Local News
La Crosse business group urges no votes on road referendum questions
Add the La Crosse Area Chamber of Commerce to those opposing four advisory referendum questions on the Tuesday ballot in La Crosse County.
The Chamber agrees that the county’s roads need repairing but calls the options offered to pay for that, “extreme.”
In a message to members, Chamber executive director Vicki Markussen says the county, “needs to earmark new revenue to transportation and not to other initiatives.”
One of those initiatives especially appears to irk Markussen and the rest of the Chamber.
On the Chamber’s website there’s this message: “In Spring 2017 the County told taxpayers/voters there s not enough money for roads. In the Fall they learned of $500,000 in surplus sales tax revenue. They spent it on a homeless initiative. That’s not prioritizing transportation.”
The Chamber urges a “yes” vote on spending more on roads and A “no” vote on the three methods of raising taxes to pay for that.
Tuesday’s county referendums are all advisory and not binding.
The Chamber does not offer a position on whether to vote for the marijuana legalization referendum that’s also on county ballots.
ROBERT A MELBO
November 2, 2018 at 3:35 pm
Say “What”? Our leaders elected to spend the extra for the homeless instead of fixing the streets? That is sending a clear message to other homeless in the region to “Come on down” to La Crosse. What do the taxpaying residents want? Does your alderman answer his email? Mine does not.
Lisa Wolters
November 2, 2018 at 11:02 pm
So businesses don’t need improved roads for goods or patrons to travel on? Shoot, we are so busy paying for auto repairs due to the disrepair of rural roads we travel on we haven’t got enough budget left to spend at LaCrosse area businesses.
Maybe if the state hadn’t imposed property levy limits the counties wouldn’t ahve to go searching for alternative revenue sources to fund the 70 percent of costs the local governmnets are required to pony up to get state shared revenues. The state pays 30 percent but only in as much the Governor and Legislature decide how much more they want the state to BORROW to fund transportation budget.