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Berkeley YIMBYS say:
De-forest Tilden Park
and Build Housing

Thomas Lord
Sunday May 02, 2021 - 08:51:00 PM

The latest from Berkeley's watercolor- painting YIMBY Alfred Twu?

Remove the woodlands of Tilden Park and lease the land for housing.

He's joined by by Berkeley YIMBY Diego Aguilar-Canabal who is Berkeley Councilmember Terry Taplin's legislative aide.

I'm not joking - and neither are they.

Quote: "Moving development away from flammable forests is the right thing to do in most of California. But in the East Bay Hills - an island of hazard surrounded by 2 million people - maybe it's the forest that ought to go.

"While tiny in size, the East Bay Hills are one of the biggest wildfire hazards in the state since it's right next to the city. There's no way the state can afford to buy out all the homes and businesses at risk."

Diego Aguilar-Canabal chimes in to add: "That's right'.

The YIMBYs imagine themselves to be political sophisticates and they do sometimes make outrageous proposals to try to make their actual goal look like a compromise. Either way, you can see how messed up our YIMBY-majority City Council has become.

[EDITOR'S NOTE: Alfred Twu is Councilmember Taplin's appointee to the Berkeley Landmark Preservation Commission.]


Opinion

Public Comment

AN ACTIVIST'S DIARY,
Week Ending May 1

Kelly Hammargren
Saturday May 01, 2021 - 11:26:00 AM

Where I grew up, May 1 was a celebration of spring with leaving surprise baskets of candy on doorsteps and then running away. I didn’t learn about May 1 as International Worker’s Day until years later after I left that little town in Minnesota. May 1 is also the birthday of a friend who caught COVID-19 in January 2021 and is still struggling with what we call “long haulers syndrome.” An attendant for her daughter went partying over New Years and brought it in.

I am sharing the story of my friend as the COVID-19 pandemic is not over even as the incidence of new cases in the US is dropping and California is looking good. For some like my friend COVID may never be over. Please do all you can to persuade unvaccinated 16 year olds and older in your circle of friends to get their COVID-19 vaccines and complete the two shot regimen.

The week of meetings started with the Land Use Policy Committee, which had one item on TOPA (Tenants Opportunity to Purchase Act). There were 41 speakers, most of whom opposed TOPA. This is a complete reversal from the last meeting on TOPA, which was flooded with speakers supporting TOPA.

My personal opinion is that even if passed, TOPA won’t do much to change the housing ownership landscape except for a handful of people. Buying a house can be challenging enough for a family or individual. And now, what happens if you put unrelated neighbors joining together to buy a property into the mix? That can get very complicated.

The final outcome of establishing the Council’s Agenda and Rules Committee can be seen in the May 11 Council meeting posted in the Activist’s Calendar. The current M.O. is to move nearly everything to the Consent category or else to turf it to another committee. Councilmember Kesarwani’s recommendation for developing a universal checklist for ADUs was sent to the Land Use Committee, and Councilmember Harrison’s proposal to establish a Pilot Climate Equity Action Fund was sent to the Budget Committee. Mayor Arreguin’s high-sounding resolution committing to what’s called the “C40 race to zero” by 2045 was moved to consent.

When I joined 350 Bay Area in 2012, carbon dioxide at 350 parts per million was still a thing. C02 was 420.54 ppm by April 30, 2021.

Zero emissions by 2045 is just too late. 

It is a myth to believe we can stay under temperature rise of 1.5°C without dramatic change. Temperature rise went from 0.8°C in 2018 to ≈1.2°C in 2020. A 2019 paper by Timothy Lenton, Professor of Climate Change and Earth System Science at the University of Exeter, on tipping points is finally getting attention in the media. Lenton suggested we are looking at 3.0°C by 2070, and 10 meters (32.8 feet) of sea level rise (SLR) is already baked into the system. The unanswered SLR question is how fast, decades or centuries. 

The drought map that really caught my attention is that of the full U.S. from the University of Nebraska-Lincoln, not the one of California that came with the warning that the Bay Area is in extreme drought https://droughtmonitor.unl.edu/. At the Disaster and Fire Safety Commission on Wednesday it was noted that July is now predicted to be the peak of the fire season. Looking at the UNL map, we need to keep those N95 masks handy for a heavy fire season. An article I read over a year ago may have it right: The place to ride out climate change and SLR is Duluth, Minnesota at the tip of Lake Superior. 

Others have described the successful outcome of the Ordinance Regulating Police Acquisition and Use of Controlled Equipment at council on Tuesday evening. I was on edge through the entire three-hour-plus discussion. Even though Arreguin started the discussion stating that he supported the Harrison version, I’ve attended too many meetings to feel confident it would survive without compromise hits. 

Kesarwani submitted the pro-police alternative, which was followed with Taplin’s questions to the city manager and interim police chief. Droste did her usual dance of questions and feigning to not understand. The Kesarwani alternative and questions gave the opening to the declaration that it took 374 hours over two months to meet the use of force documentation requirements. That makes one wonder what is going on with policing. 

As 11:40 pm approached and the vote was called, Kesarwani passed. When Wengraf voted yes for the Harrison version, the rest stepped in line to make the final call unanimous. 

The Budget and Finance Committee is continuing to hear the department budget proposals, pushing councilmember requests like traffic circles and climate action funding to the end. Last year, deep in the pandemic with revenue falling, there was an across-the-board 15% cut for every department except the police. The police budget was passed with a 12% cut. 

