In U.S. bullet train proposals shun public funds, favor private cash, Reuters' Robin Respaut reports:
All the rules relating to public engagement start the day you take public funding," said Wendy Meadley, chief strategy officer for North American High Speed Rail Group's project in Minnesota. With private financing, she said, opponents "can't make thousands of public records requests and run the project over."
The company said last year it would seek money from Chinese investors. Now, it said it is considering two foreign partners for the $4.2 billion project, which seeks to connect the twin cities of Minneapolis and St. Paul to the internationally renowned Mayo Clinic in Rochester, Minnesota, by 2022.
Meadley's statement is fascinating for several reasons. First, Minnesota data practice requests (the state version of FIOA) aren't made to private companies; rather, they're made to state government agencies. Often those asking for documents pay for the cost of obtaining them from the agencies. It's not a burden on the poor dear's private corporation.
Second, Meadley's hostility to transparency is breathtaking, especially given her notion that those making the requests are opponent. The most significant data practices request about the North American High Speed Rail Group's project was made by the Rochester Post Bulletin. The media organization isn't an opponent.
We doubt "thousands" of requests have come in, but we'll be checking with MNDOT.
Third, Meadley undercuts the promise of transparency she promised in the March 31, 2016 Post Bulletin article, Bill creating high-speed rail working group advances:
Wendy Meadley, the group’s strategic officer, did not testify during the bill hearing. In an interview after the hearing, she said the company is already planning to reach out to the public about the project and does not see the need for legislation.
“We don’t believe you need legislation to accomplish what Sen. Schmit stated he was looking to accomplish on behalf of his constituents — to start a dialogue, open communication and transparent reporting of information and progress,” Meadley said.
She added that in an effort to reach out to stakeholders, the company has established a 30-day preliminary comment period about its proposal on its website that will end April 27. She said the group also plans to host a town hall in June.
Some dialogue.
We've already weighed in about North American High Speed Rail's public relation stunt of a "public comment" period in Regulatory capture's final frontier? NAHSR offers corporate-operated "public comment" period.
Some experts remain skeptical that bullet trains can work without government money to finance initial legs of construction.
Rail lines are generally profitable once in operation, said Jim Steer, director of UK-based high-speed rail research organization Greengauge 21. But operating profits are unlikely to be enough to repay massive construction costs.
"No private party is actually going to stump up the kind of money needed to create these things," said Steer.
Supporters of the new rail lines said investors can expect solid returns based on ticket sales and profits from high-end real estate developments near stations.
The North American High Speed Rail Group's original business plan called for real estate developments along the line to assist in making the project viable, the Post Bulletin reported in 2015. How would investors know that the company would be able to promise certainty about securing real estate along the line?
A private rail line is able to exercise the power of eminent domain under state and federal law, as we reported in February. That makes Meadley's love of secrecy (as reported to Reuters) even more troubling, as it suggests that the private group wants to develop plans off the radar, then obtain other peoples' property by any means necessary.
In February, Citizens' eminent domain concerns dominate regional news coverage of Zip Rail meeting. In March, we posted that Rep. Steve Drazkowski (R-Mazeppa) had discussed submitting a bill to prohibit the use of eminent domain by the project.
Let's hope that those same citizens, their friends and the press show open to the private rail group's town hall to ask Meadley why transparency includes her glee over blocking citizens and the press from obtaining information about her project.
Photo: Wendy Meadley, Ms. Minnesota Transparency 2016. You betcha.
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