Get the Facts

Don’t spend 10 years of settlement money on 30+ years of fire stations.

Richmond fought for and won a historic $550 million Polluters Pay settlement from Chevron.

That money gives our community a rare opportunity to address years of unmet needs.

We should use it wisely.

The Chevron settlement is temporary. Payments last for only ten years.

New and rebuilt fire stations are long-term public infrastructure that should serve Richmond residents for 30 years or more.

Using a large share of Richmond’s limited Polluters Pay money to pay cash for fire stations would mean using a temporary source of money for a single long-term infrastructure need — leaving less for everything else Richmond needs to address.

Measure Q takes the more responsible approach:

Finance long-term infrastructure over time. Preserve the Polluters Pay settlement for other community priorities.

That allows Richmond to:

• Fix deteriorating fire stations now
• Spread the cost over the decades the facilities will be used
• Avoid draining a limited, one-time source of money for one capital project
• Preserve Polluters Pay funds for other pressing community needs

Fire stations are only one of the major needs facing Richmond.

Every dollar of Polluters Pay money spent rebuilding a fire station is a dollar that cannot be used somewhere else.

Measure Q gives Richmond a dedicated way to pay for long-term public-safety infrastructure while keeping the settlement available to address other priorities.

Keep the Polluters Pay money available. Fix our fire stations. Do both responsibly.

That’s the smart financial move — and the smart move for public safety.