or arguments these devious people engage in to try and push it through. Money is their only god.
Stand behind Angela Hunt all the way. The future quality of life of the City of Dallas depends on our support -- and votes -- to a great degree.
[Ed Note: You know. This is the first time I've ever heard Ron Kirk referred to as a "sock puppet!" I don't think you'll see any sort of violence on either side. It will be interesting to see what Leppert, Kirk and Co. come up with in the next few weeks.]