Is Fort Worth The Vancouver Of The South Yet?

Saw this Is this the future of Seattle transit? A look at Vancouver, B.C. — a city that figured it out years ago article in yesterday's Seattle Times and thought, for more reasons than one, this is the type article I would never expect to be reading in the Fort Worth Star-Telegram.

First off, the article is well written, detailed, full of facts, maps, photo documentation and intelligent analysis comparing public transit development in Vancouver and Seattle.

Oh, and the article is totally honest and reality fact based, with no embarrassing chamber of commerce type Fort Worth delusional puffery.

Both Vancouver and Seattle have a transit problem for similar reasons. Limited land due to the towns being hemmed in by mountains and water. And being fast growing boomtowns.

Seattle made a big goof way back in 1969 when a rail transit proposal failed with the voters, delaying for decades light rail coming to Western Washington.

Meanwhile Vancouver opened its first rail transit line, called Skytrain, by the time of their world's fair, Expo 86. Over the decades since, the Skytrain has greatly expanded.

By the 1990s Seattle voters knew something had to be done, and so voters began approving transit measures, one after another, with the latest passed a $54 billion bond approved in the November 2016 vote.

Seattle is now playing catch up with Vancouver, public transit-wise.

Meanwhile in Fort Worth, Texas, earlier in this century a bizarre public works project was foisted on the public, without a vote, called the Trinity River Vision, which, in its original propaganda, was supposedly gonna turn Fort Worth into the Vancouver of the South.

I am not making that up.

Landlocked, saltwater-free, mountain-less Fort Worth was gonna be the Vancouver of the South.

The pitifully pathetic effort eventually became America's Biggest Boondoggle.

In all the years of boondoggling, Fort Worth has not even managed to build three simple little bridges over dry land to connect the Fort Worth mainland to an imaginary island which was/is supposed to be part of the Vancouver of the South.

And now, this week, we have learned that that imaginary island is so contaminated with toxins it makes workers sick to work on it.

And something of concern to modern locations in North America, like public transit, is not even remotely on the Fort Worth radar screen, as the city builds more and more sprawl without adequate modern transportation infrastructure.

Another huge difference in this Seattle Times article as compared to anything one would read in the Fort Worth Star-Telegram is the number of comments, intelligent, thoughtful detailed comments. Not dozens of comments, hundreds of comments. The comment flood happens over and over again in Seattle Times articles.

A Star-Telegram article may generate a comment or two, sometimes, and often the comments are, well, embarrassing in their ignorance and wrongheadedness.

Methinks that until Fort Worth gets a real newspaper the town has no real hope of ever lifting itself up from being an American backwards backwater.

Seattle has more than one newspaper, in a town smaller than Fort Worth. I don't know how many newspapers Vancouver has...

Fort Worth's Imaginary Island Boondoggle Makes Workers Sick

I first saw that which you see here via a blog post comment...

Matthew Hunter has left a new comment on your post "Questioning Fort Worth's TRWD Imaginary Flood Control Bond Levee Vote":

This is in addition to a story that came out in today's Star-Telegram and was buried among various fluff-pieces on their Facebook feed. It seems the company hired to widen the North side of the river for this project ran into some toxic oil refinery waste, which has contaminated groundwater that now flows right into the river. The city, meanwhile, blew it off, and has apparently tried to cover it up. Because, of course, they don't want people to know that they're tubing in a toxic toilet that cost over a billion dollars to build. What benzene? Oh, THAT benzene...oh, that's nothing. Here, look at the pretty fireworks and have a beer! See? Fun! 

Contaminated soil made construction workers sick. Fort Worth's river runs alongside it

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Over the years of this current century, years where what has become America's Biggest Boondoggle has been boondoggling along, I have opined a time or two or three that if the point in time is ever reached when actual construction begins on Fort Worth's imaginary island that serious ground pollution will likely be discovered, most likely of a level requiring an EPA Superfund cleanup.

A couple bloggings from years ago verbalizing this contaminated pollution concern...

