Three Benicia-area measures on the Solano County ballot in Tuesday’s election were winning, according to preliminary results as of early Wednesday morning.
The city of Benicia’s Measure A, which would raise the transient occupancy tax from 9 percent to 13 percent for a period of 12 years, was passing by a wide margin — 5,114 yes votes to 1,449 no votes, with all eight precincts reporting.
The proposal would generate an additional $250,000 per year, according to an analysis from City Attorney Benjamin Stock.
Another Benicia proposal, Measure B, was also passing by a healthy margin, 4,782 yes votes to 1,811 no votes. Measure B would impose a three-quarter-cent sales tax for 12 years, which would generate an estimated $5.4 million annually.
Both Measures A and B need a simple majority to pass.
The Benicia Unified School District’s Measure C was winning, with 3,998 yes votes to 2,554 no votes. The 61 percent approval was above the 55 percent needed to pass. A yes vote supported authorizing the district to issue up to $122 million in bonds, requiring a levy of approximately $60 per $100,000 in assessed value.
[Note from BenIndy: What luck! A second installment from Benicia Herald columnist (and author, blogger, and Benicia resident) Stephen Golub, just in time for Election Day and the March 5 Benicia City Council Meeting.]
By Stephen Golub, first appearing in the Benicia Herald on March 3, 2024
As demonstrated by the February 24 Valero spill, which put potentially dangerous levels of toxic hydrogen sulfide into our air, we can’t be complacent about protecting the safety and health of Benicia’s kids, older adults, people with medical problems and entire community. Here are three steps we can take on March 5 to keep Benicia beautiful and wonderful.
SUPPORT AN ISO AT THE CITY COUNCIL MEETING AND AT BISHO.ORG
At the March 5 City Council meeting, a report will be presented on the status of a Council subcommittee’s work to prepare an Industrial Safety Ordinance (ISO). This potential legislation, which every other Bay Area locality which hosts a refinery has, could help prevent Valero violations and accidents that can spark dangerous emissions and explosions.
In the wake of the February 24 accident, and amidst increasing indications that Valero adamantly opposes an ISO (which, again, other Bay Area refineries manage to live with), it’s important to show support for the ordinance and for the diligent, dogged work of Vice Mayor Terry Scott and Councilwoman Kari Birdseye to bring it about.
The meeting starts at 6 pm. Attending and speaking up in person is important. But those who prefer to participate by video can go to https://www.ci.benicia.ca.us/agendas and click the Agenda or Zoom links at the top of the page.
An additional, easy way to back an ISO is to go to the website BISHO.ORG and indicate support at the online form there. BISHO stands for Benicia Industrial Safety and Health Ordinance, a desired title of the City’s ISO because it includes the word “safety” to emphasize what’s at stake. The site has been put together by and for the many Benicians seeking to make our town safer and healthier through an ISO.
VOTE “YES” ON MEASURES A AND B
Along with our votes in the March 5 primary contests (more on that below), that day also represents our chance to cast our ballots to help ensure Benicia’s financial future.
If we vote YES on Measure A, the result will be a slight increase in the tax for hotel guests; residents are unaffected. It will produce up to a few hundred thousand dollars per year for the City.
If we vote YES on Measure B, it will yield millions of dollars in increasing sales tax revenue annually for the City, at the cost of just 75 cents per $100 spent. The proposal is backed by the City Council and by other leading Benicians across the political spectrum.
Coupled with other Council initiatives, including economic development plans that can yield increased revenues down the line and cutting Benicia government jobs and costs that are improving the budget situation right now, Measures A and B will help the City dig out of its current fiscal crisis. Since about half of the City budget goes to our fine police and fire departments, the two measures will go a long way toward protecting our public safety by protecting funding for those vital services – as well as protecting other city services from being gutted.
VOTE FOR CHRISTOPHER CABALDON FOR STATE SENATE IN THE MARCH 5 PRIMARY
Democrat Christopher Cabaldon is running to be state senator for California District 3, which includes all of Solano County and many adjoining areas. Endorsed by Benicia Mayor Steve Young, Vice Mayor Terry Scott, former Mayor Elizabeth Patterson, former Council Member Dan Smith and dozens of other officials from across Solano and the region, Cabaldon is by far the best candidate seeking that position.
In a candidates forum I attended, which included fellow Democrats Jackie Elward and Rozanna Verder-Aliga, Cabaldon offered by far the broadest and deepest knowledge of issues affecting Benicia and the other areas he’d represent if elected. Those opponents do not bring nearly the same degree of expertise and experience to bear as Cabaldon does by virtue of his successful 22-year tenure as West Sacramento mayor and his numerous other types of local, state and national service.
