Editor,
John Ley is an intuitive man, a man of purpose. He serves people with integrity and compassion.
John was a journalist for a local news outlet. He’s a retired pilot, a fierce man of courage, consistently stepping in where work is needed, and serves humbly. His leadership as a Washington state Republican committeeman inspired so many of us here and across the state.
His hard work has revealed the truth behind multiple facets of the Interstate 5 bridge. Most recently, he shared that 54% of the I-5 bridge replacement (IBR) proposal is for transit, pedestrians and bicyclists. Why should cars and trucks be paying tolls to cover the costs of the transit an “active transportation” portions of the bridge? Where’s the value on a project that is more for transit than for cars and trucks, Ley asks. He points out the two states will replace the Hood River bridge for $520 million. Why spend 15 times that on a project that is clearly more about bringing light rail to Vancouver instead of improving traffic congestion.
Ley broke the story that TriMet is demanding new taxes from Clark County residents to pay for the 3-mile MAX light rail extension operations and maintenance. Portland doesn’t pay for C- Tran express bus operations into Portland. Why should we pay TriMet’s costs?
He revealed that the price tag of the IBR won’t be updated for another year, in spite of administrator Greg Johnson telling legislators the cost would be going up last December. How much will tolls be on a bridge with seemingly no limit on costs?
Ley is the regional expert on tolling. He testified before five Oregon Department of Transportation committee meetings in 2017 and 2018, plus the Oregon Transportation Commission trying to stop the tolls. He testified before the Bi-State Bridge Committee of 16 Oregon and Washington legislators, pushing for a cost-effective project, without tolls and light rail.
He broke the story that 40 Vancouver single family homes were in the IBR crosshairs. Potentially, 35 commercial businesses will be taken by the project, including the 5-year-old Hurley Building.
We must not waste our hard-earned tax dollars replacing an over-congested three-lane bridge with another three-lane bridge. We do not want a “bridge too low.” We don’t need MAX light rail either.
People simply want to save time.
John is a fighter for no tolls and speaks on Lars Larson radio show consistently highlighting many citizen concerns on transportation issues. He has fought to clean up Lacamas Lake water, fought for citizens’ right to vote on tax increases and battled against a $78 million pool bond in a local community.
Most recently, he has been a leading voice in support of the seven citizen initiatives from Let’s Go Washington. Four will appear on the November ballot.
It’s an honor to serve with John Ley in so many ways in Clark County. John Ley will not sit idle; he will most definitely represent you well in Olympia. Ley is the key!
Justine Stimmel
La Center
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