Dept. of Public Administration University of Alaska Anchorage Comprehensive Core Exam – August 22, 2008

Some wise sage said that in order to make an omelet you have to break some eggs. The main question facing those making the decision about the Knik Arm Crossing is whether the omelet is worth the eggs that are broken.

Prepare a Knik Arm Bridge briefing paper for local public policymakers that answers the following (note: questions are weighted equally):

1. Costs/ benefits:

What are the costs and benefits of the Bridge from the perspective of the Municipality of Anchorage and from the Matsu Borough?

2. Short and long term issues:

In light of the increased cost of fuel and reduction of federal spending what are the three major short and long term issues that local policy makers might choose to examine regarding the continuation of support for the Bridge. Why is each of these issues important?

3. Funding strategy:

Why might the decision to build the bridge be supported by a private investment firm but not by the Anchorage Municipality and the State? Why might the Mat‐Su Borough differ in its support from the Anchorage Municipality and the State?

4. Political Impact

What eggs are Municipal/Borough officials (Mayor, Assembly members) most worried about? (Be specific)?

KTUU.com | Alaska's news and information source | Begich pulls suppor... http://www.ktuu.com/global/story.asp?s=6364821&ClientType=Printable

Begich pulls support of bridge

by Mike Ross Thursday, April 12, 2007

ANCHORAGE, Alaska -- Mayor Mark Begich is pulling his support for the proposed Knik Arm Bridge because of a last-minute change in the plan.

Begich is upset because a transportation planning committee is going against the wishes of the Anchorage Assembly and made a decision today he said will dump too much traffic downtown.

Begich was the only "no" vote when the Anchorage Metropolitan Area Transportation Solutions group voted this afternoon to include the Knik Arm Bridge in its long-range plan.

The Assembly voted recently to support the bridge, but only if it's tied in to the Seward Highway-to-Glenn Highway project by the year 2017.

But AMATS went against that recommendation today - it said the tie-in should only be built, quote "if needed"

Begich said that means the bridge traffic will probably get dumped into the A and C Street corridor downtown.

"It makes sense to put it on Gamble-Ingra, they'll tell you 'well, that's in the plan, because we have it in there as needed.' That's the most wishy-washy language I've ever seen," Begich said.

Gordon Keith, ATMAS chairman, said the group still doesn't know how busy the bridge will be.

"We don't know what the traffic count is gonna come across, the number of tolls is gonna come across the bridge, if the projected tolls don't materialize, there's no need to have the connection to Ingra-Gamble,"

Bridge opponents were livid about the AMATS decision.

"The only person at this table who was protecting the interests of the citizens of Anchorage was Mark Begich, every single other person at this table was protecting the profits of venture capitalists who want to build a bridge across the water," said Suzanne Dipietro, Government Hill Community Council.

Assemblyman and ATMAS member Dan Sullivan didn't see it that way.

"I don't think we did anything other than probably what was prudent today, in making sure that nobody had to commit funds to a portion of the project that may not be necessary," Sullivan said.

There are still lingering doubts about whether the bridge is even economically feasible.

Rep. Les Gara sent AMATS a letter expressing his concerns about the bridge's cost.

"This is very odd, because this is one of the biggest state projects on the horizon, and people are pushing for us to approve it before we find out what it will cost," said Gara, D-Anchorage.

Marianne Pease with the Knik Arm Bridge and Toll Authority said the plan has been thought out.

"I can assure you that the consortiums that have sent forward their proposals are the sharpest financial minds in the industry," Pease said.

1 of 2 KTUU.com | Alaska's news and information source | Begich pulls suppor... http://www.ktuu.com/global/story.asp?s=6364821&ClientType=Printable

Despite the mayor's concerns, AMATS has given a green light to the Knik Arm Bridge.

Two private investor groups have made proposals to build the bridge.

The Knik Arm Bridge and Toll Authority still needs final approval from the Federal Highway Administration before construction can begin.

E-mail Mike Ross at [email protected]

2 of 2 adn.com | Knik Arm bridge focus of program http://www.adn.com/knik/v-printer/story/150357.html

Knik Arm bridge focus of program ALASKA DIGEST

(06/16/07 04:28:00)

ANCHORAGE -- A civil engineer with Environmental Defense, a Washington D.C.-based nonprofit organization, will be in Anchorage next week to discuss the proposed Knik Arm bridge and the public-private partnership being considered as a way to finance and build it.

Michael Replogle's appearance is sponsored by three community councils, the Alaska Center for the Environment, the Alaska Public Interest Research Group, the Alaska Conservation Alliance, Alaska Transportation Priorities Project and Friends of Mat-Su.

Replogle will speak from 7 to 9 p.m. Tuesday in Room 101 of Rasmuson Hall at the University of Alaska Anchorage.

In written comments submitted earlier to the state-city transportation planning committee that oversees road projects, Replogle was critical of the bridge proposal. He said it would have "profound adverse impacts" on the environment, land use and the rest of the transportation system in the Anchorage area.

The Knik Arm Bridge and Toll Authority, an organization created by former Gov. Frank Murkowski and the Alaska Legislature to promote the crossing, has invited proposals from two international consortiums that have expressed interest in the project.

It still must complete an environmental review process and get a go-ahead from the Federal Highway Administration before beginning to apply for permits.

-- Anchorage Daily News

1 of 1 December 7, 2007

The Honorable George Wuerch, Chairman Knik Arm Bridge and Toll Authority 550 West 7th Avenue, Suite 1850 Anchorage, AK 99501

Dear Mayor Wuerch: In 2003, the legislature passed SB 213 forming the Knik Arm Bridge and Toll Authority (KABATA). The legislature gave KABATA the challenging task of connecting the Municipality of Anchorage with a bridge across the Knik Arm to the Mat-Su Borough. KABATA has legislative authority via AS 19.75.111 to develop the project using a Public-Private Partnership (P3) approach. The P3 approach provides an opportunity for KABATA to build and operate the project with private financing backed by user fees. It is reported that KABATA’s project is making progress, and is nearing the point where the Federal Highway Administration will issue its Final Environmental Impact Statement and then its Record of Decision. As the project moves forward, I anticipate close coordination and outreach between KABATA and my administration, including the Alaska Department of Law and Alaska Department of Transportation and Public Facilities. Our joint cooperation and mutual project review will ensure the project moves forward in a timely manner if the project is deemed economical, and I look forward to working with you in the year ahead.

Sincerely,

Sarah Palin Governor

Governor Sarah Palin

17 Knik Arm Bridge and Toll Authority

adn.com | Knik bridge project marks a milestone http://www.adn.com/knik/v-printer/story/288600.html

Knik bridge project marks a milestone PERMIT: Agency OKs final environmental impact statement. By KYLE HOPKINS [email protected] (01/20/08 03:44:36)

The long-hoped for, much-ridiculed Knik Arm bridge project is quietly moving forward, as supporters recently cleared a permitting hurdle and hired three law firms to lobby for them in Washington, D.C.

