Dexter Officials Skeptical of AATA Master Plan

Officials with the Ann Arbor Transportation Authority were met with skepticism Monday night during a presentation on the countywide transit master plan in Dexter.

With the AATA board its “Smart Growth” proposal in March, which aims to connect most of Washtenaw County as well as parts of Livingston and Wayne counties and includes a sophisticated light-rail system, Project Manager Michael Benham outlined implementation goals on Tuesday.

Dexter Village President Shawn Keough said his chief concern with the proposal is representation on the board of trustees overseeing Act 196, a governance that will allow the establishment of a regional transit system. Benham said the AATA has proposed that the board include 15 members with seven members representing the city of Ann Arbor (despite the city representing roughly a third of the county‘s population according to the 2010 Census).

“In all of your outreach to the communities, I never heard one question about how we want the governance model to look,” Keough said. “Never in the process were we given the chance to give input into that distribution. This comes out of nowhere.”

Benham said no decisions on board representation will be made without the agreement from local muncipalities.

“We’re just here to plant the seed and see how it grows,” Benham said.

The AATA's service area labeled “North Middle,” which includes Dexter, Chelsea and Scio Township, will have just one vote on the board. Benham said that he expected a board would be established by the fall to start negotiating budget and financial details before the AATA plan would be put on the election ballot for all interested municipalities.

Village Trustee Joe Semifero voiced concern over longterm costs associated with the master plan -- including $100 million per year for a light rail system. Semifero said he believes 90 percent of the infrastructure will be built in Ann Arbor and Ypsilanti, who should  bear most of the financial burden.

Village Trustee Jim Carson defended the proposed distribution of funds.

“We need to spend the vast majority of infrastructure money in Ann Arbor because Ann Arbor is the hub of Washtenaw County,” Carson said.

AATA will continue to hold meetings throughout the county to solicit feedback from the community. Benham said the AATA will release a series of funding options in the near future for residents to consider. For more information and details on the plan, visit www.movingyouforward.org.