By Jimmy D. Bus,
Guardian Transportation Correspondent

When it comes to electric buses in America, it appears Communist China’s Zonda Corp. attempted to establish a marketing beach head in the Treasure Valley six months ago when they approached Valley Regional Transit with a request for a “letter of interest.”

It was a carrot on a stick type of deal with no real commitments from either side. It offered the potential of a factory, up to 1,000 jobs, and an all electric bus fleet for VRT. To borrow a phrase from a Boise City attorney, it was “squishy.”

Public documents reveal the following about the proposal.

As part of a regularly scheduled VRT Management Committee meeting on May 9th, local politicos reviewed a proposal “… to explore an opportunity to expand transit services in the region through an economic development project that is considering locating in the region.” Basically the proposal would have provided VRT with a fleet of electric buses which would become an all electric transit system world showcase. All at little or no additional burden on taxpayers according to the document.

Local politicos did something the local media didn’t do with this proposal – they looked this gift horse in the mouth and said WHOA !

They were shocked at what they saw. Initially they were energized by the prospect of all the jobs this economic development (always key words) proposal would bring, but then they began to find faults in it. Little details like who would actually pay the operating costs for all this expanded service were not addressed clearly in the proposal. And, according to my sources, apparently the “style” at the initial presentation prior to this meeting didn’t sit well with some of local politios either.

According to VRT minutes of this meeting, the VRT attorney was directed to bring back to the Committee at a future date a simplified draft “Letter of Interest” indicating VRT’s possible interest in the project.

On May 11th– two days after the VRT meeting at which Zonda USA was not represented– Zonda USA issued a press release saying it would establish a headquarters in Boise sometime in 2011. That same release also said the company had met with Valley mayors and with State government representatives to finalize details of the move. It appears Zonda USA either got their wires crossed or they were out of phase with what had transpired at the VRT meeting just two days before. Six months later we hear that office will be established by the end of 2011. Promises, promises, isn’t that what the world is made of now?

At a special VRT Management Committee meeting on May 18th, VRT Management Committee members approved a rather vaguely worded LETTER to Zonda USA expressing interest in exploring the proposal further. Again, no commitments.

News about this proposal apparently remained dormant for about six months until the DAILY PAPER, and other local media, reported on it recently. So the obvious question is why now? Why six months after the proposal was first broached?

Local politicos were correct in looking this gift horse in the mouth and saying WHOA ! The transit bus building business is a tough one. According to both Federal and university study documents only about 5,000 transit buses of all sizes and types are built in the US each year by the five major bus builders – one of whom controls almost 40% of the market. Unpredictable demand, extreme challenges, tenuous financial condition of bus manufacturers, serious concerns regarding the state of the industry, general lack of volume in orders, and thin profit margins are all words found in these publications.

So just how does Zonda USA intend to be financially successful in this challenging, competitive environment where so many others have failed? And how does it intend to meet the “Buy America” requirements, the Altoona Test requirements, and other requirements imposed on transit authorities using Federal transit funds to purchase vehicles? We don’t know. We do know that they already have competition from other bus manufacturers, one of whom announced an all electric prototype bus this past October. Another claims to have 80% domestic content in their vehicles, well exceeding the “Buy America” threshold.

Will enough orders be obtained, a condition for building the plant according to the daily story, to build an all electric bus manufacturing plant in the Treasure Valley? More importantly, will it employ thousands of workers? And lastly, where in the Valley will it be built? The answer to all those questions is we will have 2C.

Related posts:

1. Chinese “Takeover” Is Like Japanese Boom Of 1980′s
2. U.S. Corp. Taxes High, But Few Actually Pay
3. Chinese Communists Pony Up Cash For Hoku Power Bill

BY ERIC WEISS

Today’s GBAD meeting was just like the others except for 3 simple events.

