Coastside residents have long lived with a dichotomy; they are surrounded by open space while having very little to do outdoors. There are splendid hiking trails — though much of it requires trespassing through private and quasi-public land — and beaches that are the envy of landlocked people everywhere. But, if you have children, you are acutely aware of the lack of ballfields and bathrooms on this side of the hill.
Measure O could go a long way toward rectifying that imbalance. Every year it would add an estimated $205,000 to the city of Half Moon Bay’s recreational budget, $300,000 to the county’s parks fund dedicated to the coast, and $600,000 to the Midpeninsula Regional Open Space District’s coffers, money it plans to spend largely on opening up for use the Coastside land it has annexed.
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We realize such improvements come at a cost and that the measure amounts to a regressive tax during tough economic times. Increasing the sales tax to 8.375 percent for the next 25 years will take money out of the pockets of the working class at a time when that money is already stretched thin. Proponents say the tax increase would cost a family with an annual income of $70,000 about $4 extra a month. But it will also allow local residents to benefit from tax dollars spent by tourists. On balance, we think that is an acceptable trade-off.
The Midcoast Parks Action Plan, developed over the course of years and released in 2007, noted that six acres of publicly managed parkland are required for every 1,000 residents. By that measure, the Midcoast is 58 acres behind schedule and will need another 50 acres to accommodate population increases anticipated in the county’s Local Coastal Program.
It’s time to address that discrepancy. Vote yes on Measure O on June 3.
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