Opposition to Increased Density
by Mari Eliza, Concerned California Citizen
Sacramento Politicians need to embrace the New Normal and assure their constituents that they are working with, not against local governments to provide the best service possible.
After years of writing about the dangers associated with living in dense urban developments, our deepest fears are playing out as we face one of the largest health and safety crisis in our lifetimes. COVID-19 is a silent killer virus that spreads through physical contact and so far there is no known vaccination or cure. The virus does not treat all hosts the same. Sick and non-sick carriers may be spreading it throughout the environment undetected. As communities ramp up testing and tracing they discover that 50% of the hosts may show no symptoms. There may already be mutations that don’t test positive making this disease even more difficult to detect. We know very little about this virus other than social distancing and wearing masks seems to be the best defense so far.
We are living in an uncertain world that may require us to change our way of life and avoid physical contact for a for a long time, yet we understand that some of Sacramento politicians are ignoring the dictates of the new normal, burying their heads in the sand, and charging ahead will bills that force more density on all California communities, oblivious to the changes needed to protect our homes and workplaces from COVID-19. As we move into a new world of social distancing the government needs to switch gears.
Everyone needs to pause the density button and oppose the bills that remove CEQA protections, and override local jurisdictions’ ability to protect the health and safety of their communities. Sacramento needs to work with local communities, not against them. The courts need to look at the laws with fresh eyes as well.
All the efforts of our legislators should be to support the communities’ efforts to build social distancing into all new housing, workplaces, and public venues. People will change their lifestyles and work habits to protect themselves and their families. More people will work from home and fewer people will subject themselves to crowded public transportation vehicles. Public transit systems will need to be redesigned to provide for a less crowded environment and more physical space for their riders.
Sacramento legislators need to focus on new methods to finance the health care of our citizens. That will take a lot of work as we need to increase the number of trained doctors, nurses and other health care professionals. That will require establishing more educational opportunities and teaching facilities for medical professionals and scientists, and more opportunities for allowing foreign workers, including trained professionals from other states, to migrate to California.
We need to raise the pay of all essential workers so they may practice social distancing and provide for their families. The Governor has already set up a system of child care for many essential workers. The system needs to be expanded to cover more workers and establish earlier social skills in children.
We need to support more independent renewable energy projects to take the pressure off the grid systems. This will make it easier for people to withstand the power grid shutoffs. The laws to protect these systems should be expanded to protect private systems and remove excessive fees and service charges by utility companies.
We need to support the establishment of public banks and small lending institutions to cut the costs of funding our public services, and help individuals who are cut out of the current banking system.
There are many issues that need to be addressed by Sacramento politicians, but urban densification is not one of them. Spreading the population wider and thinner by encouraging more jobs near the housing would be a good start. Or just get out of the way of the local governments and let them do their jobs.
The public is wise. The public elected the Sacramento politicians and the public may choose to not re-elect those who continue to undermine their efforts to protect their rights to determine how they live. Removing the right to participate in decisions is especially difficult to swallow, under the best of times. Now is the time to listen to the public, and to the neighborhood organizations they rely on for information and support, as people define their new normal.
See a list of Assembly bills that we oppose that impose restrictions of local governments, or remove public notice or participation: https://zrants.wordpress.com/2020/05/07/letter-of-opposition-to-increased-density/
