South Shore extension plan gaining steam

BY KRYSTIN E. KASAK, Times of Northwest Indiana

Krystin.Kasak@nwitimes.com

VALPARAISO | Porter County Commissioner Bob Harper said the recent funding proposal for the South Shore train expansion sounds good -- if officials can pull it off.

The commissioner, who has been a strong opponent of the commuter train expansion, praised state legislators for exploring a "no-new-taxes" proposal but expressed concern about certain details that have yet to be worked out.

"I congratulate the state representatives and (state Rep. Chet) Dobis for recognizing that the taxpayers of Northwest Indiana absolutely do not need another tax," Harper said. "It's to their credit that they recognize that."

One of Harper's biggest concerns dealt with the plan's inclusion of $150 million in funding from the Northwest Indiana Regional Development Authority.

Currently, the RDA receives $17.5 million annually from Lake and Porter counties from various casino money and a local income tax in Porter. The state provides a $10 million subsidy for the board each year, which brings the total funding to $27.5 million. The hefty $150 million investment that the project calls for would be equivalent to more than five years of the RDA's total budget.

Since no formal request or commitment of the funds has been made, Harper questioned how the RDA would be able to fund the project.

"No one has talked about that yet," Harper said. "Are they going to be able to do that without asking for another tax and still completing some of its other projects?"

Harper's concern was echoed by state Sen. Earline Rogers, D-Gary, at a meeting Thursday. Rogers said she worries that committing the RDA to the financing plan could sap funding from other projects, including upgrades to the Gary/Chicago International Airport and the establishment of a regional bus system.

"I want to make certain that those projects will not be negatively impacted," Rogers said.

Tim Sanders, executive director for the RDA, said although no decisions have been made regarding the funds or where they would come from, one option would be to sell various bonds.

"This is going to take some assistance (from the state) or we're going to have to sell bonds for a long time and dedicate a lot of our revenue to this one project," Sanders said.

Sanders also said the board might seek advice from financial consultants.

The other concern raised by Harper was the additional operating costs that would be needed to run the expanded South Shore each year.

"No one talks about that," Harper said. "It's not just the cost of building it, it's the subsidy of keeping it going."

According to Harper, a report from the Northern Indiana Commuter Transportation District showed an additional $20 million in state subsidies would be required to keep the train running. State lawmakers have yet to discuss the possibility of increased state funds.