Though it took several months longer than expected, the Federal Highway Administration signed a final environmental impact statement for the project in December.

So what?

So without it, construction on the bridge couldn't begin, said Highway Administration spokesman Doug Hecox.

"It's a very big milestone. ... it brings the actual date of construction a little bit closer," he said.

The document fills four folders the size of jumbo phone books and selects a specific route the bridge would take from a mostly undeveloped area around Point MacKenzie across the Arm into Anchorage through Government Hill.

The Highway Administration still must take one more step in formally approving the plan, which could take 30 days or longer as the administration considers things like what the project would mean for certain historic property in Government Hill, Hecox said. "We're at the fine-tuning part of the project."

Among the next tasks for bridge backers: getting investors to propose how they would design, build, operate, finance and maintain the bridge.

WORLDWIDE INVESTORS

Alaskans have talked about building a bridge across Cook Inlet, from Anchorage to the Mat-Su Borough, for decades. In 2003, then-Gov. Frank Murkowski and the Legislature created the Knik Arm Bridge and Toll Authority to make it happen.

For more than two years, the Toll Authority has estimated the bridge would cost about $600 million.

So far, the federal government has allocated roughly $105 million while the state has

1 of 3 adn.com | Knik bridge project marks a milestone http://www.adn.com/knik/v-printer/story/288600.html

pitched in another $10 million -- plus $15 million more from the state for related road work in the Mat-Su, said Kevin Hemenway, chief financial officer for the Toll Authority.

The Toll Authority says the rest of the funding will come from private investors. The bridge would be paid for by charging drivers a toll of up to $5 to cross the bridge.

Two international consortia have shown an interest in the project, according to the authority.

One is headed by Bouygues Travaux Publics of France and includes URS of San Francisco among other firms. The other is headed by Macquarie Bank of Australia and includes Kiewit Pacific of Seattle, among others.

Government Hill Community Council president Julie Jessal said the community council is disappointed by the chosen bridge route and hoped it would instead avoid Government Hill altogether. She said she used to think the bridge would never happen, but now worries investors will be able to get enough money from lenders to start it and never finish.

"Everything about this bridge is built on speculation, from paying for it, to who is going to use it," Jessal said.

Toll Authority spokeswoman Mary Ann Pease said that if one of the potential investors commits to the project, they'll finish it.

"These worldwide investors are definitely not interested in a partial investment. They have done these projects throughout the world."

The current bridge plan will send traffic to the A and C street couplet, and doesn't initially require the builders to connect to Ingra and Gambell streets, which the Begich administration has called for. That's a problem, said Mary Jane Michael, economic and community development director for the city. "It puts a lot of unnecessary traffic in the downtown area."

Pease said the bridge investors would eventually use toll revenue to connect to Ingra and Gambell -- a cost that's not included in the $600 million price tag -- when traffic calls for it.

KEEPING THE IDEA ALIVE

Even as critics at home question why the state keeps pursuing a project that became a national punching bag as one of the so-called "bridges to nowhere," the Toll Authority is paying to keep the idea alive. That includes hiring lobbyists to set up meetings and monitor policymakers in Washington, D.C.

The Toll Authority in December awarded contracts worth up to $50,000 each for lobbying and other services to a trio of law firms:

• Chambers Conlon & Hartwell, which would focus on federal agencies such as the Department of the Interior and Transportation Department.

2 of 3 adn.com | Knik bridge project marks a milestone http://www.adn.com/knik/v-printer/story/288600.html

Some of the firm's clients in 2007 included the Alaska Railroad, the city of Anchorage and the state of Kansas, according to an online database of Federal Election Commission records operated by the nonpartisan Center for Responsive Politics, opensecrets.org.

• Robertson, Monagle and Eastaugh, which won the contract to lobby and monitor the U.S. Senate. Former Sen. Ted Stevens staffers Brad Gilman and Steve Silver are Arlington, Va.,-based lobbyists for the firm, which in 2007 represented fisheries associations and several Alaska cities and boroughs.

• Blank Rome, a firm that will focus on the U.S. House for the Toll Authority. Former Rep. Don Young chief of staff C.J. Zane and former Young aide Duncan Smith are lobbyists in the firm. Other recent clients include the Alyeska Pipeline Service Co., Afognak Native Corp. and the Port of Anchorage.

All three companies have worked for the Toll Authority in the past, Pease said.

The job description written for the firms that would lobby the House and Senate said their main efforts would involve "appropriations and budgetary items." Asked if that means the law firms will be asking Congress for more money for the bridge, Pease said no.

"We are protecting the monies that we've already received," she said.

Find Kyle Hopkins' political blog online at adn.com/alaskapolitics or call him at 257-4334.

THE IMPACT:

To check out the final environmental impact statement on Knik Arm Bridge, go to the Web site and click on "FEIS" on the left side of the page.

www.knikarmbridge.com

3 of 3 adn.com | Legislators want say in Knik bridge deal http://www.adn.com/knik/v-printer/story/314756.html

Legislators want say in Knik bridge deal ARM CROSSING: Bills seek legislative approval before building starts. By KYLE HOPKINS [email protected] (02/14/08 01:48:37)

Two bills proposed in Juneau on Wednesday would require legislative approval of any proposed deal to build the Knik Arm bridge.

The identical bills, introduced by Senate Majority Leader Johnny Ellis and Rep. Les Gara, also call for a 60-day public review of any bridge deal and seek to prevent unexpected toll rate increases.

The hope is to make sure a state agency, the Knik Arm Bridge and Toll Authority, doesn't strike a bad bargain with international investors in an attempt to get the bridge built, said Lois Epstein, director of a watchdog group called the Alaska Transportation Priorities Project.

The bridge authority held a board meeting in Juneau on Wednesday. Spokeswoman Mary Ann Pease said that the bills caught the authority by surprise and that it was too early to comment on them in detail.

She did say that the authority wants to work with the state and that one part of the bills, limiting toll increases to the rate of inflation, may not be a problem.

Former Gov. Frank Murkowski and the Legislature created the toll authority in 2003 to plan for construction of the bridge and figure out how to pay for it. Currently, the authority can strike a bridge deal without lawmakers' approval.

"Now that we're going to shine a public light on this, it encourages KABATA to cut a good deal for the state rather than one that costs a lot of money," Gara said.

The bridge authority has estimated for years the bridge would cost about $600 million, with most of that money now expected to come from private investors. Some critics believe the cost will be far higher.

Two international consortia have shown an interest in building and running the bridge, according to the authority.

The bridge authority is preparing a request for proposals that will ask these possible investors to make their best pitch for financing, building and maintaining the bridge.

The state has been reviewing a draft of the authority's request for proposals for weeks, said Randy Ruaro, a special assistant to the governor.

1 of 2 adn.com | Legislators want say in Knik bridge deal http://www.adn.com/knik/v-printer/story/314756.html

"Both the Department of Law and the Department of Transportation, in their limited, initial review to date, have pointed out some areas of concern," he said.

