Hello, there.
For the last 8 months, The Emperor Norton Trust has been floating a proposal for the California state legislature to name the San Francisco–Oakland Bay Bridge tunnel through Yerba Buena Island the
EMPEROR NORTON TUNNEL
in 2026: the 90th anniversary of the Bay Bridge.
In order for this come to pass, state lawmakers must pass a joint naming resolution by 31 August — the last date for passing a 2026 measure under this year's state legislative calendar.
Given a 31 August deadline, a naming resolution needs to be introduced very soon, to allow the procedural wheels of transportation committee hearings / votes and full floor votes in both houses enough time to turn.
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What state legislative staffers have made clear to us in emails and Zoom calls over the last several months is that lawmakers are not going to take this up unless and until there is meaningful institutional support — so we have been focusing our efforts on trying to secure that.
As ever, executive staffers and board members of historical / cultural institutions most likely to support an EMPEROR NORTON TUNNEL resolution think this is a terrific idea (or so they tell us) — but, so far, no such institution has had the cojones to make the first move.
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So — especially if you are in San Francisco — it would be very helpful to this project for you to write or call...
- Your state Senator (Scott Wiener)
- Your state Assemblymember (Matt Haney or Catherine Stefani)
and
- Your local Supervisor
...and:
1) Tell them that you support the EMPEROR NORTON TUNNEL naming proposed by The Emperor Norton Trust
2) Urge them to sponsor an EMPEROR NORTON TUNNEL resolution In their legislative body.
3) Urge them to contact The Emperor Norton Trust for more information.
You don't have to go into more detail.
We already have made the case in our proposal.
Simply:
a) Urge your rep to click the Proposal button at EmperorNortonTunnel.org
b) Have them contact me at john@EmperorNortonTrust.org
Cheers!!!
JOHN LUMEA
The Emperor Norton Trust