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Commuter rail authority executive director derailed
A budget review and a perceived conflict of interest have resulted in a switch at the helm for a Colorado commuter rail authority.
By By: Kiersten J. Mayer
A budget review and a perceived conflict of interest have resulted in a switch at the helm for a Colorado commuter rail authority.
The Rocky Mountain Rail Authority board of directors released former executive director and founder Bob Briggs from his contract two weeks ago.
In May, Douglas County agreed to kick in $25,000 this year for the Rocky Mountain Rail Authority. Another $25,000 has been tentatively approved in 2008 if money can be found in the budget.
Various reasons led the Rocky Mountain Rail Authority board of directors not to renew Briggs' contract, said Jack Hilbert, county commissioner and Rocky Mountain Rail Authority board member.
In June, Briggs had asked for an additional $500 from every entity to meet a shortfall for financing of the feasibility study.
Douglas County commissioners denied the request and withheld the 2007 funds until the budgeting issues with the Rocky Mountain Rail Authority were resolved.
"We are just getting ready to release the project management, or request for proposal, out," said Hilbert. "The project manager will manage the feasibility study, so there was no reason to have an executive director."
In addition, board members felt that Briggs had a conflict of interest since he was an active member of the Colorado Railroad Association, a nonprofit entity that assists in promoting railway projects - lobbying, campaigning, marketing to get certain issues passed.
"The board felt his relationship was too tight there, and there was a conflict of interest," Hilbert said.
In the commuter rail authority's original budget, the executive director was paid $2,000 per month reimbursement of office expenses in addition to a salary of $140,000. In a renegotiated agreement, the annual salary budget was reduced to $1 with a $2,000 per month reimbursement, Hilbert said.
Rocky Mountain Rail Authority board members did put together a contract to pay Briggs for the work he'd done to date and agreed to re-evaluate it at the end of July, said Lehnen. The $1 a year salary and $1,000-a-month reimbursement was the result. Board members wanted to not pay Briggs, but made it commensurate with his duties and what we could afford, said Douglas Lehnen, Castle Rock town councilman and vice chair of the Rocky Mountain Rail Authority board of directors.
In addition, Briggs' marketing of the study also was in conflict with how he was directed by the board to get it done, said Hilbert.
He would not take direction from the board and now the commuter rail authority will only have a project manager. Since the request for proposals is almost complete and ready to be issued, why pay for an executive director, he said.
That, in addition to his budgeting decisions and unwillingness to take direction from the board, were cited as reasons his contract was not extended.
But Briggs said the $1 a year didn't interfere with Rocky Mountain Rail Authority's funding process.
As far as the perception of his conflict of interest between the Colorado Railroad Association and the Rocky Mountain Rail Authority, that's a relative thing, and they have their opinions, he said.
Briggs said Harry Dale, Clear Creek county commissioner and chair of the Rocky Mountain Rail Authority board of directors is active in a group called the I-70 Coalition. He had invited Stradler of Switzerland that manufactures rail vehicles that are capable of running in mountains, to come and make a presentation to the I-70 Coalition.
At the same time, Briggs had arranged for the Colorado Rail Association to hear from the Colorado Rail Car Manufacturing Co.
"He's accusing me of having a conflict of interest where he might also have a similar conflict of interest," Briggs said.
Rocky Mountain Rail Authority board members do not get paid, and Briggs said the original $140,000 for executive director salary never materialized.
He did receive the $2,000 reimbursement a month from January to June 2007, but said only $1,000 a month was budgeted for the remainder of 2007.
The $140,000 for salary never materialized because the authority didn't have it, Lehnen said.
Money from a $1.2 million Colorado Transportation Commission grant last fall could not be used for the salary, nor could it be paid for with a required $311,000 in matching funds, he said.
And Briggs still wasn't listening to the board, which as an executive director, should have been his main goal.
For example, Briggs was suggesting solutions to the feasibility study before we'd even done the study, Lehnen said. Briggs' unwillingness to take direction from the board was key in the decision for them to part ways, Lehnen said.
Despite differences, Briggs said the contract for the feasibility study was authorized to be signed with CDOT, and so the feasibility study is going to go forward.
Each county or municipality that contributed money for the feasibility study was given a seat on the board of directors. Douglas County's $25,000 is scheduled to be paid this week.
County officials agreed there was some benefit in participating in the study because the commuter rail would go right through the middle of Douglas County, Hilbert said.
The Front Range high-speed commuter rail authority asked counties, municipalities and districts along Colorado's Front Range to become members and help finance a feasibility study.
The Colorado Transportation Commission awarded Front Range Commuter Rail $1.2 million for the study last fall.
The feasibility study is expected to determine if the authority could have rail cars running 75 percent of a proposed time period, if there are enough potential passengers to ride the rail, what technology it would use, where stops could be and how fast the trains could travel.
Briggs led efforts to raise an additional required local match of $310,000 since the commuter rail authority was awarded the CDOT grant.
The Rocky Mountain Rail Authority has 23 members, including Castle Rock, Broomfield, Aurora, Colorado Springs, Pueblo, Thornton, Westminster and Monument, Briggs said. Counties include Arapahoe, Clear Creek, Eagle, Garfield, Gilpin, Larimer, Pueblo, Routt, Summit and Weld. The Regional Transportation District also is a member.
Briggs and other Rocky Mountain Rail Authority representatives have asked Colorado counties and municipalities along Interstate 25 north to south and east to west from Denver International Airport to Utah for membership.
He estimated in Colorado, New Mexico and Wyoming there are more than 200 counties and municipalities that could be served by a high-speed commuter rail.