One opponent, Verder-Aliga, prompts particular concerns. Most notably, as a member of the Vallejo City Council, in 2017 she led the way in extending consideration of an (ultimately unsuccessful) proposal to build a cement plant and deep-water port in Vallejo, despite widespread community opposition and a nearly unanimous vote against the project by the Vallejo Planning Commission. The development, which would have imported and processed an industrial byproduct with an apt and ugly name, “slag,” could have caused havoc for Vallejo, Benicia and surrounding areas in term of pollution, health risks, heavy industrial truck traffic and a lengthy, dust-spewing construction process.
TO SUM UP…
Please back a safer, healthier, better Benicia by supporting an ISO at the City Council meeting and at BISHO.ORGand by voting for Measures A and B and for Christopher Cabaldon for state senate.
[Note from BenIndy: The comment the BenIndy received from the person who forwarded this Benicia Historical Society message was, “Our historic protections are unraveling right before our eyes. Are we the next American Canyon?” If you would like to participate in the March 5 Benicia City Council Meeting either to register your opposition or support to increasing the height limit in our Historic Downtown to four stories to allow for hotel development, instructions for accessing that meeting are available at the end of this post. The BenIndy is not affiliated with the Benicia Historical Society and they did not ask us to share their email communication to their supporters; we were forwarded the message by a follower of these developments and we share it to alert our community so they can participate in the public process. Emphases in this message were added by BenIndy.]
The Benicia Planning Commission is considering amending the development standards in the Town Core Zone in the Downtown Mixed Use Master Plan (DMUMP) to allow a height of up to four stories (50 feet) with a use permit. The Planning Commission did not adopt the proposed amendment and recommended that the City Council direct staff to conduct public outreach on this important issue. | beniciahistoricalsociety.org message.
Message from Benicia Historical Society:
On February 7, 2024 the Benicia Herald printed an Op-Ed from the Benicia Historical Society on the proposed building height increase in Downtown Benicia. The Benicia Planning Commission on February 8, 2024 considered amending the development standards in the Town Core Zone in the Downtown Mixed Use Master Plan (DMUMP) to allow a height of up to four stories (50 feet) with a use permit. The Planning Commission did not adopt the proposed amendment and recommended that the City Council direct staff to conduct public outreach on this important issue.
We would like to thank the dozens of people who attended the meeting in person and Zoom and spoke passionately on this issue. Your attendance and comments, along with the comments of the Historical Society made a difference in the outcome of the proposed height increase. We would also like to thank the Planning Commissioners for listening to the public and the concerns that were raised, and their thoughtful deliberation of the issue. It was a testament to public participation.
If you attended any of the Q&A meetings on the city’s financial challenges, you would have heard that increasing the height limit in our Historic Downtown to four stories would allow for hotel development. At the Q&A session on February 27, at the Southampton Fire Station, Mayor Young reiterated that a four story hotel with a roof top bar was proposed for the corner of First and East D St. (the Avant Garden site). He further stated that additional hotels could be built on First Street similar to the hotel boom in American Canyon along Highway 29.
What hasn’t been discussed or presented is that the increase in the height limit to four stories (from 2.5 and 3 for housing opportunity sites) would apply to all buildings and vacant parcels in the Town Core Zone. Once approved, the development standards in the Town Core Zone to allow for four stories (50 feet) with a use permit will cause property values to rise and place economic pressure to redevelop, increasing the potential for demolition of existing buildings including historic buildings. It would also allow for four story buildings adjacent to residential homes on the side streets.
The Historical Society is concerned that the character and historic fabric of our Historic Downtown will unravel as development occurs with higher building heights. Our history is the city’s richest asset; it sets us apart from other Solano County cities, and downtown entices visitors to its small scale and walkability. Visit California, which markets California in partnership with the state’s travel industry, states this about Benicia. “As one of the oldest cities in California—and the third city to have served as the state’s capital, from 1853–54—Benicia is filled with vintage architecture and historic landmarks that date back to the Gold Rush, the Wild West, and the completion of the Transcontinental Railroad.” Our historic downtown matters and is our best marketing tool. If First Street is lined with multiple four story buildings overwhelming historic structures and disrupting the continuity of our small scale walkable downtown, who will be staying in the hotels?
On Tuesday, March 5, the Benicia City Council will hold a public hearing to adopt the resolution amending the height limit of the Town Core in the DMUMP allowing for four story (50 ft.) buildings on every parcel along First Street south of K Street. The staff report on this item mentions the Planning Commission recommendation to conduct further public outreach, but fails to propose any action on the recommendation.