From July 19, 2009, Fort Worth's Trinity River Vision Gets Contaminated and from December 15, 2014, Tacoma's Foss Waterway Development Authority vs. Fort Worth's Trinity River Vision Authority Boondoggle.

I am not much of a fan of saying I told you so, but I told you so.

The first few paragraphs of the Star-Telegram Contaminated soil made construction workers sick. Fort Worth's river runs alongside it article...

FORT WORTH 
About 30 construction workers were exposed to hazardous materials in their work as part of the Panther Island project, and it all could have been avoided, the company's CEO said.

But as the agencies involved point fingers at each other over who is to blame for not telling the PennaGroup that the soil contained cancer-causing benzine, among other things, CEO Michael Evangelista-Ysasaga still waits for $2.9 million he said he's owed for cleaning up the mess in the area just east of downtown nearly eight years ago.

At the very least, Evangelista-Ysasaga said, the soil condition should have been included in the bid announcement. Instead, Evangelista-Ysasaga said he was told only after he pressed the issue.

That was after a construction supervisor alerted him when some of the workers began feeling nauseous and dizzy and he pulled them from the site. To date, none of the workers has suffered any illness, he said.

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An apropos comment on Facebook this morning about this latest iteration of Fort Worth's ongoing massive boondoggle....


Blake Woodard: Thanks to Sandra Baker for writing this story. It’s a miracle it made it past Star-Telegram management, as the Star-Telegram is TRWD’s unpaid public relations department. Bud Kennedy must be on vacation.

On Bud’s next vacation, maybe Sandra would like to write an article on what a scam the IPL is. I will be happy to show her the TRWD’s own consulting engineering firm’s report on how IPL will bring no new water to Fort Worth.

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The IPL referred to is the Integrated Pipe Line, I think. Yet one more TRWD boondoggle.

Regarding the contamination on Fort Worth's imaginary island. Is this not yet one more good reason for a big NO vote on May 5?

The pollution cleanup cost should long ago have been figured into the budget for this boondoggle. If this ineptly mismanaged project goes forward who knows how many more millions, or billions, will be needed to clean up this mess?

And at this point in time what investor is going to be willing to invest in building anything on the imaginary, polluted island? Even that relatively puny $55 million apartment complex which J.D. Granger has been touting for years as being about to be under construction, would this investor proceed with construction with this contamination debacle looming with its extent unknown?

Isn't the TIF related to the May 5 quarter billion buck bond somehow predicated on development on the contaminated imaginary island somehow generating enough value to pay for the bonds?

Methinks this May 5 vote is just the latest, most blatant iteration of what has become, and will likely continue to be, America's Biggest Boondoggle.

That is, unless somehow responsible qualified adults take over the project and somehow turn this embarrassing mess around. And that process may start with that big NO vote on May 5...

Voting YES May 5 On Honest Texas Town Bond Propositions

And vote NO on fraudulent, misleading Texas town bond propositions.

This upcoming May 5 I know of at least two Texas towns which are putting bond measure propositions before their voters.

The two Texas towns I speak of are Wichita Falls and Fort Worth.

In Wichita Falls every voter in town, gets to vote on seven propositions, should they choose to do so.

In Fort Worth only a select few in a select area get to vote on one proposition, for a quarter billion bucks.

The Wichita Falls ballot specifically details seven propositions, A to G. The Fort Worth ballot erroneously claims the quarter billion bucks is for flood control and drainage. When the quarter billion bucks is actually a last ditch effort to rescue what has become America's Biggest Boondoggle, also known as the Trinity River Central City Uptown Panther Island District Vision.

Responsible adults seems to be in charge in Wichita Falls. Not so much in Fort Worth, a town where the local congresswoman's unqualified son was made director of the project he has turned into an embarrassing boondoggle. With river floats in the polluted Trinity River, ice rinks, failed wakeboard parks and a litany of other nonsense.

