Perdue picks a pro for roads

Governor-elect hopes Conti can reform the DOT, a department that has been beset by turf battles

With North Carolina's need for roads expanding -- and money to build them dwindling -- Gov.-elect Beverly Perdue on Monday named a veteran administrator to overhaul the state's transportation system.

Perdue said she intends to do what would be considered a daunting task even in good economic times -- take politics out of road-building.

"I want to professionalize the Department of Transportation," Perdue said during a news conference to announce her appointment of Gene Conti, a veteran of the state and U.S. departments of transportation, as the new head of the state agency. Perdue also named four other top department officials, all veterans promoted from within the agency instead of outside political appointments.

Perdue underscored her campaign pledge to strip the politically appointed Board of Transportation of its power to make road-building decisions. The board has drawn criticism for years about political patronage.

"Transportation decisions will be based on data," Perdue said, "and they will be driven in this administration by professionals."

The department, with a budget of almost $4 billion, also oversees public transportation, rail and the state Division of Motor Vehicles.

Perdue also announced Monday her appointments to head the state departments of Commerce and Cultural Resources, both of which she said will play a role in recruiting industries that are concerned about infrastructure and quality of life. She is expected to name more members of her Cabinet today.

The transportation pick was closely watched. Observers were curious whether Perdue, a Democrat with a long resume in Raleigh, would rebuff pressure from fundraisers backing others for the DOT post. They wondered whether she would demonstrate independence from Senate President Pro Tem Marc Basnight, a fellow Democrat who publicly endorsed DOT board member Lanny Wilson of Wilmington for the job.

Conti contributed more than $2,000 to Perdue's campaign, but the fact that he was not a campaign fundraiser was applauded by one watchdog group that pushed recent ethics reforms.

"If there are people being put in top positions that are not top fundraisers or top givers, that is a sign of progress" said Bob Phillips, executive director of Common Cause North Carolina.

But removing politics from road-building will not be easy.

Sen. Clark Jenkins, who heads the Senate transportation budget committee, cautioned that Perdue can't extract the board's power without getting the legislature to change the law. Most board members appointed by the governor represent designated regions of the state.

"I would be very slow to realign the board to where you take out the local area flavor in the decision-making," Jenkins said. "What the mountain folks need is different from [what] the metropolitan folks need, and the coast needs something else."

Conti, 62, grew up in Pittsburgh but is a familiar figure in the state. He worked as an aide to Democratic U.S. Rep. David Price of Chapel Hill before serving in the U.S. Department of Transportation in the 1990s.

He takes the helm at a difficult time. A consultant's report last year described the department as handicapped by turf battles and dysfunctional divisions.

"The mindset of my constituents is that DOT is wasteful," said state Rep. Bill McGee, a Clemmons Republican.

State Sen. David Hoyle, a Gastonia Democrat, said he hopes for better relations between DOT and the legislature.

"They need to rebuild a bridge of conversation and relationship with the General Assembly," said Hoyle, who leads the Senate Transportation Committee. "I don't think that's what has happened [under Gov. Mike Easley] -- they've done what they want to do, and to hell with us."

Business leaders at a conference in Raleigh on Monday voiced similar concerns.

Jerry Cook, vice president for government relations at Hanesbrands, said DOT needs to be more reliable. Corporate leaders cannot make big plans that depend on highway projects that might get canceled, he said.

"There is no predictability," Cook said. "People are making changes in their operations, and they'll either move or they'll stay here and invest. And right now we're not sending very clear signals."

Conti didn't minimize his task, saying that the state's transportation network must be rebuilt and the public's faith restored.

"There is confidence to be restored among our citizens and between our citizens and their government," he said.