The Reimagining Public Safety Task Force was the last meeting of the week. The meeting started with public comment from people identifying themselves as business owners describing terrible scenes of rampant frightening drug use in the business corridors and ended with public commenters critical of policing describing harassment and excessive use of force. In between the city auditor Jenny Wong went through the audit of police response. 

The report is thorough, though it would be worthwhile to map the police responses by location/beat, a step Wong said could not be completed in the tight time frame. The beat would be especially helpful since both the City audit and the Center for Policing Equity report found the same biased policing of people of color. 

The “reimagining” task force is supposed to look at what part of policing should or could be replaced with mental health and/or social service workers or other positions like the proposed berkDOT , which would move minor traffic violations from police into a new Berkeley Department of Transportation. 

Police data on mental health and homeless is absent or not searchable. Only 11.7% of responses were identified through audit as mental health related. Even a simple check box could improve this reporting.  

I like to finish with what I’m reading. I heard an interview with Tessie Castillo about her journaling class with death row inmates in North Carolina. When Tessie broke with the instructions from her mentor to keep the class secret and wrote an op-ed n the Raleigh News and Observer about seeing the humanity in the prisoners, the prison warden ordered the class to end. Tessie stayed in contact with the prisoners and the journaling continued through exchange of letters. The book Crimson Letters:Voices from Death Row is a compilation of essays from four of the prisoners. The essays are very personal, revealing and worth reading.


May Pepper Spray Times

By Grace Underpressure
Sunday May 02, 2021 - 09:07:00 PM

Editor's Note: The latest issue of the Pepper Spray Times is now available.

You can view it absolutely free of charge by clicking here . You can print it out to give to your friends.

Grace Underpressure has been producing it for many years now, even before the Berkeley Daily Planet started distributing it, most of the time without being paid, and now we'd like you to show your appreciation by using the button below to send her money.

This is a Very Good Deal. Go for it! 


Columns

THE PUBLIC EYE:What’s Happening in California?

Bob Burnett
Friday April 30, 2021 - 04:27:00 PM

After a rough year, California is on track to declare "victory" over Covid-19 on June 15th. Nonetheless, the fabric of California society has changed.

In recent months, California has gotten onboard the vaccination train and, as of this writing, more than 38 percent of those over the age of sixteen have been fully vaccinated -- and another 20 percent have had one shot. (California is current vaccinating at the rate of 330,000 doses per day.) At the same time, the number of new COVID-19 cases has fallen, as has the number of Coronavirus-related deaths. The state is now averaging about 1400 cases and 75 deaths a day -- the lowest per capita rates in the continental U.S. We're on track to meet California Governor Gavin Newsom's objectives and "open" the state on June 15th; this means that most businesses will be permitted to reopen, so long as they follow social distancing and mask rules. 

At the same time, California appears to be on course for a strong economic recovery. Recently, the UCLA business school (https://www.latimes.com/business/story/2021-03-10/2021-california-covid-economic-recovery-outpaces-us) forecasted: "A waning pandemic combined with fiscal relief means a strong year of growth in 2021 — one of the strongest years of growth in the last 60 years — followed by sustained higher growth rates in 2022 and 2023...California, buoyed by high-earning technology and professional sectors that shifted to at-home work during the pandemic, will recover somewhat faster than the U.S., even though a full rebound in the tourist-dependent leisure and hospitality businesses will lag." 

Although it was initially forecast that the pandemic would hurt all aspects of the California economy, that turned out not to be the case. "The most likely source of [California's] recovery is in the service sectors, as half of jobs lost at the recession’s nadir were in restaurants, entertainment and the arts, hotels and tourism, and other services such as salons or dry-cleaning." (https://www.ppic.org/blog/one-year-later-is-california-on-the-road-to-recovery/?utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=one-year-later-is-california-on-the-road-to-recovery? ) 

Overall, in 2020, the California economy did better than expected because of technology. A recent California study (https://www.nbcbayarea.com/news/california/california-revenues-soar-as-rich-get-richer-during-pandemic/2479807/ ) observed: "[During 2020] with the pandemic forcing the closure of bars, restaurants, theme parks, sporting events and small businesses, lower-wage workers bore the brunt of the losses while the wealthier worked from home. The economic losses started at the bottom of the income ladder and so far they haven't made their way up to the top." [Emphasis added] That is, the economic impact of the pandemic varied by social class -- the rich were not as affected as the poor. 

Coming out of the pandemic, we can see three important trends. The first is that the pandemic has exacerbated the already wide gap between California's rich and poor. (https://www.ppic.org/publication/income-inequality-and-economic-opportunity-in-california/) Before the pandemic, California was already one of the top five states in terms of economic inequality; chances are that we are now number one. (https://www.ppic.org/publication/income-inequality-in-california/ ) 

The second trend is that the wealthy, and information-technology workers, are moving out of the cities into the suburbs and beyond. (This is particularly true in Northern California.) [A recent San Francisco Chronicle article (https://www.sfchronicle.com/bayarea/article/People-are-leaving-S-F-but-not-for-Austin-or-15955527.php ) reinforces this notion and dismisses the contention that Californians, en masse, are leaving for other states.] During the pandemic, these upper-income Californians found they could work remotely -- high-speed Internet is well-deployed throughout California. This trend has driven up housing prices throughout the Golden State. (It's also contributed to the statewide scarcity of affordable housing.) 

