 |
|
|
Press Release
November 8, 2006
Contact:
Elizabeth Stampe, Communications Director, (415) 543-6771 x307
David Reid, Field Director, (415) 543-6771
x312
Election Results Favor Open Space Protection, Growth Management
Success for Land Protection, Statewide Funding for Housing, Parks -- Defeat for Prop 90
On Tuesday, voters passed six measures to protect open space, control development, and fund parks, as well as a measure to fund affordable housing and transit-oriented development throughout the state.
“In this election, there was considerable support for open space and better growth in cities,” said Tom Steinbach, executive director of Greenbelt Alliance, the Bay Area’s land conservation and urban planning nonprofit.
“The biggest news is that Prop 90 was defeated. Prop 90 was an attempt to end our ability to adopt laws to protect communities and the environment,” Steinbach said. “Voters saw that it was a trap, and they voted it down. That’s a victory for every Californian.”
Prop 90 would have required compensation for anyone who claimed that a new law lowered their property value. It would likely have spawned thousands of lawsuits; a similar measure adopted in Oregon in 2004 has so far resulted in over 2,000 claims totaling over $6 billion.
Here are the results of Tuesday’s election on measures dealing with growth, development, housing, transportation, and the environment:
Development, Housing, and Transportation
- State Proposition 90 would have required governments to compensate landowners who claimed that new laws reduced their property value. This would have dealt a major blow to Californians’ ability to protect their environment and their communities. The measure failed with 47.5% of the vote.
- State Proposition 1C provides over $2 million for affordable homes and transit-oriented development. The measure passed with 57.5% of the vote.
- Sonoma & Marin counties’ Measure R would have authorized a 1/4-cent sales tax to fund the Sonoma Marin Area Rail Transit (SMART) District, raising $33 million per year to build and run a new train line from Larkspur to Cloverdale. The measure needed a 2/3 vote to win, and though in Sonoma it got 69.3% of the vote, in total with Marin it failed narrowly with 65%.
- Morgan Hill Measure F increases the number of housing units allowed downtown, helping to revitalize the city’s downtown and take development pressure off the greenbelt. The measure passed with 52.1% of the vote.
Funding for Parks and Conservation
- State Proposition 84 provides over $5 billion in funding for water quality and open space protection. The measure passed with 53.8% of the vote.
- Sonoma County Measure F reauthorizes the 1/4-cent sales tax for the Sonoma Agricultural Preservation and Open Space District, raising an estimated $17–30 million per year for the maintenance and acquisition of parklands. The measure passed easily with 75% of the vote.
Open Space Protection
- Napa County Measure I establishes a Parks and Open Space District, creating a public agency to purchase lands for parks and to maintain and provide access to the 120,000 acres of public open space in the county. The measure passed with 54.4% of the vote.
- Solano County Measure J would have reauthorized the Orderly Growth Initiative, which requires a vote of the people on large developments outside cities, protecting 460,410 acres from sprawl development. The measure failed with 47.3% of the vote.
- Santa Clara County Measure A would have protected hillsides, farmlands, and ranchlands by increasing parcel sizes and prohibiting some development on rural county lands. It would also have established protections for scenic views, stream corridors, and sensitive wildlife habitat. The measure failed narrowly with 48.9% of the vote.
- Contra Costa County Measure L renews the County Urban Limit Line, protecting open space by requiring a vote of county residents for any development outside the line. The measure passed with 63.3% of the vote.
“In Solano and Santa Clara counties, the opponents of land protection measures put out a lot of inaccurate information about what the measures would do, to keep them from passing,” said Elizabeth Stampe, Greenbelt Alliance’s Communications Director.
But, she said, “The news from Tuesday overall is a win for environmental protection and better growth.”
###
For 50 years, Greenbelt Alliance has been the San Francisco Bay Area's advocate for open spaces and vibrant places, with offices in San Francisco, San Jose, Walnut Creek, Fairfield, and Santa Rosa. www.greenbelt.org
|
