Spokesman-Review Letter to the Editor
Complete streets safer, saner
Our mayor and City Council finally approved an overdue Complete Streets Ordinance to help Spokane catch up with other cities making streets safer for walkers and cyclists. Then what does The Spokesman-Review do? You immediately call to diminish the program!
What? Spokane’s unregulated sprawl drives away skilled young people looking for lively neighborhoods; it costs too much to maintain; and it will cost area residents even more as we begin to tackle carbon pollution. Cutting funds for sidewalks and bike lanes in order to build more streets for more shoddy, far-flung subdivisions is like eating Twinkies to lose weight.
We kill a lot of walkers and cyclists in this city – far more per capita than in busier Seattle or Portland. Each Spokane taxpayer also spends much more on street upkeep than do residents of those cities, because each taxpayer here has twice as many miles of streets to maintain. Our addiction to cars and sprawl is literally killing us.
The recent city decision to adopt Complete Streets was a breath of fresh air to those of us who would like to see Spokane mature and thrive. I only wish The Spokesman-Review’s owners would support this rare step rather than undermine it.
David Camp
Spokane
Here's the original editorial that Mr. Camp is reacting to. Any comments?
6 comments:
He's right on the money.
Yep, seems pretty plugged in to me. Thanks for saying it for us, Mr. Camp :)
mmm... twinkies
I prefer ding dongs myself. Although in my experience they do nothing for weight loss.
Not only that--the SR editorial perpetuated the myth that people who don't drive somehow don't pay for streets.
They did that in the very same article that discusses street bonds. Hello? Street bond? AKA, "funded with property taxes, not fuel taxes"? AKA, "I pay that every day whether or not I drive a car"!
I look forward to the day when they dig into the actual funding mechanisms for streets.
From the city's website:
http://www.spokanestreets.org/sub647f.html?id=6861
"What income funds street repair/rehabilitation needs, besides the 10-Year Street Bond?
In addition, capital improvement transportation projects that address safety and congestion are largely funded by state and federal grants at about $6 million annually. This funding is typically restricted and may not be used for maintenance and repair work. In Spokane, the City leverages its resources for qualifying projects at a rate of about $1 local to $4 grants.
What income funds street repair/maintenance?
Local street maintenance is funded from the City's General Fund, the City's portion of the State gas tax, Real Estate Excise Tax (REET) and a portion of the State's Arterial Street Fund that supports the maintenance of City streets."
Note that the city's general fund comes from sales tax. I pay those. REET tax? Paid that when I bought my house. Federal grants? Those come from federal fuel tax AND from the federal income tax I pay.
And yes, I want my tax dollars to pay for the transportation I use, which means completing the sidewalks in my neighborhood on the way to the bus stop, providing safe biking infrastructure, putting in curb cuts for the day when I'll be using a walker or a wheelchair to get around, and maintaining streets for all of us.
And not only all those taxes you paid when buying your house and through the street bond, etc. @BiketoWork Barb, but most people who bicycle for transportation ALSO own vehicles that they pay to license and pay a gas tax on everytime they fill it up, although that's less often than those who don't ride.
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