Subject: Re: strategy for/after this Friday’s Stakeholders’ Meeting
Date: Thursday, July 15, 2010 8:01 PM
From: Benjamin S. Porter <[deleted for spam protection]>
To: Stephen Kozak <[ and six others, deleted for spam protection]>
All
I have never done this before either. What I do know is that we need a single voice.
In theory, the teleconference tomorrow is limited to members of the Stakeholders and Steering Committees. I think we need to be respectful of the NH and ME officials that will be in the meeting, and not introduce new participants to them by phone. We can probably do this by limiting the conversation to people who they are already familiar with. To make sure everyone gets a voice, we need to probably meet 30 minutes before the call to discuss how we will deal with the call.
It is actually their meeting, so they may want to set the agenda. I have sent Carol a three point memo with the key points I want to get covered. Stephen has done the same. We need to review the agenda and make sure that our points get addressed. If there are any other points, we should get them on the table for discussion.
My points are straight forward:
1 – We need to know where each state stands on each of the 5 remaining alternatives.
2 – We need to express our concerns about the Bike Ped option since it will use a previously untested funding process. It should not be in the same list as the other vehicular options.
3 – We need to explore how the existing Alternatives could form the basis for the two states to reach an agreement.
I think we are close to an impasse. Point 3 above is really the most important part of the process. Getting point 1 off the table will help in getting to point 3. Point 2 should be raised just to get that option off the table, and to get the two states to admit that it is essentially the same as Alternative 11, removing the bridge and implementing a bus service.
I look forward to seeing everyone tomorrow.
Benjamin S. Porter