Title
An Ordinance of the County of Allegheny, Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, setting forth County policy regarding the construction of a tunnel, commonly known as the North Shore Connector project.
Body
WHEREAS, principles of sound fiscal management mitigate against undertaking large public works projects with uncertain budgets; and
WHEREAS, cost overruns for tunnel projects are historically unpredictable and potentially very large, such as in Boston's "Big Dig" project, for which the original budget was $2.5 billion when the project began in 1998, yet for which the final budget was $14.6 billion when it was finally completed in 2003; and
WHEREAS, the North Shore Connector, consisting of a tunnel running roughly one half of one mile under the Allegheny River, has already suffered from significant cost overruns; and
WHEREAS, while the United States Department of Transportation at one time estimated the total budget for this project to be $381 million, this figure has grown to $435 million and, in some published reports, as high as $553 million; and
WHEREAS, this radical increase in cost has taken place even though the scope of the project has been greatly reduced from the original concept through the elimination of the proposed Convention Center Line, which would have connected Steel Plaza Station and the David L. Lawrence Convention Center; and
WHEREAS, original estimates were that the County of Allegheny would contribute 3.3% percent of the total initial project estimated budget of $390 million, or roughly $12.9 million, with the federal government providing 80% of the project funding and another 16.6% coming from the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania; and
WHEREAS, at the same 3.3 percent contribution rate, the County's contribution has now grown to over $14.3 million in even the most conservative estimates, and could be as much as $18.25 million; and
WHEREAS, this increase in cost places an undue burden on the County's already overb...
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