Here's an interesting story from WRAL about stolen/lost/damaged state property:
http://www.wral.com/news/local/wral_investigates/story/6999284/
Buried within is this:
"Yet another high dollar loss for the state comes from damaged property. For the Department of Transportation, much of that damage happens on the side of the road. 'Trees are considered as assets,' said DOT engineer Ted Sherrod. The DOT has reported hundreds of thousands of dollars in tree losses, mostly from businesses clearing around signs in the right of way. 'We'll have about as many as 50 cases a year,' Sherrod said."
Good to hear that DOT considers trees assets. Let's hope they start treating them that way.
Thursday, February 11, 2010
Thursday, December 10, 2009
Former DOT engineer gets jail sentence of 37 months
From The Daily Reflector
http://www.reflector.com/news/former-dot-engineer-gets-jail-sentence-of-37-months-1008716.html
A former Department of Transportation engineer was sentenced Tuesday in federal court to three years in prison on extortion charges in connection with bridge work done in Pitt and Beaufort counties, a spokeswoman for U.S. Attorney George E.B. Holding said.
Dalton Ray Alligood Jr. was sentenced to 37 months in prison, followed by two years of probation, for extortion under the color of official right, a violation of U.S. statutes, spokeswoman Robin Zier said. Alligood worked as a district engineer in charge of the bridge maintenance unit in Pitt and Beaufort counties for the NCDOT transportation division. He supervised 32 employees and was empowered to enter “fully operational rental” contracts with private companies, Zier said.
“Alligood used his power to extort kickbacks from contractors in exchange for contract awards,” Zier said.
In 2004, Alligood provided an excavation company two small, fully-operational rental contracts after he formed a social relationship with its owners, Zier said. The owners then offered him a 10 percent kickback on all future contracts, which Alligood accepted with the condition that the kickbacks be made in cash, Zier said.
Alligood went on to award dozens of contracts to the excavation company and received payments in excess of $300,000.
The scheme came to an end when the arrests of former NCDOT officials Danny Taylor, Chad Fornes and Mike Delmonte, who were charged with using their positions to extort cash from contractors, were reported in the media, Zier said.
Holding commented on the situation following the sentencing.
“Civil servants are responsible to perform their duties free of any conflict or improper personal gain,” he said. “Unfortunately, the defendant set aside those obligations.”
http://www.reflector.com/news/former-dot-engineer-gets-jail-sentence-of-37-months-1008716.html
A former Department of Transportation engineer was sentenced Tuesday in federal court to three years in prison on extortion charges in connection with bridge work done in Pitt and Beaufort counties, a spokeswoman for U.S. Attorney George E.B. Holding said.
Dalton Ray Alligood Jr. was sentenced to 37 months in prison, followed by two years of probation, for extortion under the color of official right, a violation of U.S. statutes, spokeswoman Robin Zier said. Alligood worked as a district engineer in charge of the bridge maintenance unit in Pitt and Beaufort counties for the NCDOT transportation division. He supervised 32 employees and was empowered to enter “fully operational rental” contracts with private companies, Zier said.
“Alligood used his power to extort kickbacks from contractors in exchange for contract awards,” Zier said.
In 2004, Alligood provided an excavation company two small, fully-operational rental contracts after he formed a social relationship with its owners, Zier said. The owners then offered him a 10 percent kickback on all future contracts, which Alligood accepted with the condition that the kickbacks be made in cash, Zier said.
Alligood went on to award dozens of contracts to the excavation company and received payments in excess of $300,000.
The scheme came to an end when the arrests of former NCDOT officials Danny Taylor, Chad Fornes and Mike Delmonte, who were charged with using their positions to extort cash from contractors, were reported in the media, Zier said.
Holding commented on the situation following the sentencing.
“Civil servants are responsible to perform their duties free of any conflict or improper personal gain,” he said. “Unfortunately, the defendant set aside those obligations.”
Everything that's wrong with NC state government
From WRAL.com:
http://www.wral.com/news/state/story/6579098/
Perdue probes buys from firm tied to Rand
RALEIGH, N.C. — Gov. Beverly Perdue has asked the state Department of Transportation Department to look into its purchases of costly surveillance equipment from a security company headed by a powerful politician.
Multiple media outlets reported Wednesday that Perdue said the purchases by the Division of Motor Vehicles and other state agencies were being reviewed. She said the results would be made public.
At least four state agencies have bought nearly $200,000 in equipment from Law Enforcement Associates since 2003, when state Sen. Tony Rand became the company's board chairman. The Fayetteville Democrat is stepping down as Senate majority leader to become Perdue's parole chief.
DMV bought more than $64,000 in gear from LEA without seeking competitive bids.
http://www.wral.com/news/state/story/6579098/
Perdue probes buys from firm tied to Rand
RALEIGH, N.C. — Gov. Beverly Perdue has asked the state Department of Transportation Department to look into its purchases of costly surveillance equipment from a security company headed by a powerful politician.
Multiple media outlets reported Wednesday that Perdue said the purchases by the Division of Motor Vehicles and other state agencies were being reviewed. She said the results would be made public.
At least four state agencies have bought nearly $200,000 in equipment from Law Enforcement Associates since 2003, when state Sen. Tony Rand became the company's board chairman. The Fayetteville Democrat is stepping down as Senate majority leader to become Perdue's parole chief.
DMV bought more than $64,000 in gear from LEA without seeking competitive bids.
Tuesday, September 29, 2009
DMV commissioner claims no link between phone contract and gifts
WRAL reports http://www.wral.com/news/local/story/6102981/
Raleigh, N.C. — The commissioner of North Carolina's Division of Motor Vehicles says there's no evidence linking a phone company contract to gifts and meals provided by its workers to state employees.
Commissioner Mike Robertson said Tuesday that Verizon says 62 state workers or their family members received restaurant meals, hockey tickets and other benefits from company employees. Such acts would be in violation of the state ethics policy.
The State Bureau of Investigation has been asked to look at what happened. Robertson says the SBI is also investigating computers used to implement the state's electronic sticker program. The DMV paid for the computers, but currently some are unaccounted for.
“The SBI has been asked to look into this, and to whether or not any DMV employee had knowledge of this inventory or those stored computers," Robertson said. “It is important to note that at the end of the day, Verizon bears the responsibility for the computers not accounted for, (and) not DMV.”
Robertson says no current employees have yet been disciplined and it appears there's no evidence that the gifts had a role in expanding a Verizon state contract.
Verizon spokesman Jack Hoey said five employees will be disciplined regarding the meals and gifts, and that the company is cooperating with the DMV to find the missing computers.
Raleigh, N.C. — The commissioner of North Carolina's Division of Motor Vehicles says there's no evidence linking a phone company contract to gifts and meals provided by its workers to state employees.
Commissioner Mike Robertson said Tuesday that Verizon says 62 state workers or their family members received restaurant meals, hockey tickets and other benefits from company employees. Such acts would be in violation of the state ethics policy.
The State Bureau of Investigation has been asked to look at what happened. Robertson says the SBI is also investigating computers used to implement the state's electronic sticker program. The DMV paid for the computers, but currently some are unaccounted for.
“The SBI has been asked to look into this, and to whether or not any DMV employee had knowledge of this inventory or those stored computers," Robertson said. “It is important to note that at the end of the day, Verizon bears the responsibility for the computers not accounted for, (and) not DMV.”
Robertson says no current employees have yet been disciplined and it appears there's no evidence that the gifts had a role in expanding a Verizon state contract.
Verizon spokesman Jack Hoey said five employees will be disciplined regarding the meals and gifts, and that the company is cooperating with the DMV to find the missing computers.
Saturday, January 10, 2009
Lapsed warranty will likely cost DOT millions to fix I-795
From Jan. 9, 2009 WRAL.com :
Goldsboro, N.C. — At least one state lawmaker says a lack of accountability is to blame for a bad paving job along 18 miles of Interstate 795, which could cost the state millions of dollars to repave.