In particular, he said, the state has told the bridge authority that it's worried about potential costs to the state, and about a lack of public input on the terms of the request for proposals.

In response, Pease said, the authority will certainly work with state officials on changes they want made.

Gara said the bills are meant to make the process of pursuing a Knik Arm bridge more like the one Gov. Sarah Palin successfully proposed last year for pursuing a natural gas pipeline.

Like Palin's Alaska Gasline Inducement Act, the bills propose a public comment period and then Legislative approval of the deal. After the bridge is built, the state transportation commissioner would approve any toll increases.

Gara said the bridge authority has been given a blank check to spend public money.

"There's no public oversight," he said. "Their main feat so far has been to hand out massive pay raises to KABATA members and they've disregarded the concerns of the public."

The bridge authority gave big pay hikes to three executives in 2006.

"We've maintained the public process at the forefront ... there's a very small staff at KABATA and they're very diligently focused on doing what's best for the state," said Pease, who said she didn't want to comment on the raises specifically.

So far, the authority has spent about $38 million or $39 million on planning, studies and other costs, Pease said.

The governor hadn't seen the proposed bills Wednesday, said Palin spokeswoman Sharon Leighow. Still, Leighow said, Palin "does support an open and transparent process."

Find Kyle Hopkins' political blog online at adn.com/alaskapolitics or call him at 257-4334.

2 of 2 adn.com | Knik bridge http://www.adn.com/opinion/view/v-printer/story/316738.html

Knik bridge Knik Arm crossing project will benefit from more oversight

(02/16/08 01:21:14)

Two legislators have introduced bills that, if passed, should increase Alaskans' comfort level with future decisions about the proposed Knik Arm bridge.

Right now, the Knik Arm Bridge and Toll Authority is empowered to make a deal on its own with private investors to build the bridge.

But the project, estimated to cost $600 million, is relying on about $105 million of Alaska's federal highway money and another $10 million in direct state contributions, in addition to private financing.

That's a lot of government funding at stake. More oversight is essential.

Senate Majority Leader Johnny Ellis and Rep. Les Gara, both of Anchorage, filed bills Wednesday that ensure the Legislature has final approval of any deal to build the bridge.

Their bills, SB 268 and HB 365, call for a 60-day public review of any bridge-building agreement. The deal would need legislative approval to go forward.

Leaving the final approval in the hands of KABATA never made sense. It is an agency that is dedicated to making the project happen -- a necessary and important role. What's missing is someone to stand back and say, "Wait a minute -- is this a good deal for the state and the borough and cities it will affect?"

The Legislature can effectively fill that role.

Two international groups have shown interest in the bridge. The toll authority is already preparing a request for proposals that will ask possible private investors how they would finance, build and maintain the crossing.

Already, the state administration has concerns about potential state costs and about lack of public discussion on the terms of the request for proposals, according to Randy Ruaro, a special assistant to the governor. He was quoted in a Daily News story Thursday.

The toll authority was widely criticized in 2006 after its board gave three top executives raises of $25,000 to $40,000 each, for salaries in the $130,000 range. Rep. Gara brought the raises up this week as he sought more control over the agency's dealings.

The raises did show poor judgment. But they're small potatoes compared to the decisions that lie ahead, involving hundreds of millions of dollars.

1 of 2 adn.com | Knik bridge http://www.adn.com/opinion/view/v-printer/story/316738.html

Alaska will be able to rest easier if a bill calling for legislative oversight becomes law.

BOTTOM LINE: Don't let the toll authority have final say on any deal to build the Knik Arm Crossing. That's the Legislature's job.

2 of 2 adn.com | State population statistics give Mat-Su growth a new spin http://www.adn.com/matsu/v-printer/story/318327.html

State population statistics give Mat-Su growth a new spin PEOPLE: East Aleutians, North Star boroughs surpass valleys, but only in short term. By ZAZ HOLLANDER [email protected] (02/18/08 02:50:17)

WASILLA -- The Matanuska-Susitna Borough lost the title of fastest-growing population in Alaska -- at least between 2006 and 2007.

Technically, that honor goes to the Aleutians East Borough, which posted a whopping 7.6 percent increase, according to recently released state population estimates.

That translates to only about 200 more people in the sparsely populated borough of not quite 2,800 that includes Cold Bay and the fishing village of King Cove. Local officials also said incoming transient fishing workers mask the number of departing Aleuts.

The Mat-Su narrowly lost a more statistically significant race with the Fairbanks North Star Borough, which grew by 3,200 people to 90,960 or so, largely due to military activity at Fort Wainwright, state people-counters said.

The Fairbanks North Star Borough grew by 3.6 percent from 2006 to 2007, compared with Mat-Su's 3.5 percent. The Valley's population last year was 80,056.

Fairbanks city, with nearly 31,600 residents, for the first time moved ahead of Juneau, where the state counted some 30,300 people.

Anchorage remains the state's largest city, with 284,000 residents, or nearly half the state's 677,000 residents, according to the recently released 2007 statewide population counts by the state Department of Labor and Workforce Development.

Even as the Mat-Su lost bragging rights, however, the fastest growing part of the borough earned some recognition.

At 12,283 souls, the Knik-Fairview community would be the fourth-largest city in Alaska -- if it were actually a city. The fifth largest: some hot spot known as "College Census Designated Place" that turns out to be the University of Alaska Fairbanks.

Knik-Fairview -- a subdivision-studded chunk of ground between Knik Arm, Wasilla and Big Lake -- has no city hall or high school, much less a movie theater or a big-box store.

Real estate developer B.H. Tilton serves as president of the local community council. That makes him as close to a mayor as the imaginary city of Knik-Fairview has.

1 of 3 adn.com | State population statistics give Mat-Su growth a new spin http://www.adn.com/matsu/v-printer/story/318327.html

"Good grief," the 65-year-old Tilton said. "Where's my budget?"

Despite its statistical success, greater Fairbanks doesn't feel more crowded, said Dermot Cole, author and columnist for the Fairbanks Daily News-Miner.

The borough "grew" by 8,000 people after officials there successfully challenged the U.S. Census Bureau count of short-term residents, according to a report in the News-Miner.

Then again, Cole said, the city limit sign has not indicated the population for 25 or 30 years, since the trans-Alaska pipeline was built. Thanks to some well-placed graffiti, that sign read "Population: ENOUGH."

"I don't know for sure if anybody knows how many people live here," he said.

State analysts, too, balked at giving much weight to the one-year spike.

The estimates count troops deployed overseas as residents, so populations in military-heavy places like Fairbanks and Anchorage "may be somewhat lower than these estimates indicate," state demographer Greg Williams said in a report released with the numbers.

Long-term numbers provide a more accurate picture of growth, Williams said in an interview. If you look at the last eight years, the Mat-Su outpaces everywhere else. Between 2000 and 2007, Mat-Su gained almost 21,000 residents. Fairbanks-North Star Borough? About 8,100.

