The Napa Chamber of Commerce encourages members of our community to inform themselves and to participate in the upcoming election.
Napa County is a mail-in ballot county and ballots have started arriving in mailboxes for the November 5th general election.
MEASURE U: SUPPORT
Rebuilding our roads and fixing our traffic without raising taxes
This is a once-in-a-generation opportunity to smooth, repair, and maintain our roads and execute projects faster. Measure U is the replacement of the existing Measure Twhich is the current ½ cent sales tax for local streets and roads.
Why does the Napa Chamber of Commerce support Measure U?
- It would not result in a tax increase or create a new sales tax, but rather it is a renewal of a dedicated source of transportation funding already in place.
- Many of our residents and employees spend too much time getting to and from work, school, and simply driving from one place to another. Measure U will ease commutes, so we spend less time in traffic and more time on things that matter.
- It will create a better roads program allowing for ways to fund priority projects faster, providing a way to fast track the most critical congestion relief and road improvement projects and completing more projects for less cost over time.
- Measure U benefits businesses and industries by easing the movement of goods and will create quality and good paying jobs with transportation construction projects.
- The added investment in bike and pedestrian paths, along with upgrades and repairs of curbs, gutters and sidewalks directly serves our residents and businesses.
- It will create additional flexibility for each community to identify top priority roads and transportation projects. Additionally, jurisdictions can partner with one another for economies of scale on connecting infrastructure and delivering similar projects.
- It will preserve Napa County’s “self-help” status, a crucial designation that makes Napa County more competitive for regional, state and federal transportation dollars
- Measure U includes detailed plans that show exactly how program funding can be spent. An independent citizen’s oversight committee will ensure all Measure U tax dollars collected are spent as promised.
Who supports Measure U?
Click here to see the broad-based community support for this important measure.
What others are saying:
The Press Democrat states (“Yes on Measure U for a smoother ride in Napa”) “Measure U also includes cash infusions for road rehabilitation projects in American Canyon, Calistoga, Napa, St. Helena, Yountville and unincorporated areas of the county and funds a handful of municipal projects…Anyone who drives regularly in Napa County can name streets that need to be repaved, and thousands of motorists lose precious time in traffic jams on Highway 29. Measure U is a way to make it easier, and smoother, to get around.” Read the full editorial here
The Napa Register urges a “yes” vote on Measure U, and in their editorial articulates that “At its core, Measure U is about planning for Napa’s future. The existing Measure T has helped us maintain our roads, but it hasn’t been enough. With growing traffic congestion and an ever-expanding list of road maintenance needs, Measure U offers a practical way forward. It allows us to do more now, with the promise of smoother, safer roads for decades to come…. we encourage voters to say “yes” to Measure U. It’s the best chance we have to improve our roads, reduce congestion, and secure a better transportation future for all of Napa County.” Read the full editorial here
In their editorial (“Yes on Measure U”) the St. Helena Star succinctly described why creating a better program to fund priority projects makes good financial sense, “If you’re savvy with money, it seems counterintuitive to want to borrow up front instead of paying as you go. But in this case, it’s not creative accounting. It’s cold hard math based on 1) sharply escalating construction costs that outpace inflation and 2) the fact that paving bad roads is cheaper than paving terrible roads.” Read the full editorial here
How to support Measure U? Share this information with your network.
Click here for additional ways to get involved.