The third trend is that because of environmental challenges -- such as the threat of fire and associated poor air quality -- California's most fortunate are moving to the coast. That means that the price of coastal housing has increased. 

There are three consequences of these trends: the first is that as California heads towards the elusive goal of "herd immunity" -- somewhere north of 80 percent vaccinated -- the unvaccinated will disproportionately be found among the poor and those living in the eastern areas of the state -- that is between California's central valley and the border with Nevada/Arizona. 

The second consequence is that as California heads into another summer of fires and poor air quality, the bulk of this misfortune will fall on much of the same population -- the rural easternmost segment of the state. 

The third consequence is that the impact of these trends will disproportionately impact Republican voters. A recent bipartisan survey (https://www.ppic.org/publication/california-voter-and-party-profiles/ ) concluded: "47% of those we consider most likely to vote are Democrats, while 26% are Republicans and 22% are independents." [That is, California has become an overwhelmingly blue state.] The most Republican areas tend to be in the eastern areas of the state -- that is, the areas less likely to be vaccinated, to be able to work from home, and to be able to flee from fires and drought. 

Viewed from the proverbial "10,000 feet," these problem areas can be addressed in three ways: First, California needs to redouble its effort to vaccinate the poor and those living in eastern areas of the state, i.e. rural Republicans. Second, while there is already a massive state-wide effort to head off a dangerous fire season, some portion of the rural-residential danger can be mitigated by providing affordable housing -- so residents don't have to move into wooded rural areas to find housing. Third, because the pandemic provided tangible evidence of "the digital divide," California needs to do more to provide high-speed internet to the poor and to the eastern areas of the state -- and the associated training. 

California has the resources to fix these problems. The question is: does the Golden State have the political will to make these changes? 

Bob Burnett is a Bay Area writer and activist. He can be reached at bburnett@sonic.net 


ON MENTAL ILLNESS: Changing the Internal Conversation

Jack Bragen
Sunday May 02, 2021 - 07:09:00 PM

When we are depressed or unhappy, or if life doesn't seem to be treating us well, maybe we ought to look at how we're thinking about things. That may sound a bit trite, but sometimes it is applicable, especially when we've taken the medication route as far as it will go.

And maybe we could question the subject matter in the mind. One expert on mental illness believes that the things that go wrong with the human mind are limited, and that the human brain is fairly limited in what it does. Let me explain...

The human mind is like a browser. A browser can bring us content from all parts of the world, can bring us incredible material, can show us unlimited types of subject matter. While some of this inevitably will be garbage, some of it will be produced by greatness. 

Yet the browser itself doesn't do a whole lot. It shows us the material, and it has multiple capabilities beyond that, such as e-commerce or playing a video, but in the big picture, the browser only does so much. 

This psychiatrist went on to say the things that go wrong with people's minds are relatively well-defined and limited in scope. The mind can be psychotic, it can be depressed, it can have mood swings, or it could have other damage traceable to a head injury. The last part I'm adding even though I don't recall reading that as part of the psychiatrist's article. 

I'm sorry that I can't bring you his or her name and can't identify who expressed this opinion so that I could give them proper credit--I didn't think to write down their name at the time that I read or heard the opinion. If the author of that research or hypothesis reads this, please send me a message through the editor. 

That brings me to the method I'm going to suggest, and it could help you when you are down or upset: Just change the content of your thinking. And while this may not seem easy or readily done, it may take less effort than you think. 

When I was age thirty, I had all four wisdom teeth out at once. It required oral surgery because the teeth were impacted beneath the gums and could not grow in. I wanted all four teeth done at once, and under local anesthesia, not laughing gas. They gave me exactly that. I was able to observe that the two male surgeons were working as fast as they could. I had commented that I do meditation. This had been prompted by a remark that I could tolerate pain. The response to this was a jab of the anesthesia needle into my cheek unnecessarily hard, and this was probably the cause of a bubble in my cheek that was present afterward--it might've been some kind of embolism. The company was Contra Costa Dental, and they have since changed their name or gone out of business. 

I was taken home in their van with a prescription for pain medication that I had no way of filling over the weekend. At the time I lived at Riverhouse, and I lacked economic resources. I couldn't even pay for food to eat over the weekend. 

But the above is tangential. My point is that of the value of distraction. When I was in a common area of the hotel, the security man told me stories of what it was like when he worked in various security jobs. He managed to tell some interesting tales. This got my mind off the track of my indescribable pain, and this was a source of relief. 

When you are in pain, whether physical or mental, distraction from the pain works. 

To use the above as a deliberate technique, we have some options. I will describe one of them. I tell myself; I am about to change the content of my thinking. Then I visualize a shift in the body of thought, as though I had a picture of the thinking area and could change it. Then I choose some other content. The new content could consist of a task that I'd like to get done, or it could be something I find enjoyable. I focus on that. And--that's it. If the above method doesn't work for you, it is fine to arrive at your own. 

For people with life-changing mental illness, we should have more tools in our arsenal other than just pills and talking to counselors. 

When we shift the content of our thinking away from the painful and toward either the practical or the unrelated, it brings relief. It won't solve your problems. Yet it could allow you some comfort when you need it. 

 

Jack Bragen is author of "Instructions for Dealing with Schizophrenia: A Self-Help Manual," and "Jack Bragen's 2021 Fiction Collection."


