FAST-TRACKING OUR RAIL AND FREEWAYS - It bears repeating during these dark economic times—we need to focus on spending our funds well, and make sure any new transportation/infrastructure initiatives are clearly defined and appropriately budgeted. So when Westside Assemblyman Mike Feuer (D-Los Angeles) offers a way to fast-track the freeway and rail initiatives of the still-popular Measure R without raising new taxes, it’s worth paying close attention. (Link)
Assemblyman Feuer, who wrote and championed Measure R for approval in Sacramento, also helped Mayor Villaraigosa and Supervisor Yaroslavsky corral the countywide support needed for the voters to pass Measure R in 2008 by a 2/3 majority vote. Unfortunately, neither Washington nor Sacramento have been fiscally or politically willing to help create the bridge loans needed to fast-track the Measure R projects (the so called 30/10 Initiative).
Hence Feuer’s recent bill in the Legislature allowing a fall 2012 initiative for the voters to approve an extension of the half-cent sales tax for at least another 10 years into the future (beyond the 30 years that Measure R requires).
Hence Feuer’s other bill, AB 1444, at the request of Metro to allow rail projects to get the same special treatment as the developers of renewable energy projects and the Downtown LA Convention Center/Stadium. (Link)
The extension of the sales tax would allow Metro to bond against future earnings to expedite any funding delays, as well as accommodate any unanticipated costs, of creating the long-overdue Wilshire Subway and MetroRail connections to LAX.
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In other words, Feuer wants to get these long-overdue rail projects funded, planned and built within our lifetimes.
And my guess is that he’s not the only Angeleno who feels this way.
Two key talking points are getting in the way of Feuer’s efforts, but it’s probably not the idea that we’re raising taxes (because it’s an extension of an already-existent tax) as much as concerns on how we’re spending and planning non-Measure R projects:
1) The AEG Convention Center/Football Stadium project is one that many Angelenos fear for a host of reasons, and Sacramento’s fast-tracking this project is (in and of itself) particularly loathsome to many voters. Ditto for the renewable energy projects.
2) The California High-Speed Rail (CAHSR) Initiative is a prime example of a seemingly-good idea that is proving to be a failed experiment in the eyes of many voters (many of whom are high-speed rail supporters, at least in concept) because it is not convincing enough Californians that it is a fiscally and environmentally sound project compared to the other transportation needs we could be spending that money on.
However, Measure R projects are still well-defined and popular with the taxpayers, voters and commuters of LA County, and they are perceived as both highly-overdue and prime examples of where many Californians would like to see their dollars go instead of the CAHSR project.
Furthermore, with the California Supreme Court’s support of Governor Brown’s closure of city and community redevelopment agencies, (link) our political leadership will have to fund worthy projects (such as the Foothill Gold Line rail car maintenance yard) using a more transparent methodology and funding source than with funding from redevelopment agencies.
An even more exciting benefit from Feuer’s bills, should they muster support from Sacramento and LA County voters, is that Measure R’s projects will be realized without having to figure out a new funding initiative.
For example, the Green Line to LAX and the Valley-Westside transit projects are included in Measure R but are acknowledged by Metro staffers as underfunded.
With the Expo Line from Downtown to Santa Monica costing over $2 billion, and the Wilshire Subway to the 405 Freeway costing $5 billion, it isn’t inappropriate or unrealistic to suggest that the $200 million budget isn’t enough for a Green Line to LAX rail extension, particularly since a north-south Green Line extension beyond LAX to serve the Westside enjoys widespread support.
It also isn’t a stretch to suggest that a Valley-Westside rail line to get commuters between the future Wilshire Subway and the San Fernando Valley in 10 minutes will cost more than the $1 billion allotted by Measure R … and for how long have many commuters have been begging for an alternative to the 405 freeway’s Sepulveda Pass?
Putting forward tax and planning initiatives is never easy or fun to do, but clearly Assemblyman Feuer is a man with a plan, and the need for the City and County of Los Angeles To Save Itself has never been greater.
So … R ye be fixin to build these rail projects in our lifetime, mateys? R ye ready to use Measure R to its fullest potential?
(Ken Alpern is a former Boardmember of the Mar Vista Community Council (MVCC), previously co-chaired its Planning and Outreach Committees, and currently is Vice Chair of its MVCC Transportation/Infrastructure Committee. He is co-chair of the CD11 Transportation Advisory Committee and chairs the nonprofit Transit Coalition, and can be reached at [email protected]. He also co-chairs the grassroots Friends of the Green Line at www.fogl.us. The views expressed in this article are solely those of Mr. Alpern.) –cw
Tags: Michael Feuer, Measure R, Legislature, LAX, AEG, Convention Center, Football Stadium, LA County, Governor Brown, Ken Alpern
CityWatch
Vol 10 Issue 3
Pub: Jan 10, 2012