The state count shows that Alaska remains larger in population than North Dakota, Vermont, the District of Columbia and Wyoming, though its population growth has slowed.

Anchorage grew 0.9 percent from 2006 to 2007, but by 9 percent since 2000.

Eighteen boroughs and census areas in Alaska lost population in the last seven years. Its population aging, Southeast Alaska continued to show the biggest overall decline, losing 5.1 percent of its population since 2000, the state population report shows.

Back in the state's fourth-biggest place, there's little chance Knik-Fairview will become a city soon. Asked about the odds the community would push for incorporation, its would-be mayor said "slim to none."

"At least at this point, the general tenor is that if we're left alone, we're happy out here in Knik-Fairview," Tilton said.

Find Zaz Hollander online at adn.com/contact/zhollander or call 352-6711.

2 of 3 adn.com | State population statistics give Mat-Su growth a new spin http://www.adn.com/matsu/v-printer/story/318327.html

3 of 3

Promoting sensible transportation systems in Alaska

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: FOR MORE INFORMATION: March 25, 2008 Lois Epstein, 907.748.0448

Alaska Senate Hears Testimony on Bill to Make the State’s Public-Private Partnership More Open Will Require Public Comment and a Legislative Vote on the Knik Arm Bridge Contract

Juneau, AK – The Alaska Senate Transportation Committee today held a hearing on Senate Majority Leader Johnny Ellis’ bill, SB 268, which amends the Knik Arm Bridge and Toll Authority’s authorizing statute. SB 268 ensures that the public has the opportunity to comment – and the legislature to vote – on any contract with private investors for the proposed $600 million to $1+ billion toll bridge across Knik Arm which would connect Anchorage to an undeveloped part of the Mat-Su Borough. The bill also requires that bridge toll increases be inflation-based.

The Knik Arm Bridge and Toll Authority (KABATA), a state agency, was created by the Alaska legislature in AS 19.75 in 2003. KABATA expects to sign a Public-Private Partnership contract later this year with one of two foreign investors, Macquarie Bank of Australia or Bouygues Travaux Public of France. This contract will contain the terms a private investor must meet to receive the bridge's toll revenue, and is similar to the arrangement the state plans to reach with a North Slope natural gas pipeline builder/operator. The Alaska Gasline Inducement Act (AGIA), however, includes public comment and a legislative vote on the gasline license while the current KABATA statute does not include such provisions for its contract with the bridge builder/operator. The current KABATA statute only allows public and legislative review of the contract after KABATA has issued its notice of intent to award a contract.

"SB 268 ensures that the Knik Arm Bridge and Toll Authority is open and transparent like other state agencies. Because KABATA expects to complete a contract with one of the two interested foreign investors later this year, it’s essential for the legislature to pass SB 268 this session so the public and the legislature can provide input into the contract prior to it becoming final,” stated Lois Epstein, Director of the Alaska Transportation Priorities Project, a non-profit, statewide transportation watchdog organization. “The Ellis bill makes sure that KABATA does not give away the proverbial store in the contract, and is not a “show-stopper” as KABATA claims,” she added.

Epstein testified at today’s hearing, providing data on other states that have provisions similar to those in SB 268 and citing governmental and think-tank studies that have recommended such provisions.

Anchorage Mayor Begich sent a letter of support for SB 268 to Senator Ellis on March 24, 2008, available at http://www.aktransportation.org/press-releases/march-25th-2008.

The Alaska Transportation Priorities Project (ATPP) promotes sensible transportation systems in Alaska with the goal of safe, economic, well-maintained, and environmentally-appropriate transportation throughout the state.

308 G St., Ste. 221 · Anchorage, Alaska 99501 · Phone: 907-929-9372 · Fax: 907-929-1562 www.aktransportation.org

adn.com | Construction, cash, care issues raised for Knik Arm bridge http://www.adn.com/news/alaska/v-printer/story/386313.html

Construction, cash, care issues raised for Knik Arm bridge 2 INVESTOR GROUPS: Legislators, toll board examine possibilities. By KYLE HOPKINS [email protected] (04/25/08 00:40:51)

A state agency wants two groups of investors to make their best pitch for building, financing and maintaining the Knik Arm bridge.

Rep. Les Gara has some suggestions. As the Knik Arm Bridge and Toll Authority -- created in 2003 to make the bridge happen -- met in Anchorage on Thursday, Gara called on the group to:

• Require the potential builders to pay for any road projects -- such as a link to Ingra and Gambell streets downtown -- connecting the bridge to the Anchorage and Mat-Su road system.

• If there is a cost to the state, require legislative approval of any proposed deal to build the bridge.

• Allow public approval of proposed toll rates.

Two international consortia have shown interest in building, financing and operating the bridge, according to the authority.

The Ingra-Gambell connection is a key part of the project, and if one of the groups doesn't say how they'll pay for it, it'll be a knock against them when it's time to choose the builder, said Mary Ann Pease, authority spokeswoman.

As for requiring the Legislature to approve the bridge deal, Pease said that would inject too much uncertainty into the project for potential investors.

"It is a contract with the private sector, and as such needs to be negotiated as a business decision, rather than a political process," she said.

Gara said it would allow for more public review and pressure the bridge authority to keep the cost low.

"The big fear is that they sign a contract that obligates the state to a billion dollars in road construction and (connector) bridge construction costs," he said.

Sen. Charlie Huggins, R-Wasilla, participated in the meeting by telephone. He said the state can't afford not to build the crossing.

1 of 2 adn.com | Construction, cash, care issues raised for Knik Arm bridge http://www.adn.com/news/alaska/v-printer/story/386313.html

For example, he said, look at how many people found themselves stuck in traffic between the Valley and Anchorage on Thursday morning when a police chase clogged the highway.

Pease said the bridge authority could agree to limits on the tolls -- such as increasing no more than inflation.

The bridge authority estimates it would cost about $600 million to build the bridge from a mostly undeveloped area around Point MacKenzie, across the Arm, through Government Hill.

The investors that build and maintain the bridge would be expected to pay for most of the project.

Part of the proposal the bridge authority is working on outlines who would pay for cost overruns if necessary, Pease said.

Gara and Sen. Johnny Ellis, D-Anchorage, proposed bills in February that would have called for legislative approval of a bridge deal, but those proposals never reached a vote.

Find Kyle Hopkins' political blog online at adn.com/alaskapolitics or call him at 257-4334.

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2 of 2 Alaska Commuter Rail Gains Fans http://www.masstransitmag.com/online/printer.jsp?id=6130

» Click Here to Print This Page « Alaska Commuter Rail Gains Fans

Posted: May 22nd, 2008 08:49 AM PDT

By Rindi White, Anchorage Daily News

Carpenter Eric Wolford, 30, for nine years has commuted to work at Anchorage job sites.

