The MDOT factor

Much has been made of a line included in a letter distributed by Farmington City Manager Vince Pastue, which indicates that if the Downtown Farmington streetscape project negatively affects traffic volumes, the state may require the city to rip it all up.

Why, a recent Farmington Observer letter writer asks, would we spend good money on a project designed by amateurs, when we’ll just be asked to tear it out? The whole thing looks pretty scary, at first glance. That’s why it’s so important for citizens to take a much closer look whenever streetscape opponents start trying to scare us.

The sentence in question seems to me the sort of “hold harmless” clause common in any legally binding agreement. It makes clear who takes responsibility in the event disaster strikes. And it should certainly not be construed as a threat or a prediction of disaster.

While critics commonly refer to the plans as drafted by “amateurs,” they know this isn’t really true. Experienced professionals drafted the plans and presented them for review by MDOT. Of course, the project would not have moved forward if MDOT’s engineers felt with any degree of certainty that it would have an overwhelmingly negative impact on traffic. Once again, creating the illusion that amateurs created the streetscape pushes the agenda of fear.

So what happens if all those professionals are wrong? Even if the streetscape is egregiously flawed and creates the worst-case scenario, the fault will lie with the people who did the work – and the city would be able to go after the costs incurred in putting things back where they were.

Those who oppose this project have yet to present an alternative plan, and from this, I can only conclude that they want things to remain the same. Anyone who thinks that intertia can’t hurt may want to take a look at another letter, published in today’s Observer. Click HERE to read what a prominent business owner had to say.

–Joni Hubred-Golden
Michigan Woman Blogger

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