It's not as if they don't have paved streets and roads in Bloomington and Monroe County. It's not as if construction has not begun on Interstate 69, which will run from Evansville to Indianapolis and will add two miles of pavement to Monroe County. And it's not as if the route was not subjected to a comprehensive environmental study years ago.
If all of those circumstances were the reverse of reality, then the folks in Bloomington-Monroe County who are blocking I-69 on a technicality might have some rational standing to try and stop the highway. But they don't.
Then-Gov. Frank O'Bannon subjected the Evansville-to-Indianapolis proposal to one of the most exhausting environmental impact studies ever conducted in the United States, before finally selecting the route that adds those two miles to Monroe County. He had the option of directing the highway through Terre Haute or of not supporting any route, but in the end, he did the sensible thing and chose the direct route. Subsequently, state planners conducted public hearings at which Hoosiers were allowed to state their opinions for and against the proposed highway. Indeed, some of the same people who are staging or supporting this standoff in Bloomington today were present and spoke at those public meetings more than 10 years.
Yet, today, with construction of the highway bearing down on Bloomington, they continue their resistance to I-69, while risking the loss of $29.5 million in federal transportation funds. Federal law requires that highway projects be included in each county's transportation plan for them to receive transportation funds. However, the local planning group in Bloomington has removed those two miles of I-69 from their plan. Unless the group relents, I-69 cannot be built in Monroe County, and the state will prevent Bloomington/Monroe County from receiving further federal transportation dollars.
It is patently ridiculous.
And yet, from a news story in the Herald Times of Bloomington published Friday, longtime opponents of the highway say they aren't sure federal funding cuts for local transit would be a long-term problem because Indiana is going to elect a new governor in 2012. They say they are hopeful the next governor will discontinue plans for the highway between Bloomington and Indianapolis.
Beep, beep: Earth to Bloomington, come in. That's not going to happen.
U.S. Rep. Mike Pence, the likely Republican nominee for governor in 2012 will be every bit as determined as current Republican Gov. Mitch Daniels to see I-69 completed. And right now, the likely Democratic nominee for governor will be John Gregg, the former House speaker from Knox County. Gregg was an intelligent, savvy politician who surely appreciates the importance of completing I-69. We cannot imagine under any circumstances Gregg stopping the highway just short of Bloomington to satisfy this small group of obstructionists in Monroe County.
Accept it: Interstate 69 is going to be completed, most likely by the next governor of Indiana.