See Also: Index of all Measures

This measure, if approved by a majority vote, would amend the El Dorado County Charter by adding a new section prohibiting the Board of Supervisors from adopting a general plan that allows traffic congestion on Highway 50 west of Placerville to reach Level of Service F during peak-hour commute periods at general plan buildout. The measure requires traffic capacity to be based on the then current state and regional plans to widen Highway 50. It prevents a general plan from allowing development based on anticipated future changes to state and local plans for Highway 50. The charter amendment also requires the Board of Supervisors to postpone approving any additional divisions of land into 3 or more parcels for single-family, residential housing until Highway 50 has been widened to 8 lanes between Cameron Park and the Sacramento County line.

A general plan is a comprehensive, long-term plan for the physical development of the county, consisting of an integrated statement of development policies and a map showing allowable land uses. A general plan's land use element (which identifies the distribution and intensity of land uses) must be consistent with the circulation element (which identifies the general location and extent of existing and proposed major roadways, and which sets standards of operation such as traffic levels of service).

"Build-out" refers to a theoretical time when all land in the County is developed to the full capacity allowed under the general plan. "Peak-hour" is the hour of the day during which the most traffic is experienced at a particular location. On Highway 50, this typically is during the commute periods. "Level of Service" is a measure of traffic operating conditions commonly expressed as letter grades varying from "A" (free flow) through increasingly worse levels of congestion to "F."

If approved, the measure becomes effective upon filing the charter amendment with the secretary of state. The restriction on adopting a general plan would apply only to general plans adopted after the effective date of the charter amendment. It would not require the amendment of any general plan in effect on that date. The requirement to delay approval of single-family, residential subdivisions would be implemented immediately upon the effective date of the charter amendment. The measure would remain in effect for 25 years and could be changed only by the voters.

The measure does not apply to the Tahoe Regional Planning Area. Also, it is unlikely that the County could apply the measure to projects having development agreements, if doing so would prevent completion of the development as originally approved. The County also may be unable to apply the measure in certain other circumstances where a development has acquired vested rights to proceed which are contrary to the measure.

A "yes" vote is a vote to amend the county charter by adding a new section as provided in the measure.

A "no" vote is a vote not to amend the county charter. s/ LOUIS B. GREEN County Counsel

Measure D, called the "No Gridlock on Highway 50 Initiative", is an insurance policy to protect voters from current or future Boards of Supervisors approving more housing development than Highway 50 can ever accommodate. Measure D is based on a simple, common-sense planning principle: We shouldn't approve more housing development than our roads can accommodate.

When this General Plan approval process began four years ago, the Supervisors promised us they would not permit Level of Service F (gridlock) on Highway 50 west of Placerville. But the developers wanted more houses than Highway 50 could handle, so the Supervisors caved in and broke their promise. This is what prompted Measure D.

Measure D does these two things:
1.Prohibits the Supervisors from approving a new General Plan that permits Level of Service F (gridlock traffic) on Highway 50 west of Placerville.
2.Postpones approving additional single-family subdivisions of 3+ parcels until Highway 50 has been widened to eight lanes west of Cameron Park. Eight lanes is needed just to accommodate the traffic from the 20,000+ undeveloped housing parcels already approved.

Measure D does not restrict building on the 20,000+ already approved parcels. It doesn't affect new or existing commercial, business or agricultural development, or multi-family apartments or condominiums, or state mandated affordable housing. If they want, families can divide their parcel to build a home for their children.

The Supervisors are asking us to trust that Highway 50 will be widened to eight lanes to handle traffic from their high growth General Plan (Measure B). The fact is, extending the carpool lane from El Dorado Hills to Cameron Park is the only Highway 50 improvement approved by CalTrans and the El Dorado County Transportation Commission for the next 20+ years.

Measure D requires the Supervisors to fix Highway 50, not make it worse.

Please vote YES on Measure D.

s/ Nancy Campbell League of Women Voters, El Dorado County
s/ Kathi Lishman Placerville Mayor/Councilmember - (1988- 2004)
s/ Sam Bradley El Dorado County Supervisor + (1992-2000)
s/ Charlie Paine El Dorado County Supervisor, District 4
s/ Bill Center El Dorado County Supervisor + (1990-1994)

"D" is for Developers. Measure D exempts apartment construction! Developers benefit because they would still be able to build by converting future projects into apartment complexes. Do we really think that Highway 50 will get fixed by thousands of new renters?

