TriMet filed a lawsuit Thursday to force Clackamas County to follow through on its commitments to the Portland-Milwaukie light-rail project, bringing growing tensions to a head.
The county's cooperation on the $1.5 billion project "has dissolved," since the November election, with the county failing to complete final property acquisitions and $1.3 million in road and signal improvements, said TriMet spokeswoman Mary Fetsch. TriMet claims that the county's inaction impedes construction of the line and violates intergovernmental agreements signed in 2010 and 2012.
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Clackamas County and TriMet started on a collision course for court with the September 2012 passage of Measure 3-401, which requires countywide approval before officials can spend money to finance, design, construct or operate any rail lines in the county. When John Ludlow and Tootie Smith joined the board after campaigning on anti-light rail platforms, relations deteriorated further.
Although county administrators have urged staff to fulfill commitments and continue working with TriMet, deadlines have come and gone while the Clackamas County commissioners await voter approval. Agreements call for the county to transfer all necessary property to TriMet by Dec. 6, 2012, for example, but the county still has not done so.
The Clackamas County commissioners have discussed the possibility of a lawsuit from TriMet but didn't expect legal action so soon.
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"Our contract with Tri-Met calls for both parties to undergo a dispute resolution process before a lawsuit is filed. Therefore we are surprised at this action," said county spokesman Tim Heider. "Clackamas County has taken no action to halt construction of the line and has performed under all terms of its contract."
The lawsuit could resolve a question that has been hanging since September: Can legal contracts made before passage of Measure 3-401 be subject to subsequent voter approval?
The Clackamas County commissioners have scheduled two Portland-Milwaukie light-rail measures for the May 21 ballot, asking voters to approve property transfers, fund road improvements and authorize TriMet to maintain and operate the line.
TriMet contends that Measure 3-401 does not apply to the Portland-Milwaukie light rail because the county's commitment predates the measure. The lawsuit also asks the court to declare that the county must follow through on its contracts regardless of how the votes turn out.
"We understand that Clackamas County voters want a say in any rail projects based on Measure 3-401, but that does not affect the current Portland-Milwaukie project," Fetsch said. "Unfortunately, we have to take this action to prevent delays that could impact the overall cost and schedule of the Project."
Ardent light rail supporter Clackamas County Commissioner Jim Bernard welcomes the lawsuit, because he sees votes held under the measure as empty promises. "I think it's a mistake to put something on the ballot and not follow through," Bernard said. "And I don't think there's any way to follow through if the voters said no, because of the contract."
TriMet contends that submitting contract provisions to voter review violates the county’s commitment to work with TriMet “in good faith.”
Chairman Ludlow maintained that the commissioners must put the questions on the ballot because that is what voters want. “‘In good faith’ to me means is in good faith to the people who pay me, who we work for and who voted,” Ludlow said.
At Ludlow's urging, the commissioners sent a letter to TriMet in February asking the agency to consider stopping the line at Tacoma Street in Portland, saying the working with TriMet on the line puts the county at financial risk.
"They continue to cut back buses, they continue to raise fares, they aren't great partners to start with," Ludlow said in January.
TriMet's board sent back a sharp response, stating that it's too late to stop Portland-Milwaukie light rail and urging the board to follow through on its commitments.
Construction of the 7.3-mile project is 35 percent complete, according to TriMet, and scheduled to open in early 2015.
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