Lacey City Council weighs Transportation Benefit District renewal options

City officials briefed the Lacey City Council on plans to renew a voter-approved transportation sales tax before it expires in February 2027. 

The city council must decide on election timing and ballot language in April. 

The Transportation Benefit District, established in January 2016 under Ordinance 1485, is funded by a 0.2% sales tax that voters approved on Feb. 14, 2017.

The tax has generated nearly $29.66 million since collections began in July 2017, with the three-year average now standing at approximately $3.86 million annually. 

Since its formation, the district has funded improvements to 138 roadways covering 69.1 lane miles of paving, 94,000 tons of asphalt and replacement of 1,950 sidewalk panels. 

Associated traffic marker work included 26 miles of striping, 5,000 feet of crosswalk markings and 30 miles of crack seal applied across the city's road network. 

The 2025 State of the Streets pavement analysis found the city needs at least $4 million per year to maintain its current pavement condition rating. 

At a March 10 city council work session, Lacey Public Works Director Scott Egger told the city council the district has helped Lacey maintain one of the strongest pavement condition indexes in the state. 

Despite that record, City Engineer Aubrey Collier said funding is falling short of what the city needs. The city has roughly 18,000 sidewalk offsets or damaged panels in need of repair. 

When factoring in the approximately $500,000 set aside each year for sidewalk work over the past four years, the total capital maintenance funding need reaches approximately $4.75 million annually. 

Election timing 

Council members are considering two election dates to renew the tax. 

Under the first option, a November 2026 General Election would require a council resolution by July and cost between $28,000 and $32,000 depending on cost sharing. 

Alternatively, a February 2027 Special Election would require a resolution by November 2026 and cost an estimated $125,000 to $132,000. That option would also align with the district's original 10-year approval cycle. 

Staff noted the February option would also allow more time for public outreach and completion of 2026 projects. 

Ballot language 

In addition to the election date, council members must decide whether to keep the 2017 ballot language, which limits spending to repair and maintenance of existing streets and sidewalks, or expand it to allow for construction of new sidewalks. 

Staff said constructing new sidewalk would cost approximately $2.5 million per 1,000 feet, including associated storm, curb, gutter, lighting, paving and easement work. 

Collier presented modeling showing the tradeoffs. Spending the full $4 million on pavement and sidewalk repair would maintain the current pavement condition index near 84 through 2034. 

Diverting $2 million annually to new sidewalk capital projects would cut pavement spending to $1.25 million per year. Under that scenario, the pavement condition index would fall to 77 by 2034 and deferred maintenance would climb to $33 million. 

Council member Lenny Greenstein said he opposed redirecting funds and said a straightforward renewal with unchanged language would be an easier case to make to voters. 

He added that the district's 10-year record of maintaining pavement quality was the stronger public argument. Adding new sidewalk construction to the scope, he said, would complicate that message and make the renewal a tougher sell. 

Council member Nicolas Dunning said the council's top priority should be ensuring the measure passes. 

"Not getting it passed is way more damaging," said Dunning, who added the risk of losing the measure far outweighed any benefit from expanding its scope. 

Mayor Andy Ryder said the council needed to begin public outreach regardless of the final language.

He also said coordinating with Lacey Fire District 3 was necessary before settling on an election date, as the district is weighing a separate property tax bond measure that could appear on the same ballot. 

City Manager Rick Walk said staff would return in April with additional information. Council decisions on both the election date and ballot language are needed by that time.