A bus transit power struggle

A long fight over control of the south-metro bus system flared Tuesday in Burnsville, fanned by a dispute over whether a new transit station in Apple Valley would fall under local or regional control.

It is a power struggle that pits Metropolitan Council President Peter Bell and his agency against local officials who intend to kill any move toward a centralized transit system.

South metro communities want to retain the local authority they have had since the 1990s. Back then, the suburbs contended they were paying a lot in taxes without getting bus service, so the Legislature gave them authority to "opt out" of the Metro Transit system under the Met Council.

The suburbs have lobbied effectively as a group since then, although their autonomy and trust in regional government have eroded since 2000, said some officials, such as Ruth Grendahl, an Apple Valley City Council member.

Grendahl serves on the Minnesota Valley Transit Authority -- the public transportation provider for Apple Valley, Burnsville, Eagan, Savage and Rosemount.

Bell said he's not trying to get rid of the "opt outs," but he wants regional uniformity as the system expands.

"In candor, there's trust issues on both sides, and we need to work on those issues," Bell told the group.

"Met Council had come down and said, 'No, you cannot sustain this, and you cannot provide service to Rosemount,'" Grendahl said. "Once again, appointed people and staff people overrode elected officials."

That bus began running Sept. 8 between Rosemount and Minneapolis.

Now, plans to build a Cedar Avenue bus transit station in Apple Valley on land owned by the MVTA has started a quarrel. The Met Council wants title to the land and to own and design the station. But MVTA officials want local ownership and control.

The state Finance Department would issue the bonds for that $19 million transit station project, which includes the cost of the land. But the wording of past legislation for that bonding caused problems. It said bonding money would go to the Met Council, rather than pass through to local governments.

Tuesday, Sen. Jim Carlson, DFL-Eagan, said he would introduce a bill that would authorize the Met Council to transfer ownership of the land and building to the MVTA for a nominal amount.

"The MVTA members believe that this goes to the basic authority that we have to provide service in our territory and that year after year, we see it eroding," Grendahl said.

Bell said that's not the case, though there must be regional coordination, including for bus maintenance schedules.

"Without a uniform, regional government overseeing bus operations," he said, "we will have a tower of Babel," with various delegations going to the Capitol and "fighting like cats and dogs" for their areas.

Bell said that would pit communities such as Apple Valley against Farmington, and Forest Lake against Minneapolis.

MVTA owns transit stations in Eagan, Burnsville, Savage and Apple Valley, with no operating deficit. The Met Council transit, which faces a $38 million deficit for the 2010-11 biennium, just raised fares by 25 cents and is eying another increase next year.

Rep. Sandra Masin, DFL-Eagan, was angered during the meeting. The former Eagan City Council member and former chairwoman of the MVTA helped begin the Suburban Transit Association. After Bell told the group that he answers to the governor, Masin suggested that perhaps Met Council officials should be elected, rather than appointed.