Yesterday, I attended the long and crowded MTC meeting addressing the funding of the Oakland Airport Connector (at one point I was literally edged out of the main auditorium onto the outside patio). I reported on it.  I wanted to make a few personal comments here.

Unlike most who showed up I went in without an absolute preconceived advocacy position, though I have to admit I was leaning against the OAC, for all the reasons opponents cited.

Then I started talking with layed-off workers.  Some of them haven't worked in many months, some have lost their health insurance and homes or soon will.  It is hard to talk with someone and tell them, "No, this project in which you place so much hope, it's not a good idea."  These are people with skills and needs, but can't get work because there is little construction going on.

I realized that the scramble for resources puts people at each others throats.  How can it be both sides are shouting, "Save jobs!"    It prompts the question: ""Which jobs?" And "What type of service and for whom?" These are the things that are really being decided.

One thing that struck me was the lack of concrete data discussed.  One side cites 2500-5200 jobs to be created.  The other side says 200-689.  Damn! There's a lot of wiggle room between 200 to 5200!  Which is it?  I lean towards the conservative number--job-creation stats are always overblown.  Plus, BART's own number submitted in its application to FTA was in the 600 range.  Chris Daly bluntly pointed out that a lot of the promised jobs simply won't be there.  I saw this when I investigated the so-called green jobs revolution.  On top of this is the unknown number of jobs to be lost among all the regional transit agencies in the coming months.

Both sides invoke jobs.  Both sides in fact invoke equity and minority representation. Both sides invoke Oakland’s long-term well-being. It’s just that they are looking at distinct non-overlapping parts of the whole picture.  The OAC folks see a project that builds infrastructure, brings local jobs, and beneficially impacts the region economically for years to come.  There’s some truth to that.  The opponents see an oversold high-price luxury project, that once built will overwhelmingly serve a more affluent flying class and meanwhile will take badly needed resources away from services that low-income and minority communities rely on daily. There’s truth to that.

So, on occasion, I try to find an elusive silver lining--what can we learn from this? ....

See the full blog post at Pull the Root.