Lafayette Measure L; Orinda Library Tax Decided By Voters

LAMORINDA, CA — Voters in several Contra Costa County cities voted on measures addressing issues ranging from term limits for City Council members to a controversial housing project.

Lafayette voters soundly rejected Measure L, the Deer Hill project, a proposal for 44 single-family houses and adjoining parks and sports fields, along with rezoning to allow those uses. The Deer Hill project evolved from a 2011 proposal to build 315 apartments on that same land near the state Highway 24/Pleasant Hill Road interchange. The apartment project faced stiff community opposition, and the far less dense single-family home plan was developed.

In Orinda, voters agreed to raise their local library tax from $39 to $69 a year to pay for maintenance and upgrades of the library building, maintaining existing hours and new library programs. The measure required a two-thirds majority vote, and received nearly 72 percent approval.

Two measures related to programs serving young people were convincingly approved by Richmond voters Tuesday. Measure E would designate part of the city's budget -- at first 1 percent, eventually 3 percent -- to
be set aside for programs serving the city's young people. Measure K, a complement to Measure E, would call for those programs to be funded only if voters pass a general tax measure in the future.

Pinole voters overwhelmingly passed Measure P to remove the three-term limit that applies to City Council members.

— Bay City News; Image via Patch