Dropping off a coworker Tuesday evening at the park-and-ride lot at Trunk Road and the Parks Highway, he paused to explain why he exchanged his three-quarter-ton Chevrolet pickup truck for his wife's Honda sedan. The truck cost him $100 a week in gas: The Honda costs half that much.

"Once prices started shooting way above $3 was when I decided to stop driving the truck," he said.

Like a lot of commuters, Wolford said he'd rather take a train than drive.

"I say forget the bridge," he said, referring to a plan to link Point MacKenzie and Anchorage with a bridge over the Knik Arm. "Let's put the money into commuter rail."

With gasoline on the threshold of $4 a gallon at service stations in the Matanuska-Susitna Borough, commuter rail, long on the back burner of civic affairs, is starting to look a lot more attractive.

Pat Gamble, president of the Alaska Railroad Corp., told a Palmer audience this month that gas at $5 a gallon would make regular service between Wasilla and Anchorage more feasible. Other hurdles must be crossed, he said, but the railroad is building one self-propelled car for potential use on that route. A trial run is expected this winter.

"I'm not saying we're going to start the service in October," railroad spokesman Tim Thompson said Thursday. "But we'll have the car in. There's potential."

ANY WHICH WAY

In the meantime, existing modes of mass transit -- ride sharing, buses and vanpooling -- are more popular than ever in Mat-Su. According to state Labor Department estimates, a third of working men and women in the Mat-Su area, conservatively about 11,000 people, commute daily to jobs in Anchorage. That's not counting military and federal government employees, state labor economist Neal Fried said.

Record-breaking prices at the pump are motivating more and more Valley commuters to turn to carpooling or vanpooling, said Jesse Ferman, the Anchorage Share-A-Ride vanpool and carpool coordinator.

1 of 3 Alaska Commuter Rail Gains Fans http://www.masstransitmag.com/online/printer.jsp?id=6130

"They're finally at the point where they're saying they don't want to pay the gas anymore," he said.

At the Trunk Road park-and-ride lot, Toyota Tundras and Nissan Xterras nestle fender to fender with Chevrolet Blazers and Dodge Dakotas. Two months and 60-cents-less-a-gallon ago, you could still find an open spot here at 7 a.m. No longer. A handful of vehicles has even spilled onto the grass surrounding the asphalt lot.

Ridership on the Mat-Su Community Transit (MASCOT) buses that carry Valley commuters to and from Anchorage every morning and evening has increased by 28 percent in the past two months. MASCOT ridership is up to 70 one-way trips each day, said executive direct Louis Friend.

MASCOT added a second bus when evening ridership topped 27, he said.

Anchorage Share-A-Ride, whose 45 vans ferry commuters to and from the Valley each day, added another 100 Valley commuters to a waiting list already 500 names long, Ferman said. He said the program plans this summer to field five more vans with room for 13 passengers each.

The Mat-Su Borough applied for a grant to buy 10 new commuter vans, five for routes in the borough and five for the Anchorage commute, Borough Manager John Duffy said. He expects to learn this summer whether the application is successful.

"We recognize we need to start doing something to help our residents who travel longer distances," Duffy said. "It makes sense to get going on it now."

MAT-SU EXPRESS

Mat-Su Mayor Curt Menard, a member of the Alaska Railroad board of directors, said last week it may be interested in more concrete support for a permanent commuter link between Anchorage and the Valley.

"There are some things you make money on and some things you provide as a service," Menard said. "It's definitely time to get the discussion rolling."

For the railroad, Thompson said it ordered a 144-seat self-propelled rail car, called a diesel multiple unit or DMU, to run flag-stop service through the Chugach National Forest south and east of Anchorage. The car will arrive too late to run the flag-stop route this year but could start commuter test runs between Anchorage and Wasilla this winter.

The railroad has to figure out how much to charge for the test runs, where the stops should be and how to issue tickets. A commuter rail study in 2002 suggested a one-way fare between $4.50 and $7.50.

"The really big question comes down to, we can run people back and forth ... but what do you do with them once they get downtown?" Thompson said.

For sure, he said, the train would stop at the Anchorage airport, the Ship Creek railroad depot and at Dimond Center, when a station is built there.

2 of 3 Alaska Commuter Rail Gains Fans http://www.masstransitmag.com/online/printer.jsp?id=6130

The railroad may get commuter service under way, but an independent authority, according to railroad president Gamble and strategic planning director Bruce Carr, should operate it.

"People in the Valley want commuter rail," Carr said. "The railroad position has been fairly consistent over the past number of years. No public transit, including highways, is self-sufficient.

"We have a responsibility to our state owners not to lose money," he said.

Find Daily News reporter Rindi White online at adn.com/contact/rwhite or call her in Wasilla at 907-352-6709. T.C. Mitchell contributed to this story.

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3 of 3 adn.com | Knik Arm bridge hits fork in the road http://www.adn.com/anchorage/v-printer/story/430751.html

Knik Arm bridge hits fork in the road REVIEW: 5 years and $41.5 million later, project has lost momentum and the governor wants answers. By KYLE HOPKINS [email protected] (06/09/08 00:04:39)

Alaskans have talked about building a Knik Arm crossing for decades, and just five years ago the project looked as promising as ever. The state had a congressman, Rep. Don Young, holding sway over federal highway spending and a new governor, Frank Murkowski, pushing to get the bridge project going.

Things have changed.

Budget watchdogs mock the project as a symbol of pork-barrel spending.

Murkowski is gone and now so is George Wuerch, who resigned in April as chairman of the Knik Arm Bridge and Toll Authority, the state agency charged with creating the bridge.

The bridge authority's deputy director left too, saying the project had stalled.

And the new governor, Sarah Palin, is asking questions.

After five years and $41.5 million in public money spent planning one of Southcentral Alaska's most ambitious development dreams, the bridge has come to a fork in the road.

"We need a complete review," Palin said last week of the latest plans for paying for the bridge. "We need to see if things have changed in the last couple of years from when the project seemed to have a lot of steam, a lot of energy behind it, to where we are now."

Following Wuerch's departure, Knik Arm bridge authority officials are on their best behavior. They say they won't try to strike a bridge deal without the state's blessing. Knocked for secrecy, they pledge openness.

"The project couldn't be more on track, in terms of trying to tie together the community and the administrative folks in the city, than ever before," said bridge authority spokeswoman Mary Ann Pease.

Anchorage City Manager Mike Abbott said the authority recently told city officials it is willing to revisit a part of the project in dispute between bridge backers and the mayor: When a roughly $200 million connection from the bridge to Ingra and Gambell streets will be built and who will pay for it.

Playing nice might be the authority's only option. They're relying on outside investors to pay most of the project's cost in exchange for toll revenue, and it doesn't look good if government agencies are battling over the details.

"The developers won't be interested unless they know that the state is a good partner," said Kevin Hemenway, chief financial officer for the authority.

