Petition Statement
The 2 year window for gathering signatures ends on Monday. Volunteers are confident they have succeeded in gathering enough signatures. If approved by the elections' office the measure would be placed on the next election which is September.
The Southwest Corridor Plan looks to bring bus rapid transit or light rail from Portland to Tualatin.(Photo courtesy of Metro)
By Luke Hammill | lhammill@oregonian.com Email the author | Follow on Twitter
on May 09, 2014 at 4:12 PM
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A
group in Tualatin is collecting signatures for a ballot measure similar
to the one recently passed in Tigard - it would block the city from
using its resources to finance, design, build or operate light rail
without voter approval.
City Manager Sherilyn Lombos said the group filed a petition initiative in May of 2012 and has until Monday to submit the required signatures.
“They are still actively collecting signatures,” Lombos said Friday. She said the group already turned some signatures in and is seeking to turn more in on Monday.
The
measure would amend the city charter and prohibit the Tualatin City
Council from authorizing the use of public funds, staff time or other
city assets for the “financing, design, construction or operation of any
public rail system operating inside and outside the City.”
If
it gets on the ballot and is passed, the measure would be another blow
to the Metro-led Southwest Corridor Plan, an effort to connect Portland
to Tigard and Tualatin with high-capacity transit.
In March, voters in Tigard barely passed a
measure that requires the city to officially oppose the construction of
new high-capacity transit projects without voter approval. The Tigard
City Council will likely place a clarifying measure on November’s ballot
to judge whether it should continue participating in the Southwest
Corridor Plan.
The chief petitioner of the Tualatin measure is Aaron Crowley, the owner of Crowley’s Granite Concepts who was a Republican candidate for Oregon House District 37 in 2010.
When reached by phone Friday,
Crowley said he expected to collect the necessary amount of signatures.
He moved from Tualatin to Canby recently but still operates his
business in Tualatin. He said the ballot measures in Tigard and Tualatin
started among a concerned group of people in the southwest suburbs
after they saw the construction of the Milwaukie light rail project
despite some local opposition.
“When the Tigard [ballot measure] passed, we said, ‘Let’s finish what we started in 2012,’” Crowley said.
He said most people he’s talked to when knocking on doors support the idea of voting on light rail.
“The
vast, vast, vast, vast majority of people, regardless of which side of
light rail they fell, believe it is fair and reasonable…to vote on it,”
Crowley said.
-- Luke Hammill
This
is a non-partisan effort to make sure Tualatin gets the kind of transit
and other transportation improvements that are genuinely needed and
supported by Tualatin residents and businesses.
We would like to be abundantly clear and avoid any need for clarification.
Our Position
We Do Not Want Light Rail transit (LRT) or high capacity transit (HCT) with a dedicated bus lane in Tualatin, nor any downtown station that supports LRT/ HCT, nor the kind of high density Transit Oriented Development that adds apartments, residents, their vehicles, congestion & crime.
We Do Not Want Light Rail transit (LRT) or high capacity transit (HCT) with a dedicated bus lane in Tualatin, nor any downtown station that supports LRT/ HCT, nor the kind of high density Transit Oriented Development that adds apartments, residents, their vehicles, congestion & crime.
We
Do Want Tualatin voters given the right to have a public vote on
transit projects, better bus transit service throughout Tualatin with
more connections elsewhere with a less costly & better bus transit
system like Wilsonville’s SMART.
Light
Rail is unacceptable because of cost and negative impacts on our
community. Multi-billion dollar “fixed transit” from Tualatin to
Portland is not affordable nor does it provide flexible transit options
in the future.
Over
$10M has been spent to date on planning by Metro & TriMet without
justification for why LRT/HCT & a Station Community designation has
already been decided for Tualatin.
If enough signatures are gathered by the May deadline there will be a Light Rail vote in a special election in September.
Businesses and residents need to intervene before final decisions are made and it is too late.
Please join us in helping to bring about better choices for Tualatin businesses, residents and taxpayers.
Aaron Crowley, Chief Petitioner
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