Measure D will eliminate the County's program for building new roads. It turns our local control over to the state and removes developer money from the equation. Why should we trust the state to do what we can do better...with developer money!

Measure D will restrict the County's new General Plan. After 15 years, voters will get to approve a limit on growth that protects taxpayers. Why would we want to nullify our hard work for a half-baked initiative that adds apartments? Measure D will cost taxpayers millions! The way it's written, the only way Highway 50 gets fixed is if taxpayers or the state pays! And unlike the new General Plan, it doesn't make developers pay for new schools, parks, or roads. Why would we let them off the hook?

Under Measure D only Indian Casinos can be built without having to pay for Highway 50. And, the taxpayers will end up footing their bill. That's just crazy!

Measure D has no protection for open space, no protection for water supplies, no protection for agriculture. No wonder El Dorado wineries, farmers and ranchers oppose Measure D.

Don't allow apartment complexes to consume our water and add to our traffic. Vote No on Measure D!

s/ Betty January Library Supporter
s/ Chuck Bacchi Cattle Rancher
s/ Brian Veerkamp Camino Union School Board President
s/ Mary Muse El Dorado Union High School District Board Member
s/ Maryann Argyres Apple Hill Growers Association President

Instead of controlling growth, Measure D is so poorly written that it will actually open the door to huge population increases in El Dorado County. While blocking construction of single-family homes, a loophole in Measure D allows unlimited construction of high-density apartment complexes throughout the county + flooding local roads with thousands of new renters, urbanizing our landscape and straining local services like water, police and fire protection.

Measure D doesn't end gridlock, it makes it worse. What's more, the El Dorado Irrigation District warns that Measure D will delay the county from obtaining new water supplies for at least three years or more, exposing ratepayers to new financial risk and possible service cuts. The people behind Measure D are the same people who sponsored Measure Y six years ago. At the time, they promised voters that Measure Y would fix Highway 50. Since then, we've learned that a provision in Measure Y actually prevents us from obtaining the state and federal funds needed to expand Highway 50 and pay for other traffic improvements. Now they're making the same empty promises with Measure D.

This is the same small group of extremists whose "block and delay" tactics have derailed responsible planning efforts in our county for the past 15 years. Their antics have blocked urgently needed transportation improvements and cost county taxpayers $15 million in planning delays and wasted effort. If they succeed with Measure D, it will cost us millions more, while sabotaging real efforts to control growth, fix Highway 50 and preserve our rural lifestyle. It's time to come together as a community and say: "Enough is enough + no more delays."

Voting "NO" on Measure D will protect El Dorado County from unlimited high-density apartments, prevent needless planning delays and make it clear that taxpayers are ready to move forward.

s/ Robert "Bob" Dorr Former El Dorado County Supervisor, District I
s/ Mark Nielsen Former El Dorado County Supervisor 1993-2001
s/ Joseph V. Flynn Former El Dorado County Supervisor
s/ Vernon Gerwer Former El Dorado County Supervisor
s/ John E. Upton Former El Dorado County Supervisor, District 5 City Council Member, City of South Lake Tahoe

Vote YES on Measure D + "The No Gridlock on Highway 50 Initiative".

Measure D is based on a common-sense planning principle: We shouldn't approve more housing development than our roads can accommodate. Measure D is needed because our County Supervisors just approved a new General Plan (Measure B) that will push our population from 121,000 to 317,000 without widening Highway 50 beyond finishing the carpool lanes between El Dorado Hills and Cameron Park.

Measure D will do two things:

• prohibit the County from adopting any General Plan that permits Level of Service F (gridlock traffic) on Highway 50 west of Placerville.
• postpone approving additional housing subdivisions of 3+ parcels until Highway 50 is widened to eight lanes west of Cameron Park. This is necessary to handle the traffic from the 20,000+ already approved, undeveloped housing parcels.

Measure D simply says: (1) The County shall not adopt a General Plan that permits Highway 50 to reach gridlock traffic levels, and (2) the County shall not approve more large housing subdivisions unless Highway 50 has been widened to the eight lanes required to accommodate traffic from the 20,000+ undeveloped housing parcels already approved.

