You may recall the post from a couple days back where I said I was checking with Decatur’s city staff about how transportation funding would be spent IF the 1-cent transportation sales tax passed in July. Well, city planner Amanda Thompson was good enough to provide us with a very thorough response regarding how much money Decatur is projected to receive, and which projects would receive top billing when decision time came around.
So, first things first, how much money is Decatur projected to receive if T-SPLOST passes?
Current GDOT estimates show that Decatur will receive $360,880 in 2013 per year for our 15% direct share from the sales tax. If this estimate remains steady over 10 years that will result in $3,608,800. A list of all the 15% estimates can be found here:
http://www.atlantaregionalroundtable.com/documents/discretionary_Money.pdf
Secondly, what is Decatur’s plan for spending the local share?
The City Commission recently reviewed a 10 year Capital Improvement Program to discuss funding options for various building and transportation projects. As part of this review, they considered how to spend the TIA local share. If the TIA is passed there are two ways Decatur will benefit – Portions of the Clairemont/Commerce/Church Street improvements and pedestrian improvements to East College Avenue are included in the large, multi-county project list. There are also three MARTA stations within the city limits that will receive upgrades as part of the large project list. Decatur will divide its 15% local share between the following categories: unfunded transportation improvements, Transportation Enhancement and Livable Centers Initiatives grant matches and maintenance of existing bicycle and pedestrian infrastructure.
Continue reading “Decatur’s Plans if Transportation Tax Passes”
Apparently, the recent talk about coyotes in the area has been so frequent that Fernbank is hosting a “Fact & Fiction” forum on the topic.
