RTA--More Debate Needed?

The last sentence in the previous post should have read: Maybe we in Tucson should vote for the Regional Transportation Authority Plan and sales tax increase.

On the other hand, maybe we shouldn’t…at least not without more public debate. The absence of debate, particularly in the local blogosphere, was commented on by Kralmajales in the comment thread to that last post.

A front page story in today’s Arizona Daily Star (link) reports that the proponents of the plan and the tax increase have raised almost a million dollars, outspending the opposition by 125 to 1.

For a look at some of the reasons for rejecting the RTA plan you can visit the “Tucson Needs a Real Transportation Plan” web site. (link)

Addendum.
Here is a partial list of contributors supporting the plan.

Automotive
New Car Dealers Association $131,445
Jim Click Ford $50,000
Jack Furrier’s Western Tire & Auto Care $1,500

Real Estate
Realtors Issues Mobilization Committee $75,000
Tucson Association of Realtors, Inc. $75,000
Baker, Peterson, Baker & Associates $500
SDR Associates, LLP $500

Development
Diamond Ventures, Inc. $50,000
Southern Arizona Homebuilders Association $50,000
Cottonwood Properties $10,000
PICOR Commercial Real Estate $3,000
Aberdeen Group, LLC $2,000
Forest City Southwest $1,000
Western Associates Dev. Co. LLC $900

Construction
Associated General Contractors of America $50,000
Granite Construction $25,000
The Sundt Companies, Inc. $25,000
The Ashton Company $10,000
Hunter Contracting Co. $10,000
KE&G Development, LLC $10,000
Pulice Construction, Inc. $10,000
Arizona Builders Alliance $5,000
O’Leary Construction, Inc. $2,000
Trinity Southwest Contractors, LLC $5,000

Engineering
HDR Engineering, Inc. $17,000
Engineering & Environmental Consultants, Inc. $10,200
Parsons Brinckerhoff Quade & Douglas, Inc. $10,000
Stantec Consulting $10,000
Tran Systems Corp. $10,000
URS Engineering $10,000
MMLA –PSOMAS $9,000
Castro Engineering $7,500
American Council of Engineering Companies $6,000
AMEC Infrastructure $5,000
Structural Grace, Inc. $4,000
RS Engineering $3,000
Rick Engineering Company $2,500
WLB Group, Inc. $2,500
Kimley-Horn & Assoc., Inc. $2,000
Terracon $2,000
CMG Drainage Engineering $1,000
Kittelson & Associates, Inc. $1,000
AMEC Earth & Environmental, Inc. $500
Morrison Maierle, Inc. $200

Equipment
Empire Machinery $25,000
Sunstate Equipment Co., LLC $5,000
Tucson Tractor $3,000
Earhart Equipment Corporation $2,000
Arizona Equipment Rental $2,000
Tool Rent Shop $1,500
Red Mountain Machinery Company $1,000
Schwab Sales, Inc. $500

Financial, Insurance, and Legal
Wells Fargo Bank $20,000
Banc One Management Corp. $10,000
Snell & Wilmer LLP $7,500
Beach, Fleischman & Co., PC $5,000
Lewis & Roca, LLP $5,000
Lovitt & Touche $5,000
The Mahoney Group $4,000
Fennemore Craig, PC $2,500
RBC Dain Rauscher $2,500
Hecker & Muehlebach, PLLC $1,000
Nova Financial $1,000
The Clements Agency, Inc. $1,000

Materials
Arizona Rock Products $25,000
Arizona Portland Cement $10,000
California Portland Cement $10,000
Rinker Materials $10,000
Vulcan Materials $10,000
Hanson Pipe & Products $3,000
CTI, Inc. $2,500
Kalamazoo Materials, Inc. $2,500
Boral Material Technologies, Inc. $500
Other
Southwest Gas $10,000
City Van Rental Service $5,000
Cooper Aerial Surveys Co. $4,000
AAA Landscape $2,000
Sage Landscape Architecture $1,000
Arizona Trucking Association $500
Kleinfelder $500