Santa Maria is ready to spend about $26 million from a countywide sales tax measure on road maintenance and improvement projects over the next five years.
At its April 16 meeting, the Santa Maria City Council approved a plan to spend this revenue generated through Measure A between fiscal years 2019-20 and 2023-24. Measure A is a half-percent sales tax increase approved by Santa Barbara County voters in 2008. Seventy-nine percent of voters in Santa Maria approved the measure.
The city is expected to receive almost half of the $58.6 million dedicated to northern Santa Barbara County between fiscal years 2019-20 and 2023-24. According to a staff report, the city is projected to receive $26 million, with Buellton, Guadalupe, Lompoc, Solvang, and unincorporated areas of North County receiving the rest.
Over the next five years, the city is projected to receive about $5 million annually, making Measure A funding the city’s largest revenue stream for road operations and infrastructure.
In the future, the city will have to supplement this funding because Measure A was approved as a 30-year program and is set to expire in 2040, said Kevin McCune, director of Santa Maria’s Public Works Department.
“We’re about a third of the way through that,” McCune said. “This is very important to the city to maintain a street network, and as we approach that 2040 date, we’re going to have to start strategizing on what to do next.”
Rodger Olds, Santa Maria’s principal civil engineer, said Measure A funds are used by the city’s Public Works Department to maintain roadways and traffic signals, among other items. Additionally, 15 percent of what the city receives from Measure A must be used for alternative transportation, such as pedestrian improvements and bikeways.
Over the next five years the city plans on spending $8.1 million on asphalt maintenance and improvements; $5.3 million on pavement delineation and maintenance; and $3.2 million on street lighting maintenance and improvements, according to a staff report.
During his presentation at the meeting, McCune said Santa Maria’s street network has an average rating that’s on the border between “fair” and “good.” He said although this rating meets the industry standard, the city’s street conditions are declining.
“It’s important to understand the trend is downward over time,” McCune said. “Meaning we’re not spending as much as we should to keep that condition stable.”
This article appears in Apr 25 – May 2, 2019.