Measure M and the North County
As a North County resident, I can tell you that my “no” vote on M had nothing to do with tax rebellion or the like (Nov.16). The 10 pieces of mail and the five phone calls I received several days before the election convinced me that this was no “citizen initiative” but a multimillion-dollar campaign by land developers supported by politicians who depend on their contributions and influence.
The net effect of Measure M was to improve the probability that developers could continue to build homes in the southern and southeastern fringes of the county by making commuting from these outlying areas easier. This would further entice homeowners and others to move from the older, and in some cases declining, neighborhoods in the north to newer suburbs in the south.
Measure M provided little in the way of mass transit in the increasingly dense north where it might have had a chance of succeeding, financed by a sales rather than gas tax.
As a person who normally votes in favor of public works projects and bond issues and who found some good aspects of M, I nevertheless voted against it for the reasons given above.
ROBERT C. BELLOLI
Placentia
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