Contact Kiersten J. Mayer at 303-663-7174 or kmayer@ccnewspapers.com.
The Rocky Mountain Rail Authority board of directors released former executive director and founder Bob Briggs from his contract two weeks ago.
In May, Douglas County agreed to kick in $25,000 this year for the Rocky Mountain Rail Authority. Another $25,000 has been tentatively approved in 2008 if money can be found in the budget.
Various reasons led the Rocky Mountain Rail Authority board of directors not to renew Briggs' contract, said Jack Hilbert, county commissioner and Rocky Mountain Rail Authority board member.
In June, Briggs had asked for an additional $500 from every entity to meet a shortfall for financing of the feasibility study.
Douglas County commissioners denied the request and withheld the 2007 funds until the budgeting issues with the Rocky Mountain Rail Authority were resolved.
"We are just getting ready to release the project management, or request for proposal, out," said Hilbert. "The project manager will manage the feasibility study, so there was no reason to have an executive director."
In addition, board members felt that Briggs had a conflict of interest since he was an active member of the Colorado Railroad Association, a nonprofit entity that assists in promoting railway projects - lobbying, campaigning, marketing to get certain issues passed.
"The board felt his relationship was too tight there, and there was a conflict of interest," Hilbert said.
In the commuter rail authority's original budget, the executive director was paid $2,000 per month reimbursement of office expenses in addition to a salary of $140,000. In a renegotiated agreement, the annual salary budget was reduced to $1 with a $2,000 per month reimbursement, Hilbert said.
Rocky Mountain Rail Authority board members did put together a contract to pay Briggs for the work he'd done to date and agreed to re-evaluate it at the end of July, said Lehnen. The $1 a year salary and $1,000-a-month reimbursement was the result. Board members wanted to not pay Briggs, but made it commensurate with his duties and what we could afford, said Douglas Lehnen, Castle Rock town councilman and vice chair of the Rocky Mountain Rail Authority board of directors.
In addition, Briggs' marketing of the study also was in conflict with how he was directed by the board to get it done, said Hilbert.
He would not take direction from the board and now the commuter rail authority will only have a project manager. Since the request for proposals is almost complete and ready to be issued, why pay for an executive director, he said.
That, in addition to his budgeting decisions and unwillingness to take direction from the board, were cited as reasons his contract was not extended.
But Briggs said the $1 a year didn't interfere with Rocky Mountain Rail Authority's funding process.
As far as the perception of his conflict of interest between the Colorado Railroad Association and the Rocky Mountain Rail Authority, that's a relative thing, and they have their opinions, he said.
Briggs said Harry Dale, Clear Creek county commissioner and chair of the Rocky Mountain Rail Authority board of directors is active in a group called the I-70 Coalition. He had invited Stradler of Switzerland that manufactures rail vehicles that are capable of running in mountains, to come and make a presentation to the I-70 Coalition.
At the same time, Briggs had arranged for the Colorado Rail Association to hear from the Colorado Rail Car Manufacturing Co.
"He's accusing me of having a conflict of interest where he might also have a similar conflict of interest," Briggs said.
Rocky Mountain Rail Authority board members do not get paid, and Briggs said the original $140,000 for executive director salary never materialized.
He did receive the $2,000 reimbursement a month from January to June 2007, but said only $1,000 a month was budgeted for the remainder of 2007.
The $140,000 for salary never materialized because the authority didn't have it, Lehnen said.
Money from a $1.2 million Colorado Transportation Commission grant last fall could not be used for the salary, nor could it be paid for with a required $311,000 in matching funds, he said.
And Briggs still wasn't listening to the board, which as an executive director, should have been his main goal.
For example, Briggs was suggesting solutions to the feasibility study before we'd even done the study, Lehnen said. Briggs' unwillingness to take direction from the board was key in the decision for them to part ways, Lehnen said.
Despite differences, Briggs said the contract for the feasibility study was authorized to be signed with CDOT, and so the feasibility study is going to go forward.
Each county or municipality that contributed money for the feasibility study was given a seat on the board of directors. Douglas County's $25,000 is scheduled to be paid this week.
County officials agreed there was some benefit in participating in the study because the commuter rail would go right through the middle of Douglas County, Hilbert said.
The Front Range high-speed commuter rail authority asked counties, municipalities and districts along Colorado's Front Range to become members and help finance a feasibility study.
The Colorado Transportation Commission awarded Front Range Commuter Rail $1.2 million for the study last fall.
The feasibility study is expected to determine if the authority could have rail cars running 75 percent of a proposed time period, if there are enough potential passengers to ride the rail, what technology it would use, where stops could be and how fast the trains could travel.
Briggs led efforts to raise an additional required local match of $310,000 since the commuter rail authority was awarded the CDOT grant.
The Rocky Mountain Rail Authority has 23 members, including Castle Rock, Broomfield, Aurora, Colorado Springs, Pueblo, Thornton, Westminster and Monument, Briggs said. Counties include Arapahoe, Clear Creek, Eagle, Garfield, Gilpin, Larimer, Pueblo, Routt, Summit and Weld. The Regional Transportation District also is a member.
Briggs and other Rocky Mountain Rail Authority representatives have asked Colorado counties and municipalities along Interstate 25 north to south and east to west from Denver International Airport to Utah for membership.
He estimated in Colorado, New Mexico and Wyoming there are more than 200 counties and municipalities that could be served by a high-speed commuter rail.
Contact Kiersten J. Mayer at 303-663-7174 or kmayer@ccnewspapers.com.
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