THE VIRGINIAN-PILOT
Copyright (c) 1994, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: Sunday, November 20, 1994 TAG: 9411180129
SECTION: VIRGINIA BEACH BEACON PAGE: 07 EDITION: FINAL
SOURCE: Bill Reed
LENGTH: Medium: 72 lines
If we want money to build new roads or take care of the ones we have, we must wait in line for the state or federal government to dole it out.
So what else is new?
And, if we really, really want the money we had best have all our i's dotted, our t's crossed and our environmental thinking caps jammed tightly around our ears.
If we do all this, folks, Virginia Beach still may have to stroll to the end of the line, tin cups in hand, despite the fact that this is the most populous city in the state.
That was the word Tuesday from the local and state highway officials, who gave the City Council a briefing on how federal and state regulations will affect our wallets in coming years.
Phil Davenport, of the city's Public Works Department, said the federal Intermodal Surface Transportation Efficiency Act (ISTEA to those who dig governmental acronyms), which went into effect in 1991, is the legislation that now governs how street and highway money is handed out.
In other words, the money we do get will have more strings attached to it than a kitten in a knitting basket. It means, said Davenport, that the city and other communities throughout the nation face ``more requirements and less local control, over spending.''
Basically, the act requires localities to concentrate on improving existing road systems and to enhance complementary transportation modes - such as bus and rail services, biking and walking paths, roller blades - anything to reduce road congestion.
Then, said Davenport, federal regs also require localities like Virginia Beach to take into account existing air quality and environmental concerns in making road and highway plans. Air quality must meet certain standards, and we mustn't forget those precious little ground skinks or Baltimore checkerspots either, by golly.
All these details must be rolled into a single plan and submitted to a local Metropolitan Planning Organization or MPO, which then decides how the dough gets handed out to widen intersections or fill potholes.
In this neck of the woods, the MPO is the existing Southeastern Virginia Planning District Commission.
As you can see, these plans have to go through more hands than a damsel at a Tailhook convention.
Dale Castellow, of the city's Planning Department, said Virginia Beach is at a ``geographic disadvantage'' for getting transportation funds.
Why? Because, said Castellow, the city has the Atlantic Ocean to the east and North Carolina to the south. That means the city has fewer urban neighbors with whom to share regional highway funds.
How about funding for maintenance and improvements to highways like the Virginia Beach-Norfolk Expressway, asked Councilman Linwood Branch.
(Remember, that's the roadway that'll have the tolls removed next October, by order of Gov. George Allen. And remember, that's the roadway that brings in $11 million a year in tolls, tolls which pay for its upkeep and improvements. No dipping into state or federal funds, no standing in lines for handouts.)
Well, replied Frank Dunn, of the Virginia Department of Transportation, once the tolls are removed, the city must compete with other surrounding localities for the bucks.
There will be about $32 million available in the expressway reserve fund to resurface the 11-mile-long highway. That sum also covers some modest improvements, like widening the Birdneck Road and Rosemont Road interchanges and erecting some sound barriers. Nothing fancy.
City Manager James K. Spore jumped into the discussion at this point to explain to the council that he is drafting a letter to the state to find out just how much highway loot the city might receive, once the tolls are lifted.
Good luck, Jim. by CNB