Social Engineering Revisited
A number of these cartoons were produced when the first Plan Bay Area was rolled out in 2012. The public rejected it but the government embraced the Plan and pushed it through. The motive was, and is, higher revenues. But, the game is no longer working. People are leaving. The demand is gone for urban living.
It is helpful to review the early warnings that were brushed off by regional planners to see how they played out. Warnings about Plan Bay Area turned out to be pretty accurate. We got a massive dose of dense development in the urban centers built around a very expensive public transit system, higher taxes, cost of living and displacement of thousands of citizens to make way for high paying high spenders who were the first to leave the city for the suburbs.
This year’s “Building Opportunity For All” bills ignore the reality that their urban dream is not shared by the people who abandoned the cities. Efforts to force density on the people who moved to avoid it will not go well for the state representatives and could cost the governor his job if he supports them.
The normally placid middle class, including people of color, are fighting back. They uprooted themselves to avoid density and will not be threatened again without a fight. Join unitedneighbors and stay informed about SB 9 and SB 10 and the actions you may take to express your thinking about this latest slate of forced dense development bills to your government officials, including the Governor. Cities and citizens have a lot to lose.
History of public opposition to the plan is well-documented. Watch the video of the event in Marin County that featured experts and scientists and became known as “The Great Debate”. The scientists got it right, Listen to the scientists. Continue to educate yourself and others. Take actions to support your concerns.
