The construction of the Somerville bike path predates me, so I can't comment on it or whatever funding snafu it might have resulted from, but I can say that the result has been absolutely fantastic, and has turned that area into the thriving heart of Somerville. Every time that I ride along it during the day it is a delight, thick with people going for walks, rollerblading, children out playing, climbing in the trees along the path or enjoying the gardens and art projects that line it. If that's what a boondoggle looks like, then I'll take that over most publicly-funded boondoggles.

A bit part of getting to better places is not worrying too much about the costs. You still need the departments monitoring for fraud, but otherwise once a decision is made you stick with it and move on to the next question. Over time that starts to snowball.