Hayward Spends Half a Million on Sidewalks — While Measure B Money Disappears Into the Pavement
The City Council just awarded a $494,569.50 contract to fix sidewalks and install wheelchair ramps. Sounds reasonable, right? Until you realize they’re using voter-approved transportation funds — and building in a $49,569 slush fund for cost overruns.
On August 19, 2025, the Hayward City Council unanimously approved Resolution 25-151, awarding a construction contract to Rosas Brothers Construction, Inc., for the Fiscal Year 2025 Sidewalk Rehabilitation and Wheelchair Ramps Project (Project No. 05340). The total commitment: $544,138.50 when you include the “administrative construction contingencies.”
That’s over half a million dollars to fix cracked sidewalks — funded by Measure B, the local sales tax Alameda County voters approved for transportation improvements. And here’s the kicker: $351,000 of that total is being freshly appropriated from Fund 216 (Measure B Pedestrian and Bicycle), meaning the city didn’t even budget for the full amount until they decided to spend it.
Mayor Mark Salinas and Council Members Julie Roche, George Syrop, Ray Bonilla Jr., Francisco Zermeño, Daniel Goldstein, and Angela Andrews all voted yes. No debate. No questions about why sidewalk repairs cost half a million dollars. No discussion about whether this was the best use of Measure B funds.
Just another unanimous vote, another check written, another project that will take months to complete and probably run over budget anyway.
The Math: What You’re Really Paying For
Let’s break down this half-million-dollar sidewalk project:
Construction Contract: $494,569.50 (Rosas Brothers Construction, Inc.)
Administrative Construction Contingencies: $49,569 (10% buffer for cost overruns)
Total Project Cost: $544,138.50
Measure B Appropriation: $351,000 (newly allocated from Fund 216)
Other Funding Sources: $193,138.50 (source not specified in minutes)
Per Household Cost (approximately 50,000 households): $10.88
That’s nearly eleven dollars per household to fix sidewalks and install wheelchair ramps. Multiply that across dozens of similar projects every year, and you start to understand why Hayward’s budget is always tight.
But here’s the real problem: that $49,569 contingency fund. It’s a 10% cushion built into the contract for “administrative construction contingencies” — bureaucratic language for “we expect this to cost more than we’re telling you.”
If the project comes in on budget, does that $49,569 go back to taxpayers? Of course not. It gets rolled into the final cost or redirected to other projects. The contingency is always spent. That’s how government budgeting works.
What Is Measure B, and Why Should You Care?
Measure B is a half-cent sales tax approved by Alameda County voters in 2000 and renewed in 2014. The tax generates hundreds of millions of dollars annually for transportation projects: roads, public transit, bike lanes, pedestrian improvements, and more.
Voters were promised local control. They were told the money would fix potholes, reduce congestion, and improve safety. And to be fair, some of it does. But Measure B has also become a slush fund for projects that weren’t voter priorities.
Sidewalk rehabilitation qualifies as a “pedestrian improvement,” so technically it’s allowed under Measure B. But is it what voters had in mind when they approved the tax? Or are they thinking about the potholed streets they drive on every day while the city spends half a million dollars on sidewalks?
Here’s the bigger issue: Measure B funds are supposed to be additional revenue for transportation, not a replacement for basic city services. Sidewalk maintenance is a core municipal responsibility. Cities have been fixing sidewalks since sidewalks were invented. But now Hayward is tapping voter-approved transportation funds to cover routine maintenance.
That’s not what voters signed up for. That’s budget gimmickry.
The Contractor: Rosas Brothers Construction
Rosas Brothers Construction, Inc., won the bid at $494,569.50. The city’s minutes don’t reveal how many other contractors bid on the project, what their bids were, or why Rosas Brothers was selected.
Was this a competitive process? Did the city get three bids? Five? Ten? Or did Rosas Brothers submit the only bid because local contractors know Hayward’s projects come with bureaucratic headaches and payment delays?
We don’t know. The city doesn’t say. And that’s a problem.
In a transparent government, taxpayers would know:
- How many bids were submitted
- What the bid range was
- Why the winning contractor was selected
- Whether the contractor has a history with the city
- Whether previous projects came in on time and on budget
None of that information appears in the public record. The council approved the contract, and that’s that.
For all we know, Rosas Brothers is a great contractor who will do excellent work. Or they’re the only one willing to deal with Hayward’s bureaucracy. Or they’re a repeat player who knows how to navigate the city’s bidding process. We have no way to tell.
The 10% Contingency: Budgeting for Failure
That $49,569 contingency is the most honest part of this contract — and the most damning.
The city is openly admitting they expect the project to cost more than the bid. They’re building in a 10% buffer because they know construction projects run over budget. That’s not conservative planning. That’s accepting failure as inevitable.
Here’s how the contingency game works:
- The contractor bids low to win the contract. They know there’s a contingency fund, so they don’t need to pad their bid.
