It’s Time to Vote!

We recently sat down with our founder, Hill Abell, to talk about the coming election and what local ballot items might have an impact on, or be of interest to, cyclists in the greater Austin area. Here is what Hill had to say:

“The three bond propositions that I believe may hold the most interest for the local cycling community are Proposition 12 (which includes funding for the Mopac bike bridge and the Violet Crown Trail), Proposition 13 (which supports open space preservation meaning an opportunity for future bike trails), and Proposition 14 (proposing funding to support our local parks, which are in desperate need of major repairs and upgrades).

With early voting starting yesterday and a huge number of items on the ballot, it’s a great idea to get a head start on understanding all of the various ballot initiatives. Our friends over at Hill Country Conservancy have done an outstanding job outlining the local bond proposals and explaining why voting for each of them is a good idea.” (see below)

Remember that early voting is underway now through November 2nd and Election Day is November 6th!

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Dear Voter:

Picture this: What if the size of your family doubled every generation, but you all continued to live in the same house? Would you simply ignore a leaking roof, a busted pipe, or a cracked foundation? Probably not.

So it is with Austin. Our home is now the 13th largest-city in America, having recently surpassed San Francisco. Since 1890, Austin’s population has doubled every 20 to 25 years. During just the next 30 days, we’ll gain nearly 2,000 new residents!

Every day, the strain on our city’s infrastructure and quality of life grows. That’s why it’s time to invest in our home, and in our future. You can do just that by voting to support all seven Austin bonds that will appear on the November 6th ballot – Propositions 12 – 18.

This is the first time in six years that a multi-purpose municipal bond package has appeared on the Austin ballot. Importantly, approving all seven of the bonds will not raise the city property tax rate. Not even a little. That’s because as the city pays off old debt, it can issue new bonds without raising the rate.

The community projects funded by the seven bonds, totaling $384.9 million, were chosen from an initial city-wide “needs assessment” of more than $1.5 billion. A citizen commission worked for six months to select these projects with a great deal of public input, and the City Council voted unanimously in August on the final package.

In a nutshell, here’s what each of the seven bonds will do:

Proposition 12 will invest $143.3 million in transportation and mobility, including road improvements for I-35, 51st Street corridor, MoPac, and provide for new and upgraded sidewalks, bikeways, and the 30-mile hike and bike Violet Crown Trail.

Clearly, fixing Austin’s transportation mess should be one of our top priorities. The Violet Crown Trail will connect Zilker Park, Lady Bird Johnson Wildflower Center and many central and south Austin neighborhoods and will be a key part of our city’s multi-modal transportation system.

Proposition 13 will invest $30 million in preserving open space and protecting water quality and quantity. As Executive Director of Hill Country Conservancy, I consider these investments vitally important to our community. Preserving the scenic beauty and natural areas around Austin, and keeping our water clean is good for our environment, our economy, and our souls.

Proposition 14 will invest $77.7 million in parks and recreation projects, including repairing and upgrading neighborhood parks and pools.

A vibrant parks system helps make Austin a truly special and healthier city. This bond will invest in parks in nearly every part of the city, including Zilker Park and three of the original downtown squares.

Proposition 15 will invest $78.3 million in building, repairing and renovating affordable housing in all parts of Austin. As Austin has grown, housing costs have soared. Prop. 15 will help build and repair thousands of homes for Austin’s low-income seniors, people with disabilities, and low-income working families.

Proposition 16 will invest $31.1 million in public safety improvement projects, including a new fire station and police substation.

Austin has been ranked among the safest big cities in America, and we need to keep it that way by investing in the police, fire and EMS facilities we need to service every part of our community.

Proposition 17 will invest $11.1 million in health and human services projects, including repairing and expanding a women and children’s shelter.

In my view, what really makes Austin stand apart is how our community comes together to help all citizens have a better quality of life. This bond will help ensure that we continue to invest in affordable health and human services for all citizens in every neighborhood.

Proposition 18 will invest $13.4 million in library and cultural arts projects, including renovations to six neighborhood libraries and an expansion of Austin (Film) Studios. Austin will soon break ground on the new Central Library voters approved in 2006. This bond will invest in neighborhood branches across Austin. It will also help expand our city’s film industry, which brings us a broad range of benefits.

The bottom line is simple: If we fail to invest now in the basic infrastructure of our home as our population grows significantly and critical needs increase, the result will be that we will pay more later to fix problems that will have grown worse, and our quality of life will suffer in the meantime.

Let’s not make that mistake. Please join me, hundreds of other community leaders, and dozens of endorsing civic groups, and vote for all seven city bonds. More information can be found online at our campaign website, www.LuvATX.com.

Thank you,

George Cofer

Executive Director

Hill Country Conservancy

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