SMART’s future at stake in divisive election over tax renewal

The fight over Measure I centers on whether SMART has justified its cost and earned sufficient trust from North Bay residents to warrant a 30-year tax extension.|

To supporters, Sonoma-Marin Area Rail Transit is making headway. Its green-and-gray, diesel-powered trains began rolling with paid passengers in summer 2017, and its expanding 45-mile line now links Santa Rosa to Larkspur - and to San Francisco by ferry.

Opponents, however, say it has fallen far short of its ambitious goals, with a delayed build-out, guarded approach to publicly addressing questions about ridership, and soaring costs that critics say are unreasonable.

Now, SMART’s future may be at stake in a titanic, two-county political clash sparked by its decision to seek early extension of the quarter-cent sales tax that provides the bulk of the train system’s operating funds. The current tax runs out in 2029; SMART officials want an early 30-year renewal to help pay down rising debt costs tied to development of the line.

Without approval, train officials say, they’ll be forced to slash passenger service and make deep cuts to their workforce.

Measure I on the March 3 ballot has drawn in two wealthy political donors who have bankrolled rival campaigns to the tune of $2.6 million, making it by far the most expensive North Bay ballot measure.

The public debate has been grounded in several fundamental questions about SMART, including whether it has justified its cost - now at $653 million - and earned sufficient trust among residents to warrant reinvestment in the Bay Area’s newest public transit system.

“For me, it’s the big picture. The train is an asset that I believe we want to make sure that we do not abandon. That would be a horrible mistake and throwing away half-a-billion-dollars is not something I would endorse,” said Sonoma County Supervisor David Rabbitt, a member of SMART’s board of directors. “There’s growing pains for sure in certain areas. I don’t mean to demean that, but some of that is noise. (It’s) proven itself to be, I believe, successful to date, and will only be more successful as we go forward, as we build out along the line.”

But SMART’s critics, including some longtime foes who opposed the train from the outset, say the rail system has failed to live up to its promises, serves only a small fraction of the public and at too great an expense.

“The fundamental story is these people are not managing their costs,” said Novato resident Mike Arnold, an economist who was co-chairman of two prior campaigns against SMART. “We have the responsibility to provide cost-effective transit alternatives. A rail system within suburbia has very little chance of taking many riders, because they can’t get people to where they want to go.”

The first attempt to pass a sales tax to support the train narrowly failed in 2006. Two years later, voters approved Measure Q, which authorized SMART and kick-started construction of the line, with 70% of the vote. SMART projections at the time showed it would cost $541 million to build the entire rail and paved pathway projects, with expected tax revenues over 20 years at $890 million.

But the recession sunk sales tax revenue, resulting in only $330 million for SMART in the first 11 years. The agency opted for a phased build-out of its line, delaying major work on the accompanying bike path and pushing off expansion of the line north beyond Santa Rosa.

The 3-mile extension to Windsor is funded and scheduled to be finished by the end of next year, but 22 miles of reconstructed line are needed to reach Healdsburg and Cloverdale.

Passage of Measure I will assure SMART has the funds to operate service to the planned northern terminus, but it won’t cover the $364 million the rail agency estimates it needs to complete the line, according to SMART. Total cost of the entire project is likely to approach $1 billion.

SMART has carried more than 1.7 million passengers since launching service in August 2017.

While overall ridership dipped 2.2% in the second year of operations because of a drop in weekend passengers, weekday riders - the train’s primary user group - increased 4% each year since service began. At that time, SMART projected about 3,000 passengers per weekday; through December, trains carried an average of about 2,400 riders on weekdays.

This January, the first full month under the expanded train schedule and new Marin County stations, weekday rider ridership was up 26% from last year at the same time, SMART reported. Average weekday ridership grew to 2,847 during the month, according to SMART.

Farhad Mansourian, SMART’s general manager since 2011, has been a frequent foil for the agency’s most outspoken opponents, who have objected to his leadership and hefty compensation package. He is among the highest-paid public officials in the North Bay, earning $319,595 in base salary in 2019 - comparable to peers at the Golden Gate Bridge District and BART, which are larger than SMART.

Mansourian has branded SMART’s vocal foes “the naysayers,” while stressing that the 200-person agency is doing its best to build and operate a safe, reliable and entirely new transit system.

“The vision for SMART came directly from the people of Marin and Sonoma. They wanted options other than (Highway) 101. The community is going to grow and we need options,” Mansourain said.

The opposition, which continues to run ads in prime-time slots, have been bankrolled by nearly $1.5 million donated to the No on Measure I campaign by Molly Gallaher Flater, the 35-year-old daughter of prominent Sonoma County developer Bill Gallaher. In a written statement in January, she asserted that SMART has yet to make good on its pledges to voters from 2008.

The Yes on Measure I campaign countered with a $1 million donation from the Federated Indians of Graton Rancheria, which allowed supporters to respond with advertising.

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