SMITHEREENS: Reflections on Bits & Pieces

Gar Smith
Thursday April 29, 2021 - 05:26:00 PM

Walk on the Wildcat Side

We recently set off on a seven-mile, early morning trailwalk through Richmond's Wildcat Canyon—cow moos, wild turkey hoots, and coyote sightings included at no additional cost.

At the end of the trail, we discovered a large placard commemorating the "Anza Expedition of 1776." The signage offered a discomfiting reminder that the world is filled with risk and injury—even in a supposedly blissful "state of Nature." It was the last sentence that reverberates:

"These hills in 1776 were covered with native bunchgrasses and streamside woodlands along canyon bottoms. In his diary, Father Pedro Font often recorded frequent sightings of tule elk and pronghorn antelope. He mentions the 'large deer' (undoubtedly tule elk) whose swiftness allowed them to elude capture by the pursuing soldiers and their horses. Font also recorded sightings of grizzly bears and seeing…'Indians badly scarred by bites and scratches of these animals.'"

May we all suffer no more than the usual allotment of "bites and scratches" as this doddering old world has its way with us. 

Watch Those Text Breaks 

Back on March 21, I got a text message from the White House that—owing to the limits of text-messaging and an unfortunate choice of active verbs—looked rather alarming. It read: "Hi folks, it's President Biden. I just signed a historic COVID relief plan into law. Will you help me spread…." 

A Short Walk That Would Leave You Breathless 

There is a tendency among us Earth-bound creatures to assume that our planet's atmosphere is a vast, impenetrable shield that guarantees both breathable oxygen and protection from cosmic radiation and meteor storms. 

Beyond the familiar ground-level layers of the troposphere (which extends up to 6.2 miles high) and stratosphere (31 miles high), lie the greater regions of the mesosphere (53 miles high), and the thermosphere (621 miles high). 

Looking up at the sky, our occasionally cloud-bedecked troposphere might seem like a pretty secure "comfort zone," but an Earth Day activist from Nicetown, Philadelphia, recently offered a startling observation. 

During an Environmental Justice Earth Day demonstration on April 22—to protest a new fracked-methane "natural" gas plant—an activist named Lynn Robinson told a crowd: "Mayor Kenney says it’s a great idea. But you may have noticed that homes that burn natural gas have chimneys [because] . . . exhaust fumes from burning gas in the house would kill you otherwise." 

Robinson continued: "It’s really not OK to throw toxic trash into the outside air. . . . We have the asthma, the cancers, the cardio-vascular disease, and the brain disorders to prove that." 

And then Robinson offered a truly breathtaking factoid: While the troposphere rises to 33,000 feet, it is only within the lower blanket of gases—below 20,000 feet—that plants and animals can survive. Rendered into a more familiar measurement, this means that most of the planet's breathable atmosphere expires a mere 3.8 miles above sea level. 

Picture this: if we could walk straight up to the end of Earth's breathable atmosphere, that jaunt would cover the same distance as a trip from UC Berkeley's Campanile to the Berkeley Marina—the equivalent of a 17-minute drive or a 90-minute stroll. 

How's that for a breath-taking revelation? 

Grammaramma 

There's a radio spot that's been bugging me. In the ad, a local business owner boasts that his firm is "one of the only" companies to offer a particular service. No! You can't say that! You can say you're "the only one" or "the one and only" or you might be "one of the few" but you can't be "one of the only." 

Auto Erotic 

I've been mystified by a popular auto company commercial, so I took my question to a local car mechanic. 

"Randy," I asked, "Can you explain what the Subaru folks mean when they claim 'Love. It's What Makes a Subaru a Subaru'? 

He placed a comforting hand on my shoulder and replied: "Clearly, you've never experienced the unique pleasure of having intercourse with a tail pipe." 

AMC Is Back: Movie Screens with Movie Screams 

American Multi-Cinema, Inc. (aka AMC) has grown tired of the pandemic and has declared its intention to reopen its doors. "We're Open and Safer & Cleaner Than Ever," AMC recently announced. "Across the nation, all our theatres are now open with AMC Safe & Clean™ standards in place. Allow us to reintroduce you to the magic of movie-going." 

Apparently AMC's trade-marked Safe & Clean standards don't apply when it comes to content. Among the first films to return to AMC's big screens are Demon Slayer and Mortal Kombat. 

Even worse, AMC's online "Only the Good Stuff" promos include an image of a crazed killer threatening the life of a terrified, wide-eyed victim with a gag roped to her mouth. 

"Only the Good Stuff," AMC? 

Keeping the Cold War on the Back Burner 

The Ever-hawks in the new Biden Administration seem intent on reviving the Cold War by pushing more arms and weapons closer to the Russian border and sending naval armadas half-way around the world to ratchet up tensions in the South China Sea. Meanwhile, a new generation of potential combat recruits is being brain-trained to back—not buck—new global wars for empire. 

The Call of Duty videograme franchise has announced Season Three of a spin-off called "Black Ops: Cold War. The Cold War Heats Up." 

The battlegrounds range from an "all-gas-and-no-brakes desert firefight" to a shoot-out at "a border town in Kyrgyzstan." Combatants are invited "update your arsenal" in order to "ascend to greatness as you fight deep in the Ural Mountains." 

To protect young minds (under the age of 17), this slay-to-play slaughter-fest carries an "M Rating" that warns and/or promises significant doses of "Blood and Gore. Intense Violence. Suggestive Themes, Use of Drugs." (To watch a trailer, you need to first sign in to "confirm your age" but there's nothing stopping you from lying about your age.) 

