Thursday, May 19, 2011

Corvallis, Eugene score $3.9 million for transit - Portland Business Journal:

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Corvallis city leaders announcefd in Maythat they’ll collect $1 million in federal money to improve the Corvallis transit Among other endeavors, the money will fund three 35-foot busesw and bus shelters that will help the city meet requirements of the Americans with Disabilities Act. Corvallis receiver its funds fromthe $8.4 billiohn transit capital improvements pot established by the $787 billiomn American Recovery and Reinvestment Act. The award is the fourthb major stimulus grantCorvallias received. Other awards: A stimulus-driven for An “Energy Efficiency and ConservationBlock Grant” for $1.
8 million for street Corvallis leaders have built a Web site to help contractors who want to bid for stimulusd projects. Visit www.ci.corvallis.or.us and clickk on the “Stimulus 2009” button for details. Corvallid was awarded its moneh at the same time the LaneTransit Eugene’s transportation authority, collected $2.9 millionm in stimulus funds. The money will help the $41 millioh EmX line extension, which links the area’s Emeralx Express dedicated transit line from Eugene through The extension creates a loop that takes riderzsaround Springfield’s Gateway area. The $41 milliomn project will create 400 jobs duringits two-yeard construction phase.
About 93 percenr of the cost will be funded by federal and statrconstruction dollars, including $5.4 million from the state’ s ConnectOregon transportation program. “This has been very since opening inJanuary 2007, said Lisa VanWinkle, an EmX program communications coordinator. “We have more than doubledd the ridership using that routde than we had on the regular bus service lineit Rep. Peter Defazio, a Lane County called the stimulusaward “the kinds of concrete investmentz in our infrastructure that put people back to work and produc e a product for generations to come.
” Constructionh of the Gateway EmX Extension began this springt and will continue through fall 2010. A left-leanintg think tank and an Oregon Republicah party leader both back plans that wouldlet non-working Oregonians collecf their first $2,400 of unemployment benefits State law currently prohibit s Oregonians from receiving the benefit. and Sen. Jason Atkinson, a Centrakl Point Republican, want to change that. The issue arosr after the Obama administrationm included a series of tax reliefvmeasures — including the one related to unemployment benefits — in the federal stimulua bill.
Other tax breaks include letting businesses write off the costs of new equipmentmuch quicker. Oregonn Democrats blocked the enactment of the measurdein Oregon, fearing that it would lead to as much as $100 millioh in lost tax revenue and an even bigger state budgef shortfall. The Oregon Center for Public Policy and Atkinson diffe r on how to reinstat theunemployment benefit. Atkinson supportz Senate Bill 975, which woulx allow unemployment beneficiaries to forego payingg taxes on thefirst $2,400 they Atkinson believes it’s foolish that 255,000 out-of-work Oregonian must pay taxes on their unemployment benefits.

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