–First is the new legal counsel NM or whatever his name is. Where did they dig up this guy? The guy was shaking like a leaf in front of a whopping crowed of 20. This is the legal counsel, but yet the put this out for RFP today? Huh? Just like most folks we are confused… but I am dumb….and not into that compliance BS!!!-remember

–Second, Stephanie asks for legal representation as the treasurer and again it was shot down by a 3-2 vote….do they not understand she will not sign the check until it is approved???…..again I will ask if it’s legit, what’s the harm? To this day and asking this question six (6) times on this forum NOBODY dares to answer this question…

–Third is Mike Fitzgerald. Where do I start. ( Hedoesn’t look you in the eye when confronted with a direct question). He actually has the cajones to make a motion to either have Stephanie removed as treasurer or removed from the board! Hy Chicago wanted to get it off the table so quick, the adjournment motion of the meeting came in the same sentence as the roll call vote. Luckily Chi-town remembered the Obama civic responsibilities and voted to keep Stephanie!!!

Point of interest. During the meeting they motioned to go into executive session. Which was not on the agenda and was not discussed during the meeting? The topic was the RFP for marketing for the city. How can they move to go into executive session (which means the public has to leave, for you non-library folks) and discuss in private the funding for marketing in the city??

Dave is that legit?-If you dig a little deeper you might find why the motion was done with a unanimous vote of 5-0–the first time all of them agreed on anything in 5 meetings? Why now and this topic, and why in executive session?

In the meantime I do encourage everyone at home to make a J Corino original in tribute to Mike F-(see below)…listen the guy be a idiot, but you have to applaud his choice in food….

Just the smell of these meatballs cooking will bring back childhood memories of “spaghetti night” at your home. Ground beef, sausage, and a mixture of Italian seasonings blend perfectly to create juicy meatballs your whole family will adore. Serve them over your favorite pasta with a chunky marinara sauce and garnish with dried oregano.

Ingredients

• 1 recipe Mama G-May Marinara
• 1 pound ground beef
• 12 ounces bulk Italian sausage, hot or sweet
• 1/2 cup fine, dry bread crumbs
• 1/4 cup milk
• 1 egg, slightly beaten
• 1/4 cup fresh Italian parsley, finely chopped
• 1/4 cup freshly grated Parmesan cheese
• 1 teaspoon dried Italian seasoning
• 1 teaspoon kosher salt
• 1/4 teaspoon freshly ground pepper
• 2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil

Directions

1. Prepare Mama G-May Marinara. Meanwhile, in a large mixing bowl combine ground beef, sausage, bread crumbs, milk, egg, parsley, cheese, Italian seasoning, salt, and pepper until well combined. Form mixture into balls, about 1-1/2 inches in diameter.
2. In a large skillet, cook the meatballs in hot olive oil over medium heat for 10 minutes or until browned, turning occasionally.
3. Bring Mama G-May Marinara to boiling. Gently place meatballs into sauce. Stir gently to coat with sauce. Cover and cook for 30 minutes or until an instant-read thermometer inserted in the meatballs registers 160 degree F.

Makes about 3 screw balls.

No related posts.

–The Simplot family JUMP project got unanimous approval from the City P&Z commission and in the process the design review committee was publicly spanked for “overstepping the bounds of their authority.” CYNTHIA SEWELL’S STORY.

–The TRANSIT CENTER quest continues with Boise City and Valley Regional Transit passing out plenty of planning and feasibility study money. Team Dave is still pushing for a trolley and the GUARDIAN still thinks a decent bus system with investment infrequent buses and logical speedy routs beats the heck out of preconceived notions of tracks in the street.

–Canyon County HOME PRICES are still on the downhill slide according to a piece in the DAILY PAPER’s newly revived business section. The GUARDIAN isn’t the least bit surprised that Idaho is one of the leaders in upside down mortgages because we were one of the leaders when it came to qualifying people who couldn’t afford to buy. We posted tons of stories like this one under GROWTH topics.

Related posts:

1. Daily Paper Headline Open To Interpretation
2. “Paper or Plastic?” Goes To Polls In Hailey
3. Chinese Electric Bus Factory, A High Voltage Route Or Short Circuit?

Last week the Feds turned down Boise’s request for about $40 million in “TIGER” funds for the Desire Named Street Car (also affectionately known as the “Trolley Folly”). The Feds awarded grants to cities like Tucson where local government asked for and received permission from citizens to build a rapid transit system in 2006. Boise steadfastly refuses to allow a popular vote on funding for the Mayor’s dream.

