If you live in Centralia and have received your ballot for the November election, you may notice a question of critical importance to residents of the Hub City.
The City of Centralia is asking residents to consider renewing the Transportation Benefit District, or TBD — a sales and use tax that ensures a dedicated fund for street repairs and enhancements, for 10 years.
As Centralia has grown, the TBD has paid for numerous street repairs and enhancements. It has generated $7.9 million since it was approved by voters in 2015, ensuring the completion of 40 projects.
Highlights of what the TBD has funded include:
• Major improvements to Borst Avenue that made the corridor safer for students and families to get to and from work and school
• Repaving North Gold between Maple and Marion streets and South Gold between Main and Summa, revitalizing a road in major need of repair
• The first stage of the Westside Connector project that will include a bridge over the Skookumchuck River, providing a critical link for our residents and decreasing emergency response times
• ADA ramps for our mobility-impaired friends and neighbors
The next few years will bring several projects before us that hinge on the approval of the TBD. Those include the Reynolds and Harrison Avenue corridor, a signal at Kresky and Summa, improvements to Main Street between Yew and Tower, and Harrison Avenue between I-5 and Johnson Road.
The TBD has leveraged grant funding for our road projects as well. Recently, city staff were able to turn $1.3 million into $6.8 million through grants — a nearly 5-to-1 return. That is a tremendous value for our investment.
If the TBD did not exist, projects in the pipeline would likely fall to the wayside as there isn’t enough money in the general fund to cover them. The general fund pays for our police department, our parks and our court system — all of which are vital to our quality of life, safety and wellbeing.
The TBD is not a new tax, nor is it a property tax. It’s a sales and use tax that is paid for by residents and visitors alike who shop and dine in Centralia, to the tune of 1 cent per $5 spent.
By voting for renewal of the Transportation Benefit District, you’re saying yes to partnering with your friends, neighbors and fellow residents in helping support our connected network that brings us all from home to work, school and beyond — and back safely again.
For more information, including a full list of projects the TBD has funded and will fund, please visit the city’s website at cityofcentralia.com and click or tap Transportation Benefit District.
This letter to the editor is my view only, and I do not speak on behalf of the City of Centralia. In accordance with Public Disclosure Commission rules and guidelines, this letter was written on my own time with no use of public facilities or equipment.
Chris Brewer
Centralia deputy mayor
