Community Corner

Loudermilk Wrong on 411 Connector

Tracy Rogers said State Sen. Barry Loudermilk, R-Cassville, made several inaccurate statements in a recent town hall meeting.

Among the inaccuracies are statements on funding, costs and right-of-way acquisition, the Cartersville woman says.

Dear Editor,    

I attended the recent hosted by State Sen. Barry Loudermilk in Cartersville and wanted to correct several inaccuracies and half-truths expressed about the Georgia Department of Transportation’s proposed route for the U.S. 411 Connector.

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First, “most of the funding” for the $280 million road will not come from federal money. There is a federal earmark for the road of only $22 million that was obtained by Congressman Phil Gingrey. Secondly, the cost for Route G has been known for several months. According to engineers that studied the shorter, cheaper and less environmentally intrusive design, it will cost taxpayers $182 million less than his preferred route.

Also, Loudermilk incorrectly stated the road has “already been funded.” GDOT has not designated the full amount of money needed for construction; nor does it even have the money. He also claimed that GDOT “has not acquired any right-of-way” for the 411 Connector. Again, this is inaccurate. According to county and state records, GDOT has already acquired several parcels of land for the right-of-way.

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Sticking with the party line about Route D-VE is one thing, but misrepresenting the facts and not telling the whole story to your constituents is insulting.

Sincerely,

Tracy Rogers


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