Two professional surveys and literally thousands of opposition comments on radio, blogs, public open houses, and letters to the editor showed Boiseans overwhelmingly are against a trolley. Here is how Mayor Dave Bieter spun the denial of his request in his MEMO to citizens:

Federal officials have told us just how impressed they were with our application and how well it reflects the goal of using stimulus dollars to spur economic development.

Four other cities — Tucson, New Orleans, Portland, and Dallas — received a total of $160 million for their streetcar systems, a clear sign that streetcar projects are receiving significant support on the federal level. Idaho was one of only nine states to receive no TIGER grants whatsoever — including the $26 million that ValleyRide requested, and the City of Boise supported, for improved bus services.

We are going to continue to explore ways to finance and build up the Boise Valley’s transportation system, of which the streetcar is just one piece. One of the benefits of this week’s decision is that it gives us the opportunity to broaden the exploration of the streetcar to learn if a north/south route from downtown to Boise State University, which has been on the drawing boards for years, would be feasible for phase one.
(EDITOR NOTE–If it has been on the drawing board for years, why wasn’t the N-S route offered up first?)

The city will also continue to look for opportunities for federal assistance on the streetcar project. The Citizen Survey we conducted last year indicated that our residents’ top two priorities are the economy and public transportation. The Boise Streetcar System is one of several initiatives the City has proposed to address both of these important issues. (EDITOR NOTE–A more recent survey showed overwhelming opposition to a street car)

Related posts:

1. What Citizens And Candidates Should Know
2. Jerome Seeks To Go Around Voters For Debt

In rereading some of the posts and comments, it appears we have an inordinate number of comments on police and fire stories. That isn’t by design. We didn’t do much on the tragic murder of Robert Manwill because the legacy media was all over it and the entire community was focused on the tale for several weeks. Any GUARDIAN coverage would have been futile for what was obviously the “NUMBER ONE” news story in the community in 2009.

We didn’t attempt to rank our choices, but they include our “awesome humility,” and are based mostly on the number of comments. If you have any choices we missed, feel free to comment. HINT: use the CATEGORIES list or the ARCHIVE button to check out the past year.

• January

  GUARDIAN plan for rural AMBUS service instead of costly trains

• February

  GOOSE POO PLAN in Guardian gets picked up by legacy media

• March

  CWI Prez retires and the school is booming (thanks to bust economy)

• April

  TAX HIKE PREDICTIONS eventually came true

• May

  FIRST major legacy story against trolley

• June

  NAMPA TRANSGENDER candidate story is in GUARDIAN first

• July

  POLICE FUNERAL policy gets major mixed reviews

• August

  BFD AMBULANCE plan causes huge stir, thanks to GUARDIAN

• September

  COPPERS and texting

• October

  COPPER gets parking ticket, chief gets praise

• November

  DESIRE NAMED STREET CAR goes on forever

• December

  SEATTLE COP FUNERAL prompts multiple views

Thanks for reading and sharing your views as the GUARDIAN enters 2010. We wish everyone a happy and prosperous New Year.

Related posts:

1. GUARDIAN Reader Plugs Into Dynamis Deal

Team Dave holds out Kenosha, Wisconsin as the poster child for a Trolley Folly, former Greenbay Packer Bret Favre has everyone’s attention, we got a police chief from the capital city of Madison and now the politicos in Madison come up with a GUARDIAN-type plan for transit. Politicos at all levels have ignored ALL the common sense plans we have offered up in favor of trains, trains, trains. At this point we Boise citizens need to demand an election and see that it is done right–like they plan to do in Wisconsin.

From the CapTimes web in Madison: “Dane County withdrew its funding application to the Federal Transit Administration in December because of the lack of a local funding source for commuter rail, but talk of transit was renewed this summer after Gov. Jim Doyle authorized a Madison-area regional transit authority in his 2010 budget. The authority could levy up to a half-percent sales tax, or an estimated $38 million a year in transit funds, but local officials have said that will not happen until there is a referendum on the tax.”

