Davisite logo
Davisite Banner. Left side the bicycle obelisk at 3rd and University. Right side the trellis at the entrance to the Arboretum.

Month: October 2020

  • Letter: Colin Walsh would be an outstanding councilmember

    Marikas-houseI am writing in support of Colin Walsh for City Council representing District 2. I know Colin as an active and concerned member of our community and I know Colin as a neighbor. He never fails to have information relating to current topics impacting Davis and he willingly provides details on where I may locate relevant related information. He researches topics and delves into the details.

    I am especially impressed by his masterful analysis of the University Commons issue. As Colin points out, the current design will be an eyesore to the community. It is not one and a half, not two, but three times as large as the city’s General Plan permits. Does the plan exist just to be ignored whenever a developer, backed up by city staff, stands to make some money? That is certainly not how I understood the intent of the General Plan. Besides that, the developer’s claim that he will provide needed student housing is simply false, since it ignores the fact that the UC Davis West Village project currently under construction on campus will add 3,300 beds and will be only for students.

    What about low- or moderate-income university workers, now burning up gas to commute from Woodland or elsewhere out of town? The present apartment design is skewed to student occupancy, and lacks the flexibility that would make it suitable not only for students but families as well. As Colin points out, we can do better with mixed-use at that site.

    University Commons is simply one of several issues currently facing the people of Davis. I trust that in the role of City Council member, Colin will solicit input from citizens and experts, do due diligence to fact-finding, accept input from commissions assigned to study the projects, ask probing questions and ultimately stand up and point out vigorously when proposals as ill-conceived as the present one so violate the interests of our community.

    I am a longtime Davis resident — I grew up in Davis, attended Davis schools from first grade on, graduated from UCD and have worked at UCD now for the past 34 years. I don’t usually get involved in Davis politics, but I know Colin is of the highest integrity and would be an outstanding council member and I encourage you to vote for Colin Walsh for City Council.

    Marika Pappagianis
    Davis

  • Letter: Sue Greenwald supports Colin Walsh

    Greenwald-for-WalshHaving served on the Davis City Council for 12 years and having served as mayor of Davis, I understand that our quality of life in Davis is facing unprecedented challenges in the pandemic era.

    I’ve known Colin for over two decades, and I know that Colin appreciates that maintaining our quality of life doesn’t come from blindly following out-of-town boilerplate consultant reports or approving every developer application with minor tweaking. Colin knows that good city planning comes from having the judgment to combine our unique small-town character with sound, common-sense environmental principles and to actually listen to the citizens.

    I have complete trust in Colin’s intelligence, wisdom and dedication to oversee Davis’ city planning and financial management in these challenging times. Especially important to me is that Colin loves the unique character of our Davis downtown that has enriched our quality of life and has made Davis such a desirable town that has been enjoyed by generations of families, students and retirees alike.

    With Colin Walsh on the Davis City Council, Davis will be in the best of hands.

    Sue Greenwald
    Former Davis mayor

  • Re-elect Jim Provenza Yolo County Supervisor

    Due to new opportunities for voting, I have already voted. Filled out my ballot, went over to the Nugget Market and dropped my ballot in the official ballot box there. Boom! Another vote for Jim Provenza.

    Why did I vote for Jim?

    He's smart. He asks good questions. He listens to the answer. And then he makes thoughtful decisions.

    During this pandemic he has done a masterful job of balancing the public health needs of the entire community and the needs of businesses. He has helped specific businesses stay open safely and helped many businesses generally by legally facilitating curbside pick up and home delivery for many businesses in Yolo County.

    If you have not had a chance to talk to Jim personally… and he is quite personable, check out his performance at the live streamed Board of Supervisor Meetings. Jim does not hog the microphone but you can tell from his questions and comments that he has done his homework, he comes to the meetings prepared and ready to make a contribution.

    Jim is competent, conscientious, and committed. And he knows the law. When the pandemic started, messaging from the County was English-only…. several of us went to the Supervisors and said "These communications must be in both English and Spanish because the Latino Community is suffering greatly from the Coronavirus Pandemic"….. Jim worked with the other supervisors and the Yolo County staff to ensure that the messaging was sent out in a culturally and linguistically appropriate manner.

    Jim has demonstrated his competence in office…. at this time in our lives and livelihood in Yolo County, I urge you to vote for Jim Provenza for County Supervisor…. he'll work for us, for all of us!

    Thanks,

    John Troidl

    PS If you are still not quite convinced by my endorsement check out the long list of supporters who want to re-elect Jim…. including Helen Thomson, who gave her strongest endorsement to Jim in a facebook posting. Check it out on his candidate FB page:
    Jim-Provenza-for-Yolo-County-Board-of-Supervisors

  • Toward a “More Perfect Union”

    Unity mini flier

    The signers invite the community to color and paste in their window the above graphic to show solidarity for the democratic process at a community level (click to enlarge).