The North Carolina Department of Transportation said Thursday it could cost anywhere from $14 million to $22 million to fix the stretch of road running from Wilson to Goldsboro, which started cracking 16 months after the project was complete. A report from the Federal Highway Administration partly blames air pockets in two hot-mix asphalt layers for the problems.
"The person responsible should be fired," Sen. Neal Hunt, R-Wake, who sits on the Joint Legislative Transportation Oversight Committee, said Friday. "Bottom line – if he made a $20 million boo boo, he needs to be terminated, but you can't find out who it is (because no one person is responsible). That's the problem."
Another part of Hunt's concern is that the DOT discovered the problem four months after its 12-month warranty on the $120 million highway expired.
DOT is already paying the contractor, Wilson-based S.T. Wooten, nearly $500,000 to repair a number of large cracks and potholes along the interstate, and officials say it is likely the state will also be responsible for paying the company to repave the rest of the roadway.
Victor Barbour, the DOT's administrator for technical services, which oversees contracts, said the agency didn’t purchase an extended warranty because of the cost increase that would have been associated with the project.
But Hunt believes extended warranties are worth the investment.
"To me, it's a no-brainer, absolutely," he said. "If a private business were doing this, they would not pay the bill until they were sure it was right. Period."
Hunt wants to know why history seems to be repeating itself.
In 2007, the DOT spent about $22 million to repave a 10.6-mile stretch of Interstate 40 in Durham after finding that expansion joints were improperly constructed when new concrete was laid on top of the old during a widening project.
DOT engineers began noticing problems with it before the project was finished, and it hired the same contractor to fix it, because under state law, the lowest qualified bidder must be awarded the contract.
Bruce Dillard, the DOT's inspector general, whose job is to promote accountability and efficiency and minimize fraud, waste and abuse, said Friday his office has no intention of auditing the I-795 project. He declined to comment further as to why.
DOT says it is too premature to say whether the department will revisit its warranty policy.
"I think we'll do an evaluation process and determine what direction we need to take with regard to the warrant," Barbour said.
Reporter: Bruce Mildwurf
Goldsboro, N.C. — At least one state lawmaker says a lack of accountability is to blame for a bad paving job along 18 miles of Interstate 795, which could cost the state millions of dollars to repave.
The North Carolina Department of Transportation said Thursday it could cost anywhere from $14 million to $22 million to fix the stretch of road running from Wilson to Goldsboro, which started cracking 16 months after the project was complete. A report from the Federal Highway Administration partly blames air pockets in two hot-mix asphalt layers for the problems.
"The person responsible should be fired," Sen. Neal Hunt, R-Wake, who sits on the Joint Legislative Transportation Oversight Committee, said Friday. "Bottom line – if he made a $20 million boo boo, he needs to be terminated, but you can't find out who it is (because no one person is responsible). That's the problem."
Another part of Hunt's concern is that the DOT discovered the problem four months after its 12-month warranty on the $120 million highway expired.
DOT is already paying the contractor, Wilson-based S.T. Wooten, nearly $500,000 to repair a number of large cracks and potholes along the interstate, and officials say it is likely the state will also be responsible for paying the company to repave the rest of the roadway.
Victor Barbour, the DOT's administrator for technical services, which oversees contracts, said the agency didn’t purchase an extended warranty because of the cost increase that would have been associated with the project.
But Hunt believes extended warranties are worth the investment.
"To me, it's a no-brainer, absolutely," he said. "If a private business were doing this, they would not pay the bill until they were sure it was right. Period."
Hunt wants to know why history seems to be repeating itself.
In 2007, the DOT spent about $22 million to repave a 10.6-mile stretch of Interstate 40 in Durham after finding that expansion joints were improperly constructed when new concrete was laid on top of the old during a widening project.
DOT engineers began noticing problems with it before the project was finished, and it hired the same contractor to fix it, because under state law, the lowest qualified bidder must be awarded the contract.
Bruce Dillard, the DOT's inspector general, whose job is to promote accountability and efficiency and minimize fraud, waste and abuse, said Friday his office has no intention of auditing the I-795 project. He declined to comment further as to why.
DOT says it is too premature to say whether the department will revisit its warranty policy.
"I think we'll do an evaluation process and determine what direction we need to take with regard to the warrant," Barbour said.
Reporter: Bruce Mildwurf
Tuesday, December 23, 2008
Report: Retiree rigged jobs, raises at DMV
From The Raleigh News & Observer:
Dan Kane - Staff Writer
Internal investigative files released Friday say that Greene County patronage boss Eddie Carroll Thomas had "long-standing and widespread" influence over personnel decisions in one of the state Division of Motor Vehicles' largest sections -- Driver and Vehicle Services.
Need a job? Send an application to Thomas. Want a troublesome colleague transferred? Talk to Thomas. Need someone to get you a new DMV job assignment? Thomas is "the man," employees told investigators.
All this is considerable influence for a 73-year-old man who is no longer a state employee. Thomas was once a Transportation Department maintenance supervisor, but he abruptly retired five years ago after state records showed dozens of calls from his work phone being made to top officials across state government. State and federal investigations looked into two state contracts connected to Thomas' business partners and Thomas' role as a conduit for jobs and appointments at other state agencies.
"I personally was shocked and offended by what was contained in the investigative report," DMV Commissioner Bill Gore said. "And I was offended not only as an administrator but as a citizen."
Gore turned over the investigation to Wake County District Attorney Colon Willoughby on Nov. 4. A month later, Willoughby wrote that he would not pursue it.
Part of Thomas' influence stems from his role as a political fundraiser. He raised money for both former Gov. Jim Hunt and current Gov. Mike Easley. An internal Easley campaign document from 2000 showed Thomas had been tapped to raise $40,000 from Greene County, among the state's poorest counties.
Employees told investigators that Thomas had the ear of the section's head, Wayne Hurder, who became the DMV's second-in-command in August 2007. In numerous instances, the files say, Hurder backed what Thomas wanted.
Hurder, 61, was fired Oct. 31 for using his position "to exert improper influence in personnel matters," Transportation Secretary Lyndo Tippett said in a letter that authorized release of the investigative files. Hurder has denied any wrongdoing and is suing to get his job back.
Hurder said that Thomas, who he acknowledges is a friend, held no influence over him. Hurder joined the DMV in 1993 and made $101,867 a year. Hurder told investigators he met Thomas five years ago.
"Nobody speaks for me," Hurder said. "The district supervisors and others on my staff know that nobody can speak directly for me."
Thomas could not be reached for comment.
Costs to taxpayers
The personnel moves cost taxpayers, Gore said. Employees who shifted to other offices -- without their direct supervisors' approval, or in some cases without their knowledge -- cost the state at least $80,000 unnecessarily. Hurder said the moves were made to combat manpower shortages.
When it came time to interview job candidates for positions in the eastern part of the state, Hurder called upon Thomas' nephew, Danny Thomas, to drive from Morganton, 200 miles west of Raleigh, where he was a district supervisor. Records show those trips cost the state thousands in travel expenses.
Thomas and another DMV supervisor, Mike Salisbury, handled much of the examiner interviews for jobs in the eastern part of the state. Salisbury, Danny Thomas, Hurder and other DMV employees would regularly join Eddie Carroll Thomas for dinner. Danny Thomas told investigators that his uncle and Hurder would discuss personnel matters.
The files show an instance in which interviews for two examiner jobs in eastern North Carolina were supposed to be handled by Danny Thomas, but inadvertently got assigned to another supervisor, Nadine Barnes. She did not pick a person recommended by Eddie Carroll Thomas. Hurder ordered the paperwork redone to show the person Thomas recommended was one of the top two choices for two positions.
Dan Kane - Staff Writer
Internal investigative files released Friday say that Greene County patronage boss Eddie Carroll Thomas had "long-standing and widespread" influence over personnel decisions in one of the state Division of Motor Vehicles' largest sections -- Driver and Vehicle Services.
Need a job? Send an application to Thomas. Want a troublesome colleague transferred? Talk to Thomas. Need someone to get you a new DMV job assignment? Thomas is "the man," employees told investigators.
