Kurt Naas, founder of the Widen I-77 anti-toll movement, will speak at Cornelius Today’s Newsmakers Breakfast Aug. 13 at The Peninsula Club.

The Cornelius resident launched WidenI-77 three years ago when the conventional wisdom was that tolls were the only way for the NCDOT to add capacity to I-77 in the foreseeable future.

WidenI-77 has filed suit to block the public-private partnership between NCDOT and Cintra, an American subisdiary of Ferrovial, an international company based in Spain. Naas is familiar with virtually every aspect of the toll plan, and has worked closely with Sen. Jeff Tarte in his efforts to defund the plan legislatively.

Tarte, however, says his bill in Raleigh is all but dead, shining the spotlight on the WidenI-77.org lawsuit and other administrative avenues, including the Charlotte Regional Transportation Planning Organization.

The Newsmakers Breakfasts are an open forum, complete with breakfast and focused discussion on a timely topic. They begin at 7:30 a.m. and conclude at 9 a.m. Doors open at 7:15 a.m. for networking. The cost to attend, $12, includes a full country breakfast. The open forum Q&A begins at 8 a.m.

Sponsors of the Newsmakers Breakfast include Dixie Dean of Allen Tate, Donna Moffett Accountants and Consultants, Davidson Wealth Management, Payroll Plus and Raymer-Kepner Funeral Home. Reservations are required. Call 704-895-1335 with Visa or MasterCard.