A Grade-A Fundraising Letter 

The first lines of a recent fundraising letter were instantly gripping: "Three of the most frightening days of my life were spent in an Iranian prison when I was 18 years old. It was 1971 and I was only a few months away from leaving for school in the United States when the Shah's secret police, SAVAK, invaded our home…. A lot of young people were arrested, tortured, and forced to make confessions under the Shah; but I was lucky. My father knew the head of SAVAK in my city because he was making a rug for him and I was told to leave the country right away. 

"When I fled, I knew that a group called Amnesty International was advocating on behalf of the people the Shah was putting in prison …. I promised myself that, one day, if I could do something to help Amnesty, I would." 

Those words were written by Dr. Reza Fakhari. Dr. Fakhari is now the Chair of the Board of Directors for Amnesty International USA. 

Fakhari's letter is alarming. Around the world, he writes, "Leaders are committing abuses with impunity. Politicians of all stripes are peddling politics of demonization, of 'Us vs. Them,' and using these to distract, scapegoat, and adopt laws that make discrimination, misogyny and xenophobia official government policy." 

What's worse, Fakhari writes, is "a growing anti-human-rights agenda taking hold of power, fewer outspoken world leaders championing human rights, and more brazen and deadly attacks against those who dare to criticize repressive authorities." And Amnesty is not exempt. 

"Amnesty's office in India has been forced to halt its work after its funds were frozen by the Indian government. The former leadership and several members of Amnesty Turkey were prosecuted under spurious charges. Amnesty's office in Nigeria has been subjected to a concerted smear campaign by the government." 

The good news: Since its founding 60 years ago, Amnesty has "helped free more than 50,000 people who have been unjustly imprisoned." 

Farewell Far-Right
The Founders' Sing 


ECLECTIC RANT: GOP Personality Cult Around Trump

Ralph E. Stone
Sunday May 02, 2021 - 07:20:00 PM

For our system of government to function properly, we really need two major political parties with competing visions for the future of America. Right now we don't have that as the Republican Party has basically become a cult of personality around former president Donald Trump and those who continue to support the party are its cult enablers. If divisions exist within the Republican party, it is not about issues but about Trump himself.

Consider that the party didn’t bother to adopt, propose, or even write a platform in 2020. All that mattered was affirming Trump. This meant that feral Republican elected officials had to affirm or at least remain silent about Trump’s racism, sexism, nativism, and homophobia, or face political exile. This continues to be the case.

More than one hundred days into the Joe Biden presidency, the GOP continues to embrace, or at least fails to condemn, Trump’s claims of voter fraud in the 2020 presidential election and, contrary to the evidence, continues to insist that Trump, not Joe Biden, won the election. In furtherance of this claim, Trump filed over 50 lawsuits in state and federal courts challenging the election or its outcome, each of which was dismissed.

Then Republicans demanded post-election audits in states where Trump lost; no widespread voter fraud was uncovered. 

Even a group of election security groups including the Department of Homeland Security’s Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency (CISA) dismissed the unproven claims of widespread election tampering claimed by Trump. Days after the CISA statement was issued, Trump fired the agency’s leader.  

Then on January 6, Trump instigated a riot at the U.S. Capitol where five died and 140 were injured in what amounted to an attempted coup d’etat. The pro-Trump riot was the basis of Trump’s second impeachment. 

Now Arizona Senate Republicans have hired a firm called Cyber Ninjas to audit the results of the 2020 presidential election in Maricopa County, where some Republicans have claimed widespread voter fraud even though these claims have been dismissed in court and proven unsubstantiated by a previous audit of a sample of ballots. Arizona Democrats have dubbed this nonsense as a “fraudit.” 

No one seems to know much about the Cyber Ninjas or its background, if any, in conducting election audits. If this “fraudit” is allowed to continue, then states lost by Trump and controlled by Republicans, will probably conduct similar audits. Of course, Joe Biden will remain president no matter what happens with these audits. 

Trump cannot admit that he lost the election because he hates being viewed as a failure. Therefore, he will continue to claim that he actually won, but voter fraud snatched victory from his grasp. Will Republicans ever realize that the emperor has no clothes? 


Arts & Events

The Berkeley Activist's Calendar, May 2-9

Kelly Hammargren
Sunday May 02, 2021 - 05:24:00 PM

Worth Noting:

Tuesday – Building Electrification webinar at 6 pm – Getting off natural gas.

Wednesday – Planning Commission at 7 pm, Affordable housing is item 9 on the agenda.

Thursday – Budget and Finance Committee at 1 pm, department presentations continue for FY 2022 budget.

The May 11 City Council agenda is available for review and comment.

Scroll to the end of the calendar for the information for the free virtual screening of the Rights of Nature film Invisible Hand and the Q&A with the directors. The film will be available from May 22 at 4 pm until the Q&A with the directors May 23 at 6 pm. Early registration is recommended.

