WakeUP Wake County Transit Forum
Thursday, June 26, 2008, 7-9:30pm
NCSU McKimmon Center
I did a headcount and came up with approximately 275 attendees at WakeUP Wake County's public forum on transit in the county and the Triangle. It was covered by WRAL, ABC11, and NBC17:
Forum Agenda
Welcome and Overview 7 -7:10 pm
Karen Rindge, Chair, WakeUP Wake County
Joe Bryan, Chair, Wake Board of Commissioners
Keynote Address 7:10 – 7: 45 pm
“By Choice or by chance: How can transit help us plan for a future of growth?”
Carol Coletta, CEO, CEO’s for Cities
Q&A: 7:45 – 8:00 pm
The Charlotte Transit Story 8:00 – 8:15 pm
Keith Parker, CEO, Charlotte Area Transit System
Introduction by Jonathan Parker, Sierra Club Capital Group
Q&A: 8:15 – 8:25 pm
SHORT BREAK 8:25 – 8:30 pm
Panel Discussion on Local Perspectives on Transit 8:30 – 9:25 pm
Community leaders respond with their perspective to questions related to the future of transit in the Triangle.
Moderator and introductory remarks:
Nina Szlosberg, board member, NCDOT, and NC 21st Century Transportation Commission
STAC overview:
John Hodges-Copple, Triangle J Council of Governments
Panel Participants:
Mary Ann Baldwin, Raleigh City Council
Matt Christensen, Division Vice President, KB Home
Courtney Crowder, SE Raleigh Assembly
Sig Hutchinson, Board Chair, Triangle Transit
Smedes York, Co-chair, Special Transit Advisory Commission
Kirsten Weeks, Cisco Systems
Closing Remarks 9:25 – 9:30 pm
Presenter Biographies
Carol Coletta is president and CEO of CEOs for Cities and host and producer of the nationally syndicated public radio show Smart City. Before moving to Chicago to head CEOs for Cities, she served as president of Coletta & Company in Memphis. In addition, she served as executive director of the Mayors' Institute on City Design, a partnership of the National Endowment for the Arts, U.S. Conference of Mayors and American Architectural Foundation. Carol is a passionate advocate for cities, and she has devoted her life to answering the question: What makes cities succeed?
Keith Parker is the Director of Public Transit for the City of Charlotte and the Chief Executive Officer of the Charlotte Area Transit System (CATS). As one of the fastest growing transit systems in the country, CATS provides bus, paratransit, and light rail service to Charlotte area residents and visitors. Mr. Parker’s prior positions include Assistant City Manager for the City of Charlotte, Chief Operating Officer and Deputy Director of CATS, Chief Executive Officer for the Clark County Transit Authority in Vancouver, Washington, and Assistant General Manager for the Greater Richmond Transit Company in Richmond, Virginia. In 2004, Keith was recognized as a “40 Under 40” award winner by the Charlotte Business Journal as one of the region’s most promising young leaders.