Not only do the locals want to have “Bus Rapit Transit” (BRT) using buses on existing streets with a designated lane, they have the novel idea of allowing the public to vote! It seems GUARDIAN all the way. We do have a few readers in Madison–honest we do.

Seriously folks, the MADISON PLAN is much more logical than the Trolley Folly being pushed by Team Dave. In fact, such a system may actually cost us a few bucks in taxes, but it will most certainly serve a lot more people. Please read the story from Madison and see how much better it is than a fixed rail novelty ride for downtown. Those Wisconsin cheeseheads can be smart!

Related posts:

1. Chinese Electric Bus Factory, A High Voltage Route Or Short Circuit?

Out of 10 comments posted so far, there was one flat out supporter, one “sorta for it” and eight who flat out were against it. Count the GUARDIAN in the group who think it is downright foolish.

FOR THE COST OF A TROLLEY BOISE COULD BUY 240 BUSES.

Here are some facts that will be added to the curriculum by the GUARDIAN as citizens get “educated” in a vacant storefront at 821 W. Idaho Street at a Thursday “Open House” produced by a public relations firm:

–For the cost of a 2.3 mile trolley we could buy a fleet of 240 buses! ($60 million for a trolley divided by $250,000 for each bus)

–Any increased tax revenues from new development along the trolley route will go to the CCDC by law–not Boise City.

–INCREASED TAX ON BUSINESSES will be the rule in most cases if a LID (local improvement district) is created. Most “triple net leases” have a clause requiring tenants to pay any increases in fees or taxes.

–NO CITIZEN VOTE is planned for this “profound project” which has the potential of changing the face of the downtown. We deserve to be heard at the polls.

–A NOVELTY RIDE at best, this expensive retro ride to nowhere cannot be considered a viable transportation resource.

–THE MAYOR and three councilors is all it takes to skirt the will of the people and have iron rails planted in our streets.

–RUBBER TIRED electric vehicles would be safer, cheaper and could be operational almost immediately if there really is a demand for downtown transportation. Downtown businesses cancelled the last one.

–UNSIGHTLY WIRES carrying high voltage electricity will be strung up and down the streets to power a trolley.

–PUBLIC HEARINGS are rigged and meaningless (Remember the health care resolution). Demand a binding vote of the citizens of Boise on this important community issue.

Finally, there is the question of where the trolley would run since Ada County Highway District has not agreed to allow the use of streets for a trolley.

Here is an OFFICIAL STATEMENT from ACHD:
“We have not been asked, formerly or not, for permission to put a street car into downtown. We cannot agree or reject anything we’ve never been asked to consider.

The fact that ACHD Commissioners and staff members serve on some of the various task forces that have been called to deal with the street car and related issues should not be construed as an endorsement from the District. Ultimately, this will be a Commission decision and will have to go before the elected officials in an open meeting. Whenever this question has come up in the past, the Commissioners have indicated that they would like to see ACHD do its own, independent public outreach before considering such a major change to the traffic pattern downtown.”

Related posts:

1. Statesman Report Explains Secret Land Deal
2. Cunningham “Taken To Woodshed,” Educated By Bieter
3. Bieter Elected By 11% Of Registered Voters

Despite the success in other cities and the simplicity of the idea–using buses on a grid route much like a subway system–Boise’s Team Dave continues to try to influence public opinion and spend taxpayer money to push for iron rails buried in the streets.

Related posts:

1. Idaho Supremes Put Damper On Storm Drain “Fee,”Affirm GUARDIAN Assertion
2. Future GUARDIAN City Council Report

Now the DAILY PAPER features a report from consultants and behold!…they come to the same conclusions as the GUARDIAN and many of our readers. Steel rails and trains are ungodly expensive and the retrofit is nearly insurmountable–especially given the area and population density we have.

GUARDIAN reader and fellow blogger Martin Johncox posted today on the subject at his IDAHO WONK site. Even he agrees with us on the futility of rail commutes in the valley. He offers an alternative solution using buses, but the cost of infrastructure is much higher than just running a proper bus line.

Related posts:

1. Idaho Supremes Put Damper On Storm Drain “Fee,”Affirm GUARDIAN Assertion
2. Future GUARDIAN City Council Report