It is a busy day at Fresno City Hall as council members debate and vote on four proposed measures that could appear before voters this November.
The measures cover a range of issues, including extending city leadership term limits, changing the redistricting process, addressing future transportation funding, and setting guardrails for the Southeast Development Area Plan, known as SEDA.
Each measure comes with an estimated price tag of about $150,000 to place before voters.
FOX26 asked Councilmembers whether they believe the cost is worth it.
“It depends on which measure,” said Councilmember Mike Karbassi.
We asked Councilmember Annalisa Perea during the discussion, what if all four did?
“My personal opinion is… that is a very pricey price to pay,” she said.
Karbassi defended spending the money on proposals he believes could benefit the city, including the proposed Measure C sales tax measure tied to future city funding needs.
He says spending $150,000 could be a worthwhile investment if the measure generates significant revenue.
Spending $150,000 on a measure that will bring in $50 million or more to the city, that I say would be a good investment.
Karbassi also pointed to concerns over the future expiration of Measure C, the countywide transportation tax, warning the city could face difficult decisions without a new funding source.
He said, “If you think potholes are bad now, when we lose $50 million next year without any funding source to backfill that, there are going to be cuts, and the public is going to feel that.”
But not everyone on the council agreed the cost was worth it.
Councilmember Brandon Vang questioned whether taxpayer dollars should instead go toward immediate infrastructure needs.
“Whether it’s $150,000, $450,000 or $600,000, I’d rather put it on infrastructure that goes to fix a sidewalk or a street and many of my people in District 5 have been waiting for that for decades,” he pointed out.
Councilmember Annalisa Perea raised similar concerns, saying the city has other needs that could benefit from the funding.
“I would much rather see that money spent fixing sidewalks or trimming city trees.”
Some community members also spoke out against the cost, arguing the money could be used for projects closer to residents.
“That could actually go towards installing a play mat in our district. That could go towards fixing the roads, sidewalks in our district.”
Karbassi pushed back, saying the larger concern is what could happen if the city loses future revenue.
“Sure, you can fix one section of sidewalk or one section of road for $150,000, but if we don’t pass it, there’s going to be a lot of roads that get zero,” he said.
In FOX26’s accountability question, we asked councilmembers about where the money would come from to fund these measures.
“I know one of the authors has committed to finding the money. But at this point, my understanding is there is no dedicated funding source,” Perea said.
“That will come from the general fund, which is exactly the funds that we are looking to shore up from the measures,” Karbassi said.
The timeline also became part of the discussion.
Perea said some of the measures were introduced just days before the vote, with council members receiving the full information on Monday.