New HRT boss does damage control

NORFOLK, Va. (WAVY) - HRT's new chief, Phil Shucet, spent Tuesday doing major damage control and trying to rebuild the public trust broken by his predecessor Michael Townes.

Shucet met with city council members in Norfolk and Virginia Beach and answered their questions about the troubled light rail project. Under Townes' leadership the cost of the light rail project skyrocketed and he failed to inform HRT board members, Norfolk leaders, or the public. Townes was forced to retire and local officials were left with numerous questions.

Tuesday afternoon Shucet started with Norfolk council members, reassuring them that HRT and light rail are now in good hands.

While Norfolk officials and HRT board members have been waiting since August for an accurate, final cost of the light rail project, Townes never provided the information to them. But, Shucet, on the job for seven days, has promised to publicly report the final price tag on February 18.

"We spent a lot of time in the past, for some reason, taking the wrong approach in determining a cost to complete the project," said Shucet. He vowed the final cost he reveals on the 18th will be accurate and HRT will "own that number" and be accountable for it.

Shucet clearly made Norfolk council members feel more comfortable. He told them, "Our goal is clear, our hope is to hold the city harmless or as harmless as we can possibly do."

Shucet then travelled to Virginia Beach to meet with frustrated council members there, to clear up more confusion. Beach officials had just learned that Townes' promise--that a light rail feasibility study for that city would not cost Virginia Beach a penny--was an empty promise.

Virginia Beach is required to pay $244,800 of the $6.6 million bill for the study.

Councilman Bill DeSteph said Townes "promised that no local money was needed, period." He said this means council members now have egg on their faces in front of taxpayers who were told by council that Virginia Beach would not have to pay for the study.

"Unfortunately we were misguided and the information was not accurate and now our credibility suffers as well in front of taxpayers," said DeSteph. The councilman went on to suggest the $244,800 for the light rail study should be taken out of Townes' severance package.

Under an agreement reached between Townes and the HRT Board of Commissioners, Townes will receive his $180,000 salary until September 2011.

"Can we reduce his golden parachute by $244,800 and use that to cover this?" asked DeSteph. "When you screw something up really badly you should not be given a bonus."

Councilman Bob Dyer said Virginia Beach should back away from the light rail project for a while after learning of the bill for the study.

"Let's take some time to reflect and put a couple of these big projects on hold for a couple of years and see where the economy takes us. I think high speed rail should be a priority over light rail because it will help bring in economic development first," said Dyer. "In tough economic times we need to focus on public safety, education and infrastructure and human services." Dyer said Virginia Beach does not have the money right now to pay to complete the light rail study.

Mayor Will Sessoms voiced his support for continuing the light rail study. "We need to move forward," he said.

Earlier in the day at Shucet's session with Norfolk council members, Councilman Don Williams said he was very concerned that all the recent problems with HRT and light rail would turn Virginia Beach off to the project. Williams said a rail that never runs past Newtown Road would be relatively worthless.

"If that were the case, we never would have built it," said Williams.

WAVY.com will release the final "cost to complete construction" on the light rail project as soon as it's revealed at the February 18th commission meeting.