Bill Text: CA ACR67 | 2013-2014 | Regular Session | Chaptered
Bill Title: State highways: special designations.
Spectrum: Partisan Bill (Democrat 3-0)
Status: (Passed) 2014-09-02 - Chaptered by Secretary of State - Res. Chapter 141, Statutes of 2014. [ACR67 Detail]
Download: California-2013-ACR67-Chaptered.html
BILL NUMBER: ACR 67 CHAPTERED BILL TEXT RESOLUTION CHAPTER 141 FILED WITH SECRETARY OF STATE SEPTEMBER 2, 2014 ADOPTED IN SENATE AUGUST 14, 2014 ADOPTED IN ASSEMBLY AUGUST 18, 2014 AMENDED IN SENATE JUNE 25, 2014 AMENDED IN ASSEMBLY MARCH 12, 2014 INTRODUCED BY Assembly Member Alejo (Coauthor: Assembly Member Stone) (Coauthor: Senator DeSaulnier) JUNE 24, 2013 Relative to highways. LEGISLATIVE COUNSEL'S DIGEST ACR 67, Alejo. State highways: special designations. This measure would designate portions of State Highway Routes 1, 129, and 101 in the Counties of Monterey and Santa Cruz as the John Steinbeck Highway, the Senator Henry J. Mello Highway, the Oscar Rios Highway, and the Gateway to the Pinnacles Highway. This measure would also designate the interchange at Interstate 680 and Highway 24 in Contra Costa County as the CHP Officer Kenyon Youngstrom Memorial Interchange. The measure would also request the Department of Transportation to determine the cost of appropriate signs showing each of these special designations and, upon receiving donations from nonstate sources covering the cost of the signs for which the donations were made, to erect those signs. WHEREAS, John Ernst Steinbeck, Jr., was born on February 27, 1902, in Salinas, California, and is one of the most influential and memorable American authors of the 20th century; and WHEREAS, John Steinbeck's work has attracted people from around the world to visit the central coast of California, the Monterey Bay, and the Salinas Valley in which many of his works are set; and WHEREAS, John Steinbeck has brought fame and honor to the United States as a distinguished writer whose fiction is representative of the vitality and unique qualities of the American people; and WHEREAS, John Steinbeck's writing is known for its keen perception of the times, which has helped shed light on some of the economic and social problems of migrant workers in rural America; and WHEREAS, John Steinbeck was awarded the Pulitzer Prize in 1940, the Nobel Prize for Literature in 1962, and the United States Medal of Freedom in 1964 for his cultural contributions as a novelist, journalist, historian, and social commentator; and WHEREAS, John Steinbeck's widely celebrated literary works include 16 novels, a collection of short stories, four screenplays, various journalistic essays, three travel narratives, a translation, and two published journals; and WHEREAS, State Senator Henry J. Mello, born and raised in Watsonville, was the son of Portuguese immigrant parents, and attended Watsonville High School in Watsonville and Hartnell College in Salinas; and WHEREAS, In the 1940s, Henry Mello helped start the Mello Packing Company, a family apple business, and became involved in public service as a member of the California Agricultural Advisory Board; and WHEREAS, Henry Mello was elected as a Santa Cruz County supervisor in 1966, to the Assembly in 1976, and to the Senate in 1980, and represented the Counties of Santa Cruz and San Benito, as well as parts of the Counties of Monterey and Santa Clara in the Legislature until 1996; and WHEREAS, Henry Mello quickly rose to leadership positions by his appointment to the Senate Rules Committee and his election as Majority Whip and later as Majority Leader, and authored 726 bills, of which 456 were signed into law, with 120 of those bills focused on senior issues; and WHEREAS, Henry Mello was proud of his creation of the California Senior Legislature and authorship of legislation dealing with Alzheimers, including bills on respite care, adult day health care, and prevention of senior abuse; and WHEREAS, Henry Mello was known by his colleagues as a tough negotiator and for his dedication to his district and constituents; and WHEREAS, After leaving the Senate, Henry Mello worked with the Department of Transportation to prioritize the construction of one of the most important projects within the state highway system, an overpass to improve traffic safety on the dangerous intersection of State Highway Route 1 and Salinas Road; and WHEREAS, Henry Mello's legacy in the Pajaro Valley and California will forever be remembered; and WHEREAS, Oscar Rios was born in El Salvador in 1950, and in 1960 his family emigrated to San Francisco, where he became a United States citizen, later moving to Watsonville in 1985; and WHEREAS, Oscar Rios became the regional organizer for La Alianza, a nonprofit agency that provides advocacy referral and citizenship processing, and was an organizer during the Watsonville cannery strikes that lasted from 1985 to 1987, the longest cannery strikes in United States history, and that were led primarily by women cannery workers; and WHEREAS, In 1989, Oscar Rios was elected to the Watsonville City Council just after the federal Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals struck down Watsonville's discriminatory at-large election system and implemented district elections in the landmark federal voting rights case of Gomez v. City of Watsonville; and WHEREAS, When Oscar Rios became Watsonville's mayor in 1992, he became the first mayor of any United States city of Salvadorean descent, and quickly earned a reputation as an energetic and accessible leader, and he became a founding member of the Latino Caucus of the League of California Cities; and WHEREAS, Oscar Rios worked to build a successful partnership with Watsonville's local school district, resulting in the creation of more parks and playgrounds, and also worked with Watsonville's business community to create hundreds of new jobs; and WHEREAS, Oscar Rios led voter registration drives through the Southwest Voter Registration Education Project and worked on numerous campaigns to get other Latinos elected to political office, and continues to organize for Latino empowerment locally and statewide; and WHEREAS, Oscar Rios served 17 years on the