We are all aware at this point of the financial issues of the city. We are aware that change will occur, as it always has, but what we need is thoughtful consideration of how change is allowed in our downtown which still reflects much of our history left by earlier generations. We are in favor of compatible development that follows existing zoning and complies with the Downtown Historic Conservation Plan. We need to value the historic integrity of downtown and be assured that our ability to market and attract visitors to our stores and restaurants will not be diminished. This can only happen with additional public involvement.
Sincerely,
Board of Directors
Benicia Historical Society
Accessing the March 5, 2024 Benicia City Council Meeting
The Benicia City Council Agenda Packet for March 5 is your first and best resource for accessing this meeting because it contains the best and most recent instructions. However, here is a quick guide for participating in person, by Zoom, or through written comment. The following was cribbed from that packet and adjusted slightly to accommodate the format used here.
How to Participate in the Meeting:
1) Attend in person at Council Chambers
2) Cable T.V. Broadcast – Check with your cable provider for your local government broadcast channel.
3) Livestream online at www.ci.benicia.ca.us/agendas.
4) Zoom Meeting (link below)
Use participant option to “raise hand” during the public comment period for the item you wish to speak on. Please note, your electronic device must have microphone capability. Once unmuted, you will have up to 5 minutes to speak.
How to Submit Written Public Comments for this City Council meeting:
Besides appearing in person or by Zoom and offering public comments, members of the public may provide written public comment to the City Clerk by email at lwolfe@ci.benicia.ca.us. Any comment submitted to the City Clerk should indicate to which item of the agenda the comment relates. Specific information follows:
– Comments received by 2:00 pm on the day of the meeting will be electronically forwarded to the City Council and posted on the City’s website.
– Comments received after 2:00 pm, but before the start time of the meeting will be electronically forwarded to the City Council but will not be posted on the City’s website.
[Note from BenIndy: There are many paths to a balanced budget in a small town like ours. Paths that emphasize local economic development by enhancing active transportation safety and accessibility, minimizing fossil fuel reliance, and boosting both outdoor and indoor air quality set a course for a San Luis Obispo that is cleaner, healthier, and safer…and yet still financially stable and self-sustaining. San Luis Obispo and Benicia have a lot of common: SLO is another full-service town like Benicia, with a larger population but many of the same values.]
San Luis Obispo has set big goals to reduce pollution and adapt to the climate crisis, and we’re making big progress. To highlight this work, the City is adding a new Sustainable SLO mark and illustrated graphic on a variety of public facilities and equipment in San Luis Obispo.
“The City of San Luis Obispo is leading on climate action, and we’re excited to tell our story over the next few months,” said Chris Read, the City’s sustainability manager. “Now through Earth Day 2024, we will highlight everything from our new electric buses to our recycling bins and will share resources for how community members can make changes to save money, reduce pollution in their own homes and businesses and help reach communitywide carbon neutrality by 2035.”
Community members may have already seen the new Sustainable SLO mark and illustrated graphic throughout San Luis Obispo and will likely be seeing it more often. Climate action is a major City goal for the City of San Luis Obispo and the City has been working for years from its Climate Action Plan to reduce pollution and make San Luis Obispo more resilient to the effects of climate change.
Sustainable SLO demonstrates how the City is leading by example by phasing out fossil fuels from public facilities and fleet vehicles, reducing greenhouse gas emissions from organic waste and restoring the beautiful natural ecosystems that make San Luis Obispo such a wonderful place to live. These efforts include but are not limited to:
Installing new bike lanes and using all-electric buses that make it safer and easier to get around,
Conserving open space properties throughout the greenbelt to protect natural resources,
Transitioning the City’s fleet to electric vehicles to save money and use less fossil fuels,
Installing new trash and recycling bins downtown to reduce litter and landfilled waste,
Adding more public-facing electric vehicle chargers in SLO so it’s easy to charge on the go,
Planting 10,000 new trees in streets, parks and open space areas by 2035,
Switching to energy-efficient lighting at City facilities to save money and use less energy, and
Installing a large battery at the Water Treatment Plant to save money and create a more resilient facility.
With generous federal, state and regional funding resources, incentives and technical assistance available to support climate action, it’s becoming easier for organizations and individuals to make sustainable choices in SLO. Over the next few months, the City will share more about Sustainable SLO and suggest ways organizations and individuals can take local action on the climate crisis.
“We’ll be telling this story on social media, local news channels and at in-person events,” said Lucia Pohlman, the City’s sustainability and natural resources analyst. “Everyone can find Sustainable SLO‘in the wild’ to see tangible ways we’re making a difference. Hopefully, this will inspire community members to cut climate pollution and prepare for increasingly hazardous floods and fires. It’s no easy task, but with the community’s help, we can reach our goals and ensure our community thrives into the future.”
You must be logged in to post a comment.