226M en Route to Cut Local Border Wait
From The San Diego Union Tribune
By Edward Sifuentes
SAN YSIDRO - "A major reconstruction project to ease congestion at the San Ysidro Port of Entry is expected to get $226 million more in funding under
a spending bill set for a vote in Congress this week.
Local leaders had asked congressional budget negotiators to make additional funding for the project a top priority, stressing that long waits at the
border are hurting the region's economy.
San Ysidro is one of the world's busiest border crossings, with more than 50,000 vehicles and about 25,000 pedestrian crossings each day.
The three-phase, multiyear project would increase the number of inspection booths and make other improvements. If Congress approves the latest
allocation of dollars, the U.S. General Services Administration is set to complete the build-out of inspection booths from 24 to 62, among other
things.
Late Monday, congressional leaders unveiled a bipartisan, $1.1 trillion spending bill to pay for government operations through October. The package,
which includes the San Ysidro funding, is set for a House vote today.
Rep. Juan Vargas, D-San Diego, and others welcomed the bipartisan agreement on money for the port-of-entry project.
"The improvements that will be made to our border infrastructure will boost our economy and generate jobs, while also increasing border efficiency and
security," Vargas said.
Kenn Morris, president of Crossborder Group Inc., a consulting firm that has studied border-wait times, said the funding is critical.
"When people hear about the hours-long wait at the border, there is a mental disincentive to cross," Morris said. "This will remove that disincentive
to explore and come back to Baja."
The bill earmarks $128.3 million for the port reconstruction and calls for an additional $97.7 million to be redirected to the project from funds
previously allocated to the General Services Administration, which is overseeing the work at the San Ysidro crossing.
Last month, Vargas and about a dozen elected and business leaders met at the port of entry to issue a joint appeal to Congress for the money.
President Barack Obama had already requested the $226 million in his proposed budget last year, but it was unclear whether both chambers of Congress
would sign off on it.
The project, which started in 2011, has brought a new pedestrian bridge, a new southbound pedestrian crossing and an expansion of northbound
vehicle-inspection lanes, according to the General Services Administration.
The $226 million would be used to realign Intestate 5 so it connects with El Chaparral, Mexico's counterpart to the San Ysidro crossing that was
completed in 2012. It would also pay for southbound inspection facilities on I-5.
In the last phase of the project, a new administration and pedestrian building would be constructed. That phase remains unfunded.
The total cost of the project is estimated to be $732 million, according to the GSA."
“Travel is fatal to prejudice, bigotry, and narrow mindedness.”
—Mark Twain
\"La vida es dura, el corazon es puro, y cantamos hasta la madrugada.” (Life is hard, the heart is pure and we sing until dawn.)
—Kirsty MacColl, Mambo de la Luna
\"Alea iacta est.\"
—Julius Caesar
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