Press release: Bipartisan Coalition Forms Against The Columbia River Crossing

This just in:

Bipartisan Coalition Forms Against The Columbia River Crossing

Today, progressive and conservative organizations, businesses, and individuals announced the formation of a bipartisan coalition to oppose the current plan for the Columbia River Crossing.

Coalition leaders include: John Charles (President, Cascade Policy Institute), Steve Cole (Northeast Coalition of Neighborhoods), Karla Kay Edwards (Director, Americans for Prosperity-Oregon), Mara Gross (Coalition for A Livable Future) and Jason Williams (Oregon Taxpayer Association). Joe Cortright, President and Chief Economist at Impresa Consulting, is providing financial and economic analysis for the Coalition, based on several years of examining CRC traffic and financial projections.

Members of this coalition, called “Stop the CRC: A Bipartisan Coalition For a Responsible Solution,” share a broad set of concerns about the current plan for the Columbia River Crossing including, but not limited to:

– The Oregon Legislature is essentially being asked to authorize a blank check for the funding.
– The construction and financing of the CRC will impact the ability to maintain existing roads and bridges throughout Oregon.
– The proposal is based on outdated and incorrect information.
– The CRC will worsen traffic gridlock in other parts of Portland and in residential neighborhoods.

“It is the aim of all members of this coalition to persuade Oregon’s 2013 Legislature not to appropriate further funding for this project,” said coalition spokespersons Mara Gross and Lindsay Berschauer. “Instead, we encourage legislators to take a step back and engage Oregonians broadly in an effort to develop a more responsible solution that Oregon can afford.”

The “Stop the CRC” bipartisan coalition will work to educate citizens and lawmakers on the negative impacts of the current CRC plan on our state and our citizens and to steer the legislature toward a more positive direction. Further details will be announced this week.