Editor,
The town of San Clemente is facing a modern day David v. Goliath battle against a government agency’s blind rampage of destruction. The TCA is moving forward with the 241 Toll Road extension through south Orange County, and they want to bulldoze right through our town.
You know us – we’re neighbors, and have a lot in common. The nearly 100-year-old “Spanish Village by the Sea,” the quiet-life small town that people never want to leave. Located smack dab between Los Angeles and San Diego, we, too, are a coastal paradise, the “best climate in the world,” and home to world-class surfing. It is home to La Casa Pacifica, President Nixon’s Western White House. If this sounds like a song of praise, it is meant to, and it is one echoed by the 67,000 residents who call San Clemente home. I know all residents of breathtaking Laguna can relate to loving where you live.
Now, the TCA wants to bulldoze through our town. Although they deny having chosen a specific route, there is no denying that their efforts are locked on a proposed route that would wind straight through the center of town. This route would destroy thousands of homes, divide our city and come dangerously close to parks and schools. Most visible would be its encroachment on and over San Clemente High School. The toll road will blaze through miles of the city’s open space.
The TCA has been secretive and dishonest in their attempt to push their road through, strategically pitting us against other groups. Although their 2016 settlement with the Surfrider Foundation “saved” Trestles, the foundation made a deal with the devil, agreeing not to take a position on any future proposed routes. This effectively pushed the TCA back to reconsideration of the San Clemente route, that they themselves had rejected years earlierdue to the destructiveness of the route. Let’s not fall victim to their efforts to conquer and divide.
There has been an amazing groundswell of support from local citizens and public officials to stop the toll road, but it is still very much a David versus Goliath effort. Please join our efforts to stop the destruction. Educate yourself, write a letter, display a lawn sign, donate to:https://www.gofundme.com/stop-the-toll-road. Connect with our efforts on Facebook @NOTMYTOLLROAD.
Jennifer Nicholson Geller, San Clemente
Laguna needs to join the fight. Thanks for sharing!
As a resident of Mission Viejo, I believe everyone in South County needs to join the fight! This affects traffic for all of us, and the cities we enjoy frequenting will be ruined. We fought a against an airport in El Toro, we can fight this too! We stand with you.
I agree with Billy..We need to support San Clemente!
TCA has gone too far. They propose a toll road extension that provides no purpose other than keeping TCA in business. They have no viable route and because of that, they are attempting to get into the managed lanes business and add toll lanes to the middle of I-5. They have no authority to do this. Every city is taxing new construction thousands of dollars per unit to pay for a toll road that they cannot bulld. Residents need to demand their cities take action and stop this nonsense. They are now in illegal territory, literally.
San Clemente needs support – the TCA is paying out the nose money that should go to pay down the bonds to consultants and lobbyists who are making out like bandits – end game road that will serve very few – destroy South Orange County while the studies show make traffic worse and cost a fortune. The TCA has failed for 30 years and tax payers have already bailed them out 1.1 BILLION dollars not so long ago – we will be put on the hook again.
The TCA is a failed agency run amok and for some odd reason thinks that after not constructing anything in 20 years they can still collect development fees (aka a tax), use our local, state and federal funds to build a useless underused expensive urban sprawl. The old alignment was a devastating nightmare & the TCA could never obtain any of the necessary permits to build through the state park and destroy trestles. Now they want to bisect San Clemente and weave in-between existing neighborhoods and on top of schools – seriously ON TOP of the schools. When is enough enough? The CEO just got a retroactive 6% pay raise, for what we are not sure because it is clear that lobbyists run the TCA. The TCA employees enjoy international travel – this year to Salzburg. The 73 was supposed to be free 2 years ago – instead 6.4 Billion Dollars is what the TCA owes. The TCA has refinanced the debt and capital appreciation bonds so many times – none of the toll roads at this point will ever be free and I am sure another tax payer bailout will be on the horizon. The OC Grand Jury issued a solvency warning the TCA carries 64% of the County’s JPA debt. Abolish the TCA https://www.abolishtca.com/2-the-toll-roads-have-hurt-not-helped-the-motoring-public/
Thank you for your letter. The 73 was supposed to be a “free”way already. TCA is billions in debt, after a billion in taxpayer money bailout. And we still continue to pay and are on the hook for their failed plans. They have admitted that a 241 extension will maybe relieve 2% of traffic off of the 5 in South SC (equals a minute or two in time). Worth the cost to schools, wildlife, taxpayers, homes, businesses w/loss of jobs? Even if you do not drive the toll road, you are paying for it – Caltrans has a non-compete so the freeways don’t get maintained while Caltrans maintains the toll roads. This affects ALL taxpayers – we are being used. Abolish TCA.