Yesterday Metro held a public meeting for its proposed North Corridor rail line, and not unlike the other proposed rail lines, there were protesters who are unhappy with Metro’s New and Improved Metro Solutions.
Let’s recall what northside residents voted for in 2003:
1. NORTH HARDY
**A. UH-Downtown to Northline Mall
B. Northline Mall to Greenspoint
C. Greenspoint to Bush IAH Airport
And let’s look at what Metro wants to build instead, courtesy of the Chronicle‘s Anitra Brown:
The North Corridor alignment, part of transit provider’s MetroSolutions plan to link routes throughout the city with light rail and bus rapid transit, would began [sic] at Metro’s existing rail line at University of Houston Downtown and then either head north on Fulton to the Northline Mall or veer east to take Irvington Street north, turn left onto Cavalcade and then right on to Fulton, where it would continue to Northline.
The problem?
“We voted for North Hardy,” said Moses Villalpando, president of the North Lindale Civic Association. “It never said North Main. It never said Fulton. It’s going in front of our school. It’s destroying our businesses.”
The North Lindale Civic Association is especially opposed to the North Corridor alignment because both possible routes would ultimately bring the line down Fulton in front of Roosevelt Elementary, 6700 Fulton, where they say children’s safety would be put at risk.
Ah yes. They voted for one thing and are getting something else. That has a familiar ring, doesn’t it?
Now, let’s look at all the prominent bloggers and citizens groups who are standing up for these residents and their concerns. You know, the same bloggers and activists who cry foul whenever a road project upsets a neighborhood or community. The same bloggers and activists who are coming to the defense of Richmond Avenue folks (not!).
Obviously, the point here is that if property owners’ concerns should be considered when a TxDOT or HCTRA project is proposed, then the same should be true for those affected by Metro’s rail projects. Consistency helps maintain one’s credibility.