1 of 5 adn.com | Knik Arm bridge hits fork in the road http://www.adn.com/anchorage/v-printer/story/430751.html

Palin, a former Wasilla mayor, has said she supports the idea of a Knik arm bridge in general.

But she said it's also time to review the authority's plans.

What's at stake?

"If what we hear is it could cost the state $1 billion -- and that would result in huge financial risks allocated to the state -- then it may not be worth it for the state to pursue the project," Palin said.

RISING COSTS

The Knik Arm bridge would be an 8,200-foot span connecting mostly undeveloped land near Point MacKenzie to Anchorage through Government Hill.

In 2005, Young inserted more than $200 million seed money for the Knik Arm bridge in a spending bill. But Congress later pulled the earmark amid criticism of the Anchorage project and of a proposed Gravina Island bridge in Ketchikan.

The state still got the money but didn't have to use it on the bridges.

Young and Sen. Ted Stevens, R-Alaska, say they remain supporters.

"As we go into the new highway bill, I'm going to be thinking about Knik crossing," Young said.

For years, the bridge authority has loosely estimated the cost at about $600 million. That number doesn't include adding the Ingra and Gambell streets connection, a top priority for the city leaders.

Every year of delay adds about $25 million in costs, Hemenway said.

Add financing costs and potential permitting delays or lawsuits, and the Knik Arm crossing price tag looks more like $1 billion.

The authority says two international consortia have shown interest in building, financing and running the bridge. One is headed by Bouygues Travaux Publics of France, the other by Macquarie Bank of Australia.

As of April, the bridge authority says it has spent about $41.5 million on planning -- mostly federal money.

The authority's payroll has risen for four straight years, to $1.1 million last year. One job, with a salary of $130,000, is vacant and won't be filled.

That's the deputy director spot that Darryl Jordan left April 4.

IS THE PROJECT STALLED?

"The reason I bailed out is I don't see it going any time soon," Jordan said, adding that he still supports the bridge. "Politics has basically grabbed a hold of its neck, and rising interest rates are going to make it impossible to do without a large subsidy from state or federal (government).

"Because that isn't going to happen any time soon, I thought it might be best to find a real project."

Bridge authority director Andrew Niemiec wouldn't comment on Jordan's departure, saying it's a personnel issue.

2 of 5 adn.com | Knik Arm bridge hits fork in the road http://www.adn.com/anchorage/v-printer/story/430751.html

Pease, the authority spokeswoman, said interest rates remain low and, "Last time I checked (Jordan's) degree was in engineering, not in finance."

"His understanding of where we're at and where we're going is very limited," she said.

On April 22, the Transportation Department sent the bridge authority a four-page letter saying the department was "concerned with the ongoing expenses associated with the planning process for this project."

The state wanted to evaluate the bridge authority's work so far and learn what the state might be obligated to pay if the project moved ahead.

The letter asked how much the state or authority would have to pay if certain bridge permits are delayed or never issued at all, for example, and what would happen if the bridge draws only a fraction of the expected traffic -- and tolls?

The bridge authority recently responded with about 80 pages of information.

The authority marked the paperwork confidential and refused to provide a copy to the Daily News, saying the documents would have to come from the state.

Except for releasing a two-page letter from the authority's board to state Sen. Johnny Ellis and Rep. Les Gara -- Anchorage Democrats who have long called for more public oversight and safeguards against extra costs -- the state had not responded to a public records request for the paperwork as of Friday afternoon.

LEADER STEPS DOWN

Weeks after Jordan's departure and days after the letter from the state, Wuerch resigned, too.

In a letter to Palin, dated April 28, Wuerch wrote that five years ago -- as mayor of Anchorage -- he presented Murkowski with the draft legislation creating the bridge authority.

"It's been a long, slow and expensive process," he wrote.

Wuerch wrote that he still believed the project could be built as a public-private partnership and that the time was right for someone to pick up where he left off.

Wuerch did not return phone messages for comment.

Palin said Wednesday that she had not selected his replacement, and will be looking to board members to help make that decision.

"Maybe they'll get a new champion in (who) can do the political wand waving and get it to happen quickly," Jordan said of the crossing.

That might mean mending some bridges with critics first.

NEW DIRECTION?

The Knik Arm crossing plans are still in the early stages and there's a long road ahead before construction could begin.

One of the next steps is for the Federal Highway Administration to sign a so-called "record of decision" on the project. Before that can happen, that agency must consider what the project would mean for historic properties in Government Hill.

3 of 5 adn.com | Knik Arm bridge hits fork in the road http://www.adn.com/anchorage/v-printer/story/430751.html

"I've made a commitment to the local governments, both the Mat-Su Borough and the Municipality of Anchorage, to work through some of the concerns they've raised over the past couple of years," said bridge authority director Niemiec.

Pease said communications between the authority and Government Hill residents had broken down in the past and that bridge backers are trying to change that.

Bob French is a vice president of the Government Hill Community Council.

Historically the authority's style has been to tell people about its decisions, but not meaningfully involve them in the decision-making, French said.

Asked if there are any signs of that changing, French said it's hard to say.

"The proof is in actions rather than words," he said.

Find Kyle Hopkins' political blog online at adn.com/alaskapolitics or call him at 257-4334.

Knik Arm bridge timeline: 1955 to the present

• 1955 -- The Anchorage Chamber of Commerce forms a committee to explore building a Knik Arm causeway.

• 1969 -- An Oklahoma company called Tandy Industries plans a domed city at Point MacKenzie, with dreams of an aerial tramway across Knik Arm.

• 1983 -- The state Department of Transportation prepares a feasibility study on a Knik Arm crossing, and within two years reports on options for designing and financing a bridge.

• 1986 -- Oil prices sink below $10 a barrel.

• 2001 -- Alaska Rep. Don Young becomes chairman of the U.S. House Transportation and Infrastructure Committee.

• 2003 -- Gov. Frank Murkowski signs a bill creating the Knik Arm Bridge and Toll Authority, which is tasked with making the bridge happen. Murkowski names former Anchorage Mayor George Wuerch chairman.

• 2005 -- Young inserts more than $200 million for the Knik Arm crossing. Congress strikes language that directs the money to the Knik Arm bridge.

• 2006 -- Bridge backers look to private investors to help cover the cost of the project in exchange for future toll revenue.

2008

• April 4 -- Bridge Authority deputy director Darryl Jordan resigns. He later says the project has stalled.

• April 22 -- The state Transportation Department writes to the bridge authority expressing concern about cost and asking questions about the state's liability.

4 of 5 adn.com | Knik Arm bridge hits fork in the road http://www.adn.com/anchorage/v-printer/story/430751.html

• April 28 -- Wuerch resigns. He says it's been a "long, slow and expensive process" but he still believes the project can work.

Sources: Knik Arm Bridge and Toll Authority and Daily News archives

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adn.com | Proposed Knik Arm Bridge faces questions http://www.adn.com/news/alaska/ap_alaska/v-printer/story/431056.html

Proposed Knik Arm Bridge faces questions

(06/09/08 09:44:29)

After five years and $41.5 million spent on planning, one of southcentral Alaska's most ambitious development dreams, the Knik Arm Bridge, is at a crossroads.

