RTD chief Cal Marsella will reportedly resign today.

Embattled Regional Transportation District (RTD) General Manager Cal Marsella is resigning his post according to a report on the Denver Post’s website. 

Marsella has overseen the district since 1995 and is the state’s highest paid official.  In 2004 he oversaw voter approval of the FasTracks project which has quickly grown into a boondoggle with funding shortfalls in excess of $2 billion.  In recent weeks scrutiny of Marsella grew as his salary and bonuses continued to increase despite apparent mismanagement of the project. 

From the Denver Post:

Cal Marsella, the general manager of the Regional Transportation District, is resigning to take a job in the private sector, sources confirmed today.

Marsella’s last day with RTD is set for July 31. Word of the resignation went out to people familiar with RTD’s operations early this morning. Two sources close to the situation confirmed his pending retirement but asked that they not be quoted so Marsella could make the announcement himself.

RTD officials officials scheduled a news conference for a “major announcement” at 10:30 a.m. today at RTD administrative headquarters at 1600 Blake Street.

The news that Marsella is going to the private sector comes at a time when RTD is grappling with a large deficit between revenues and costs to build the FasTracks light rail system.

The budget gap to build the regional transit system has now grown to over $2 billion, and the agency is considering asking the public to approve a .4 percent sales-tax increase to finish all phases of the project by the original 2017 completion dates.

What is next for RTD?  Certainly this throws a bit of a wrinkle in the RTD board’s plan to come at tax payers for another tax increase to further fund FasTracks.  Unfortunately, as someone said on an RTD mailing list today, RTD is like a starfish or octopus and will simply grow another arm to replace the one that has been cut off. 

More to come as we get more about this important announcement.

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