SCR 23, as amended, Gaines. Paul J. Lunardi Memorial Highway.
This measure would designate a specified portion of State Highway Route 267 in the County of Placer as the Paul J. Lunardi Memorial Highway. The measure would also request the Department of Transportation to determine the cost of appropriate signs showing this special designation and, upon receiving donations from nonstate sources covering that cost, to erect those signs.
Fiscal committee: yes.
P1 1WHEREAS, Paul J. Lunardi was born on September 30, 1921,
2in Roseville, California, and lived his entire life at the family home
3on Earl Avenue; and
4WHEREAS, Upon his graduation from Roseville High School,
5Lunardi enlisted in the United States Coast Guard during World
6War II. After the war, he was elected to the Roseville City Council
7in 1950 and 1954, winning the mayoral seat in the latter year; and
8WHEREAS, During his tenure on the city council, Lunardi was
9instrumental in the adoption of a city charter for the
10council-manager form of government and successfully established
11a community hospital, developed a municipal fire department,
P2 1established an updated street lighting system, obtained central
2valley federal power for the city, and expanded sewage, water,
3and electric distribution systems. His outstanding record of
4achievement earned Lunardi a highly coveted “Outstanding Young
5Men of California” award presented by the State Junior Chamber
6of Commerce on January 8, 1955; and
7WHEREAS, Lunardi’s entry into politics “was just sort of
8accidental,” and as he used to say, “I just kind of expressed myself
9about what was happening in Roseville”; and
10WHEREAS, Lunardi was elected to the State Assembly in 1958,
11representing the 6th Assembly District, which spanned 11 mountain
12counties. He served in the Assembly until 1963 when he was
13elected to the State Senate to represent the 7th Senate District,
14which included the Counties of Sierra, Nevada, and Placer. He
15retired in 1966 due to redistricting; and
16WHEREAS, One of Lunardi’s proudest accomplishments was
17his legislation designating the ghost town of Bodie as a State
18Historic Park. Bodie is now listed on the National Register of
19Historic Places and is one of the best preserved and most visited
20(200,000 people a year) ghost towns in the nation; and
21WHEREAS, Lunardi introduced the first bill in the state’s
22history to assess farmland at a lower tax rate. The bill later passed
23with the help of Assembly Member John Williamson and is now
24known as the Williamson Act; and
25WHEREAS, Skiers and mountain residents still benefit from
26one of Lunardi’s major legislative accomplishments that designated
27the “Truckee shortcut” as State Highway Route 267, that links the
28City of Truckee to Kings Beach. Prior to 1965, the road was
29regularly closed by snow in the winter. Lunardi’s legislation
30enabled the road to remain open year-round, worth millions of
31dollars to the area’s tourism and ski industries, and allowed for
32the development of Northstar Ski Resort; and
33WHEREAS, Lunardi was honored in 2008 when his hometown
34of Roseville dedicated a park in his name, to honor his civic
35achievements and his dedication to the community where he lived
36his entire life; and
37WHEREAS, Lunardi passed away peacefully on January 11,
382013, at 91 years of age and was laid to rest in his beloved
39Roseville, California; and
P3 1WHEREAS, Designating a portion of State Highway Route
2267, that links the City of Truckee to Kings Beach, as the Paul J.
3Lunardi Memorial Highway would be an appropriate honor for
4this visionary leader who fought to develop this highway; now,
5therefore, be it
6Resolved by the Senate of the State of California, the Assembly
7thereof concurring, That the Legislature hereby designates the
8begin delete approximately 4.2 mileend deletebegin insert 5-mileend insert portion of State Highway Route
9267begin delete that ends at Kings Beach,end deletebegin insert from postmile 4.898 to the end of
10State Highway Route 267 at postmile 9.898end insert in the County of Placer,
11as the Paul J. Lunardi Memorial Highway; and be it further
12Resolved, That the Department of Transportation is requested
13to determine the cost of erecting appropriate signs, consistent with
14the signing requirements of the state highway system, showing
15this special designation and, upon receiving donations from
16nonstate sources covering that cost, to erect those signs; and be it
17further
18Resolved, That the Secretary of the Senate transmit copies of
19this resolution to the Director of Transportation and to the author
20for appropriate distribution.
CORRECTIONS:
Text--Page 3.
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Corrected 5-14-15—See last page. 97