    A Statement on the 2020 Election from the Davis Area Interfaith Religious Leaders Network

     Religious communities promote and protect our democracy

    The religious traditions we represent are born of visions and values for human life that inspire our strong advocacy of American democracy. Over the centuries our people have offered creative insights and energies to help our nation move toward “a more perfect union.” We believe that a thriving democracy is essential to ensure that all persons are not only “created equal,” but are treated equally and welcomed to contribute to the creation of a society where “life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness” are “unalienable rights” for everyone, without exception.

     Our democracy faces many challenges

    This fall, many Americans feel anxious about the future of our democracy. Our long tradition of absentee and mail-in voting has been maligned. Foreign powers are maliciously influencing the election. Voters are challenged and often intimidated at the voting booth. And we face the likelihood of an unprecedented delay in receiving the final election results. We are at a critical moment in American history. We feel many things: concern, confusion, helplessness, anger, and reactivity.

    (more…)

  • 5 Very Good Reasons to Vote No on Measure B – No on DISC

    Vote-no-on-measure-b-news

    (From press release) If you're still undecided about Measure B authorizing the 200-acre DISC Industrial Park on prime farmland and burrowing owl habitat with 2.6 Million sq ft of commercial buildings, following are five very good reasons to vote NO on this massive, sprawling, ill-conceived project that will forever change Davis for the worse.

    1. Nightmarish Traffic Gridlock

    • The Environmental Impact Report estimated that more than 24,000 in-and-out daily car trips will occur for the DISC project when completed – more than doubling current traffic levels. It will turn Mace Blvd. into a parking lot causing hours of gridlock every day.

    • The City and Developer have no plans at all on how they will mitigate this massive influx of new traffic. Instead, a Traffic Demand Management Plan will be prepared by the Developer in the future.

    • But "Figuring it all out later" is NOT a plan!

    2. Unprecedented Increases in Greenhouse Gas Emissions

    • Our world is burning up and melting around us. This year we have seen the largest fires ever in the Pacific Northwest, Colorado, Siberia, the Amazon, and Australia along with record-breaking ice-melts in Greenland and Antarctica.

    • Yet according to the project's Environmental Impact Report, "…net emissions in the year 2035 would equal 37,724.31 metric tons of CO2 equivalent per year, the project would NOT meet the City’s target of net carbon neutrality by the year 2040." Instead it will increase the City's carbon footprint by over 8% from this one project.

    • Our leaders passed an Emergency Climate Resolution just last year…what are they now thinking?

    3. DISC will Cannibalize our Downtown

    Thirty different small downtown Davis merchants recently signed a petition opposing the project's 100,000 sq ft of additional retail space (about the size of Davis Target) and the 160,000 sq ft of additional hotel space (more than twice the size of the new Marriott just across the street) because it would present severe economic hardship on the small downtown merchants already reeling from COVID.

    • The DISC Environmental Impact Report (EIR) also projected than an additional 313,000 sq ft of commercial space in Davis could become newly vacant due to competition from the DISC project leaving blight in its wake.

    • Our Downtown should not be Sacrificed for Developer Profits!

    4. DISC will NOT have Affordable Housing

    • The DISC Developer falsely claims the amount of affordable housing at the project is "record-breaking" for Davis. That is simply NOT true for either the market-rate OR the subsidized affordable housing.

    • The estimated rent for a market-rate 2- bedroom apartment will be $2,500+ per month and the estimated price for a 2,200 sq ft home will be over $800,000+ and will require a $200,000+ annual salary to buy.

    • There will be 128 subsidized housing units on-site which is 14.7% of the 850 total housing units. But the West Davis Active Adult Community will have 150 subsidized senior apartments on site which is 31.6% of the 475 total units.

    • DISC will neither be "Affordable" or "Record-Breaking"!

    5. DISC is using Voodoo Economics to Project a Profit for the City

    • Property Tax revenues are based on hopelessly optimistic and unrealistic valuations that are 48% higher compared to the same analysis done by the same financial consultant for the same business park just 5 years ago and 68% higher than current regional averages.

    • The City's Finance and Budget Commission voted on a slim 4-3 margin only that the project "is likely to produce a net positive financial benefit to the City"…Not exactly a ringing endorsement.

    • And one Commissioner even called the consultant's assumptions a "fairy tale".

    • Clearly, a thumb has been put on the scale to make the project seem economically far rosier than reality. _________________________________________________________

    The more we hear about DISC, the more it is clear that Davis will get all of the traffic and pollution and the Developers will get all of the profits. It's time to just say "NO"!

    __________________________________________________________

    Sierra Club Endorses No on Measure B – No on DISC

  • Council Candidates Share Their Vision For Our Streets

    Bike-davisWhat do City Council candidates think about our streets? To learn more about their visions, Bike Davis sent all candidates a questionnaire focused on three themes: making Davis more livable, reducing injuries and fatalities on our streets, and transportation infrastructure and zoning.

