Gravina Island Bridge: Difference between revisions

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Revision as of 12:03, 16 September 2008 editDeknMike (talk \| contribs)Extended confirmed users2,253 edits removed political view from candidate Palins' visit to ketchikan← Previous edit		Revision as of 12:05, 16 September 2008 edit undoDeknMike (talk \| contribs)Extended confirmed users2,253 edits Added background on the authorization language and the attempt to divert the bridge funds to repair the Twin Spans Bridge near New Orleans after katrina.Next edit →
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	==History==		==History==

	The ~~controversy's~~ ~~exposure~~ ~~began~~ ~~with~~ ~~the~~ ~~2006~~ ~~National~~ ~~Appropriations~~ ~~Bill.~~ On ~~October~~ ~~20,~~ 2005, ~~the~~ national level annual budget ~~was issued~~ for the Department of Transportation, Housing, and Urban Development. The H.R. 3058 act passed with 93 votes for, 1 against. <ref>http://www.govtrack.us/congress/vote.xpd?vote=s2005-264 2006 National Transportation Budget </ref>		The project was first proposed as a $223M earmark by Senator Don Young (R-AL) in August 2005, with a state share of $91M. The national level annual budget for the Department of Transportation, Housing, and Urban Development within the 2006 National Appropriations Bill was adopted on October 20, 2005. The H.R. 3058 act passed with 93 votes for, 1 against. <ref>http://www.govtrack.us/congress/vote.xpd?vote=s2005-264 2006 National Transportation Budget </ref>

	In ~~October~~ ~~21st~~ 2005, Republican Senator ] of Alaska became the object of strong media criticism when~~, in amendment discussion of the 2006 Appropriations bill~~, he opposed diverting the Gravina and ] funds to help aid recovery from ].<ref></ref> In his speech on the Senate floor, Stevens threatened to quit Congress if the funds were removed from his state.<ref name = "Ruskin">{{cite news \| last = Ruskin \| first = Liz \| title = Stevens says he'll quit if bridge funds diverted \| publisher = ] \| date = ] \| url = http://www.adn.com/news/alaska/story/7112853p-7020074c.html \| accessdate = 2006-11-06 }}</ref>		When it got to the Senate, Sen Tom Coburn (R-OK) proposed Ammendment SA2165 on Oct 20, 2005, which replaced the bridge with language to repair the Twin Spans Bridge over Lake Pontchartrain near New Orleans, which had been damaged by Hurricane Katrina.<ref>http://thomas.loc.gov/cgi-bin/query/C?r109:./temp/~r109X5yz9f</ref> In reply the next day, Republican Senator ] of Alaska became the object of strong media criticism when, he opposed diverting the Gravina and ] funds to help aid recovery from ].<ref></ref> In his speech on the Senate floor, Stevens threatened to quit Congress if the funds were removed from his state.<ref name = "Ruskin">{{cite news \| last = Ruskin \| first = Liz \| title = Stevens says he'll quit if bridge funds diverted \| publisher = ] \| date = ] \| url = http://www.adn.com/news/alaska/story/7112853p-7020074c.html \| accessdate = 2006-11-06 }}</ref> The amendment was defeated 82-15.<ref>http://www.senate.gov/legislative/LIS/roll_call_lists/roll_call_vote_cfm.cfm?congress=109&session=1&vote=00263</ref>

	On Wednesday November 16, 2005 : ] stripped the specific earmark allocation of federal funds for the two bridges in the bill, without changing the amount of money allocated for use by Alaska.<ref>{{cite web \| title = 'Bridge to nowhere' abandoned \| publisher = Associated Press \| work = CNN.com \| date = September 22, 2007 \| url = http://www.cnn.com/2007/US/09/22/alaska.bridge.ap/ }}</ref>		On Wednesday November 16, 2005 : ] stripped the specific earmark allocation of federal funds for the two bridges in the bill, without changing the amount of money allocated for use by Alaska.<ref>{{cite web \| title = 'Bridge to nowhere' abandoned \| publisher = Associated Press \| work = CNN.com \| date = September 22, 2007 \| url = http://www.cnn.com/2007/US/09/22/alaska.bridge.ap/ }}</ref>

Revision as of 12:05, 16 September 2008

The Gravina Island Bridge, also known as the "Bridge to Nowhere", was a proposed bridge to replace the ferry that currently connects Ketchikan, Alaska, to the Ketchikan International Airport on Gravina Island. The bridge was projected to cost $398 million. Members of the Alaskan congressional delegation, particularly Rep. Don Young and Sen. Ted Stevens, were the bridge's biggest advocates in Congress, and helped push for federal funding. The project encountered fierce opposition outside of Alaska as a symbol of pork barrel spending and is labeled as one of the more prominent "bridges to nowhere".

Background

According to the Alaska Department of Transportation & Public Facilities, the project's goal was to "provide better service to the airport and allow for development of large tracts of land on the island".

A ferry runs to the island every 30 minutes during most of the year, except during the May–September peak tourist season, when it runs every 15 minutes. It charges $5 per adult, with free same-day return, and $6 per automobile each way (as of 2008).

According to USA Today, the bridge was to have been nearly as long as the Golden Gate Bridge and taller than the Brooklyn Bridge. The bridge would cross the Tongass Narrows, part of Alaska's Inside Passage, so the bridge was designed to be tall enough to accommodate ship traffic, including the Alaska Marine Highway and the cruise ships which frequent Alaskan waters during the summer.

Ketchikan's airport is the second largest in Southeast Alaska, after Juneau International Airport, handling over 200,000 passengers a year, while the ferry shuttled 350,000 people in the same time period (as of December 2006). In comparison, the Golden Gate Bridge carried more than 43,000,000 vehicles in 2006, or about 118,000 vehicles each day.

