WHAT COULD CLAYTON COUNTY GET FOR A 1-CENT SALES TAX?
Bus:
The local bus service could potentially begin by March 2015 and would include local buses, flex buses (circulator buses that deviate from a normal route when requested) and paratransit service. The bus network would include eight fixed routes, six of which would be in place by 2016 and the final two to start by 2020. There would be five transfer centers in Mountain View, Fort Gillem, Morrow, Riverdale, and at the Harold R. Banke Justice Center. A sixth may be developed in Lovejoy by 2020.
Rail details:
There are two rail alternatives — one which would involve passenger trains running on the same tracks as Norfolk Southern freight trains, the other which would require construction of a separate track adjacent to Norfolk Southern freight tracks. Both options require Norfolk Southern to lease access to its corridor to MARTA. The alignment of the route generally begins at the East Point MARTA station and extends south to Clayton State University, where it continues through the Morrow/Southlake area on to Jonesboro. Potential rail station locations would be at East Point, Hapeville, Mountain View/Airport, Forest Park/Fort Gillem, Clayton State University, Morrow/Southlake Mall and Jonesboro. It is envisioned that passenger service could begin in 2022.
Source: Clayton County Comprehensive Transit Plan, prepared by MARTA.
Clayton County residents saw the promise of renewed transit service imperiled Wednesday when the MARTA board rejected a last-ditch deal cobbled together just 13 hours before by county commissioners.
The commissioners’ proposal would have secured bus service for the county in exchange for a half-penny-per-dollar sales tax — half what residents in the rest of MARTA’s service area pay.
With days to spare before a Sunday deadline, Clayton Chairman Jeff Turner hastily called a meeting for 10 a.m. Saturday to try to hammer out a solution. The commission has only two choices. It can embrace a 1-cent sales tax to fund both rail and bus service, or say goodbye to the opportunity to restore transit for the foreseeable future.
MARTA board members decided allowing a half-cent sales tax was unfair to existing MARTA participants (residents of DeKalb County, Fulton County and the city of Atlanta) who have been paying a full cent for decades.
The board said it would only approve a 1-cent sales tax in Clayton. It also took an extraordinary step to reassure Clayton that its full penny, if approved, won’t be diverted to pay for expanding bus or train service elsewhere.
The proposed contract ensures that unspent sales tax money collected in that county will be held aside in a separate account to be used solely for the purposes of expanding “high-capacity passenger service” (ie: commuter or heavy rail) in Clayton.
“That’s a protection that’s above and beyond what any other jurisdiction gets,” said MARTA Board Chairman Robbie Ashe.
Georgia State University economics professor Bruce Seaman said the standoff is disappointing, but he urged caution in making a rush decision.
“They have to have a really well-planned proposal that could sustain the pressures of the referendum,” Seaman said. “They would be unwise to try and do this in a hurried way at this point.”
If no deal can be reached before Sunday, the state legislation enabling Clayton to increase its sales tax to 8 percent, pending voters’ approval, will expire. The sales tax rate would stay at 7 percent, and Clayton would remain the only core metro Atlanta county without local public transportation.
That’s clearly not what Clayton residents want.
A consulting firm hired by the county to conduct a study this year concluded more than 80 percent of locals who were surveyed desire a transit system in Clayton. And nearly 70 percent said they would pay more taxes to make it happen.
As time runs out to strike a deal, outrage is simmering among transit supporters, many of whom have been toiling for years to garner support for a mix of rail and bus service to Clayton. The county’s former local bus system, C-Tran, shut down in 2010 because of a shortage of funds.
“I’m trying not to get mad,” said Lee Biola, president of Citizens for Progressive Transit. “I think what MARTA did is risky, but I hope it works. I’m going to do everything I can to make it work.”
After commissioners voted 3-2 Tuesday night to approve just the half-penny sales tax, a murmur of disapproval spread throughout the packed meeting room. One man shouted, “Vote ‘em out!” while several others chanted, “Recall, recall.”
The commissioners who rejected the full penny tax in favor of a half-penny (Michael Edmondson, Gail Hambrick and Sonna Singleton) said they feared a larger hike might stifle business. They also were skeptical of MARTA’s eight-to-10-year timeline and $270 million to $350 million cost estimate for providing train service.
Their concerns arose from a letter that MARTA received last week from Norfolk Southern, which owns the freight tracks on which the proposed passenger trains would run. The letter raised questions about whether the railroad company would even consider leasing access to its corridor.
Roberta Abdul-Salaam, founder of Friends of Clayton Transit, accused the three commissioners who voted for a half-penny of turning a blind eye to needy residents.
“We don’t want half of anything,” Abdul-Salaam said, her eyes welling with tears. “The reality is the citizens of Clayton County deserve the best, and we’ve said that over and over again.”
Whether an 11th-hour pact can be struck between MARTA and Clayton remains to be seen. Turner and Commissioner Shana Rooks, who argued passionately on Tuesday for the 1-cent sales tax, said they weren’t surprised MARTA rejected the half-penny offer. Both said they’ll attend the meeting Saturday to try to salvage a deal.
Edmondson declined to comment after the MARTA vote and the other two commissioners could not be reached.
“I’m still optimistic,” Turner said. “I’m hoping one of the three, if not all three, will re-evaluate and listen to what the citizens are asking for.”
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