All this is considerable influence for a 73-year-old man who is no longer a state employee. Thomas was once a Transportation Department maintenance supervisor, but he abruptly retired five years ago after state records showed dozens of calls from his work phone being made to top officials across state government. State and federal investigations looked into two state contracts connected to Thomas' business partners and Thomas' role as a conduit for jobs and appointments at other state agencies.
"I personally was shocked and offended by what was contained in the investigative report," DMV Commissioner Bill Gore said. "And I was offended not only as an administrator but as a citizen."
Gore turned over the investigation to Wake County District Attorney Colon Willoughby on Nov. 4. A month later, Willoughby wrote that he would not pursue it.
Part of Thomas' influence stems from his role as a political fundraiser. He raised money for both former Gov. Jim Hunt and current Gov. Mike Easley. An internal Easley campaign document from 2000 showed Thomas had been tapped to raise $40,000 from Greene County, among the state's poorest counties.
Employees told investigators that Thomas had the ear of the section's head, Wayne Hurder, who became the DMV's second-in-command in August 2007. In numerous instances, the files say, Hurder backed what Thomas wanted.
Hurder, 61, was fired Oct. 31 for using his position "to exert improper influence in personnel matters," Transportation Secretary Lyndo Tippett said in a letter that authorized release of the investigative files. Hurder has denied any wrongdoing and is suing to get his job back.
Hurder said that Thomas, who he acknowledges is a friend, held no influence over him. Hurder joined the DMV in 1993 and made $101,867 a year. Hurder told investigators he met Thomas five years ago.
"Nobody speaks for me," Hurder said. "The district supervisors and others on my staff know that nobody can speak directly for me."
Thomas could not be reached for comment.
Costs to taxpayers
The personnel moves cost taxpayers, Gore said. Employees who shifted to other offices -- without their direct supervisors' approval, or in some cases without their knowledge -- cost the state at least $80,000 unnecessarily. Hurder said the moves were made to combat manpower shortages.
When it came time to interview job candidates for positions in the eastern part of the state, Hurder called upon Thomas' nephew, Danny Thomas, to drive from Morganton, 200 miles west of Raleigh, where he was a district supervisor. Records show those trips cost the state thousands in travel expenses.
Thomas and another DMV supervisor, Mike Salisbury, handled much of the examiner interviews for jobs in the eastern part of the state. Salisbury, Danny Thomas, Hurder and other DMV employees would regularly join Eddie Carroll Thomas for dinner. Danny Thomas told investigators that his uncle and Hurder would discuss personnel matters.
The files show an instance in which interviews for two examiner jobs in eastern North Carolina were supposed to be handled by Danny Thomas, but inadvertently got assigned to another supervisor, Nadine Barnes. She did not pick a person recommended by Eddie Carroll Thomas. Hurder ordered the paperwork redone to show the person Thomas recommended was one of the top two choices for two positions.
DOT playing favorites? Some think so
From WRAL.com :
Raleigh, N.C. — Are state leaders playing favorites when it comes to allocating funding for highway projects in some cities?
A Charlotte transportation official and a Wake County commissioner seem to think so.
In a Dec. 5 letter to President-elect Obama, R. Lee Myers, chairman of the Mecklenburg-Union Metropolitan Planning Organization, asks the incoming administration to freeze all federal funding to North Carolina for highway projects, saying an investigation into the state's Board of Transportation and transportation officials is needed.
Myers accuses Department of Transportation Secretary Lyndo Tippett and Democratic majority leader Sen. Tony Rand, D-Cumberland, of showing favoritism in a recent decision to allocate $275 million in funding over the next six years for the future Interstate 295 outer loop in Fayetteville.
Both Tippett and Rand are from the Fayetteville area.
In comparison, Charlotte received $104 million over the next six years for the Interstate 485 loop, and Raleigh received $5 million for the Interstate 540/N.C. Highway 540 loop.
I-295 is projected to have about 30,000 vehicles per day traveling on it by 2020, Myers said.
Traffic on the completed portion of I-485, is "unbelievably congested" at 120,000 vehicles a day, Myers said. The uncompleted portion, he said, is projected to have approximately 130,000 vehicles a day by 2030.
Myers said the decision is political and, although legal, is far from being a "systematic distribution of funding."
"The failure to require a more just and fair system is the fault of the North Carolina Legislature," Myers writes. "However, insofar as federal funding is concerned, this is your opportunity to bring about a significant change in the way the federal government does business."
Wake County Commissioner Joe Bryan agrees.
"We've got to start prioritizing in this type of economic situation we're in now," Bryan said. "I have no idea of their personal involvement in this. That's a decision by the Board of Transportation. Whatever the case is, I think the public can figure it out for themselves."
Rand denies any favoritism, saying funding has been distributed fairly.
Through 2008, I-485 received $1.05 billion, and I-540 received $757 million. I-295 received $66 million.
"When you look where the money's spent, it's obvious we haven't taken advantage of the situation in any improper way," Rand said. "It's obvious we waited in line."
To complete Raleigh's loop, the DOT says toll roads are necessary.
DOT says that because of Fort Bragg's growth, Fayetteville needs and deserves the funding.
"It's going to challenge our schools, challenge every bit of infrastructure we have, and highways are a huge part of that," Rand said.
It's unclear how Obama will respond.
As for the state's new administration, Governor-elect Beverly Perdue says one of her top priorities is to transform the Board of Transportation.
"I do not want them approving individual roads," Perdue said. "I want to depoliticize how roads and bridges and maintenance is done in the state."
Raleigh, N.C. — Are state leaders playing favorites when it comes to allocating funding for highway projects in some cities?
A Charlotte transportation official and a Wake County commissioner seem to think so.
In a Dec. 5 letter to President-elect Obama, R. Lee Myers, chairman of the Mecklenburg-Union Metropolitan Planning Organization, asks the incoming administration to freeze all federal funding to North Carolina for highway projects, saying an investigation into the state's Board of Transportation and transportation officials is needed.
Myers accuses Department of Transportation Secretary Lyndo Tippett and Democratic majority leader Sen. Tony Rand, D-Cumberland, of showing favoritism in a recent decision to allocate $275 million in funding over the next six years for the future Interstate 295 outer loop in Fayetteville.
Both Tippett and Rand are from the Fayetteville area.
In comparison, Charlotte received $104 million over the next six years for the Interstate 485 loop, and Raleigh received $5 million for the Interstate 540/N.C. Highway 540 loop.
I-295 is projected to have about 30,000 vehicles per day traveling on it by 2020, Myers said.
Traffic on the completed portion of I-485, is "unbelievably congested" at 120,000 vehicles a day, Myers said. The uncompleted portion, he said, is projected to have approximately 130,000 vehicles a day by 2030.
Myers said the decision is political and, although legal, is far from being a "systematic distribution of funding."
"The failure to require a more just and fair system is the fault of the North Carolina Legislature," Myers writes. "However, insofar as federal funding is concerned, this is your opportunity to bring about a significant change in the way the federal government does business."
Wake County Commissioner Joe Bryan agrees.
"We've got to start prioritizing in this type of economic situation we're in now," Bryan said. "I have no idea of their personal involvement in this. That's a decision by the Board of Transportation. Whatever the case is, I think the public can figure it out for themselves."
Rand denies any favoritism, saying funding has been distributed fairly.
Through 2008, I-485 received $1.05 billion, and I-540 received $757 million. I-295 received $66 million.
"When you look where the money's spent, it's obvious we haven't taken advantage of the situation in any improper way," Rand said. "It's obvious we waited in line."
To complete Raleigh's loop, the DOT says toll roads are necessary.
DOT says that because of Fort Bragg's growth, Fayetteville needs and deserves the funding.
"It's going to challenge our schools, challenge every bit of infrastructure we have, and highways are a huge part of that," Rand said.
It's unclear how Obama will respond.
As for the state's new administration, Governor-elect Beverly Perdue says one of her top priorities is to transform the Board of Transportation.
"I do not want them approving individual roads," Perdue said. "I want to depoliticize how roads and bridges and maintenance is done in the state."