History

The project was first proposed as a $223M earmark by Senator Don Young (R-AL) in August 2005, with a state share of $91M. The national level annual budget for the Department of Transportation, Housing, and Urban Development within the 2006 National Appropriations Bill was adopted on October 20, 2005. The H.R. 3058 act passed with 93 votes for, 1 against.

When it got to the Senate, Sen Tom Coburn (R-OK) proposed Ammendment SA2165 on Oct 20, 2005, which replaced the bridge with language to repair the Twin Spans Bridge over Lake Pontchartrain near New Orleans, which had been damaged by Hurricane Katrina. In reply the next day, Republican Senator Ted Stevens of Alaska became the object of strong media criticism when, he opposed diverting the Gravina and Knik Arm Bridge funds to help aid recovery from Hurricane Katrina. In his speech on the Senate floor, Stevens threatened to quit Congress if the funds were removed from his state. The amendment was defeated 82-15.

On Wednesday November 16, 2005 : Congress stripped the specific earmark allocation of federal funds for the two bridges in the bill, without changing the amount of money allocated for use by Alaska.

In September 2006, during her campaign for Governor, Sarah Palin visited Ketchikan. At a public forum, Palin held up a t-shirt designed by a Ketchikan artist, Mary Ida Henrikson that mocked the issue. The legend on the shirt was "Nowhere Alaska 99901", referencing the buzzword of "Bridge to Nowhere" and the primary zip code of Ketchikan. In her public comments, referring to her own residence in the Matanuska-Susitna Valley, she said: "OK, you’ve got Valley trash standing here in the middle of nowhere. I think we’re going to make a good team as we progress that bridge project."

In October, when asked, "Would you continue state funding for the proposed Knik Arm and Gravina Island bridges?", she answered: "Yes. I would like to see Alaska's infrastructure projects built sooner rather than later. The window is now - while our congressional delegation is in a strong position to assist." Later that month, at a Chamber of Commerce meeting in Wasilla, Alaska, Democratic candidate Tony Knowles criticized Palin for supporting the Knik Arm Bridge, the Gravina Island Bridge, and a road north out of Juneau instead of rebuilding the Parks Highway. The Ketchikan Daily News noted that, of the gubernatorial candidates, "Only Palin is consistent in support all of the projects..."

In August 2007, Alaska's Department of Transportation stated that it was "leaning" toward alternative ferry options, citing bridge costs, despite having already received the funds from the federal government.

The project was canceled in 2007 by bridge supporter Alaska Governor Sarah Palin, who changed her view after national public opinion turned against the bridge for being wasteful spending. Palin stated:

Ketchikan desires a better way to reach the airport, but the $398 million bridge is not the answer. Despite the work of our congressional delegation, we are about $329 million short of full funding for the bridge project, and it’s clear that Congress has little interest in spending any more money on a bridge between Ketchikan and Gravina Island. Much of the public’s attitude toward Alaska bridges is based on inaccurate portrayals of the projects here. But we need to focus on what we can do, rather than fight over what has happened.

Asked why she initially supported the bridge, Palin's communications director Bill McAllister said, "It was never at the top of her priority list, and in fact the project isn't necessarily dead … there's still the potential for improved ferry service or even a bridge of a less costly design... She changed her mind, he said, when "she saw that Alaska was being perceived as taking from the country and not giving ..."

The city of Ketchikan has already begun to develop roads and a small amount of infrastructure for the Gravina Island's 50 inhabitants. However, residents continue to seek funding for the Ketchikan-Gravina span.

2008 campaign issue

On August 29, 2008, when introduced as Republican Presidential nominee John McCain's running mate, Palin told the crowd: "I told Congress, thanks but no thanks on that bridge to nowhere" — a line that garnered big applause but upset political leaders in Ketchikan. Palin's campaign coordinator in the city, Republican Mike Elerding, remarked, "She said 'thanks but no thanks,' but they kept the money." Democratic Mayor Bob Weinstein also criticized Palin for using the very term 'bridge to nowhere' that she had said was insulting when she was in favor of the bridge.

Although Palin was originally a main proponent of the bridge, McCain–Palin television advertisements since September claim Palin "stopped the Bridge to Nowhere". Howard Kurtz called this a "whopper", writing: "She endorsed the remote project while running for governor in 2006, claimed to be an opponent only after Congress killed its funding the next year and has used the $223 million provided for it for other state ventures."Cite error: A <ref> tag is missing the closing </ref> (see the help page). Newsweek, commenting on Palin's "astonishing pivot," remarked: "Now she talks as if she always opposed the funding."

McCain has also weighed in on the Gravina Island Bridge. McCain labeled the bridge as wasteful spending in advertisements, and in an August 2007 townhall speech recorded on video and quoted again on April 30, 2008, he blamed the tragedy of the Minneapolis I-35 bridge collapse on the Bridge to Nowhere. His advertising and comments which before September 21, 2006 contradicted Governor Sarah Palin's support of the bridge drew the attention of the media, when he chose Palin as his running mate.

While discussing the Bridge to Nowhere during an interview on ABC news that aired on September 12, 2008, Charles Gibson made the following comment: "but it's now pretty clearly documented. You supported that bridge before you opposed it. You were wearing a t-shirt in the 2006 campaign, showed your support for the bridge to nowhere." Palin interrupted Gibson and insisted, "I was wearing a t-shirt with the zip code of the community that was asking for that bridge. Not all the people in that community even were asking for a $400 million or $300 million bridge."