Rebuttal to argument against Measure D

Santa Cruz County residents overwhelmingly support a trail. The highly negative and misleading campaign against the Greenway Initiative is a smokescreen to hide 10 years of failure in implementing a trail on the rail corridor.  Only 1 of 32 miles of trail has been built, a dismal track record.

Our opponents’ trail plan is flawed and unsafe. It forces pedestrians and bicyclists to detour off the corridor for 5 miles, faces enormous and costly engineering obstacles, and doesn’t use existing bridges like the Capitola Trestle or Harkins Slough crossing.  

Addressing climate change and reducing carbon emissions NOW is critical.  A $1.3 billion train with projected low ridership decades from now doesn’t help us do that.  And our opponents’ trail plan requires huge concrete retaining walls and new bridges that will permanently damage the corridor ecosystem and actually INCREASE greenhouse gas emissions. 

There is no reduction of Hwy 1 traffic in their plan for decades – if ever.  We can bring urgent improvements to Hwy 1 and METRO now, instead of diverting hundreds of millions of dollars to our opponent’s flawed and costly plan.

There are no special interests behind Greenway.  Over 13,000 residents looked at the facts and asked for a vote to build a greenway, accessible to all.  Our opponents attempted to stop you from voting.

If you want the entire 32-mile trail built soon with no new taxes, improvements to our existing public transit and roads, and responsible preservation of future rail options, vote YES on Measure D.

/s/ Rowland Rebele, Former Publisher; Community Philanthropist

/s/ Nancy Yellin, Registered Nurse, Disability Advocate and District Representative, County Emergency Management Council

/s/ Scott Roseman, Founder of New Leaf Community Markets; Regional Transportation Commission Bicycle Advisory Committee

/s/ Tory Del Favero, President, Soquel High Fund

/s/ Steven Plumb MD, Chair, Department of Surgery, Dominican Hospital

If an asterisk (*) appears after a name, it means the person is signing on behalf of that agency/organization.

If no asterisk (*) appears after a name, it means the person is signing as an individual.