Tuesday, November 25, 2008
Road chief's hometown gets millions
Other N.C. cities protest the $270 million going to Fayetteville for its highway loop. A $270 million allocation to complete the Fayetteville Loop is protested by other N.C. cities
From the Raleigh News and Observer:
RALEIGH - The N.C. Board of Transportation is pumping $270 million in road money into Fayetteville, the hometown of Transportation Secretary Lyndo Tippett and of a key legislative ally, weeks before Tippett leaves office.
At meetings in October and November, the board approved the money for work on a highway loop around Fayetteville, as road money has been drying up and cash for loops around the state's other cities has been delayed.
The funding comes in the waning weeks of the terms of Gov. Mike Easley, a Democrat, and Tippett, his appointee. Tippett is also a close friend of Senate Majority Leader Tony Rand, a Fayetteville Democrat who pushed for the loop money.
The move has officials in other cities up in arms. "I don't know what their personal roles are," Raleigh Mayor Charles Meeker said, "but I know what the end result is."
Meeker, also a Democrat, said highway money has flowed to Fayetteville in recent years as most large cities in the state have received little.
Rep. Becky Carney, a Charlotte Democrat and a co-chairwoman of a legislative committee that oversees transportation, said approval of the Fayetteville project leapfrogs the state's larger cities and drains a large portion of the money available for the entire state.
"That would be a travesty," Carney said, "if the bulk of our loop money went for one project."
Tippett shrugged off the criticism, saying whoever doesn't get money is bound to complain. The Fayetteville project has been in the works for years, he said, and it's more important now that the Army's Fort Bragg is expanding.
"Those people who are going to the front lines are entitled to a safe commute," Tippett said, "as much as those going to their banking and industrial jobs."
Nina Szlosberg, a member of the transportation board from Raleigh, said Gov.-elect Beverly Perdue and her administration will have a depleted bank account for transportation projects when they take office in January.
"It's important for the new administration to have the opportunity to determine where best to put our transportation dollars," she said.
Perdue campaigned on a pledge to change the board of transportation into a policy-making group instead of one that approves specific road projects.
"Governor-elect Perdue's goal is to prevent these types of disputes," said Perdue spokesman David Kochman, "by transforming the Department of Transportation, including prohibiting DOT board members from voting on specific projects."
Local officials across the state point out that the general pot of road money follows a set -- though much-criticized -- formula designed to make sure every region gets a fair share. But no such equation determines where loop money is spent. Those decisions are made by transportation officials in Raleigh.
Allocation rules needed
Nancy Dunn, a transportation board member from Winston-Salem, said clear decision-making steps should be established. "There should be some known process on how the money is allocated on loops," she said.
Construction was supposed to start this year on a 12-mile section of Raleigh's Outer Loop, I-540, in western Wake County. In 2005, the transportation department postponed construction by at least four years and said it might take until 2030 to finish the entire loop.
Last year, Charlotte's unfinished I-485 loop was pushed back by two years and now isn't expected to be completed for a decade.
But Fayetteville's loop was kept on schedule. The first leg opened three years ago and is handling about 9,000 cars a day. The southern leg of Charlotte's loop handles 120,000 cars a day.
When the state created a separate pot of money for urban loop projects in 1989, most of the money initially went to Charlotte.
The state has spent nearly $1 billion on Charlotte's Outer Loop, I-485, since 1990. Mecklenburg County's share of the state loop money has diminished in recent years as Raleigh, Greensboro and other cities have built or expanded loops.
"You've got the same amount of money with far more competition for the funding," Tippett said. "Nine communities would like their loops finished now."
Fayetteville was not included in the original list of cities for loops, but was added in 2003. Officials from other cities and some board members complain that it has now jumped to the head of the line.
Rand, the Senate majority leader, said Fayetteville was at the end of the line and the money has finally reached there. "It's our turn now," Rand said.
Tippett argued that the military base closing and realignment process in 2005 shifted a major new command to Fort Bragg and the likelihood of additional jobs. Base commanders asked for various road improvements.
At the same time, the state was paying hundreds of millions of dollars in incentives to companies such as Dell and Google to move to the state and create new jobs. "Spending $200 or $300 million in Fort Bragg infrastructure improvements seemed to be a deal at the time," Tippett said.
From the Raleigh News and Observer:
RALEIGH - The N.C. Board of Transportation is pumping $270 million in road money into Fayetteville, the hometown of Transportation Secretary Lyndo Tippett and of a key legislative ally, weeks before Tippett leaves office.
At meetings in October and November, the board approved the money for work on a highway loop around Fayetteville, as road money has been drying up and cash for loops around the state's other cities has been delayed.
The funding comes in the waning weeks of the terms of Gov. Mike Easley, a Democrat, and Tippett, his appointee. Tippett is also a close friend of Senate Majority Leader Tony Rand, a Fayetteville Democrat who pushed for the loop money.
The move has officials in other cities up in arms. "I don't know what their personal roles are," Raleigh Mayor Charles Meeker said, "but I know what the end result is."
Meeker, also a Democrat, said highway money has flowed to Fayetteville in recent years as most large cities in the state have received little.
Rep. Becky Carney, a Charlotte Democrat and a co-chairwoman of a legislative committee that oversees transportation, said approval of the Fayetteville project leapfrogs the state's larger cities and drains a large portion of the money available for the entire state.
"That would be a travesty," Carney said, "if the bulk of our loop money went for one project."
Tippett shrugged off the criticism, saying whoever doesn't get money is bound to complain. The Fayetteville project has been in the works for years, he said, and it's more important now that the Army's Fort Bragg is expanding.
"Those people who are going to the front lines are entitled to a safe commute," Tippett said, "as much as those going to their banking and industrial jobs."
Nina Szlosberg, a member of the transportation board from Raleigh, said Gov.-elect Beverly Perdue and her administration will have a depleted bank account for transportation projects when they take office in January.
"It's important for the new administration to have the opportunity to determine where best to put our transportation dollars," she said.
Perdue campaigned on a pledge to change the board of transportation into a policy-making group instead of one that approves specific road projects.
"Governor-elect Perdue's goal is to prevent these types of disputes," said Perdue spokesman David Kochman, "by transforming the Department of Transportation, including prohibiting DOT board members from voting on specific projects."
Local officials across the state point out that the general pot of road money follows a set -- though much-criticized -- formula designed to make sure every region gets a fair share. But no such equation determines where loop money is spent. Those decisions are made by transportation officials in Raleigh.
Allocation rules needed
Nancy Dunn, a transportation board member from Winston-Salem, said clear decision-making steps should be established. "There should be some known process on how the money is allocated on loops," she said.
Construction was supposed to start this year on a 12-mile section of Raleigh's Outer Loop, I-540, in western Wake County. In 2005, the transportation department postponed construction by at least four years and said it might take until 2030 to finish the entire loop.
Last year, Charlotte's unfinished I-485 loop was pushed back by two years and now isn't expected to be completed for a decade.
But Fayetteville's loop was kept on schedule. The first leg opened three years ago and is handling about 9,000 cars a day. The southern leg of Charlotte's loop handles 120,000 cars a day.
When the state created a separate pot of money for urban loop projects in 1989, most of the money initially went to Charlotte.
The state has spent nearly $1 billion on Charlotte's Outer Loop, I-485, since 1990. Mecklenburg County's share of the state loop money has diminished in recent years as Raleigh, Greensboro and other cities have built or expanded loops.
"You've got the same amount of money with far more competition for the funding," Tippett said. "Nine communities would like their loops finished now."
Fayetteville was not included in the original list of cities for loops, but was added in 2003. Officials from other cities and some board members complain that it has now jumped to the head of the line.
Rand, the Senate majority leader, said Fayetteville was at the end of the line and the money has finally reached there. "It's our turn now," Rand said.
Tippett argued that the military base closing and realignment process in 2005 shifted a major new command to Fort Bragg and the likelihood of additional jobs. Base commanders asked for various road improvements.
At the same time, the state was paying hundreds of millions of dollars in incentives to companies such as Dell and Google to move to the state and create new jobs. "Spending $200 or $300 million in Fort Bragg infrastructure improvements seemed to be a deal at the time," Tippett said.
