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DEL.ICIO.USAtlantans come home with ideas from Denver
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
Upon their return from three days understanding how Denver works, metro Atlanta leaders were motivated to change how we do business here.
For starters, the group of about 110 leaders on the annual LINK trip want to make sure the region is permitted to go to voters to ask for a one-cent sales tax increase. At the very least, they want to be sure that the 2009 General Assembly will not stand in the region’s way as they did this past session.
The Denver trip showed the contrast. Although the state of Colorado is not that supportive of the Denver metro area, it does not stand in the way of the region passing local initiatives to pay for improving the city’s quality of life - be it the development of transit or support for the arts and cultural institutions.
In each case, the metro counties in Denver have joined together to pass a sales tax (for transportation, it’s 4 cents on $10 and for the arts, it’s 1 cent on $10). Georgia has never permitted local governments to pass fractions of a sales tax.
Denver also showed metro Atlanta leaders how well regional cooperation can work - especially when the city and the suburbs realize how important they are to each other.
Do you have any thoughts on what the Atlanta region can do to get the state of Georgia to let the metro area have greater control of its own destiny?
More on the LINK trip:
• Read comments from some of those who were on the trip.
• See who went on the trip [PDF]
• The Atlanta Regional Commission also covered the trip.
• Read my whole column reflecting on the LINK trip.
Comments
By Joeventures
May 12, 2008 10:06 AM | Link to this
I’m disappointed with John O’Callaghan’s comments about the trip. He’s correct that we need regional funding sources for transportation. However, to put that money into highways would exacerbate both the traffic and affordable housing problems we have in the metro area.
As Saporta reported not too long ago, Atlanta comes in at number two for being one of the country’s most unaffordable places for housing choice. The cost of transportation is a major factor in that issue.
By james
May 12, 2008 12:53 PM | Link to this
180k for a 4 bedroom house in affordable to me
By lo
May 12, 2008 1:16 PM | Link to this
The metro Atlanta area should really expand the Marta and public transportation system. With ever increasing gas prices and all of the smog caused by the thousands of cars idling on the highways, it only makes sense to provide that alternate, and green, means of transportation. Otherwise, people will just not be able to keep up with the cost of living between mortgage and gas to commute from all of the suburbs/exurbs to the city for work.
By Joeventures
May 12, 2008 2:06 PM | Link to this
James - Something like that would be affordable to many people, if it didn’t mean having to commute by car 20+ miles to work.
That’s a lot of money getting poured into a commute, rather than home equity or personal savings.
By BPJ
May 12, 2008 4:49 PM | Link to this
I looked at the list, and it appears that there was only one person representing an arts organization - Joe Bankoff, of the Woodruff Arts Center. He’s a terrific person, and of course should be there, but what does it say about the regional leadership’s priorities that there was no one else - not the director of MAACC, or anyone from any arts group outside the Woodruff?