Lack of political will hinders infrastructure repairs, updates

WASHINGTON (Map, News) - A lack of political will to fix and upgrade area infrastructure has left the region in a hole that experts say will only get deeper without a major funding infusion.

“We’re talking about big bucks, big dollars and there’s no ribbon cutting for this type of stuff,” Montgomery councilwoman Nancy Floreen said. “It’s not a sexy issue and you don’t get a lot of credit from people, so it’s natural for politicians to go for more publicly appealing things like new schools or new programs.”

A Montgomery County report this year showed one-third of roads are in poor condition, the result of using repair tactics that were cheap, but temporary. Residents complained of dust and loose gravel, and leaders adopted a new approach that is five times as costly, but supposedly more effective.

In Virginia, officials are embroiled in a bitter fight over road maintenance, which will eventually crowd out all construction dollars, and have yet to agree on both the size of the problem and method for fixing it. At the same time, Metro is struggling to find dedicated funding from Congress.

“As a country and certainly as a region, finding the resources and the political will to reinvest in infrastructure has been a challenge,” said David Robertson, executive director of the Metropolitan Washington Council of Governments.

Even when leaders agree there’s a problem, they might not agree how to fix it.

Montgomery and Prince George’s leaders both supported replacing water pipes, but couldn’t decide how to pay for it. Montgomery County Executive Ike Leggett backed plans to charge every household $240 a year in infrastructure renewal fees, so aging water and sewage pipes could be replaced twice as quickly.

Prince George’s leaders said it would unfairly slam poor residents and people on fixed incomes, proposing a tax instead that would link the amount due to property value.

While Montgomery residents were boiling their drinking water, Leggett and Johnson had lunch Tuesday and said they are moving toward a solution.

kmiller@dcexaminer.com

wflook@dcexaminer.com