Monday, September 29, 2008
Sewell resigns NCDOT Board under a cloud
Per Greensboro News and Record:
With political pressure mounting, Lewis W. Sewell Jr. had no other choice than to resign from the state Department of Transportation board. Funneling $375,000 for improvements to a highway abutting property he and business partners owned in Jacksonville was a clear, self-serving conflict of interest, not the protocol oversight he claimed.
Caught up in the fallout is Democratic gubernatorial candidate Bev Perdue, who early last week hadn't decided whether to attend a fund-raiser Sewell had planned for her. It ended up being canceled.
Even so, Republican opponent Pat McCrory seized on the controversy to again paint Perdue as being part of the state's entrenched political establishment.
The latest DOT flap should be reason enough to elicit pledges from both candidates to rid the board of partisan political shenanigans.
http://www.news-record.com/content/2008/09/26/article/short_stack_food_for_thought_quick_and_over_easy
With political pressure mounting, Lewis W. Sewell Jr. had no other choice than to resign from the state Department of Transportation board. Funneling $375,000 for improvements to a highway abutting property he and business partners owned in Jacksonville was a clear, self-serving conflict of interest, not the protocol oversight he claimed.
Caught up in the fallout is Democratic gubernatorial candidate Bev Perdue, who early last week hadn't decided whether to attend a fund-raiser Sewell had planned for her. It ended up being canceled.
Even so, Republican opponent Pat McCrory seized on the controversy to again paint Perdue as being part of the state's entrenched political establishment.
The latest DOT flap should be reason enough to elicit pledges from both candidates to rid the board of partisan political shenanigans.
http://www.news-record.com/content/2008/09/26/article/short_stack_food_for_thought_quick_and_over_easy
Thursday, February 14, 2008
Perdue ID's DOT fundraisers
From the Raleigh News and Observer:
Lt. Gov. Beverly Perdue followed through on her pledge earlier today and identified Board of Transportation members who are fundraisers for her campaign.
They are Lanny Wilson of Wilmington, Louis Sewell of Jacksonville and Marvin Blount of Greenville. Thomas Betts Jr. of Rocky Mount was previously a board member, but he stepped down last month after a fundraising scandal, Dan Kane reports.
Perdue's campaign also challenged state Treasurer Richard Moore to disclose more than the name of his fundraisers on the board. She wants him to disclose his Wall Street fundraisers, and support a ban on fundraising by those who have business with the treasurer's office.
"Richard Moore says we should ban contributions from DOT board members, but not from people who do business with the Treasurer's office—maybe that's because he’s raised more than $1.5 million from them," said Perdue spokesman David Kochman. "Richard Moore's attacks are the height of hypocrisy."
Moore has said that board members should not be fundraising for the governor.
But his campaign said today that doesn't apply to those who have raised money for Moore in the current campaign—including board members Alan Thornburg and D.M. "Mac" Campbell. Moore could reward them and other fundraisers with board seats, said Moore's campaign manager Jay Reiff, but once on the board they would have to stop fundraising.
"He was going to break that cycle," Reiff said.
Kochman found that stand just as hypocritical. "It's another example of do as I say not as I do," he said.
Lt. Gov. Beverly Perdue followed through on her pledge earlier today and identified Board of Transportation members who are fundraisers for her campaign.
They are Lanny Wilson of Wilmington, Louis Sewell of Jacksonville and Marvin Blount of Greenville. Thomas Betts Jr. of Rocky Mount was previously a board member, but he stepped down last month after a fundraising scandal, Dan Kane reports.
Perdue's campaign also challenged state Treasurer Richard Moore to disclose more than the name of his fundraisers on the board. She wants him to disclose his Wall Street fundraisers, and support a ban on fundraising by those who have business with the treasurer's office.
"Richard Moore says we should ban contributions from DOT board members, but not from people who do business with the Treasurer's office—maybe that's because he’s raised more than $1.5 million from them," said Perdue spokesman David Kochman. "Richard Moore's attacks are the height of hypocrisy."
Moore has said that board members should not be fundraising for the governor.
But his campaign said today that doesn't apply to those who have raised money for Moore in the current campaign—including board members Alan Thornburg and D.M. "Mac" Campbell. Moore could reward them and other fundraisers with board seats, said Moore's campaign manager Jay Reiff, but once on the board they would have to stop fundraising.
"He was going to break that cycle," Reiff said.
Kochman found that stand just as hypocritical. "It's another example of do as I say not as I do," he said.
Friday, January 25, 2008
NC DOT board member resigns over Perdue fundraising
From the Charlotte Observer:
By GARY D. ROBERTSON, Associated Press Writer
RALEIGH, N.C. - A state Board of Transportation member resigned Friday after his boss questioned his effort to raise campaign money for Democratic gubernatorial candidate Beverly Perdue from people connected to a high-profile commercial project in Roanoke Rapids.
Thomas Betts Jr. of Rocky Mount, who represented six northeast Piedmont counties on the board, submitted his resignation to Transportation Secretary Lyndo Tippett. "I have enjoyed my tenure and take much pride in the DOT crew in my division and the good things we have accomplished," Betts wrote in the three-sentence e-mail to Tippett.
Tippett said he talked to Betts about whether Betts had been raising money for Perdue in Roanoke Rapids from people connected to Carolina Crossroads, a new entertainment and retail complex along Interstate 95. The cornerstone of the complex is a theater previously managed by Randy Parton, the brother of Dolly Parton.
Tippett said he was concerned that Carolina Crossroads officials would feel obliged to give to Perdue because the board had approved economic development money for the project. "I told him that it would probably be in the best interest of the state" to step down, Tippett said. "Board members are held to the highest ethical standards. ... we weren't going to accept anything less." Betts didn't return messages left Friday on his cell phone or at his home. Perdue's campaign acknowledged that Betts was helping with a Nov. 13 fundraiser in Rocky Mount but wasn't aware of the efforts to attract Roanoke Rapids donors at this event until Friday.
Betts' resignation embarrasses Perdue, who has made the troubles at the former Randy Parton Theatre a campaign issue in her primary race against State Treasurer Richard Moore, her leading opponent. Last week, Moore said if elected he would seek legislation banning Transportation Board members from donating to any candidates or collecting donations on behalf of a candidate to reduce political influence on the board. Betts' resignation confirms that Perdue doesn't want to change the system, Moore's campaign said.
By GARY D. ROBERTSON, Associated Press Writer
RALEIGH, N.C. - A state Board of Transportation member resigned Friday after his boss questioned his effort to raise campaign money for Democratic gubernatorial candidate Beverly Perdue from people connected to a high-profile commercial project in Roanoke Rapids.
Thomas Betts Jr. of Rocky Mount, who represented six northeast Piedmont counties on the board, submitted his resignation to Transportation Secretary Lyndo Tippett. "I have enjoyed my tenure and take much pride in the DOT crew in my division and the good things we have accomplished," Betts wrote in the three-sentence e-mail to Tippett.
Tippett said he talked to Betts about whether Betts had been raising money for Perdue in Roanoke Rapids from people connected to Carolina Crossroads, a new entertainment and retail complex along Interstate 95. The cornerstone of the complex is a theater previously managed by Randy Parton, the brother of Dolly Parton.
Tippett said he was concerned that Carolina Crossroads officials would feel obliged to give to Perdue because the board had approved economic development money for the project. "I told him that it would probably be in the best interest of the state" to step down, Tippett said. "Board members are held to the highest ethical standards. ... we weren't going to accept anything less." Betts didn't return messages left Friday on his cell phone or at his home. Perdue's campaign acknowledged that Betts was helping with a Nov. 13 fundraiser in Rocky Mount but wasn't aware of the efforts to attract Roanoke Rapids donors at this event until Friday.
Betts' resignation embarrasses Perdue, who has made the troubles at the former Randy Parton Theatre a campaign issue in her primary race against State Treasurer Richard Moore, her leading opponent. Last week, Moore said if elected he would seek legislation banning Transportation Board members from donating to any candidates or collecting donations on behalf of a candidate to reduce political influence on the board. Betts' resignation confirms that Perdue doesn't want to change the system, Moore's campaign said.