Alaska's only U.S. representative, Don Young, five years ago was chairman of the House Transportation Committee, with strong influence over federal highway spending. Then-Alaska Gov. Frank Murkowski pushed for progress on a bridge between Anchorage and the Matanuska-Susitna Borough.

But Young is now in the U.S. House minority, Murkowski is out of office and budget watchdogs have mocked the project as a symbol of pork-barrel spending.

Former Anchorage Mayor George Wuerch resigned in April as chairman of the Knik Arm Bridge and Toll Authority, the state agency charged with creating the bridge. The bridge authority's deputy director left too, saying the project had stalled.

"We need a complete review," said Gov. Sarah Palin last week of the latest plans for paying for the bridge. "We need to see if things have changed in the last couple of years from when the project seemed to have a lot of steam, a lot of energy behind it, to where we are now."

Knik Arm bridge authority officials remain optimistic. Criticized for secrecy, they have pledged openness.

"The project couldn't be more on track, in terms of trying to tie together the community and the administrative folks in the city, than ever before," said spokeswoman Mary Ann Pease.

The authority is relying on investors to pay most of the project's cost in exchange for toll revenue. Attracting investors will be harder if state and municipal agencies are disputing bridge details.

"The developers won't be interested unless they know that the state is a good partner," said Kevin Hemenway, chief financial officer for the authority.

Palin, a former Wasilla mayor, has said she supports the idea of a Knik arm bridge. But she also said the authority's plans must be reviewed.

"If what we hear is it could cost the state $1 billion - and that would result in huge financial risks allocated to the state - then it may not be worth it for the state to pursue the project," Palin said.

The Knik Arm bridge would be an 8,200-foot span connecting Anchorage to mostly undeveloped land near Point MacKenzie.

In 2005, Young inserted more than $200 million seed money for the Knik Arm bridge in a spending bill. Congress later pulled the earmark amid criticism of the Anchorage project and of a proposed Gravina Island bridges in Ketchikan.

The state still received the money but did not have to use it on the bridges.

1 of 3 adn.com | Proposed Knik Arm Bridge faces questions http://www.adn.com/news/alaska/ap_alaska/v-printer/story/431056.html

Young and Sen. Ted Stevens, R-Alaska, say they remain supporters.

For years, the bridge authority has loosely estimated the cost at about $600 million, which does not include adding Anchorage street connections, a top priority for city leaders.

Every year of delay adds about $25 million in costs, Hemenway said.

With financing costs and potential permitting delays or lawsuits, the bridge cost could approach $1 billion.

The authority says two international consortia have shown interest in building, financing and running the bridge. As of April, the bridge authority said it has spent about $41.5 million on planning. Most of it was federal money.

The authority's deputy director, Darryl Jordan, resigned April 4.

"The reason I bailed out is I don't see it going any time soon," Jordan said. "Politics has basically grabbed a hold of its neck, and rising interest rates are going to make it impossible to do without a large subsidy from state or federal (government).

"Because that isn't going to happen any time soon, I thought it might be best to find a real project."

Bridge authority director Andrew Niemiec would not comment on Jordan's departure, saying it was a personnel issue.

Pease, the authority spokeswoman, said interest rates remain low and, "Last time I checked (Jordan's) degree was in engineering, not in finance."

"His understanding of where we're at and where we're going is very limited," she said.

On April 22, the state Transportation Department sent the bridge authority a four-page letter saying the department was "concerned with the ongoing expenses associated with the planning process for this project."

The state wanted to evaluate the bridge authority's work so far and learn what the state might be obligated to pay if the project moved ahead.

The letter asked how much the state or authority would have to pay if certain bridge permits were delayed or never issued, and what would happen if the bridge draws only a fraction of the expected traffic.

The bridge authority responded with about 80 pages of information but refused to provide a copy to the Anchorage Daily News.

Weeks after Jordan's departure and days after the letter from the state, Wuerch resigned.

In a letter to Palin, Wuerch wrote that he still believed the project could be built as a public-private partnership and that the time was right for someone to pick up where he left off.

Palin said Wednesday that she had not selected Wuerch's replacement and will be looking to board members to help make that decision.

"Maybe they'll get a new champion in (who) can do the political wand waving and get it to happen quickly," Jordan said of the crossing.

2 of 3 adn.com | Proposed Knik Arm Bridge faces questions http://www.adn.com/news/alaska/ap_alaska/v-printer/story/431056.html

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3 of 3 adn.com | Liabilities blur Knik bridge agency's cost estimates http://www.adn.com/money/v-printer/story/432648.html

Liabilities blur Knik bridge agency's cost estimates State had sought information, which was made public Tuesday. By KYLE HOPKINS [email protected] (06/10/08 23:44:10)

With the state asking pointed questions about cost projections for a Knik Arm bridge from Anchorage to Point MacKenzie, the agency charged with creating the crossing released new estimates that outline rising prices and potential costs.

Among the Knik Arm Bridge and Toll Authority's estimates:

• There's a 40 percent chance the bridge would be delayed by a lawsuit late in the permitting process.

• The amount the state might have to pay if something goes wrong ranges from no cost to $113 million. Permitting delays are the biggest potential expense.

• Construction costs would be about $667 million if work started in 2009. But the authority's spokeswoman, Mary Ann Pease, said construction is much more likely to start in 2011, when the bill would rise to about $715 million.

• In the slim chance that traffic across the bridge falls far below projections, the authority might be obligated to pay millions of dollars a year to its private financing partners.

Those numbers and others are the bridge authority's response to an April 22 letter from the state Department of Transportation that expressed concerns about the project's costs. The authority released its roughly 80-page reply Tuesday, in response to a public records request filed with the governor's office by the Anchorage Daily News.

Gov. Sarah Palin said last week she wants to review plans for financing the bridge before moving ahead on the project. The authority hopes private investors will foot most of the bill.

The governor's office and the state transportation and law departments will now review the bridge authority's reply to see if it answers all their questions.

"The state will have to decide whether or not those terms are something it wants to agree to," said Randy Ruaro, special assistant to the governor.

Pease said the bridge authority is looking to answer questions and cooperate with the state and city.

1 of 2 adn.com | Liabilities blur Knik bridge agency's cost estimates http://www.adn.com/money/v-printer/story/432648.html

"This is not KABATA out there as the Lone Ranger. That's not where we're going anymore," she said.

One question the state asked was how much the authority would have to pay bridge investors if only a fraction of the expected traffic materialized. The authority said there's only a 10 percent chance they'll have to pay anything, though the cost could be millions of dollars a year.

Bridge backers are at the beginning of a long permitting process. They say they won't try to make a deal with private investors to build the bridge until the state signs off on the plans.

