Pass SB 50 to welcome more neighbors to area

Change is coming and has been among us for some time, though we have tried to stop it. Instead, change has appeared in other ways: driving out our neighbors, creating sprawl and pitting neighbor against neighbor.

Change is here and we must ask: What do we want that change to look like?

Trapping this region in amber will destroy all we care about within it. We must make room for more neighbors or our current neighbors will be pushed out. Everyone agrees with this: We say “immigrants and refugees are welcome” or “love thy neighbor,” but we mean the same thing: that we welcome those neighbors, both current and future.

To welcome more neighbors, we must pass SB 50. It will grow our region in ways that are equitable and sustainable. It will grow our cities around transit centers and jobs. SB 50 is the best opportunity our region has to thrive.

— Nicolas Ball-Jones, Fremont