Santa Cruz County Board of Supervisors set to discuss road conditions at a November meeting. Supervisor Manu Koenig has previously these concerns to the board. (Amaya Edwards — Santa Cruz Local file/Report for America)

SANTA CRUZ >> For years, Santa Cruz County’s rural road conditions have declined, as a decadeslong maintenance backlog competes with emergency repairs for limited tax money.

The county needs to spend $20 million more per year just to keep roads at their current condition, not including future disasters that could affect roads, county staff wrote in an agenda report.

On Tuesday, the Santa Cruz County Board of Supervisors is set to receive an update on possible ways to fill the gap and improve rural roads. 

Some county leaders have suggested setting aside a percentage of the county’s General Fund for roads. But county staff wrote that such a policy would result in heavy cuts to other services, like public safety and health care.

Instead, staff recommended the county raise more money for road repair. Many of the options would require voter approval, either through a regular election or a Proposition 218 ballot for property owners. Some ideas include:

• Replacing a half-cent sales tax set to expire in 2030 with a three-quarters-cent sales tax, and prioritizing the quarter-cent tax hike for road spending. The tax hike could raise $5.6 million annually for roads.
• Raising the transient occupancy tax by 1 percentage point, bringing it to 13% for hotels and 15% for short-term rentals. The increase could raise $1.2 million annually, some of which can be used for roads.
• Raising the property assessment for County Service Area 9D, which covers much of the unincorporated county. The annual assessment of $56.40 per improved parcel and $28.20 per vacant parcel has been unchanged since 1983. Increasing the assessments in line with its purchasing power in 1983, to $211.72 and $105.86 respectively, could raise $7.3 million more than it does now.
• Issuing up to $37 million in bonds backed by County Service Area 9D money. 
• Creating a new County Service Area for rural roads with an annual $150 assessment on rural parcels. It could raise $4.5 million annually.
• Forming an Enhanced Infrastructure Financing District, which could dedicate a portion of future property tax growth to roads. There is no estimate of how much money it could raise.

Next summer, county staff are set to bring forward more detailed findings and funding proposals. The county has created a dashboard showing how it currently receives and spends money for roads.

At the Tuesday, Nov. 10 meeting the board is also set to discuss:

• A six-month pilot program to coordinate social services and health care for 20-30 homeless people frequently arrested by law enforcement. The program would give participants leaving jail a “warm handoff” to people or programs who can help connect them with supportive services. 
• A proposed regulation to compel owners of registered historic buildings to sufficiently maintain their buildings and prevent demolition. 
• A report on Measure Q spending. A county dashboard maps the projects funded by the tax.
• See the full agenda.

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