For years, the authority estimated the cost of building the bridge at about $600 million. In its reply to the state, the authority says that figure would be $667 million if construction began next year, factoring in inflation.

The bill would rise to $824 million by 2015, the authority says.

But paying for the bridge is about more than construction costs.

Adding a connection to Ingra and Gambell streets -- to reduce bridge traffic on A and C streets downtown -- could cost another $200 million alone.

In its April 22 letter, the state asked who would pay for that connection. The authority's response mentions several options, including a combination of higher bridge tolls and more state and federal money.

Requiring private investors to pay for the extension is not off the table, Pease said. She said another option is for the state to set up a fund to cover the costs of the extension, which would be repaid with future toll revenues.

Find Kyle Hopkins' political blog online at adn.com/alaskapolitics or call him at 257-4334.

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2 of 2 adn.com | State seeks new cost estimate for Knik Arm bridge http://www.adn.com/knik/v-printer/story/443327.html

State seeks new cost estimate for Knik Arm bridge INDEPENDENT: Most agree that revised figures will be helpful. By TERRY CARR [email protected] (06/22/08 02:04:52)

An independent party will be called in to look at one of the most elusive aspects of a proposed bridge linking Anchorage and Mat-Su: the price tag.

Gordon Keith, regional director for the state Department of Transportation and Public Facilities, said his office will be putting the job of estimating the cost of the controversial project out for bids in coming weeks. He said the task of coming up with a price could cost up to $200,000 and take up to 3½ months.

"The issue keeps swirling around, so we thought it best to go ahead and do an independent estimate," he said. The cost to get the estimate is going to be high "if you want to do it correctly," he said.

The cost of a span reaching across Knik Arm from Anchorage to Point MacKenzie has ranged over the years from $450 million to $1 billion, depending on what kind of bridge is envisioned and what starting date is plugged into the formula.

The addition of transportation links on each end of the span -- such as a connection on the Anchorage side to the Ingra-Gambell couplet -- could increase the price by hundreds of millions.

The agency charged with coming up with a bridge plan -- the Knik Arm Bridge and Toll Authority -- recently estimated the span would cost $667 million if construction begins next year. The authority, which made the estimate in response to a request from the governor's office, said that figure could increase to $824 million by 2015.

Keith said the DOT's plan to get a new report on costs did not mean the authority's numbers are untrustworthy.

"I don't read that into it," he said. "We just think it's a prudent course of action for the Department of Transportation to do."

He said construction costs are volatile, and the department sometimes seeks independent cost estimates for its own projects. DOT set out to get the independent estimate on the Knik Arm project after the governor's office and the Federal Highway Administration also indicated they wanted a fix on a price.

Randy Ruaro, a special assistant to Gov. Sarah Palin, said the administration, even in the face of the recent lengthy report from the bridge authority, was having trouble

1 of 2 adn.com | State seeks new cost estimate for Knik Arm bridge http://www.adn.com/knik/v-printer/story/443327.html

getting an accurate picture of everything that is involved in the project, of the timing of the phases, and of the costs. He said the independent estimate is expected to answer those questions.

Mary Ann Pease, spokeswoman for the authority, said she welcomes the effort to get updated costs.

"Estimates change, and maybe there's going to be some more detailed specifics available," she said.

Lois Epstein, director of Alaska Transportation Priorities Project, which has resisted the bridge project, also said the independent cost estimate would be a good thing.

"What we have now is people moving toward a decision based on old numbers and numbers that there's a lot of skepticism about," she said.

Find Terry Carr online at adn.com/contact/tcarr or call 257-4582.

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2 of 2 adn.com | Knik bridge questions http://www.adn.com/opinion/view/v-printer/story/449921.html

Knik bridge questions Full answers needed

(06/28/08 23:27:21)

Don't bet on the bridge.

The Knik Arm Bridge and Toll Authority has spent about $41 million on the Knik Arm Crossing project, most of it federal money and most it going for the Environmental Impact Statement.

Whether the bridge authority will be allowed to spend much more is doubtful. The highly expensive, highly controversial project still faces big questions that may doom it.

The Federal Highway Administration has yet to issue a "record of decision" on whether the project should go forward. That's expected by the end of the year, according to administration spokesman Doug Hecox.

Meanwhile, both state and feds want an independent re-examination of the project's costs. They haven't hired the outfit to do it yet, but aim to have fresh cost estimates by October.

And three of the five members of AMATS, the committee that decides what Anchorage area projects will get federal money, have made clear that, at the very least, they're skeptical of the wisdom of continuing with the bridge.

• Mayor Mark Begich said he wants an independent analysis of how many drivers the bridge is likely to have, and what toll they'd be willing to pay. He also remains adamantly opposed to the current plan to connect the bridge to the A-C Couplet, putting more traffic through downtown. He prefers the Gambell-Ingra connection -- an expensive connection that, under current plans, wouldn't happen until well after the bridge is built.

Mayor Begich said he'd have a tough time backing the bridge if he had to vote now. More likely, "I'm gonna recommend that money not be wasted," he said. He said he'd rather see a healthy investment in the newly formed regional transit authority with Mat-Su, with commuter rail taking the edge off Valley-Anchorage traffic.

• Assemblywoman Sheila Selkregg questioned whether the bridge squares with the city's comprehensive plan, which encourages compact development in the city, instead of suburban sprawl. More compelling are her questions about whether the bridge still pencils out given current gas prices and rising construction costs. She said she doesn't see the bridge as a priority for Anchorage, but "an ill-conceived" plan that was more political than practical. She also wants to know if there's any way Anchorage taxpayers could be on the hook for future costs.

• Assemblyman Patrick Flynn has the same questions and criticisms. "I'm not feelin' warm and fuzzy about any of the answers yet," he said last week. He said the bridge shouldn't be a spur to growth but a response to it. If population grows on the Mat-Su side of the arm, a bridge eventually will make sense -- and there will be sufficient traffic to pay for it.

The bridge authority is planning on a public-private partnership to finance the bridge. A private outfit would hold a long-term concession to collect tolls. Independent second looks at both traffic

1 of 2 adn.com | Knik bridge questions http://www.adn.com/opinion/view/v-printer/story/449921.html

and toll potentials and the costs of the project make sense.

If Alaska pulls the plug on the bridge before the feds make their decision, Uncle Sam can ask the state to pay back the federal money spent so far. No sense doing that. The city and state should wait for the feds' record of decision, then respond to that as needed. Projects can be killed for various reasons -- costs, controversy, environmental damage -- without obligation to repay federal funds.

Otherwise, it may cost the state about $40 million to say "never mind."

This is a big project with millions already invested. Let the independent analysts take their fresh look at construction costs and bridge traffic. Let AMATS and the state continue to question the bridge authority, and let the bridge authority make its best, last case. Let's be clear about all of the costs -- and make a final decision based on solid numbers and local needs.

BOTTOM LINE: Key local leaders have serious doubts about Knik Arm crossing, and for good reason.

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