Yesterday's mail delivered a simple one page mailer asking me to VOTE YES to FINISH THE TRAIL. That mailer details Wichita Falls Propositions A & B....
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Proposition A
One of our most unique assets is the Circle Trail, and it’s so close to being finished.  Proposition A will get us 99% of the way there (and Prop B will finish it).  With your approval we’ll finish the segments from Loop 11 to Lucy Park, from Seymour Highway near Smith’s Gardentown to Barnett Road along the railroad tracks, and from Lake Wichita Park to Larry’s Marine.  We’ll also build two new trail connectors, one from Holliday Creek up to Sikes Lake at MSU, and one from the Ohio Street Bridge out to the main gate at Sheppard Air Force Base.  This will give thousands more people at MSU and on base access to the trail and everything else connected to it.  Proposition A also includes new turf fields for the Sports Complex and a resurfaced parking lot at Lake Wichita by the trail.

Proposition B
Proposition B picks up where Prop A left off, finishing the last segment of the Circle Trail from Larry’s Marine to Barnett Road.  This will provide many more people with access to Lake Wichita, connecting to the trail from points all over the city. Once they get to the lake, Prop B will provide them with a new boardwalk at the site of the original one lost to us many years ago.  Finally, this proposition will develop a new veterans memorial plaza next to the Kemp Street boat ramp, complete with a brand new Vietnam Memorial.  The boardwalk and veterans plaza both have matching grants that will pay for the majority of their costs; we just need to find the rest.  If we don’t, those funds are lost forever and we’ll have missed out on a great chance to improve our community.

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I have not seen it, but I have been told that those few voters allowed to vote on TRWD Trinity River Vision issues have been mailed an over the top publication full of misleading propaganda urging those voters to vote YES to the May 5 $250,000,000 bond issue to pay for imaginary flood control and drainage in an area which has not flooded in well over half a century.

Vote NO on the Fort Worth bond proposition, Vote YES on the Wichita Falls multiple propositons....

The Windy Cold Caribbean Route To Sikes Lake With Five Goslings

Once again a cold wind from the north is blowing into North Texas, blowing out the hot air which had blown in recently from the south.

Yesterday was hot, I think in the low 90s.

Today, when I went for a bike ride, the outer world was barely 60.

And blowing hard, real hard, making, I am sure, for a chilly wind chill factor.

So, I rolled around my Caribbean neighborhood, past Haiti and Grenada, and then took the Montego route direct to Sikes Lake, where, for the first time at this location, I saw recently hatched birds floating with what I assume were there parental units.

The flock of five goslings seemed to have no trouble keeping up with the floating adults paddling against the wind.

I heard no gosling honking or whatever the communicative noise baby geese make. Then again, if they were honking I likely would not have been able to hear it over the howling wind...

Will Fort Worth's Panther Island Madness End On May 5?

A couple days ago I read this What will $250 million bond for Panther Island project mean for property taxes? article in the Fort Worth Star-Telegram.

And was appalled by what I read. That and the bad writing I was reading. Typos, spelling errors.

And erroneous information.

It has been a couple days. Maybe the Star-Telegram found itself an editor who cleaned up this article's mistakes. Then again, as recently as yesterday, I read this article's bad grammar referenced in comments to a Facebook post by the Star-Telegram's food critic and resident apologist for the Fort Worth Way.

Read the article yourself by clicking the What will $250 million bond for Panther Island project mean for property taxes? link and see if the mistakes have been fixed.

I will share some of the appalling erroneous information, and out and out misleading propaganda, which existed when I read and copied the article. First example....

Plus, the improvements are needed to improve the flow of flood water through the heart of Fort Worth. When the existing levee system was build in the 1960s, Fort Worth only had about 350,000 residents, but today there are nearly 900,000 residents and suburban development upstream has dramatically increased the flow of storm water during severe storms, said Jim Oliver, water district general manager.

Those levees were built in the 1950s, not the 1960s. (Note I typed "built" not "build"). Jim Oliver, paid around $300K a year to mis-manage the TRWD, doesn't know when those levees were built?