Thursday, July 19, 2007
Tatum steps down as DMV chief
From the Raleigh News and Observer
Dan Kane, Staff Writer
N.C. Division of Motor Vehicles Commissioner George Tatum resigned Wednesday, after documents and interviews with an agency staffer suggested that Tatum helped a friend get a replica of a 1937 Ford truck titled as the real thing. Tatum could not be reached for comment, and a state Department of Transportation spokesman would say only that the resignation involved a personnel matter.
Gov. Mike Easley, who appointed Tatum commissioner in April 2003, said in a short statement that Tatum needed to resign. "I believe it was appropriate," Easley said.
Mark Foster, the DOT's chief financial officer, will be interim DMV commissioner.
The DMV, which issues driver's licenses and vehicle registrations and conducts safety and emissions inspections, has been long known as an agency with numerous controversies and scandals. Tatum is not the first commissioner to resign following allegations that he misused his office. Alexander Killens quit in 1996 after an audit showed he used staff as drivers and personal security. He pleaded guilty to a misdemeanor obstruction of justice for impeding an investigation into whether a DMV employee misused a state car.
Dan Kane, Staff Writer
N.C. Division of Motor Vehicles Commissioner George Tatum resigned Wednesday, after documents and interviews with an agency staffer suggested that Tatum helped a friend get a replica of a 1937 Ford truck titled as the real thing. Tatum could not be reached for comment, and a state Department of Transportation spokesman would say only that the resignation involved a personnel matter.
Gov. Mike Easley, who appointed Tatum commissioner in April 2003, said in a short statement that Tatum needed to resign. "I believe it was appropriate," Easley said.
Mark Foster, the DOT's chief financial officer, will be interim DMV commissioner.
The DMV, which issues driver's licenses and vehicle registrations and conducts safety and emissions inspections, has been long known as an agency with numerous controversies and scandals. Tatum is not the first commissioner to resign following allegations that he misused his office. Alexander Killens quit in 1996 after an audit showed he used staff as drivers and personal security. He pleaded guilty to a misdemeanor obstruction of justice for impeding an investigation into whether a DMV employee misused a state car.
Monday, July 17, 2006
Cruise Smells Fishy
From the Burlington Times-News
Barry Smith - Burlington Times-News
Sometimes I have to wonder why red flags don’t go up in people’s minds. This is supposed to be the year of ethics reform in the North Carolina legislature. A special committee has studied ways to change the state’s lobbying, ethics and campaign finance laws to make the operation of government and decision-making more transparent and free of undue influence.
Gov. Mike Easley has taken on the issue by appointing a new head of the state’s ethics board. The House has passed out, and the Senate is considering, a series of bills aimed at addressing some of the scandals in state government that have come to the forefront over the past year. Yet, episodes of lapses in judgment continue to occur. A few weeks ago, when the Carolina Hurricanes were making their run that led to the Stanley Cup, some lawmakers fessed-up to accepting free tickets from lobbyists for high-dollar seats at the RBC Center.
But over the Independence Day weekend, they were outdone. The State Ports Authority organized a cruise for more than 200 invited guests, mainly state and local officials, during the festival of tall ships in Beaufort. As reported by the Raleigh News & Observer, the Ports Authority had a ferry diverted from its normal run to wine and dine the officials during the holiday festival. On the menu were shrimp, scallops, sandwich wraps, fruit, pasta salad, desserts, beer and wine. A steel band provided entertainment. State House members, Cabinet members and local officials were among the guests who sent in an RSVP.
The Ports Authority has apologized for the lavish July 1 excursion, which gave guests a close-up view of the tall ships. And Easley, recognizing the bad smell, has called for a full report from the Department of Transportation (DOT) and Ports Authority on the cruise. The cruise appears inappropriate from nearly every angle.
To begin with, why is the DOT allowing the ferry, named the Floyd Lupton, to be used for such an event? Its purpose is transportation, not to be used as a high-dollar party boat. You have to wonder what the Ports Authority hoped to gain from hosting such a lavish party for people in high places. Might they want to curry favor in the future for proposals that come from the authority?
And then there are the state and local officials involved. Didn’t they wonder if such a fancy event would at least give an impression that something is a bit out of order? I guess not. There’s supposed to be an air of reform in the state capital. Reform certainly wasn’t in the air for state officials when the tall ships were along the coast.
Barry Smith - Burlington Times-News
Sometimes I have to wonder why red flags don’t go up in people’s minds. This is supposed to be the year of ethics reform in the North Carolina legislature. A special committee has studied ways to change the state’s lobbying, ethics and campaign finance laws to make the operation of government and decision-making more transparent and free of undue influence.
Gov. Mike Easley has taken on the issue by appointing a new head of the state’s ethics board. The House has passed out, and the Senate is considering, a series of bills aimed at addressing some of the scandals in state government that have come to the forefront over the past year. Yet, episodes of lapses in judgment continue to occur. A few weeks ago, when the Carolina Hurricanes were making their run that led to the Stanley Cup, some lawmakers fessed-up to accepting free tickets from lobbyists for high-dollar seats at the RBC Center.
But over the Independence Day weekend, they were outdone. The State Ports Authority organized a cruise for more than 200 invited guests, mainly state and local officials, during the festival of tall ships in Beaufort. As reported by the Raleigh News & Observer, the Ports Authority had a ferry diverted from its normal run to wine and dine the officials during the holiday festival. On the menu were shrimp, scallops, sandwich wraps, fruit, pasta salad, desserts, beer and wine. A steel band provided entertainment. State House members, Cabinet members and local officials were among the guests who sent in an RSVP.
The Ports Authority has apologized for the lavish July 1 excursion, which gave guests a close-up view of the tall ships. And Easley, recognizing the bad smell, has called for a full report from the Department of Transportation (DOT) and Ports Authority on the cruise. The cruise appears inappropriate from nearly every angle.
To begin with, why is the DOT allowing the ferry, named the Floyd Lupton, to be used for such an event? Its purpose is transportation, not to be used as a high-dollar party boat. You have to wonder what the Ports Authority hoped to gain from hosting such a lavish party for people in high places. Might they want to curry favor in the future for proposals that come from the authority?
And then there are the state and local officials involved. Didn’t they wonder if such a fancy event would at least give an impression that something is a bit out of order? I guess not. There’s supposed to be an air of reform in the state capital. Reform certainly wasn’t in the air for state officials when the tall ships were along the coast.
Thursday, July 13, 2006
Currituck dredging deadline disputed
From the Raleigh News and Observer:
Former ferry chief expected to testify
RALEIGH - Jerry Gaskill, former head of the state ferry service, had to get a ferry operating from Currituck to Corolla by June 15, 2004, and federal prosecutors say he had employees dredge an illegal channel to meet that deadline.Gaskill, who oversaw the ferry service from 1993 until he was indicted in January, is charged with conspiring with employees to dredge the channel without the proper state and federal permits. Permit requests had been denied in the past because of the sensitive habitat nearby, prosecutors say.
"They knew when they were doing it, it was wrong," Assistant U.S. Attorney Banu Rangarajan told a jury Monday during her opening statement.
Gaskill, who denies wrongdoing, also is charged with lying to federal investigators and violating environmental laws. His trial might end as soon as Wednesday. He is expected to testify.
Prosecutors say that on May 6 and 7, 2004, seven ferry service employees used two boats to do "prop washing" or "kicking" -- using the boats' propellers to cut a channel in, in this case, Currituck Sound. The channel that was 6-feet-deep and 30 feet wide by 730 feet violated the Clean Water Act and another federal environmental law, prosecutors say.
The ferry was to carry passengers and schoolchildren to and from mainland Currituck to the remote town of Corolla on the northern Outer Banks. After the dredging was discovered, the state Department of Transportation agreed to fill in the channel. The ferry is not running at this time.
Gaskill's defense lawyer, Tommy Manning of Raleigh, told jurors that Gaskill had nothing to do with the dredging.
Manning disputed the idea that Gaskill was under any deadline pressure since on May 5, 2004 -- the day before the channel was illegally created -- Gaskill told the state transportation board that problems had delayed the ferry's start until August 2004.
