Prop. A vote: Have you really considered all the facts?
Support referendum to improve streets’ infrastructure
Now is not the time to play politics with our drainage and street infrastructure. Storm drains in some parts of Houston are more than 80 years old and were designed well before Houston had experienced the major floods we see more frequently nowadays. And traffic has grown to levels unimaginable to city planners even a generation ago.
That’s why a broad and bipartisan coalition — including Mayor Sylvester Turner and County Judge Ed Emmett — urges you to support Proposition A on your city ballot.
Proposition A continues Rebuild Houston, Houston’s successful, pay-as-you-go, dedicated fund that has rebuilt or improved more than 1,000 lane miles of city streets and nearly 500 miles of storm drains. And because of Rebuild Houston, the city has paid down more than $1 billion in city infrastructure debt and interest expenses and avoided borrowing $500 million more.
Hurricane Harvey showed us that nothing can completely prevent flooding, but having a dedicated fund to pay for drainage and street upgrades will help us protect our homes and families from future floods.
In August, Harris County voters overwhelmingly approved a bond measure to improve the county’s flood management infrastructure. Now it’s the city’s turn. The City of Houston is responsible for storm water runoff from roof tops to the bayous, while the Harris County Flood Control District is responsible from the bayous to the bay. Since Harvey, there has been unprecedented coordination and cooperation between the City and the Flood Control District.
As the County Judge points out, “The county’s and city’s drainage systems must work together to protect our residents and businesses. Proposition A will ensure that the dollars raised by the drainage fee are used to improve Houston’s infrastructure and make the city and county more resilient.”
Because Proposition A reauthorizes a program already in
“The county’s and city’s drainage systems must work together to protect our residents and businesses.
“I have not been able to find anywhere that the actual drainage benefit of these projects has been quantified.”
place, it will not increase your taxes or the city’s debt. Houston voters approved this program in 2010. This year, a court has ruled that voters need to approve the measure again because of a technical flaw in the language that appeared on the original ballot. Proposition A includes the technical adjustments necessary to ensure the provisions of the original measure can be implemented as promised to voters.
To understand the value of Rebuild Houston, let’s take a look back in time.
In 2010, when voters passed the original measure, the city’s infrastructure programs were “underwater.” We were spending more money to pay off debt for drainage and streets than to fix them — and wasting millions of tax dollars each year on interest payments. Today, Rebuild Houston relies on a pay-as-you go system that will eventually shrink the city’s drainage and street debt to zero, freeing up millions of dollars for drainage and street projects.
In 2010, elected officials could spend tax dollars needed for drainage and streets on any number of unrelated projects. Today, Rebuild Houston’s “lockbox” feature prevents politicians from diverting drainage and street funds to other purposes.
In 2010, our city had absolutely no plan for funding drainage and streets in the future. Now, Rebuild Houston is on track to raise nearly $5 billion over 20 years to fund drainage and street improvements.
And, about those politics. We can afford to put politics aside and do what’s right for our city because Proposition A is specifically designed to outlast all of the politicians. That’s the point — to make sure that no matter who is in charge of your tax dollars, your drainage and street funds will always be spent on drainage and streets.
Check the facts for yourself at RebuildHouston.org. And then cast your ballot for better drainage, better streets and Houston’s long-term resilience.
Vote FOR Proposition A on Nov. 6. It’s good for Houston.
Ross, a retired civil engineer with more than 30 years of municipal planning and design experience in the city of Houston, was a planning commissioner during the administrations of Mayors Bill White and Annise Parker.