And then there is the following gem, also from the TRWD mis-manager, Jim Oliver...

If the bond election were to fail, the first option would be to simply delay the Panther Island project by a few years, which could lead to higher construction costs, Oliver said. But ultimately, if Panther Island were not built, the water district might eventually have to consider building higher levees and buying more private property for water storage, something that not only could lead to higher property taxes but would be a missed opportunity to build a beautiful new neighborhood with a river walk, he said.

So much absurd nonsense in the above paragraph. If the imaginary island is not surrounded with water the water district might have to raise the levees?

Raise the levees?

Those levees have prevented flooding in the downtown Fort Worth zone for well over a half century. Has anyone ever seen a flooding Trinity River ever get anywhere near topping those levees? And Oliver is threatening even more private property may be taken? Adding to all the property stolen via abusing eminent domain in the area where America's Biggest Boondoggle has been boondoggling along for years with little to show for all the money already wasted and property damage already done.

Well, to be fair, we did get to see a little wakeboard park for a short while before it failed. And there are those Rockin' the River Happy Hour Inner Tube Floats at an imaginary pavilion at an imaginary world class music venue, with outhouses, and the world's first drive-in movie theater of the 21st century, sporting an ice rink for a few weeks during the winter. And other wonders which have nothing to do with flood control.

Or drainage.

Speaking of which. Here are another couple gems in this article...

A proposition on the ballot seeks permission to issue $250 million in bonds to cover the remaining unfunded portion of the $1.17 billion project, including among other things the acquisition of land, the re-channeling of 1.5 miles of the Trinity River and the construction of flood gates and water storage areas.

On the ballot, the measure is listed as Tarrant Regional Water District Proposition A, and is described as a measure for “flood control and drainage facilities.” Panther Island isn’t mentioned by name.

Okay, this article first points out what the quarter billion bucks is actually for in one paragraph, and then the next paragraph mentions how the measure is described on the ballot. Without any sort of mention made of the fact that this would seem to be fraudulent, to mis-describe a ballot measure so egregiously.

What a shocker. Panther Island is not mentioned on the ballot. Maybe the measure was run by some sort of lawyer who made some sort of point about it not being a good idea to mention an imaginary island which does not exist and never will be an island in any real sense of that island word if the Trinity River Vision ever does become something anyone can see.

When will this madness end? Maybe with a big NO vote on May 5...

Wichita Falls Hamilton Park New Hammock Included Playable Park Art

A few days ago I made mention of the fact I had not seen any kids playing on the new piece of abstract looking playground equipment in Wichita Falls' Hamilton Park.

Well, today that phenomenon of not seeing kids playing on this abstract looking playground equipment came to an end as soon as this work of playable park art came into view.

Two barely post toddler sized kids were having themselves a mighty fine time climbing on the conveyor belt type straps strung between angled posts.

While what appeared likely to be the kid's maternal parental figure used one of the wider conveyor belts as a hammock.

This is one cleverly designed piece of playground equipment.

In that previous blogging about this serious subject I opined that maybe a sign with directions explaining how to play on this thing might be needed. Apparently, as I often am, I was wrong. Kids can figure out how to play on this, and mom's can figure out how to relax whilst the kids play.

Unscheduled Wichita Falls May 5 Texas Bond Election Interview

Yesterday, Monday, the first day of a new week, winter left, once again, from North Texas, with balmy warmth blowing in from the south.

And so, what with once again no need for excessive outer wear I took off in the noon time frame to have myself a mighty fine long bike ride which eventually took me to Mount Wichita, that being the towering, currently snow cap-free, mountain you see here.

When I rolled under the shadow of Mount Wichita I suddenly found myself participating in an unscheduled interview with Wichita Falls Channel 3 TV News, with the interviewer being a perky young lady who asked me if I would answer a few questions on camera.

I am a pathologically shy person, and so I declined the on air request, but agreed to answer questions.

I do not think the Channel 3 TV News young lady knew I am the un-official Wichita Falls Convention Center and Visitors Center Outdoor Adventure Guru. I thought it best to not share that fact. Such info made have made her more insistent I agree to be interviewed on camera.

