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Recommendation to direct City Manager and all appropriate departments to report back within 90 days on the potential use of revenue bonds or any other instrument that would accelerate our street and alley improvements with a plan to tackle the list of worst streets and alleys in the City.
DISCUSSION
In 2016, Long Beach voters approved Measure A, an additional one percent sales tax on taxable items sold in Long Beach. The purpose of measure A was to provide an additional revenue stream to maintain and enhance public safety services and invest in City infrastructure over the next 10 years.
On March 3, 2020, Long Beach voters approved extending the provisions of Measure A indefinitely, which will generate approximately $60 million in revenue each year for public safety and infrastructure improvements.
Thanks to Measure A revenue, in the past four years, Fire Engine 8, Fire Engine 17, Paramedic Rescue 12, South Division, and Police Academy operations have been restored, enhancing public safety citywide. The City is also making a historic investment in revitalizing heavily utilized public spaces such as streets, libraries, community centers, and parks. The bottom line is that Measure A has and will continue to make a difference for Long Beach residents for years to come.
But what if we could do even more, and get it done faster?
Like all cities, Long Beach has infinite needs and limited resources. While Measure A has gone a long way in providing additional resources to meet those needs, we still have a backlog of needed road improvements that have been unmet for decades. We currently have streets and alleys that have not been touched outside of patchwork and pothole repairs since they were originally installed in the 1950s. There is no improvement plan in place to address what can be considered the worst streets and alleys in the City.
Following the passage of Measure A, there have been a total of 384 streets and alleys (1,361 segments) reconstructed and r...
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