Web site localizes federal spending debate

Wednesday, February 18, 2009

By Ben Cannon

Jackson Hole, Wyo.-A new Web site allows users to discuss and prioritize the merits of public works projects, nationwide, seeking stimulus dollars from the federal government.

WWW.StimulusWatch.org, which launched in January, enables visitors to browse through hundreds of “shovel-ready” projects according to location and type of project. The site was built around the “Mainstreet Economic Recovery” report compiled by the U.S. Conference of Mayors, and details both the cost of and number of new jobs tied to each public project.

While neither The Town of Jackson nor Teton County participates in the wish list, a number of municipalities around Wyoming and Idaho do. For example, Big Piney, in Sublette County, has requested federal funding for three separate road reconstruction projects totaling $5.2 million. Those projects, and another proposal for a $300,000 town maintenance building, would create more than 50 new jobs in Big Piney, the Web site reports.

Jackson Mayor Mark Barron said that while the town does not belong to the U.S. Conference of Mayors and is not featured on StimulusWatch.org, town officials are looking to secure federal money for a new START Bus facility.
“We’re a small rural community moving nearly 900,000 people on mass transit a year,” Barron said. “That’s a lot of people, and we’re in an arctic climate. We drop to 10 below, and the buses have to [idle] all night.”

A new START Bus facility could cost anywhere from $10 million to $20 million, he said, but would end the practice of running busses all night, among other things.
The nonprofit and nonpartisan www.StimulusWatch.org was created by George Mason University researches interested in exploring new opportunities with the Internet to “crowdsource the task of keeping public officials accountable,” the Web site states. PJH


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