Sunday, May 2, 2021 - No City meetings or events found

Monday, May 3, 2021 

Ashby and North Berkeley BART Community Advisory Group (CAG) at 5:30 – 6:30 pm 

Videoconference: https://zoom.us/j/91313217916 

Teleconference: 1-669-900-6833 Meeting ID: 913 1321 7916 

AGENDA: Office Hours #1 

https://www.cityofberkeley.info/bartplanning/ 

Tuesday, May 4, 2021 

4x4 Joint Task Force Committee on Housing: Rent Board/City Council at 3 pm 

Videoconference: https://zoom.us/j/92083611523?pwd=cmxxdisxQkVudjZMYm5DT0xBOFpTUT09 

Teleconference: 1-669-900-6833 Meeting ID: 913 9801 1329 Passcode: 857447 

AGENDA: 5. Update Amendments to Short term Rental Ordinance, 6. Discuss Adoption of Affordable Housing Overlay for 100% Affordable Housing Developments, 7. Discuss possibility of passing rental forgiveness, 8. Discuss AB 1079 (Land Trusts) 

https://www.cityofberkeley.info/Clerk/Home/4x4_Committee_Homepage.aspx 

Getting of Gas in Berkeley’s Buildings at 7 pm – 8:30 pm 

Links provided through registration with eventbrite 

AGENDA: Benefits of building electrification 

https://www.cityofberkeley.info/CalendarEventMain.aspx?calendarEventID=17345 

Wednesday, May 5, 2021 

City Council Facilities, Infrastructure, Transportation, Environment & Sustainability Committee at 2:30 pm 

Videoconference: https://us02web.zoom.us/j/87849364168 

Teleconference: 1-669-900-9128 or 1-877-853-5257 (toll free) Meeting ID: 878 4936 4168 

AGENDA: 2. Ordinance Reducing Tax for Qualifying Electrification, Energy Efficiency and Water Conservation Retrofits, 3. 15 mph Speed Limit at all Early-Childhood Education Facilities, 4. Disposition of existing agenda items related to temporary rules for policy committees due to COVID-19 emergency, UNSCHEDULED: 5. Just Transition from Fossil Fuel Economy, 6. Impact/Mitigation fees to public right of way (streets), 7. Regulate Plastic Bags 

https://www.cityofberkeley.info/Clerk/Home/Policy_Committee__Facilities,_Infrastructure,_Transportation,_Environment,___Sustainability.aspx 

Board of Library Trustees at 6:30 pm 

Videoconference: https://us02web.zoom.us/j/86042306505 

Teleconference: 1-669-900-9128 Meeting ID: 860 4230 6505 

AGENDA: IV. FY 2022 budget, V. Presentation: Transition to Online Programming. 

https://www.berkeleypubliclibrary.org/about/board-library-trustees 

Homeless Services Panel of Experts at 7 pm 

Videoconference: https://zoom.us/j/92491365323 

Teleconference: 1-669-900-6833 Meeting ID: 924 9136 5323 

AGENDA: 6. Recommendations for Measure P funding to be submitted to Budget and Finance Policy Committee 

https://www.cityofberkeley.info/Clerk/Commissions/Commissions__Homeless_Services_Panel_of_Experts.aspx 

Planning Commission at 7 pm 

Videoconference: https://zoom.us/j/98281560402 

Teleconference: 1-669-900-6833 Meeting ID: 982 8156 0402 

AGENDA: 9. Citywide Affordable Housing Requirements Update, 10. Public Hearing General Plan Re-designation staff recommendation add 5 parcels to Adeline Corridor as C-AC 1709 Alcatraz, 3404 King, 3244 Ellis, 1717 Alcatraz, 2024 Ashby 

https://www.cityofberkeley.info/Clerk/Commissions/Commissions__Planning_Commission_Homepage.aspx 

Thursday, May 6, 2021 

City Council Land Use, Housing & Economic Development Committee at 10:30 am 

Videoconference: https://us02web.zoom.us/j/86006545447 

Teleconference: 1-669-900-9128 or 1-877-853-5257 (toll free) Meeting ID: 860 0654 5447 

AGENDA: 2. Disposition of existing agenda items related to temporary rules for policy committees due to COVID-19 emergency 

https://www.cityofberkeley.info/Clerk/Home/Policy_Committee__Land_Use,_Housing___Economic_Development.aspx 

City Council Budget & Finance Committee at 1 pm (note meeting time), 

Videoconference: https://us02web.zoom.us/j/86096171541 

Teleconference: 1-669-900-9128 or 1-877-853-5257 (toll free) Meeting ID: 860 9617 1541 

AGENDA: Items 2-4 Department Budget Presentations: Planning & Development, City Attorney, Office of the Director of Police Accountability, 5. Disposition of existing agenda items related to temporary rules for policy committees due to COVID-19 emergency 

https://www.cityofberkeley.info/Clerk/Home/Policy_Committee__Budget___Finance.aspx 

Berkeley Rent Stabilization Board at 7 – 11 pm 

Videoconference: https://zoom.us/j/97418734828?pwd=eTBMOXBlZFd0RFNPektTRVBkTVZzdz09 

Teleconference: 1-669-900-6833 Meeting ID: 974 1873 4828 PASSCODE: 285019 

AGENDA: 4.e. Waivers, 7. Annual registration fees, 

http://www.cityofberkeley.info/rent/ 

Independent Redistricting Commission at 6 pm 

Videoconference: https://us02web.zoom.us/j/88294057810 

Teleconference: 1-669-900-9128 or 1-877-853-5257 (toll free) Meeting ID: 882 9405 7810 

