By Gitte Laasby, Post-Tribune staff writer
glaasby@post-trib.com
HAMMOND -- Environmentalists are taking sides on the South Shore expansion, but the complexity of the issue makes it hard to come to a consensus, even within each organization.
This week, chairwoman of the Dunelands Sierra Club, Sandy O'Brien, spoke out against the project in a letter to the editor. She criticized the Northwest Indiana Forum for pushing a "green washed," publicly funded project for its members' benefit while draining resources away from older urban areas.
"Members of the Dunelands Sierra Club dispute the Northwest Indiana Forum's claim that environmentalists support the commuter rail extensions. On the contrary, we are concerned that the South Shore commuter rail extensions will lead to more sprawl," wrote O'Brien, whose club has about 800 local members.
"The roads, the sewers, the electrical and water lines, all the utilities will have to follow. These people, they're going to be driving their kids to soccer practice," she said.
O'Brien said Dunelands members prefer the Marquette Plan because it would revitalize Gary, Hammond and East Chicago and provide a better return on investment. It would generate 39,000 projected jobs by 2040 versus 26,000 for commuter rail at a fraction of the local cost; $30.1 million to $82.5 million for the Marquette plan versus $570 million for the rail, O'Brien said.
Gary environmentalist Lee Botts said she supports the expansion, but hopes communities will implement better land use plans in anticipation.
"I support public transit that will get cars off the road and improve air quality and all the other reasons why we need to get as many cars off the road as possible," Botts said. "I think a lot of people are ambivalent. I agree that, likely, extending the railroad line is going to foster growth around those lines. That's what public transportation does. It should be incumbent upon the communities to deal with that and plan for that appropriately. This is a chance to do that. And that has not been done."
The board of Save the Dunes Council met Tuesday night to vote on the issue, but attendees didn't constitute a quorum and couldn't make a decision. But that would have to happen soon.
"If we need to have an input, I think we need to take a stand soon," said Tom Anderson, executive director of Save the Dunes. "I think it's interesting the environmentalist opinion is so important. Now the public has concern about what the environmentalists think. It's an interesting evolution that they're trying to promote environmental support."