What the Channel 3 TV News young lady wanted to ask me about was my thoughts on the upcoming May 5 Propositions voters are being asked to approve.

No, this was not about Fort Worth's fraudulent vote hoping to approve a quarter billion bucks via a ballot which misrepresents that which is being voted for, making it seem as if one is voting to prevent floods and fix drains, when the funds are actually directed to rescuing America's Biggest Boondoggle from its financial ineptitude.

Unlike Fort Worth, Wichita Falls is a Texas town which puts ballot measures before its voters in a straightforward, non-corrupt, honest, normal, American democratic way.

In other words Wichita Falls does not ask voters to approve some fool thing by asking voters to approve a dollar rental fee for a livestock stall. That type thing. Wichita Falls puts a measure before its voters in a clear, direct way, not the confused dishonest Fort Worth Way.

In that same upcoming May 5 election where Fort Worth voters, well the few allowed to do so, are being asked to approve a quarter billion bond misrepresented as being for flood control and drainage issues, Wichita Falls voters well be voting on a precise, succinct series of propositions honestly describing that which is being proposed.

Let's look at a short summation of the $131 million worth of seven propositions Wichita Falls will be voting for or against on May 5...

Proposition A is for park improvements. That would entail circle trail improvements, including the aqueduct trail, the spur from the Ohio Street bridge, and replenishing turf at the softball complex.

Proposition B is an issue for shoreline improvements at Lake Wichita this includes projects such as the Veteran's Memorial Plaza and a pavilion and boardwalk for the lake.

Proposition C will be for street repairs, which could help fund the Maplewood extension, widen parts of Taft Boulevard and drainage improvements.

Proposition D will help fund a new municipal government center in the downtown area, and police and fire department facilities.

Proposition E is created for renovations and upgrades at the MPEC, including ticket scanners at the coliseum, camera and surveillance upgrades in several portions of the MPEC.

Proposition F is for Memorial Auditorium upgrades. This includes lighting and sound system upgrades for Memorial Auditorium.

Proposition G — the last proposition — with go towards downtown improvements, such as sidewalk renovations, parking lots and other beautification improvements in the area.

Above you are seeing the short summations of the various Wichita Falls propositions. The actual details are much more specific, unlike that which happens in that aforementioned American backwards backwater known as Fort Worth...

Questioning Fort Worth's TRWD Imaginary Flood Control Bond Levee Vote

A thing or two about a thing or two has me thinking a thing or two about this upcoming May vote when voters, well, those few allowed to do so, are being asked to approve a quarter billion bond to funnel funds to what has become America's Biggest Boondoggle, originally officially known as the Trinity River Vision, later morphed to being the Trinity River Central City Uptown Panther Island District Vision.

Also known as an ineptly implemented, ill-conceived embarrassment which could not take place in other, well, more developed locations in America.

By developed I mean locations in America populated by informed citizens who have had some contact with how the more modern, more advanced, more progressive locations in America operate in what is sometimes characterized as the Democratic Way, rather than what is known as the Fort Worth Way.

You know, locations in America where a public works project is approved by the voters, after a thorough vetting of the project's plans.

You know, a location in America where something like nepotism is a big NO NO. You know, nepotism. Giving a job to someone with exploitable connections with that connected someone having zero qualifications for the job nepotistically given.

And who then proceeds to botch the job nefariously nepotistically corruptly given. Hence one of the reasons nepotism is frowned upon in democratic locations in America and the world.

You know, sort of why many Americans are currently appalled at Ivanka Trump pretending to be the acting Secretary of State at some international meeting in South America.

The Trumps are a text book example of why nepotism is considered corrupt and unethical.

Back to the main subject. So, we have this Trinity River Vision bond vote for a quarter billion bucks. On the ballot the verbiage indicates these bucks are for flood control and drainage, specifically, right from the ballot...

