Scott Smith, Valley Metro Interim CEO, Gets Public Transit Back On-Track

June 2016 Rail News: Passenger Rail
Valley Metro is pursuing a bold expansion plan
in Metro Phoenix
Source: Progressive Railroading June 2016

"Valley Metro has been on a roll. In less than 18 months, the Arizona public transit agency serving the Phoenix-Mesa-Tempe area has opened two light-rail extensions as part of its aggressive plan to build 66 miles of light rail by 2034. The agency also has logged steady growth in rail ridership — including serving a record number of passengers during Super Bowl XLIX — and received word earlier this year that Tempe's streetcar proposal has been included in President Obama's fiscal-year 2017 budget.
Moreover, in August 2015, Phoenix voters approved a referendum calling for a major boost in local transit funding, including additional dollars that will help pay for new Valley Metro light-rail lines.

At the same time the agency has logged a good deal of light-rail success in its relatively short history — Valley Metro Rail Inc. was founded in 2002 — it also hit a few speed bumps. The biggest hit came in late 2015, when then-Chief Executive Officer Stephen Banta stepped down after The Arizona Republic launched an investigation into his entertainment and travel expenses while at the agency.

In response to Banta's resignation, Valley Metro's board tapped former Mesa Mayor Scott Smith to fill in as interim CEO. A lawyer, accountant, former real estate developer and longtime advocate of public transit, Smith has spent the past few months trying to right the agency’s course so that Valley Metro staff members can refocus their attention to growing and operating a public transportation system . . .
Since he arrived on the scene Feb. 1, Smith has taken steps to correct the problems uncovered in a recent audit of the agency, improve employee morale and keep staff focused on advancing the agency’s expansion plans.
"I was recruited to come in, hopefully settle things down, deal with the issues that came out of the departure of our former CEO and work to restore trust in the agency," Smith says. "We've been working on initiatives to accomplish all three of those. . .
                                                

May 4, 2016, 7:00 am EDT Phoenix Business Journal

4 lessons businesses should learn from the Valley Metro scandal

An Arizona Attorney General's Office criminal investigation of the situation is now underway 
In August 2015, Valley Metro opened the 3.1-mile Central Mesa Extension, which connects downtown Mesa businesses, the arts and entertainment district, Mesa City Plaza, Phoenix Sky Harbor International Airport and special events in downtown Tempe and Phoenix. Valley Transit Constructors began building the extension in summer 2012. The project was funded by a $75 million grant from the Federal Transit Administration (FTA), $71 million in countywide transportation tax funds and $53 million in federal air quality funds.
. . .
"There's no doubt that Phoenix is going to continue to grow. Even during the recession, we held steady," Smith says. "And now growth is back — not as much as the boom times, but it’s a significant number. We added over 100,000 people last year."
And transit can only help by moving that population growth from outlying suburbs back to the urban areas, he says.

"We fill in the hole of the doughnut with public transportation and that’s the exciting thing," Smith adds. "We are creating an opportunity to redevelop those areas that were left behind in urban sprawl. And we’re seeing a lot of new development touched by rail."


Valley Metro's Smith agrees that light rail has helped attract development to the region.
In the future, he’d like the agency to work more with developers to foster projects that “connect” with light-rail service.
"We're expanding our educational efforts to make sure that when developers look at areas along our rail line, they look at them not as just another piece of real estate, but as something that could have a higher value if it integrates light-rail into the development," says Smith.
With all that to digest, Smith acknowledges he's balancing a full plate. But his charge is to get the agency back in order by the time the new executive steps in. The position is expected to be posted by early June — he will not be a candidate — and filled by year's end, Smith says.





http://www.progressiverailroading.com/passenger_rail/article/Valley-Metro-is-pursuing-a-bold-expansion-plan-in-metropolitan-Phoenix--48457