"On the other hand, sometimes well-intentioned, government-initiated projects do not go as planned."

 The Fort Worth Star-Telegram got a tip from THE PEOPLE - one at City Hall, about the $50,000 the city is spending to add showers so workers can bike to work.  The tipster is bothered with the cutting of employees and  forced furlough days while adding showers for the few that ride. 

WHAT is the "funding source"? WHAT "designation" is the city seeking?

"I have nothing against riding a bike to work," the tipster wrote. "What I do take issue with is the city, in such dire straits, on a dead run to spend money to build showers so that folks can ride bicycles to work at City Hall.

Funding source: "The scheduled replacement of an air-conditioning system at the Animal Care and Control Center will be deferred until next fiscal year to allow this shower facility to be constructed now," a spokesman said.

Did the city do a survey on need?
No. Mayor Betsy Price, an avid cyclist, told The Watchdog: "Then we would have had to spend money on surveys. ..".

Downtown bike racks are mostly empty, and the lanes are not filled with bicyclists.

City officials say they hope to attain the designation Bicycle Friendly Community through the League of American Bicyclists.

On the other hand, sometimes well-intentioned, government-initiated projects do not go as planned.

Example: North Richland Hills used part of a $2 million federal grant awarded in 1999 to develop its Walker's Creek Park trail. That included money to install lockers under a large canopy near the water park for bicycle commuters to stow their belongings.

In 2009, the lockers were removed because officials feared they could be vandalized or someone could get locked inside. Those lockers remain in storage today.