Tarrant Regional Water District, A Water Control and Improvement District, Proposition A
The issuance of $250,000,000 bonds for flood control and drainage facilities and the levy of taxes to pay for the bonds.

Recently, in a blogging about Fort Worth Weekly Asking If You Can Spare A Billion For America's Biggest Boondoggle mention was made of the ongoing criminal investigation into Election Fraud alleged to have been perpetrated by the parent of America's Biggest Boondoggle, the Tarrant Regional Water District, the same parent behind putting this quarter billion buck bond before the voters.

How can an entity under investigation for criminal election fraud be allowed to put measures to a vote when the entity is under investigation?

Is there not a lawyer with imagination in the Fort Worth Way zone who could file some sort of injunction to stop this obviously fraudulent ballot measure, touting flood control where there has been no flood for well over half a century due to flood prevention levees long in place, long ago paid for?

And another thing.

The issue of who it is who gets to vote in a TWRD election.

If you live in Haltom City, a town with actual flood issues, and other towns and locations in the TRWD service area, you don't get to vote in a TRWD election.

When this who gets to vote issue has been raised previously one of the Fort Worth Star-Telegram's well regarded, by some, apologists, repeats, as explanation, that only "Stakeholders" get to vote in a TRWD election.

With the "Stakeholder" area being that area which was covered by the initial originating of the Tarrant Regional Water District.

When I lived in Fort Worth I was a "Stakeholder" even though I was a recent immigrant who happened to move into the magical "Stakeholder" area.

How does it make any sense that all who are affected by the TRWD's shenanigans are not allowed to vote on TRWD issues? Isn't this just one more type of Election Fraud?

This is all perplexing, and like many of us have already said, Vote NO On TRWD Fraudulent Water Control Bond...

Windy Cold Lucy Park Adventure To Wichita Falls

What with winter deciding to make yet one more weekend return to North Texas, blowing in extremely cold overnight, there was no way I was in the mood to layer on the outerwear to venture out into the outer world to roll my pedal powered wheels anywhere.

So, I opted to roll my mechanized wheels to Lucy Park, a location I formerly frequented frequently but in recent times, not so much.

I thought what with me being the semi-official Wichita Falls Outdoor Adventure Guru I would have myself some waterfall adventuring at Wichita Falls today.

As you can see Wichita Falls is running in full fall mode today. The Wichita River was also running a lot of water. Seems odd since not much rain has fallen of late.

Well, let's take a look at some views some have never seen of Wichita Falls, including a video which you will come to as you scroll down the photos.

Above we are hiking the serpentine brick trail which meanders to the top of Wichita Falls. You can see a peak at the falls through the foliage.

Now we are at the top of the falls, looking over the watery precipice, getting soaked from the windblown mist.

Another look at the roaring waterfall that sort of gives this town its name.

Another view from the top of Wichita Falls, looking down on the new Circle Trail bridge across the falls and the aforementioned Wichita River.

Above we are at the bottom of the falls, about to run up those steps to get up close to the top of the falls.

There we are, as far as one can go on those steps, up close to Wichita Falls.

And below you can join me on a video run up those steps to the view you see above...

Tomorrow April Iceman Cometh Again To North Texas

Last weekend North Texas dropped into an April deep freeze, with the temperature several degrees below freezing at its chilliest.

By Monday the deep freeze retreated.

By Thursday the outer world in North Texas found itself heated into the 90s, with thousands of A/C units on and cooling for the first time in 2018.

While the air was being heated into the 90s the warmth was blowing in from the south at high speed.

Those high speed winds, gusting at time to speeds nearing 40, made for a challenging bike ride yesterday when I rolled my wheels to Lake Wichita to do some dock floating and rocking and rolling.

At one point a gust removed my new sunglasses and sent them to a watery grave.

And now, this morning, I learn via the Wichita Falls Times News Record, we are once again heading into a freeze.

A windy freeze tomorrow, as you can see via the screen cap above. I suppose I will go on a warm windy bike ride today, and likely fore go that pleasure tomorrow....