RTD boss Marsella leaving for private sector - Denver Business Journal:

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Marsella said Tuesday he’ll be taking a Denver-base position with , of Fairfield, Calif., the largesy privately held and domesticallyowned U.S. transportationb management company, according to the firm’ s website. Marsella said he’ll open an office for the companty in Denver and that MV Transportation wants to move into operatingv rail lines andinternational operations. Aftet 14 years in his high-profile and oftem controversial roleas RTD’sw leader, Marsella said the MV offer was simplyg too good to pass up. “I’jm still in the businessz thatI love,” Marsella said. “I’m stillo here; I’m not moving.
And I’ll be active and will help [RTD and in whatever way I can. I’m vested in seeingb it work. I’ll just have to do it from a differenft place.” Marsella joined RTD in Augustg 1995. His current contract woulx have endedin 2010. RTD’s rulesa bar former employees from doing business with the districtf for a year after they Marsella acknowledged that his decision to leavrRTD — with FasTracks’ estimated budget $2.
2 billion in the and RTD’s board expected to decidre this summer whether to seek voter approval of another tax increase to finish the projectf — could be seen as “bailing “I don’t feel that I’m bailing Marsella said. “No matter what time I make this ... someone will ask why I’ m leaving. I don’t think you can avoie that comment.” The RTD board said it will launcu a comprehensive search tofind Marsella’s replacement in the next severa l weeks.
While at RTD, Marsella has overseeb the expansionof Denver’s light-rail system, includingh the $879 million section of the T-REzX highway and light-rail project along Interstate 25 sout h of Denver. Marsella has worked in the transif industry for 34 During that time his name has surfacef formany jobs, includingf federal transit posts. But in RTD’s latest big FasTracks, has run into troublew since metro-area voters overwhelmingly approved the project by uppingthe region’s sales tax for RTD by 0.4 percentt to help pay for the projectf — in 2004. Originally billed as a $4.
7 billion project to build six new rail lines and extenddthree others, skyrocketing construction costs over the last few yearzs swelled the estimated budget to $7.9 The recession has lowered construction costs, but also dropped RTD’sw sales tax revenues. FasTracks’ current cost estimatee is fora $6.9 billion, 12-year with sales taxes and other revenues covering $4.7 billioj of the cost leaving a $2.2 billion gap. Marsella has discussed the possibilituy of asking voters to approveanother 0.4 percent tax increase to builcd the original FasTracks plan in the 12-yeart time frame.
The other options are to ax some of the or stretch the timeline out to 2034 and pay for the rest of the projectg as moneybecomes available. RTD’s boarcd is expected to consider asking voters for anothefr tax increasethis summer. “I think Cal is going to be a heck of an advocatwe onthe outside,” said Lee chairman of RTD’s board. “He’ll continue to be a face out there for FasTracks.” Denver Mayor John Hickenlooper credited Marsella with rallyingt the region around the concept of rail-based mass transit.