Manning laid the blame for the dredging on one of Gaskill's underlings, Billy R. Moore, one of four state Department of Transportation employees who have pleaded guilty to federal charges. He is expected to testify. It was not Gaskill but Moore, the ferry service's dredging superintendent, who instructed his employees to create the channel, Manning said.
"You will not hear any evidence that Jerry Gaskill directed any of these men to do what happened," Manning said.
As state and federal officials questioned the illegal dredging, Manning says, Moore denied "prop washing" and kept telling Gaskill and others that his employees had only measured the depth of the water. Not until two months later did Moore admit to Gaskill what he had done and then implicated Gaskill when talking to investigators, Manning said.
Former ferry chief expected to testify
RALEIGH - Jerry Gaskill, former head of the state ferry service, had to get a ferry operating from Currituck to Corolla by June 15, 2004, and federal prosecutors say he had employees dredge an illegal channel to meet that deadline.Gaskill, who oversaw the ferry service from 1993 until he was indicted in January, is charged with conspiring with employees to dredge the channel without the proper state and federal permits. Permit requests had been denied in the past because of the sensitive habitat nearby, prosecutors say.
"They knew when they were doing it, it was wrong," Assistant U.S. Attorney Banu Rangarajan told a jury Monday during her opening statement.
Gaskill, who denies wrongdoing, also is charged with lying to federal investigators and violating environmental laws. His trial might end as soon as Wednesday. He is expected to testify.
Prosecutors say that on May 6 and 7, 2004, seven ferry service employees used two boats to do "prop washing" or "kicking" -- using the boats' propellers to cut a channel in, in this case, Currituck Sound. The channel that was 6-feet-deep and 30 feet wide by 730 feet violated the Clean Water Act and another federal environmental law, prosecutors say.
The ferry was to carry passengers and schoolchildren to and from mainland Currituck to the remote town of Corolla on the northern Outer Banks. After the dredging was discovered, the state Department of Transportation agreed to fill in the channel. The ferry is not running at this time.
Gaskill's defense lawyer, Tommy Manning of Raleigh, told jurors that Gaskill had nothing to do with the dredging.
Manning disputed the idea that Gaskill was under any deadline pressure since on May 5, 2004 -- the day before the channel was illegally created -- Gaskill told the state transportation board that problems had delayed the ferry's start until August 2004.
Manning laid the blame for the dredging on one of Gaskill's underlings, Billy R. Moore, one of four state Department of Transportation employees who have pleaded guilty to federal charges. He is expected to testify. It was not Gaskill but Moore, the ferry service's dredging superintendent, who instructed his employees to create the channel, Manning said.
"You will not hear any evidence that Jerry Gaskill directed any of these men to do what happened," Manning said.
As state and federal officials questioned the illegal dredging, Manning says, Moore denied "prop washing" and kept telling Gaskill and others that his employees had only measured the depth of the water. Not until two months later did Moore admit to Gaskill what he had done and then implicated Gaskill when talking to investigators, Manning said.
Wednesday, October 26, 2005
Cracks in the system
From the NC Independent Weekly
by V.C. Rogers
Much to the dismay of long-suffering commuters, the fresh pavement on Interstate 40 in Durham that was finished just last winter has begun to crumble. After several years of construction-related traffic congestion, the barrels, cones and concrete barriers will have to be trotted back out for another interminable period. The probable source of the pavement breakdown has already been identified and reported, both by DOT and Applied Pavement Technology, a consultant hired to assess the problems. The project expanded I-40 from four to six lanes, with one new 14.5-inch-thick lane in each direction where the grassy median had been. The existing 11.5-inch lanes were topped with three inches of new concrete in a process called "bonded overlay," in which the new concrete is essentially laminated to the old. As with many highway paving projects, the old lanes had been sawed across at approximately 20-foot intervals to allow for expansion and contraction without buckling or cracking. As has been well documented in industry literature, the overlay should have been sawed completely through and the cuts located directly above the original pavement joints so the slabs would move together in the heat and cold.
Instead, as tests have confirmed, the contractor did not cut the full three inches through the overlay in most places, nor were the cuts properly aligned with those in the old pavement. When the bottom layer expanded and contracted as the weather changed, the pressure on the top layer caused it to crack, crumble and become unglued.
DOT officials initially announced they would seek repairs free of charge from the contractor, Granite Construction of California. But the consultant's report noted that the project plans did not include any drawings or specifications for the depth or location of the saw cuts; a Granite engineer told The News & Observer that the specs had called for a 1.5 inch cut, half the necessary depth. In either case, the fault would appear to lie with DOT rather than Granite.
But DOT's glaring screw-up with the plans is only the beginning of the story, and questions about the I-40 project (and others) need to be raised--if not by DOT in its internal investigation, then by someone else.
The consultant's report notes several issues with the inspection of the project. Inspectors are supposed to check the work of the contractor and conduct tests on a daily basis to ensure that the construction is going according to plan. But the inspections were apparently lacking in some critical areas. "Verifying sawcut depth is a routine and very necessary field inspection activity for all concrete pavement construction projects, whether they be new construction or resurfacing," the report states. "There is no record of any joint sawcut depth measurements being made in the field during construction for the bonded overlay."
Moreover, bond strength test data showed unusual variability and "raise a concern about the accuracy of testing," according to the report. The strength testing was supposed to have been done 14 days after the concrete was poured, but was instead done at different intervals. Evidence indicates that "the existing pavement surface preparation may not have been performed as required on a consistent basis," according to the report, and rough patches on the overlay surface that should have been caught by inspectors were bad enough that DOT started making repairs on them in July.
While DOT has about 900 inspectors on staff in its Highway Division, inspection services for the I-40 project were contracted out to HNTB, a large transportation infrastructure firm with 60 offices nationwide. HNTB is one of six companies with an open-ended contract to perform construction and engineering services for DOT on an as-needed basis. One might think that a project of the magnitude and import of the I-40 widening would have been a candidate for in-house inspections, but DOT spokesman Ernie Seneca says that private contractors are hired whenever DOT personnel are tied up with other ongoing projects, which was the case with I-40. "It's a workload issue," Seneca says.
Just what HNTB did on the job is unclear, because DOT is shielding HNTB's inspection diaries from public view. DOT has the option to withhold the diaries under the open-records statute, says Seneca, though he will not say why the agency is refusing to release the records beyond the fact that it's legal. The records may not contain anything incriminating, but hiding them only fuels suspicion to the contrary.
HNTB spokeswoman Barbara Pruitt acknowledged that the company was involved in the project, but in a minimal way. "We furnished inspectors to DOT, who then managed those inspectors," Pruitt says. "Beyond that, we were not on-site involved in it." Pruitt referred further questions back to DOT.
Asked to detail DOT's oversight role when private firms perform services that are often done in-house, Seneca has little to offer beyond saying that the Division Engineer is responsible for the administration of contracts, and that the Resident Engineer for the project has general oversight responsibility. It shouldn't be that difficult to determine if DOT routinely conducts spot inspections of its own, or reviews the daily diaries, or otherwise has procedures in place to make sure that contractors are doing what they're supposed to do. Whatever happened on I-40, the lack of internal oversight meant that design, construction and inspection errors were not caught until it was too late.
Seneca says that DOT will review the consultant's report and continue the investigation to its completion, though "responsibility is one of the key things that has not been determined at this juncture." At the very least, this should mean that several individuals will be fingered for shirking their duties and punished accordingly.
But disciplining a couple of lower-level bureaucrats--who may only have been doing what they've always done or been told to do, after all--won't address the systemic ills that the report and other information suggest may be at the core of the I-40 mess. If I-40 was plagued by a series of mistakes that were not caught, it would be ludicrous to believe that other projects have not suffered from the same deficiencies, even if the results aren't as dramatic. "If this is the way that business is being done, then it's a problem that has to be directly addressed," says Board of Transportation member Ken Spaulding, whose district includes the project. "Unless you change the process, then once the spotlight is off [the bad I-40 pavement], you go back to business as usual and problems as usual."