- Unexpected costs arise during construction. They always do. Permits take longer. Materials cost more. Underground utilities aren’t where the city said they’d be.
- The contractor requests additional funds. The city approves it from the contingency because “the project must be completed.”
- The contingency gets spent. It always does. No one ever says, “We came in under budget, here’s your money back.”
- The final cost exceeds the original estimate. Taxpayers pay more than they were told. The city claims it was unavoidable.
This happens on project after project, year after year. And yet the city keeps building in contingencies instead of demanding better cost controls.
If Hayward’s construction projects consistently run over budget, the solution isn’t to build in more cushion. It’s to fix the bidding process, improve project management, and hold contractors accountable.
But that would require effort. Easier to just add 10% and hope voters don’t notice.
The $351,000 Appropriation: Moving Money Around
Here’s the part that should make taxpayers angry: the city is appropriating $351,000 from Measure B Fund 216 specifically for this project.
That means this money wasn’t already budgeted. It’s being pulled from the Measure B fund now, for this purpose, because the city decided to spend it.
Measure B is supposed to fund voter priorities. But if the city can just appropriate funds whenever they want for whatever qualifies as “pedestrian and bicycle” improvements, then voters don’t really control how the money is spent. The city council does.
This is how voter-approved taxes get redirected. The language is broad enough to cover almost anything transportation-related. So the city spends Measure B money on projects that may or may not be priorities, and voters are left wondering why the roads are still full of potholes.
Meanwhile, the other $193,138.50 is coming from unspecified funding sources. Where? General fund? Another grant? A different Measure B category? The minutes don’t say.
That lack of transparency is deliberate. If taxpayers knew exactly where every dollar was coming from, they might start asking why the city has money for sidewalks but not for police staffing or pothole repairs.
What $544,138 Actually Buys
The project is called “Fiscal Year 2025 Sidewalk Rehabilitation and Wheelchair Ramps.” That’s it. No details on:
- How many blocks of sidewalk will be repaired
- How many wheelchair ramps will be installed
- Which neighborhoods will benefit
- Why these locations were prioritized over others
- What condition the sidewalks are in now
- How long the repairs are expected to last
For all we know, this could be comprehensive citywide repairs, or it could be a few blocks in one district. The city doesn’t say.
In the private sector, a half-million-dollar contract comes with detailed specifications, timelines, and deliverables. In government, it’s a line item in the consent calendar that gets approved without discussion.
Taxpayers deserve to know what they’re getting for $544,138. But the city doesn’t think that information is important enough to include in the public record.
The ADA Compliance Angle
Wheelchair ramps are an Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) requirement. Cities must provide accessible routes for people with mobility impairments. That’s not optional. It’s federal law.
So here’s the uncomfortable question: Is Hayward fixing sidewalks because they care about accessibility, or because they’re afraid of getting sued for ADA violations?
Cities across California have been hit with lawsuits over inaccessible sidewalks. The settlements are expensive. So municipalities are scrambling to install curb cuts and repair broken pavement before the lawyers show up.
That’s a legitimate concern. But it also means this project isn’t really about improving neighborhoods or serving residents. It’s about avoiding liability.
And if that’s the case, why is the city using Measure B funds instead of general fund money? ADA compliance is a basic government responsibility, not a special transportation project. But by categorizing it as “pedestrian improvement,” the city can tap voter-approved transportation funds and keep the general fund free for other spending.
It’s budget shell games. And taxpayers are the mark.
What the Council Should Have Asked
A responsible city council would have demanded answers:
- How many bids did we receive, and why did we choose this one?
- What exactly are we getting for $544,138?
- Why is 10% contingency necessary, and what happens if we don’t use it?
- Is this the best use of Measure B funds, or should we prioritize road repairs?
- How long will these sidewalk repairs last before we have to do this again?
- What’s our total backlog of sidewalk and ADA compliance needs?
Instead, they approved it without comment. That’s not oversight. That’s a formality.
The Bottom Line
Hayward just spent over half a million dollars on sidewalk repairs and wheelchair ramps. The money is coming from Measure B, the voter-approved transportation tax that was supposed to fix roads and reduce congestion. The contract includes a 10% contingency because the city expects cost overruns. And taxpayers have no idea what they’re actually getting for their money.
This is how government spending spirals out of control. Small projects add up. Contingencies always get spent. Voter-approved funds get redirected to projects that weren’t priorities. And city councils rubber-stamp it all without debate.
Rosas Brothers Construction will do the work. The sidewalks will get fixed. The wheelchair ramps will get installed. And in five years, the city will need to do it all over again because concrete doesn’t last forever.
By then, Measure B will be tapped for another round of “pedestrian improvements.” The city will appropriate more funds. Another contractor will win another bid. And taxpayers will keep paying.
The meeting adjourned at 10:06 p.m. Resolution 25-151 is now law. The contract is awarded. The money is committed.
And the potholes on your street? Those will have to wait.