    Some common themes emerged from the candidates’ thoughtful answers. All candidates are in favor of creating a locally-owned and operated bike share system as other cities have done (eg Biketown in Portland, or PeaceHealth Rides in Eugene). Almost all candidates walk or bike regularly. Some ride a bike for daily errands, others walk or ride for exercise. All candidates support preventing traffic deaths and severe injuries in Davis by implementing a Vision Zero approach.

    On the other hand, Bike Davis was surprised to find that only four of the nine candidates mentioned bicycling as a way to reduce transportation-related GHG emissions and contribute to Davis’ climate neutrality goal.

    Bike Davis is presenting each candidate below with a “favorite quote” and a link to their full answers. These materials are also available on our website at bikedavis.us/vote

    (more…)

  • A Different Vision for the DISC 200 Acres

    Image1-2

    Photo credit: Nick Buxton

    By Juliette Beck

    A little over twelve years ago when I was pregnant with my first child and deciding whether to move to Davis to join my sister in raising our families here, I looked at the air quality data and considered the impacts on newborn lungs.

    I ultimately made the decision to move here and fight like hell for my children to grow up on a livable planet, in a healthy community. Given the climate emergency that has choked our skies with smoke for weeks on end, I'm not sure I'd make that same decision today.

    We are at a critical turning point in human history. For decades, scientists, activists and frontline communities have been telling us we must change course. This summer, it has become undeniable that all of us here in California are now on the frontlines of a rapidly destabilizing climate.

    With Measure B (thanks to Measure J/R now on the ballot as Measure D), we as citizens of Davis have the opportunity to vote on how our community will respond to the climate emergency – an emergency caused in large part based on how we as a society develop land and open space.

    Located just east of the Mace Blvd curve and north of the Ikeda Market, this swath of farmland borders Davis as a gateway to our city. It could be a showcase for climate positive, regenerative farming that sustains our local food needs. But if Measure B passes, it will instead be a sprawling development comprised mainly of $800,000+ luxury homes and a massive industrial business park.

    (more…)

  • DISC site not required to satisfy Davis’s commercial needs

    Infill would be a better choice

    By Pam Gunnell, Richard McCann, and Matt Williams

    A 200-acre business park like DISC is not an objective in the City of Davis’ General Plan.  Additionally, DISC contains uses (housing, retail, parks, ag buffer) that require land that would not be needed with an infill model that uses existing parcels inside the city limits. According to the project’s own environmental review documents, the FSEIR, only 101 acres of the 200-acre DISC are needed for R&D, office and light manufacturing.  (FSEIR p. 2-21 and p. 2-254) 

    Since DISC is proposed to be built out in 4 phases over 20-25 years, 101 acres of land is not needed all at once.  For that reason, existing smaller parcels in Davis may be able to accommodate the initial R&D development and defer the need to consider DISC for a number of years … at a time when the impacts of COVID on market demand for Office/R&D/Flex space are much clearer.

    The City, however, is not seriously considering meeting its commercial needs with infill of existing parcels, despite the fact that a 2019 City study enumerates 124 acres of vacant parcels inside the city limits. (FSEIR p. 2-21 and LINK) This does not include City–owned properties and parcels that are underutilized and could be rezoned – for example the PG&E property on the edge of downtown nor does it include redevelopable properties already appropriately zoned.

    (more…)

  • Does DJUSD’s Measure A (CFD #1 Special Tax) Have an End Date, or Does It Not Have an End Date?

    By Matt Williams

    On Friday and Saturday two articles appeared online that covered the work-in process due diligence research that I was in the midst of undertaking regarding DJUSD's Community Facilities District No. 1 (CFD #1) Special Tax, which was originally passed by the voters in Measure A on November 7, 1989. Friday's initial article by me can be read HERE in the Davisite, and Saturday's response article by David Greenwald can be read HERE in the Davis Vanguard.

    As part of the Friday article comments, Don Shor posted the following observation and question. Based on his comment, it appeared that Don accepted on face value the words that he quoted and bolded.  I read those words differently than Don did, and my response to him also appears below.  One additional piece of background is that the intent of my initial communication to DJUSD was to bring some additional transparency and clarity to the questions raised by those very same words that Don quoted.  So far the trajectory of the events has been consistent with that intent.

    (more…)

  • Reimagining Public Safety Community Teach-In

    Date: Saturday, Oct 24
    Time: from 1:30-3:00pm
    Location: Central Park, Davis, CA

    Because of COVID, attendees are expected to socially distance to keep everyone safe. Masks are required (extras masks/ hand-sanitizer will be provided if needed). Stay home if you feel sick!

    Yolo People Power, Multiculturalism Rocks!, Women in Leadership Davis, Yolo Committee for Diverse and Inclusive Elections, and Indivisible Yolo invite you to an educational rally on re-thinking policing and public safety to help create an anti-racist, reformative, compassionate system that TRULY keeps every member of our community safe.

    This event will feature short speeches by local activists, organizers, university and high school students, and experts on the problems of our current law enforcement/ criminal justice system and what solutions exist to transform it.

    (more…)