Repairs to I-40 are already under way. The consultant recommended grinding away the I-40 overlay and replacing it with a more traditional asphalt, a solution DOT is already planning to implement. But that fix only has a life span of eight to 12 years as opposed to the 20-plus years that the original design anticipated. Efforts to minimize inconvenience to the motoring public mean that much of the work will be done at night, which will increase its cost. So the highway, originally projected to cost less than $50 million, will cost millions to repair, then millions more to upgrade in a decade, possibly topping $100 million not too far down the road.
Meanwhile, opponents of the Triangle Transit Authority rail plan, already stripped to the bone, are drooling in anticipation of the prospect that the latest round of federal hoops will derail it entirely. As The N&O reported in its recent series on transit, rail projects are subject to constant ridership analyses, financial assessments and other reviews, any one of which can jeopardize federal funding. Highways, on the other hand, undergo little such scrutiny. The I-40 project stands as a metaphor for the idea that building new lanes as the sole solution to traffic congestion is a strategy doomed to cost us more than we can possibly anticipate.
by V.C. Rogers
Much to the dismay of long-suffering commuters, the fresh pavement on Interstate 40 in Durham that was finished just last winter has begun to crumble. After several years of construction-related traffic congestion, the barrels, cones and concrete barriers will have to be trotted back out for another interminable period. The probable source of the pavement breakdown has already been identified and reported, both by DOT and Applied Pavement Technology, a consultant hired to assess the problems. The project expanded I-40 from four to six lanes, with one new 14.5-inch-thick lane in each direction where the grassy median had been. The existing 11.5-inch lanes were topped with three inches of new concrete in a process called "bonded overlay," in which the new concrete is essentially laminated to the old. As with many highway paving projects, the old lanes had been sawed across at approximately 20-foot intervals to allow for expansion and contraction without buckling or cracking. As has been well documented in industry literature, the overlay should have been sawed completely through and the cuts located directly above the original pavement joints so the slabs would move together in the heat and cold.
Instead, as tests have confirmed, the contractor did not cut the full three inches through the overlay in most places, nor were the cuts properly aligned with those in the old pavement. When the bottom layer expanded and contracted as the weather changed, the pressure on the top layer caused it to crack, crumble and become unglued.
DOT officials initially announced they would seek repairs free of charge from the contractor, Granite Construction of California. But the consultant's report noted that the project plans did not include any drawings or specifications for the depth or location of the saw cuts; a Granite engineer told The News & Observer that the specs had called for a 1.5 inch cut, half the necessary depth. In either case, the fault would appear to lie with DOT rather than Granite.
But DOT's glaring screw-up with the plans is only the beginning of the story, and questions about the I-40 project (and others) need to be raised--if not by DOT in its internal investigation, then by someone else.
The consultant's report notes several issues with the inspection of the project. Inspectors are supposed to check the work of the contractor and conduct tests on a daily basis to ensure that the construction is going according to plan. But the inspections were apparently lacking in some critical areas. "Verifying sawcut depth is a routine and very necessary field inspection activity for all concrete pavement construction projects, whether they be new construction or resurfacing," the report states. "There is no record of any joint sawcut depth measurements being made in the field during construction for the bonded overlay."
Moreover, bond strength test data showed unusual variability and "raise a concern about the accuracy of testing," according to the report. The strength testing was supposed to have been done 14 days after the concrete was poured, but was instead done at different intervals. Evidence indicates that "the existing pavement surface preparation may not have been performed as required on a consistent basis," according to the report, and rough patches on the overlay surface that should have been caught by inspectors were bad enough that DOT started making repairs on them in July.
While DOT has about 900 inspectors on staff in its Highway Division, inspection services for the I-40 project were contracted out to HNTB, a large transportation infrastructure firm with 60 offices nationwide. HNTB is one of six companies with an open-ended contract to perform construction and engineering services for DOT on an as-needed basis. One might think that a project of the magnitude and import of the I-40 widening would have been a candidate for in-house inspections, but DOT spokesman Ernie Seneca says that private contractors are hired whenever DOT personnel are tied up with other ongoing projects, which was the case with I-40. "It's a workload issue," Seneca says.
Just what HNTB did on the job is unclear, because DOT is shielding HNTB's inspection diaries from public view. DOT has the option to withhold the diaries under the open-records statute, says Seneca, though he will not say why the agency is refusing to release the records beyond the fact that it's legal. The records may not contain anything incriminating, but hiding them only fuels suspicion to the contrary.
HNTB spokeswoman Barbara Pruitt acknowledged that the company was involved in the project, but in a minimal way. "We furnished inspectors to DOT, who then managed those inspectors," Pruitt says. "Beyond that, we were not on-site involved in it." Pruitt referred further questions back to DOT.
Asked to detail DOT's oversight role when private firms perform services that are often done in-house, Seneca has little to offer beyond saying that the Division Engineer is responsible for the administration of contracts, and that the Resident Engineer for the project has general oversight responsibility. It shouldn't be that difficult to determine if DOT routinely conducts spot inspections of its own, or reviews the daily diaries, or otherwise has procedures in place to make sure that contractors are doing what they're supposed to do. Whatever happened on I-40, the lack of internal oversight meant that design, construction and inspection errors were not caught until it was too late.
Seneca says that DOT will review the consultant's report and continue the investigation to its completion, though "responsibility is one of the key things that has not been determined at this juncture." At the very least, this should mean that several individuals will be fingered for shirking their duties and punished accordingly.
But disciplining a couple of lower-level bureaucrats--who may only have been doing what they've always done or been told to do, after all--won't address the systemic ills that the report and other information suggest may be at the core of the I-40 mess. If I-40 was plagued by a series of mistakes that were not caught, it would be ludicrous to believe that other projects have not suffered from the same deficiencies, even if the results aren't as dramatic. "If this is the way that business is being done, then it's a problem that has to be directly addressed," says Board of Transportation member Ken Spaulding, whose district includes the project. "Unless you change the process, then once the spotlight is off [the bad I-40 pavement], you go back to business as usual and problems as usual."
Repairs to I-40 are already under way. The consultant recommended grinding away the I-40 overlay and replacing it with a more traditional asphalt, a solution DOT is already planning to implement. But that fix only has a life span of eight to 12 years as opposed to the 20-plus years that the original design anticipated. Efforts to minimize inconvenience to the motoring public mean that much of the work will be done at night, which will increase its cost. So the highway, originally projected to cost less than $50 million, will cost millions to repair, then millions more to upgrade in a decade, possibly topping $100 million not too far down the road.
Meanwhile, opponents of the Triangle Transit Authority rail plan, already stripped to the bone, are drooling in anticipation of the prospect that the latest round of federal hoops will derail it entirely. As The N&O reported in its recent series on transit, rail projects are subject to constant ridership analyses, financial assessments and other reviews, any one of which can jeopardize federal funding. Highways, on the other hand, undergo little such scrutiny. The I-40 project stands as a metaphor for the idea that building new lanes as the sole solution to traffic congestion is a strategy doomed to cost us more than we can possibly anticipate.
Tuesday, October 25, 2005
Nothing New Under the Sun
This blog is meant to document the many scandals that have plagued the North Carolina Department of Transportation in recent years. For each scandal I have only scratched the surface by citing a newspaper article or two, but there is undoubtedly more to each of these stories. And none of this is really new. Here's a little blast from NCDOT past:
http://www.democracy-nc.org/moneyresearch/1997/callforprosecution.html
http://www.capitol-monitor.org/its-your-money/kaching-dot-history-fraught-wi.php
http://www.conservationcouncilnc.org/archive/dot/request.html
etc. etc. etc.
NOTE: I compiled this website in 2008, but back dated the articles to appear in the order in which they appeared in print.
http://www.democracy-nc.org/moneyresearch/1997/callforprosecution.html
http://www.capitol-monitor.org/its-your-money/kaching-dot-history-fraught-wi.php
http://www.conservationcouncilnc.org/archive/dot/request.html
etc. etc. etc.
NOTE: I compiled this website in 2008, but back dated the articles to appear in the order in which they appeared in print.
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