A new batch of Contra Costa County election results released Friday pushed a tax measure sought by conservationists in Martinez over the threshold it would need to pass, while a small margin between two candidates in a tight supervisor race remained roughly unchanged.
The $79-a-year residential tax now has just over the required two-thirds approval from Martinez voters, and if passed would fund the conservation of a 297-acre grassy ridgeline landscape where John Muir is believed to have once owned land.
Meanwhile, a five-candidate race for the District 4 supervisor’s office continues to see Pleasant Hill City Councilman Ken Carlson in front with 27% of the vote, though he is far short of the majority needed to win the seat outright.
Behind him are BART Director Debora Allen with 25.5% and Concord City Councilwoman Carlyn Obringer with 24.3%. The latest round of results marginally increased Allen’s lead over Obringer. Whoever emerges with the second-most votes will compete with Carlson in a November runoff election.
Other races appear close to certain, with Sheriff David Livingston, District Attorney Diana Becton and Assessor Gus Kramer steadily on the path to winning re-election.
The county processed 73,000 fresh ballots ahead of Friday’s round of results, raising the total votes cast to over 186,000 and slicing the number of ballots that still haven’t been counted by more than half.
On election night, the Martinez tax measure had 65.9% approval from city residents, about 40 votes shy of the threshold needed for approval. It’s unclear how many of the remaining ballots might contain votes cast on the measure by Martinez residents.
“It’s a peculiar election in that there’s such a low turnout,” said Councilman Mark Ross, a strong advocate for the tax measure. “But I knew we were going to be on the bubble no matter what the turnout was going to be. There are people who will vote no on whether the sun should rise — even if they’re in favor of the idea, they’re not in favor of the tax.”
The stakes are high for local conservationists who have spent years trying to protect the scenic ridgeline, known as the Alhambra Hills, from the development of 109 single-family homes on a 70-acre parcel there.
If the tax isn’t approved, the city would not have the needed revenue — an expected $1.2 million annually over 30 years — to cover the property’s $19.25 million price tag, plus loan interest.
Texas-based developer Richfield Real Estate Corp. has had permits for over a decade to start building the homes but held off for myriad economic and logistical reasons, eventually agreeing in March to sell the property to the city.
Still, Richfield fully intends to move forward with construction if the city can’t come up with the money, a representative said earlier this year. The company didn’t respond to a request for comment on this week’s election results.
Efforts to conserve the Alhambra Hills ramped up in recent years after Martinez resident Jamie Fox discovered evidence that the legendary naturalist John Muir may have owned land along the ridgeline.
Fox, who leads the Save Alhambra Hills Open Space committee, said Muir’s great-grandson has paid close attention to the local ballot measure and is rooting for it to pass.
“It’s been a very sobering last couple days,” Fox said on Thursday, before the next day’s results pushed the measure back on the path to approval. “I’ve worked on this for 12 years now. It took me two years to beat cancer (in my late 20s); it’s been harder to fight for this.”
Source: www.mercurynews.com