Wednesday, October 3, 2018

With Federal Funding Cut Will Fort Worth Finally End America's Biggest Boondoggle?

In a 24 hour time period the Fort Worth Star-Telegram has published two articles about that which has become America's Biggest Boondoggle, without making note of that fact, yet detailing such.

Yesterday's Fort Worth’s $1B Panther Island project quietly cut from 2018 federal budget revealed the not too shocking news that the Army Corps of Engineers has determined Fort Worth's boondoggle was not policy compliant due to the lack of an economic analysis.

Hence federal funding cut.

The Star-Telegram bears some blame for helping enable this ongoing travesty via participating in the year after year after year of absurd propaganda spewed by the Trinity River Central City Uptown Panther Island District Vision, the corrupt spawn of the Tarrant Regional Water District.

The Star-Telegram has yet to publish a single honest investigative investigation of the most glaring aspect of what has become America's Biggest Boondoggle, that being the three simple little bridges being built over dry land to connect the Fort Worth mainland to an imaginary island.

Construction of those three little bridges began four years ago, with an incredible four year project timeline to build three simple little bridges. Over dry land.

The Star-Telegram has not informed its readers regarding the details of the engineering mistakes and problems which have caused the bridge building delay.

The Star-Telegram has not editorialized anything along the line of someone, somewhere in the failing project needs to be held accountable.

Such as a demand for the firing of Kay Granger's boy, J.D., installed as Executive Director of what has become America's Biggest Boondoggle, paid around $200,000 a year, plus perks, to do a job for which he had zero qualifications.

In modern America this is known as nepotism, and is not allowed.

America's Biggest Boondoggle is rife with nepotism. How many of TRWD general manager Jim Oliver's relatives are in the TRWD or TRV's employ?

Regarding America's Biggest Boondoggle one of Jim Oliver's relatives is quoted in today's Panther Island will move ‘full steam ahead’ despite funding slowdown, proponent vows  Star-Telegram article...

Matt Oliver, Trinity River Vision spokesman, said work will still go on. “We’re going to keep moving, locally, full steam ahead,” Oliver said.

"Some of the money allocated in previous years has not been spent while other projects, like the three bridges currently under construction over dry land, are funded through the state", he said.

In May, voters passed a $250 million bond as part of the local commitment. The authority would have sought the bond regardless of federal dollars, Oliver said, and the money will still be used to fund front-end work such as design and the acquisition of land.

“The bond still going to local portions,” he said.

As part of flood control measures, work will continue on retention ponds in Gateway and Riverside parks. Those projects may not be visible to the public as part of downtown’s Panther Island, but Oliver said they’re crucial to the overall concept.

Work is expected to continue on the three bridges until about 2020, he said. At that point the Army Corps can begin digging a channel that will ultimately re-route the Trinity River and create a downtown island and urban lake.
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The quarter billion dollar bond, which the ballot, apparently fraudulently, said was for flood control and drainage issues, will be used for front-end work such as design and acquisition of land? And work on those pitiful bridges is expected to continue until "about" 2020? Six years after starting construction.

Has anyone seen any signs of construction of that apartment complex being built on the imaginary island? In 2017 J.D. Granger touted this incoming apartment complex as one of the signs of progress we would be seeing in 2018. Only a few months left in 2018. Is this still an imaginary apartment project not being built on the imaginary island? Or is construction underway, as Granger said it would be?

These two articles in the Star-Telegram contain multiple propaganda elements of the misrepresenting the facts sort. Is this by design? Or editors with memory issues?

In a followup blog post we will look at these two article's propaganda nonsense in detail. But right now I'm fed up with the whole thing and not in the mood to get into it any deeper at this particular moment in time...

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