Watsonville City Council and is the longest serving Latino city councilmember in the history of the County of Santa Cruz, having retired from the council on December 11, 2012; and WHEREAS, Oscar Rios continues to be employed as a Teamster Union Business Agent for Local 890 in Salinas; and WHEREAS, The City of Soledad is the "Gateway to the Pinnacles," located only five miles from Pinnacles National Park, which became the nation's 59th National Park on January 10, 2013, by an act of Congress signed into law by President Barack Obama; and WHEREAS, The City of Soledad is also located near the Spanish Mission Nuestra Seņora de la Soledad (the Mission of Our Lady of Solitude), founded on October 9, 1791, as the 13th of 21 missions in California; and WHEREAS, The City of Soledad is a great destination for tourists, located in one of the primary wine grape growing regions of California, with over 20 vineyards and wineries within a 30-mile radius; and WHEREAS, California Highway Patrol Officer Kenyon Marc Youngstrom made the ultimate sacrifice while performing his sworn duty, and in recognition thereof, we pay special tribute to his bravery and dedication; and WHEREAS, Officer Youngstrom was born on October 8, 1974, in Pasadena, California; and WHEREAS, Officer Youngstrom graduated from Arlington High School in Riverside in 1993, and attended California Baptist University in Riverside, California as well as Napa Valley College in Napa, California; and WHEREAS, From a young age, Officer Youngstrom recognized the importance of public service and was known as a hard worker who always gave back to his community; and WHEREAS, Officer Youngstrom served as a member of the United States Army Reserve for six years, achieving the rank of an E-4 Specialist; and WHEREAS, Officer Youngstrom entered the California Highway Patrol Academy in August of 2005 and graduated in February of 2006 (badge number 18063), and was initially assigned to the Contra Costa County area; and WHEREAS, After serving approximately three years in the Contra Costa County area, Officer Youngstrom voluntarily transferred to the Golden Gate Division as a member of the Field Support Unit, where he served as a distinguished member of the Protective Services Detail, responsible for providing protection to various dignitaries, heads of state, legislators, and other VIP's visiting the San Francisco Bay Area; and WHEREAS, Officer Youngstrom transferred back to the Contra Costa County area in August of 2012, where he spent the remainder of his career; and WHEREAS, Officer Youngstrom performed several duties over the course of his career and, because of his exceptional skills as an officer, he served as a mentor and recruiter for new officers, as well as a RADAR and LIDAR instructor; and WHEREAS, On September 4, 2012, Officer Youngstrom was assisting a fellow officer with an enforcement stop on Interstate 680 and was critically shot by the driver of the stopped vehicle. Unfortunately, he passed away the following day at the John Muir Medical Center in Walnut Creek, California; and WHEREAS, Upon his death, Officer Youngstrom gave the gift of life through organ and tissue donation, helping to save the lives of four individuals; and WHEREAS, Officer Youngstrom was a man of family and faith, and was a member of the Community Bible Church in Vallejo, California; and WHEREAS, Officer Youngstrom is survived by his wife, Karen, four children, Alexander, Madison, Andrew, and Kennedy, his parents, Gaylord and Jill Youngstrom, four brothers, and a sister; and WHEREAS, As a father, Officer Youngstrom leaves behind a legacy, instilled in his children, of a sense of respect and dignity; and WHEREAS, Officer Youngstrom is admired for his professionalism, dedication, honesty, loyalty, respect, and courage; and WHEREAS, Through adoption of Senate Concurrent Resolution 43 (Resolution Chapter 98 of the Statutes of 2013), the Legislature designated the State Highway Route 680 undercrossing at Livorna Road below Bridge No. 28-191 in Contra Costa County in Officer Youngstrom' s memory; and WHEREAS, The Legislature desires, instead, to designate the Interstate 680 and Highway 24 Interchange in Contra Costa County in Officer Youngstrom's memory; now, therefore, be it Resolved by the Assembly of the State of California, the Senate thereof concurring, That the Legislature hereby designates the portion of State Highway Route 1 from the Pajaro River to Struve Road, including the new Salinas Road overcrossing, in the County of Monterey, as the Senator Henry J. Mello Highway; and be it further Resolved, That the Legislature hereby designates the portion of State Highway Route 129 from Blackburn Street to the junction with State Highway Route 1 at Riverside Drive in the City of Watsonville as the Oscar Rios Highway; and be it further Resolved, That the Legislature hereby designates the portion of State Highway Route 101 from the Espinosa Road/Russell Road undercrossing to John Street in the City of Salinas as the John Steinbeck Highway; and be it further Resolved, That the Legislature hereby designates the portion of State Highway Route 101 from Exit 305 at Camphora Gloria Road to Exit 301 at Arroyo Seco Road in the County of Monterey as the Gateway to the Pinnacles Highway; and be it further Resolved, That the Legislature hereby designates the interchange at Interstate 680 and Highway 24 in Contra Costa County as the CHP Officer Kenyon Youngstrom Memorial Interchange; and be it further Resolved, That the designation made by Senate Concurrent Resolution 43 (Resolution Chapter 98 of the Statutes of 2013) is hereby rescinded; and be it further Resolved, That the Department of Transportation is requested to determine the cost of appropriate signs consistent with the signing requirements for the state highway system for each of these special designations and, upon receiving donations from nonstate sources sufficient to cover the cost of the signs for which the donations were made, to erect those signs; and be it further Resolved, That the Chief Clerk of the Assembly transmit copies of this resolution to the Director of Transportation and to the author for appropriate distribution.