BIKE: How many bike advocates can you spot in toll road support list below?

[Roger Baker]

  NEWS RELEASE:

MORE "deals" found with CAMPO YES votes.
Central Texas Toll Road Plan YES votes appear to be riddled with deals,  
self-interest and/or special interest conflicts.

The Statesman's front page report Saturday  
(http://www.statesman.com/news/content/auto/epaper/editions/saturday/ 
news_14b4edfc634170ae00e6.html)
focused on Senator Barrientos and Representative Dukes. More  
conflicting interests are brought forward Today:

  CAMPO Board Member/Hays County Commissioner Bill Burnett is currently  
working as a paid "consultant" for Dannenbaum Engineering. Dannenbaum  
Engineering does road work for TxDOT. President of Dannenbaum  
Engineering, James D. Dannenbaum gave Gov. Rick Perry $75,000 as a  
contribution. Rick Perry has mandated Toll Roads as a new tax for  
Austin and other Texas Cities. (http://www.followthemoney.org). Bill  
Burnett, James D. Dannenbaum and Dannenbaum Engineering will benefit  
from this 2.2 Billion dollar toll road vote.

CAMPO Board Member/Travis County Commissioner Karen Sonleitner  
Fundraiser Hosted by Special Interests and invitation lists them by  
name. Up to $2,500.00 a plate Fundraiser for Karen Sonleitner will be  
Hosted by members of Real Estate Council of Austin (RECA), Road lobby  
lawyer Pete Winstead and the contractors for Central Texas Regional  
Mobility Authority (CTRMA). This special interests syndicate will make  
enormous profits off the 2.2 Billion dollar toll road scheme that  
received an avalanche of public opposition. The CTRMA will "run" the  
Austin toll roads while the CTRMA contractors will be handsomely paid.

  "The special interest fundraiser for Karen Sonleitner is an obvious  
"PAY OFF" for her YES vote in the face of ninety-three percent of the  
public feedback that opposed the plan." said Sal Costello of  
www.AustinTollParty.com "the invitation lists each of the special  
Interests syndicate by name, it's offensive the public was ignored and  
"sold out" for favors and money".

  The Invitation reads, "Now more than ever, we want to show our support  
for elected leaders who thoughtfully study issues and consider all  
viewpoints, then make the tough decisions and have the courage to stand  
by their votes."

  SEE INVITATION HERE:  
(http://www.austintollparty.com/gfx/specialPayoff.jpg) Road-lobby  
lawyer Pete Winstead has been leading the effort for the road builders,  
while real estate lobby/lawyer Tim Taylor has taken the lead for RECA  
members and has even started a new Anti-recall group. Both groups stand  
to profit well off the Toll Plan that uses tax dollars to build toll  
roads in Austin.

  The invitation hosts are a who's who of the special Interest's that  
have been pushing the controversial toll plan.
Pete Winstead - Lead Road Lobby Lawyer, Partner of Winstead Sechrest &  
Minick, RECA past President,
  CATC Founding member, Citizens for Mobility Chair.
Tim Taylor - Lead Real Estate Lobby Lawyer, Partner of Jackson Walker,  
LLP,
  RECA past President, Started Anti-Recall group
  Brian Cassidy - CTRMA's Lawyer, RECA Chair
Trey Salinas - CTRMA's  Lobbiest/PR, RECA Member
Don Martin - CTRMA's  Lobbiest/PR
David Armbrust - Real Estate Lawyer, RECA past President
William Terry Bray - Real Estate Lawyer, RECA member
Alan Glen - Real Estate Lawyer, RECA past President
Jim Knight - Engineering Firm, RECA member
Laura Beuerlein - Real Estate Title Company, RECA member
Thurman Blackburn - Real Estate Developer, RECA member
Paul Bury - Engineering firm, RECA Chair
  Clif Davis - Land Development, RECA Chair
Sue Gravett - Corporate Real Estate, RECA member
Helen Jobes -  Commercial Real Estate, RECA member
Pike Powers - Real Estate Lawyer, CATC Founding member
Kirk Rudy - Commercial Real Estate, RECA past President
Richard Suttle - Real Estate Lawyer
Diana Zuniga - Real Estate Investors, RECA past President

CTRMA Chairman Robert Tesch, as Williamson County Appraisal District  
records show, owns property appraised for tax purposes at well over $1  
million along the route for U.S. 183A, the first of many toll roads  
being built in the Austin area. Tesch was appointed Chairman of the  
CTRMA’s Executive Committee by Governor Perry.

  ---------------
CAMPO Board Member/Senator Gonzalo Barrientos is a board member and  
Chair of CAMPO. He works for Centex Beverage, beer distributor. Lowell  
Lebermann is the Owner of beer distributor Centex Beverage and  
Vice-Chairman of the CTRMA. CTRMA and TxDOT produced and promoted the  
central Texas Toll Road plan that CAMPO voted on for July 12, 2004.  
Lowell Lebermann contributed $5,500.00 to the Gonzalo Barrientos  
campaign 2 years ago and has financial interest in and around Austin  
amounts to millions of dollars. Senator Gonzalo Barrientos forced the  
CAMPO vote to take place in July, months before it was necessary.  
Despite this relationship, Barrientos did not recuse himself from the  
CAMPO vote, He voted Yes, even with the avalanche of public opposition.

CAMPO Board Member/State Representative Dawnna Dukes sister, Stacey  
Rhone-Dukessister received a subcontract with the CTRMA. Dukes  
acknowledge her sister did receive the contract. Dawnna Dukes voted for  
the toll plan even though 93% said no and her sister stand to gain from  
that vote.

As Stated in the Austin American Statesman this Saturday:

  "Rhone (Stacey Dukes-Rhone), according to records and interviews with  
mobility authority officials, has been doing public relations work  
since February for the mobility authority under a contract with HNTB,  
the mobility authority's general engineering contractor for its first  
project, the U.S. 183-A toll road. That tollway, already under  
construction, was unrelated to her sister's vote in July.

  But Rhone also worked on public outreach on the seven-road plan in the  
runup to the July 12 vote. Her contract allows her to receive as much  
as $44,400.

  According to Richard Ridings with HNTB, the lead engineer on the  
project, she has been paid $26,000 so far and has billed an additional  
$6,000. Her contract specifies her start date as Feb. 1 this year, and  
the agency, in a letter to Barrientos released Friday, said Rhone has  
worked for the authority since Feb. 18. But Rhone did not sign the  
contract with HNTB until July 7. Ridings signed on July 13, the morning  
after the toll road vote."

  - American Statesman, Saturday, Sept 18, 2004
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