I was impressed by both sides of the debate because of the amount of
research and information the debaters compiled to make their point.
Keith Larson tried to persuade the audience of about 200 guests
(according to the alumni center) to vote for the repeal of the transit
tax because the mismanagement of the current CATS system is grounds to
prevent the system from growing, it would also curb future debt and disaster.
Jennifer Roberts tried to persuade the audience that by voting against
the repeal of the transit tax, Charlotte will avoid cutting back bus
crucial bus service and will be able to bring light-rail access to the
entire region over the next 20 years which will manage growth by
providing transportation alternatives and ultimately prevent the urban
sprawl that Charlotte is becoming.
It is truly a debate of past vs. future.
The city has done an inadequate job of presenting the costs of transit
projects over the years and that is why Larson and those that agree
with him are so passionate about repealing the half-cent sales tax
which funds the Charlotte Area Transit System (CATS). He hammered his
point with humor and antics which drew laughs… and sounds of insult
when he quoted the UNC Charlotte transit tax study in, “the good nature
of transit research at UNC Charlotte”. His argument that money from our
pockets are funding a mass amount of inefficiency is a visceral and
effective appeal. However, Roberts stood by her data as she explained
about the people that would be disenfranchised by the crippling in
service CATS would undergo with the repeal of the tax and the positive
effects of light rail for UNC Charlotte and Charlotte in general. A
move to cut transit now, she argued, would stop the system for the
future.
The deciding moment in the debate came when the question was asked of
Larson by the audience, “What is your alternative to the transit tax?
How can we support the bus system which you stated is necessary?” He
said the bus system would have to be supported by tax money and failed
to hint at an outline for a specific plan which can handle the growth
that Charlotte will experience, that growth will occur whether we like
it or not. With no viable alternative the For Repeal argument falls
through because there is a two year wait before we can place the
transit tax back on the ballot, which also cripples the argument that
we can cut the plan now and get a new one in place for next Nov. The
reason for escalating transit system costs are the fact that
construction costs grow every day as the dollar shrinks and other
countries buy more of the construction resources. Two years would
prevent the commuter rail system from ever becoming reality.
At the end of the debate it was clear, Larson provides a good argument
about how to prevent the past while Roberts makes the point about how
to prepare for the future.
