GRS328

^He is, no doubt.

Seriously, this guy is such a pig. I can't describe in the appropriate words on this forum without fear of being banned. I swear I don't condone "tax, tax, tax till ones' heart is content", but this Guetzole guy just opposes everything to make headlines. His statement about commuter rail is so far off base, it shouldn't have even been printed. That's all he's interested in is more air-time.

It sounds as though you are implying the only way CSX would agree to commuter rail is if it had its own tracks?

I get what your saying, that Crotty is just governing responsibly by not just "jumping on board" no questions asked. I agree with you there. But are budgetary concerns the only litmus test for responsible governing? I find that it would be very difficult to argue, even for non-urbanists, that alternative modes of transportation are desperately needed in Central FL. We know what the situation is like now, and it is only going to compound in the future. So while I will agree with you that Crotty may be governing responsibly, his concerns are primarliy limited to the here-and-now. So if Orange County ultimately does kill this plan, and any form of rail project for the region is put off for another several years, is he not governing irresponsibly for the future? And is the massive investment in the convention center responsible when according to all recent major studies of the subject, conventions and the like are on the decline, and will likely continue to be in the near future? And with cities all over the country building bigger and newer convention centers, the slice of the pie just gets smaller. I am not arguing that the convention center is useless. It obviously has a great effect on the local economy. But the investment in it is huge, and the returns are diminishing. It's very frustrating to see the county (I'll stop singling out Crotty) so invested in that entity, yet down on another one that offers so many benefits to so many of us because the investment may be too great.

This is sickening. What a way to start the morning. Why does this man not get it??? He cannot be that clueless. It just seems he is hellbent on maintaining the status quo. HIs concerns are budget, which I'll admit are legitimate concerns. But these things arent going to get any cheaper the longer you wait. The state is willing to subsidize the operating costs for god sake! And Mica is right, at some point your credibility runs out - e.g. if you keep passing up federal money, you're not gonna get any more offers!! It is Crotty's job as "Mayor" to figure out a way to make it work because in the long run, it is undoubtedly in the best interest of the entire region. Instead, he bows in homage to that damn convention center every chance he gets.

It was so exciting reading this in the Sentinel this morning. Some good transportation news for once! Although, being of the "glass half-empty" persuasion that I am, I can see one of the county's balking at something. Question to the more established residents - was the state as generous with the light rail plans a few years back?

More NIMBYism at its finest.... Itsourmaitland.com Residents are entitled to their concerns, but these people are nuts. I work in Maitland, so unfortunately hear a lot of their nonsense on a daily basis. Their "Down with Density" t-shirts are particularly annoying.

I love that they are thinking big on this. I hope they can make it happen, regardless of what UCF does. I truly don't see an NFL team coming here any time soon (10 years+) with Tampa and Jax down the road, I don't see any reason why they put the Super Bowl here if the stadium was worthy. That would be awesome for Orlando! And it might also attract a BCS championship game if they reconsider their current rotation of sites again.

nauseating. I am continually astonished at how Orange acts as if it is in direct competition with Orlando. It's a grudge match. The whole thing with Crotty being called "Mayor" and "Downtown Orange County"... i realize these things are just superficial and don't mean a whole lot, but come on... it's just getting ridiculous. Orange County appears to be having a serious identity crisis.

Just wondering, has any of these projects broken ground yet?

Wow... that's a great list of projects. Tampa doesn't get as much play in the boards as Jacksonville and Orlando, but this list of projects is pretty impressive. Hopefully these projects will help inject some vibrance into downtown Tampa.