Greetings,

I'd like to share Wednesday's conversation I had with Jodi Barankin, the Project Mgr for the BA at NJ DOT....

NJ DOT is now in control of the Selection of the Consultants for the Proposed use of the BA....

In Step #1 they put out Requests for Expression of Interest/ Qualifications where potential consultants give brief listing of their credentials & work done for the NJ DOT Consultants Selection Committee to evaluate.... The process is being redone since NJ Transit & Suzanne Mack for Hudson County requested to be included on the Committee. That set them back.... thank you Suzanne... Now they have several weeks to submit their paperwork/ratings. Then NJ DOT will recalculate the scores & present the top ??? # teams - "Short List" to the NJ DOT Consultants Selection Committee. One of the "consultants" on the first short list was Cheryl Allen Munley the former Asst Director for JC's Engineering Dept. who I've heard is suing the City for being fired.... She's on record for a highway as Schundler had ordered her to... I voiced all our concerns and the obvious conflict of interest here and Jodi Barankin got pretty hostile.

Then the Committee proceeds to a Technical Review & selects the top ?# firms & asks for Request for Proposals & presentations by the consultants Full Committee selects the Consulting Firm..... Our only hope is Hudson County raising any red flags as with Munley!!! Jodi Barankin would not say how long this could take...... the public has no input here.

JB stated that NJTPA Chairman Weiner wants JC to have sole public outreach!!!!! Seems we all got lip service at the March 8th NJTPA meeting... I verbalized our well documented concerns & Jodi Barankin gave me a lot of double talk even though he said he read all the transcripts from the NJTPA meetings & HART's written comments..... I have my doubts.. They he adds that NJTPA is considering having their own public outreach committee for this projects but Roseanne Koeberle never said a work to me that morning. Roseanne stated that NJTPA just approve the allocations & see that the $$ are justified but NJ DOT takes over...

Jodi Barankin referred to the original language of the T21 legislation for the Bergen Arches as a roadway and he doesn't believe that the more you build the more they drive... Not surprising, I felt a clear bias from him for highways... Then he tried to make it appear that we were probably against all ideas but I suggested he read Ralph's Lite Rail/ Freight rail proposal which I will mail to him... he must not remember what he reads!

Did not get a good feeling....

Mia Scanga