AGENDA: 2. Draw District 1 Alternate Commissioner, 3.&4. Legal Aspects of Redistricting 

https://www.cityofberkeley.info/redistricting/ 

Landmarks Preservation Commission at 7 – 11:30 pm 

Videoconference: https://zoom.us/j/92277210166 

Teleconference: 1-669-900-6833 Meeting ID: 922 7721 0166 

AGENDA: 5. Revisions to Landmarks Preservation Ordinance, 6. Resolution to End Exclusionary Zoning in Berkeley 

https://www.cityofberkeley.info/landmarkspreservationcommission/ 

Public Works Commission at 7 – 10 pm 

Videoconference: https://us02web.zoom.us/j/84312916787 

Teleconference: 1-669-900-9128 Meeting ID: 843 1291 6787 

AGENDA: not posted check after Monday 

https://www.cityofberkeley.info/Clerk/Commissions/Commissions__Public_Works_Commission_Homepage.aspx 

Ashby and North Berkeley BART Community Advisory Group (CAG) at 5:30 – 6:30 pm 

Videoconference: https://zoom.us/j/95267102899 

Teleconference: 1-669-900-6833 Meeting ID: 952 6710 2899 

AGENDA: Office Hours #2 

https://www.cityofberkeley.info/bartplanning/ 

WETA, 1 pm 

Videoconference: https://us02web.zoom.us/j/89718217408 

Teleconference: 1-669-900-6833 Meeting ID: 897 1821 7408 Passcode: 33779 

https://weta.sanfranciscobayferry.com/next-board-meeting 

Friday, May 7, 2021 - No City meetings or events found 

Saturday, May 8, 2021 

Mother’s Day Rose Garden Ribbon Cutting Ceremony 10 am – 12 pm 

https://www.cityofberkeley.info/CalendarEventMain.aspx?calendarEventID=17369 

Berkeley Neighborhoods Council 10 am – 12 pm 

Meeting Zoom link not posted yet, check website later in week 

https://berkeleyneighborhoodscouncil.com/ 

Sunday, May 9 2021 – Mother’s Day 

May 11 - City Council regular meeting at 6 pm agenda is available for comment 

Email comments to council@cityofberkeley.info 

Videoconference: https://us02web.zoom.us/j/84138848278 

Teleconference: 1-669-900-9128 or 1-877-853-5257 (toll free) Meeting ID: 841 3884 8278 

AGENDA CONSENT: 1. 2nd reading Ordinance Regulating Police acquisition and Use of Controlled Equipment, 2. FY2021 Annual Appropriations $76,221,382 (gross) $51,227,368 (net), 3. Formal Bid Solicitations $1,800,000 ($1,100,000 Dock O&K Electrical upgrade, $700,000 Community partnerships COVID-19 testing, quarantine and vaccine), 4. Contract $300,000 7/1/2021-6/30/2022 with The Wright Institute for Mental Health Counseling for older adults, 5. Add $146,304 total $355,822 thru 6/30/2022 with Pacific Site Management for Landscaping services, 6. Add $245,000 total $637,778 thru 6/30/2021 (to be carried over to FY 2022 and then encumbered) with BUSD to provide Mental Health Services Act funded programs, 7. Add $55,000 total $90,000 thru 6/1/2021-6-30/2022 with GoGoGrandparent Technologies for Transportation Services for Senior and the Disabled, 8. Revenue Grant application funding from Alameda Co. for Public Health Services FY2022 ($93,187 Foster Care, $178,778 Berkeley High & Berkeley Tech, $193,175 school linked Measure A, $76,290 Tobacco Prevention), 9. Revenue Grant application to Essential Access Health for $180,000 for public health promotion, 10. Salary Resolution SEIU 1021 Accountant II hourly range $45.6375-$54.1916, 11. Add $209,980 total $614,980 extend term 5/14/2021- 6/30/2024, 12. Mills contract 1 Orchard Lane, 13. Mills contract 1581 LeRoy Ave, 14. Amend 1956 Maintenance Agreement with Caltrans – transfer two portions of City’s right of way on Gilman to Caltrans, 15. Arreguin co-sponsors Droste, Bartlett, Robinson – Support AB 550 Speed Safety cameras and request Berkeley be included as one of the pilot cities, 16. Arreguin co-sponsors Wengraf, Hahn, Kesarwani- AB 43 Safe Streets gives cities flexibility in reducing speed limits, 17. Arreguin co-sponsor Kesarwani – Support AB 629 require MTC to designate transit priority corridors and create pilot of multi-operator transit fare passes, 18. Arreguin - Amending COVID-19 Emergency Response Ordinance Relating to Commercial Leases, 19. Arreguin – Resolution committing to the C40 race to Zero www.citiesracetozero.org Berkeley to be carbon neutral/net zero by 2045 – global warming was 0.8°C in 2018 and ≈1.2°C in 2020 major action needed worldwide to stay at or below global warming of 1.5°C, 20. Taplin - Proclaim May 2021 as Mental Health Month, 21. Taplin co-sponsor Hahn – Resolution in support of Green New Deal for Cities 2021, 22. Taplin – Budget Referral Traffic Calming at Ashby & California, Sacramento & Channing, Cedar & 9th, 6th & Channing, Sacramento & Russell, Channing & San Pablo, 23. Harrison co-sponsor Hahn – Support Roadmap Home 2030 Plan (Home 2030 funders include Chan Zuckerberg Initiative), 24. Hahn, co-sponsors- Harrison, Arreguin – Support AB 1289 Smart Climate Agriculture and AB 558 CA School Plant-based Food and Beverage Program, 25. Wengraf, co-sponsors Kesarwani, Harrison – Support SB-15 rezone idle retail sites to allow for affordable housing, 26. Robinson cosponsors Hahn, Wengraf Support Senator Warren’s Student Loan Debt Relief, 27. Robinson co-sponsors Bartlett, Droste, Arreguin – Support AB 1238 & AB 122 repeal jaywalking laws and bicyclists to treat stop signs as yield signs, ACTION: 28. Published charges: Mental Health Clinical Services, 29. Audit Report: Data Analysis of City of Berkeley’s Police Response, 

https://www.cityofberkeley.info/Clerk/City_Council/City_Council__Agenda_Index.aspx 

