Vallejo Billboards Protesting Cement Factory Send Concrete Message To Legislators
VALLEJO (KPIX 5) -- New billboards send a concrete message to Vallejo city leaders: approve the cement plant near the mouth of the Napa River and get voted out of office.
Opponents of the proposed cement factory paid for two billboards in Vallejo, one near the ferry terminal on Tennessee Street and the other on Couch Street.
They went up Tuesday and will run for a month.
Vallejo resident Kat Cook and neighbors raised more than $5,000 through Gofundme to pay for the billboards.
"We will vote you out," Cook said. "This is freedom of speech. It's the power of citizenship."
They target four specific councilmembers, two of them up are for re-election this November.
Cook calls them the Orcem Four, saying those councilmembers have so far voted in support to move the project along.
"We needed to have our voices heard. We needed to wake up our neighbors. And we need to involve the community," Cook said.
The city council is scheduled to receive the final environmental impact report in May and could vote whether or not to approve the cement plant that the company, Orcem, wants to build.
The project only needs four yes votes.
Peter Brooks, president of Fresh Air Vallejo said, "We want to kick Orcem out of City Hall."
While opponents argue a cement plant near schools and homes would pollute the air, Orcem took out a full page ad in the local newspaper saying the facility would be cleaner and would cause no significant air quality and noise impacts.
The company also promises good jobs and tax revenue for the city.
A lot of the resident don't buy it. They'll need one of these four councilmembers to vote no in order to stop the cement plant.
The billboards read: "No Cement Plant...We will vote you out."
