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State Representative Tim Faust
100 Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Blvd.
651-296-0518
For more information contact: Michael Howard 651-296-8873
NEWS COLUMN
Transportation Leaders Need to Rise to the Challenge, Molnau Has Done the Opposite
In a recent column, Phil Krinkie, who is the President of the Minnesota Taxpayers League, was critical of the financial practices of Carol Molnau, Commissioner of the MnDOT, and in particular, the seemingly incompetent selection of Flatiron Construction to rebuild the I-35W bridge. I don’t often agree with Phil Krinkie, but this is one of the times I do.
Of the firms vying for the project, MnDOT selected the firm with the largest price tag, bidding nearly $57 million more than the lowest bidder. This would seem a bit more rational had the selected firm agreed to build the bridge in a shorter time frame, but in fact, the opposite is true. Flatiron Construction plans to take nearly two months longer to finish the bridge construction than the other bidders. MnDOT even offered $27 million in incentives to Flatiron if they complete the job early. Krinkie points out that this means Flatiron could receive $84 million more than the lowest bidder and take two months longer to complete the job. This doesn’t seem like “best value" to me, but rather "best friend" of Commissioner Molnau.
There are a lot of hard working and dedicated employees of MnDOT that deserve better leadership than they have been getting. They must all be frustrated by the negative press their department has been getting, press that these employees don’t deserve, just their leadership. On the two bridge projects south of Mora the MnDOT employees have been very professional and have done a great job. Clearly the problems are at the top.
Public safety should be the largest guiding force as to how MnDOT funds and appropriates projects, but MnDOT spends billions of dollars a year, and the taxpayers of Minnesota have the right to know and assume that their money is being spent efficiently and wisely. Taxpayers deserve more bang for their buck than Commissioner Molnau has been providing, and unfortunately, Krinkie's criticisms are just the tip of the iceberg.
Recently, MnDOT revealed the cost to re-build the I-35W Bridge jumped from $250 to $400 million and the project is now much more expensive than the funding authorized by the federal government. In addition, Congressman Jim Oberstar and others in Minnesota delegation are upset that Minnesota has not requested all the available federal funds for bridge maintenance and construction.
What is even more alarming is the fact that MnDOT is going broke and we are just finding out. Commissioner Molnau has kept secret the negative, and serious cash flow problems that could delay hundreds of construction projects throughout the state and even prevent snow and ice removal this winter. Worse, Molnau has no contingency plans in place to deal with possible stoppages. In order to prevent immediate delays and unsafe road conditions, this week MnDOT received a $60 million bailout from a Legislative Transportation Contingent Appropriation Group in order to provide necessary short-term relief.
What is especially frustrating about MnDOT's mismanagement is that legislators have been fighting for more transparency from MnDOT. House and Senate committees have tried to investigate MnDOT's finances and procedures in the past but have continually run into roadblocks from Commissioner Molnau. Now due to the bridge collapse and financial crisis of MnDOT, we are finally starting to get some answers.
It is no secret that Minnesota is facing serious transportation and infrastructure issues. I believe we need to continue our investigative efforts into MnDOT's practices so that we can have a more open, efficient, common sense approach to the way we construct and fund our roads and bridges. It’s too early to assess blame to Commissioner Molnau for the collapsed I-35W Bridge, but in difficult times like these we need our government officials to rise to the challenge. Molnau has done the opposite.
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