No on Measure R, ‘bloated’ Central Fire bond

Measure R is unfortunately a bloated bond tax measure, which should be reduced in size and brought back in a more reasonable amount. We are unaware of a bond measure of its size by any comparably sized fire department. The other bond measures larger were in large metro areas and included other metro needs such as police stations, water needs, etc.

While portions of Measure R’s requests may be legitimate (relocating the Soquel fire station), other parts are wildly too much or unneeded (relocating La Selva Beach’s fire station or a regional training facility to be paid for only by district residents and not the entire region).

The Sentinel Editorial Board is absolutely correct in recommending a vote against Measure R. The last thing this county needs are unnecessarily large tax increases, which further burden new home purchasers and renters.

— Ashley Winn, La Selva Beach

What next? ‘Big Cereal?’ No on SC Measure Z

I can think of some other ways to help Santa Cruz shoppers make healthier choices than adding taxes to our already over-taxed lives. Large wording directly on the cans or bottles about diabetes and obesity in several languages. How about a big sign above the shelves or aisles or vending machines selling sugary beverages warning shoppers about the consequences of these products? Or better yet, a big sign directing them to the produce aisle? Or have these products cordoned off in a locked enclosure, to be opened on request but off limits to minors?

OK, I am being facetious. After Big Soda, we better go after Big Cereal and tax sugar-loaded breakfast items. Vote No on Z.

— Judi Grunstra, Santa Cruz

Don’t be swayed by Big Soda’s ads: Yes on Z

After receiving my fourth No on Z mailer before ballots have even dropped, I decided to look up the No on Z campaign disclosure form to see just how much Coke and Pepsi are spending to defeat Measure Z. Big Soda has already spent a whopping $850,000 to convince Santa Cruz city voters not to tax Mountain Dew! And surely there will be more to come.

As someone who has followed campaign finance closely in this town for over 25 years, I can tell you this amount of money spent to defeat a local grass-roots campaign is wildly unprecedented. The Big Soda cabal must be very afraid of little old Santa Cruz. And they should be. Locals will not be fooled by misleading, slick ads paid for by Coca-Cola and Pepsi.

What we do know is that cities in California, and countries around the world, that have already taxed sugary drinks have seen lower consumption, healthier outcomes and investment in services. Vote Yes on Z.

— Rachel Dann, Santa Cruz

Contrary to op-ed, 33 won’t impose rent control

Your Guest Commentary Sept. 26 (“Why Prop. 33 would cause rents to go up”) was a fatuous rant against Proposition 33, which would not, in fact, impose any rent control anywhere. It would repeal state law that prevents some kinds of rent control, providing more local policy options.

Your pundit falsely says Proposition 33 “would repeal a law that was put in to encourage building of housing.” It was not about building housing. Plenty of new housing is being built, thanks to other state laws.

“The real problem in California is we have too much demand for housing. Too many people,” the writer says. Rents are high because of them, and “everyone will eventually be living in slums.” So, we need to get rid of all the surplus people — them, the others.

We’ve heard this before. All those problematic landless others cause the suffering of our yeoman landlords, who after all are really just “tenants renting from the bank.” Is the falsehood there not obvious?

— Jim Weller, Capitola

Yes on SV Fire Measure S: Keep first responders safe

As a homeowner in the Scotts Valley Fire District, I know how important response time is to saving lives. The current fire station on Erba Lane is a 60-year-old building that does not meet current seismic standards. In the event of a large earthquake, the substandard condition of the Erba Lane station could jeopardize the lives of our firefighters, which would then cause a lack of emergency response to our community. A relocation of the fire station will strengthen wildfire protection and construct a seismically safe and strategically located station to ensure operations during a disaster. Please keep our local first responders safe. Vote Yes on Measure S.

— Beverly Jensen, Scotts Valley