Public Hearings Scheduled – Land Use Appeals 

2421 Fifth Street (construct two residential buildings) 6/1/2021 

Notice of Decision (NOD) and Use Permits with End of Appeal Period 

190 Alvarado 5/4/2021 

1205 Cornell 5/4/2021 

3107 Deakin 5/18/2021 

1428 Delaware 5/4/2021 

1733 Fourth (Convert retail space to auto sales) 5/19/2021 

1733 Fourth (alterations to building) 5/13/2021 

2110 Haste 5/10/2021 

1231 Ordway 5/19/2021 

1913 San Antonio 5/19/2021 

1836 Thousand Oaks 5/4/2021 

https://www.cityofberkeley.info/Planning_and_Development/Land_Use_Division/Current_Zoning_Applications_in_Appeal_Period.aspx 

LINK to Current Zoning Applications https://www.cityofberkeley.info/Planning_and_Development/Land_Use_Division/Current_Zoning_Applications.aspx 

___________________ 

WORKSESSIONS 

May 18 – 1. Systems Realignment 2. Affordable Housing Policy Reform (tentative) 

July 20 – 1. Bayer Development Agreement (tentative), Measure FF/Fire Prevention 

September 21 – 1. Housing Element (RHNA) 

Unscheduled Workshops/Presentations 

Cannabis Health Considerations 

Berkeley Police Department Hiring Practices (referred by Public Safety Committee) 

Update Zero Waste Priorities 

Civic Arts Grantmaking Process & Capital Grant Program 

This meeting list is also posted on the Sustainable Berkeley Coalition website. 

http://www.sustainableberkeleycoalition.com/whats-ahead.html and in the Berkeley Daily Planet under activist’s calendar http://www.berkeleydailyplanet.com 

If you or someone you know wishes to receive the weekly summary as soon as it is completed, email kellyhammargren@gmail.com to be added to the early email list. 

If you wish to stop receiving the Weekly Summary of City Meetings please 

forward the weekly summary you received to kellyhammargren@gmail.com 

***************************** 

Free Virtual Screening of the Rights of Nature film  

Invisible Hand 

and Q&A with the directors 

sponsored by Sustainable Berkeley Coalition and Berkeley Citizens Action  

 

Register at 

https://www.invisiblehandfilm.com/berkeley-give-nature-a-chance/ 

early registration is recommended 

the free virtual screening and Q&A is limited to 100 participants 

If you have any questions contact Kelly Hammargren at hammargrenkelly@gmail.com 

 

Q&A with the directors: 6 pm, Sunday, May 23. 

The 85 minute documentary film is available for viewing from  

4:00 pm PDT Thursday May 22 to Sunday, May 23, 6 pm PDT 

Audiences have said INVISIBLE HAND is a “game changing” story about Rights of Nature and global battle between capitalism and democracy. Last Born in the Wilderness host Patrick Farnsworth has called the film “really, really beautiful” and “incredibly moving.” 

“We are honored to receive these awards for documenting the Rights of Nature story,” said Pribanic. “This is a turning point in the story of our culture, where the Indigenous legacy that once protected this land can resurface to take on capitalism and defend Nature’s rights.” 

What this documentary is offering is a way forward through Rights of Nature. You hear time and time again that a corporation has the rights of a person. The idea that Nature has no rights whatsoever is absurd,” ~ Mark Ruffalo 

The Rights of Nature in Berkeley  

The Resolution to Recognize the Rights of Nature is submitted by Councilmember Cheryl Davila for consideration by the Berkeley City Council at the October 27, 2020 City Council regular meeting.  

On October 13, 2020, the Berkeley City Council Agenda and Policy Committee removed Recognize the Rights of Nature from the proposed October 27, 2020 City Council agenda and referred the item to the Facilities, Infrastructure, Transportation, Environment and Sustainability Policy Committee (FITES).  

On March 3, 2021 FITES voted to forward the Rights of Nature to the full City Council with a qualified positive recommendation the final resolved clause of the draft resolution to place obligation on the City not the residents.  

On March 15 at the Agenda and Rules Policy Committee Mayor Arreguin said he was opposed to recognizing the rights of nature. 

The item was left on the council agenda for March 30.  

At the March 30 council meeting Mayor Arreguin said he supported the Rights of Nature and recommended moving the item to the consent calendar as a referral to the Peace and Justice Commission.  

At the same meeting after the consent vote approving the referral, the City Manager stated the Peace and Justice Commission would not be meeting because staff supporting the Peace and Justice Commission had been reassigned to support the EOC (Emergency Operation Center) for the COVID-19 emergency. 

Rights of Nature, legislative examples, history, timeline, documents and references,  

https://www.invisiblehandfilm.com/what-are-rights-of-nature/ 

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