Measure D requires the Supervisors to fix Highway 50, not make it worse. Please vote YES on Measure D. It's our only insurance policy.

s/ William "Sam" Bradley El Dorado County Supervisor (1992-2000)
s/ Nancy J. Campbell League of Women Voters, El Dorado County
s/ Charlie Paine El Dorado County Supervisor, District 4
s/ Kathi Lishman Placerville Mayor/Councilmember 1988-2004
s/ Susan Olmstead Environmental Planning and Information Council (EPIC)

COUNTY CHARTER AMENDMENT PROHIBITING THE BOARD OF SUPERVISORS FROM ADOPTING A GENERAL PLAN ALLOWING TRAFFIC ON HIGHWAY 50 WEST OF PLACERVILLE TO EXCEED LEVEL OF SERVICE F, AND REQUIRING THE BOARD TO POSTPONE APPROVAL OF NEW SINGLE FAMILY RESIDENTIAL SUBDIVISIONS OF THREE OR MORE PARCELS UNTIL HIGHWAY 50 HAS BEEN WIDENED TO 8 LANES BETWEEN CAMERON PARK AND THE SACRAMENTO COUNTY LINE.

This Initiative would add a new section to County charter which would prohibit the Board of Supervisors from adopting a general plan that allows traffic congestion on Highway 50 west of Placerville to reach Level of Service F during peak-hour commute periods at build-out. When calculating the traffic capacity of Highway 50 for general plan purposes, the Initiative requires that the Board take into account the most current state and regional plans to widen Highway 50.

This Initiative would also amend the County charter to require the Board of Supervisors to postpone approving any additional single-family residential housing lot splits or subdivisions of 3 or more parcels until the time that Highway 50 has been widened by adding two additional lanes in each direction, for a total of 8 lanes, between Cameron Park and the Sacramento County line.

A county charter is a document providing for the organization of county government and the powers and duties of county officers.

A general plan is a comprehensive, long-term plan for the physical development of the county, consisting of an integrated statement of development policies and a map showing allowable land uses. A general plan's land use element (which identifies the distribution and intensity of land uses) must be consistent with the circulation element (which identifies the general location and extent of existing and proposed major roadways, and which sets standards of operation such as traffic levels of service).

"Build-out" refers to the time when growth projections predict that the land in the County will be developed to its full theoretical capacity allowed under the general plan. "Peak-hour" is the hour of the day at which the most traffic is experienced at a particular location, usually during the morning or evening commute time. "Level of Service" is a general measure of traffic operating condition calculated as the ratio of traffic volume to roadway capacity, commonly expressed as letter grades varying from A (free flow) through increasingly worse levels of congestion to F.

The Initiative would be in effect for 25 years and could only be changed by voters. It does not apply to the Tahoe Regional Planning Area.

I. AMENDMENT TO EL DORADO COUNTY CHARTER The electors of El Dorado County by majority vote, and pursuant to section 102 of the El Dorado County Charter, hereby add the following amendments to the El Dorado County Charter:

II. 212. HIGHWAY 50 + EXPANSION OF CAPACITY a. The Board of Supervisors shall not adopt a General Plan that allows traffic congestion on Highway 50 west of Placerville to reach Level of Service F (gridlock) during peak-hour commute periods at General Plan build-out. Highway 50 traffic capacity for the General Plan shall be based on the most current state and regional approved plans for widening Highway 50. III. b. To prevent gridlock traffic on Highway 50, the Board of Supervisors shall postpone giving any form of approval to additional single-family residential housing lot splits or subdivisions of 3 or more parcels until Highway 50 has been widened by two additional lanes in each direction (for a total of 8 lanes) between Cameron Park Drive and the Sacramento County line to accommodate the traffic from previously approved projects.

V. II. MISCELLANEOUS PROVISIONS

a. This initiative shall only be amended by a majority of El Dorado County voters and the policies shall remain in effect for 25 years.
b. If a court declares any portion of this initiative invalid, then that portion shall be removed and the remaining portions shall continue to be valid.

c. This initiative shall not apply within the jurisdiction of the Tahoe Regional Planning Agency.

d. This amendment added to the El Dorado County Charter is self-executing and has been added to protect the public health, safety and welfare of residents.

e. This amendment to the County Charter shall be submitted to a vote at the earliest countywide election date available.