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Measure W Park District Parcel Tax NO The East Bay Regional Park District board is proposing to increase the residential parcel tax that funds local parks. It's a laudable goal -- but this measure is unfair and unacceptable. Measure W is a flat tax: If it passes, the annual tax will double for home owners and triple for renters, but the owner of a mansion in the hills will still pay the same rate as a renter in a cheap flatlands home. And businesses, including developers who own hundreds of acres of unimproved land, won't pay a cent. This flat tax is not only unfair, it's also risky. We doubt if the EBRPD, which has for years drawn fire for its fiscal mismanagement and poor stewardship, would spend the money wisely. Last year the board proposed clear-cutting 200 acres of eucalyptus trees in Contra Costa and Alameda Counties. When activists suggested that they gradually take a few plants out and replant native vegetation (which would have cost less, reduced the useof herbicides, and decreased environmental impacts), theboard refused. It decided to let a private company clear-cut the land. And the board still hasn't taken the necessary steps to ensure that it gets more than half a million dollars from the Federal Emergency Management Agency. That funding, set aside for fire preservation and fire prevention, would be released if the district provided FEMA with information on its endangered species. The board has failed to get on with it. This board needs more oversight and criticism, not more money -- especially not when it comes at the expense of renters. Vote No on W.
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