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Author: Roberta Millstein

  • Five Council Candidates State Positions on Measure J/R

     

    West from Rd 30B - Sac skyline

    View from Mace curve – one of the areas subject to Measure J/R

    Last night (2/28/2018), the Davis College Democrats held a forum for candidates for Davis City Council. Well, not all candidates — you had to be a declared Democrat to participate, even though the City Council is supposed to be non-partisan. Forum participants also had to answer a series of loaded questions. Here's one:

    Our city is running out of room to accommodate future growth, with a severe housing and financial crisis. Measure R has placed a stranglehold on any annexation efforts to deal with this problem by requiring a ballot measure for any significant development. In 2020 Measure R will go on the ballot for reauthorization. If elected how will you augment Measure R to stave off another city housing or financial crisis?

    Davisites might be surprised to learn how the five candidates (out of nine running) in attendance answered.

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  • Measure J, Measure R… and now Measure J again? A guide for the perplexed

    West from Rd 30B - Sac skyline

    View from Mace curve – one of the areas subject to Measure J/R

    I think most Davisites know that measure letters get reused, so that a Measure A of today might be different from a Measure A of yesterday. But in this June's election, things get very confusing – the successful Measure J of 2000 is what permits Davisites to vote "no" (or "yes) on the Measure J of today. Hunh?

    Here's an attempt to clarify the situation.

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  • On the Cannery, Housing, and Davis’s Small-Town Feel

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    Source: Davis LocalWiki

    At its February 20 meeting, the City Council was supposed to review a proposal to bring a large, corporate gym to the Cannery, a change to the original proposal that the developer is asking for. The Council decided at the request of the developer to delay the item until March 13, but a number of people gave public comment anyway.

    I found many of these comments to be heartfelt, insightful, and persuasive, but one resonated with me in particular because it was so similar to my own experience, and also because I think it has very far-reaching implications:

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  • Proposed revisions to the Cannery project will NOT be heard by the City Council tonight

    From: "City of Davis eNotification" <webmaster@cityofdavis.org>

    City Council Agenda Update – February 20, 2018

    Date: February 20, 2018 2:18 p.m.

    PLEASE NOTE:
    Agenda Item 5 – Public Hearing on The Cannery Marketplace Project Revisions will not be heard at tonight's City Council meeting. The item will be opened and continued to the City Council meeting on Tuesday, March 13, 2018. Discussion of the item will take place at the March 13 meeting.

    We apologize for any inconvenience.

  • On Civil Discourse

    E5c

    With discussions over the June elections heating up, it is perhaps not surprising that discussions about what does and does not constitute civil discourse are also heating up in Davis.

    Luckily for us, these rules have long been established, so we need only take this opportunity to remind ourselves of what they are. The devil is in the details, but the basic idea is this: do not commit the ad hominem fallacy. That is, do not attack the person. Criticizing their arguments or actions, however, is legitimate.

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  • The Yolo County District Attorney race is contested for the first time in years – and voters should pay attention

    Last month, Dean Johansson declared his candidacy for Yolo County district attorney (story here).  This is the first time since 2006 that the election has been contested.  But are Yolo County voters paying attention?

    Seems as if they should, if this a recent Facebook post from the campaign is even remotely accurate. 

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  • Can Davis grow its way to affordable housing?

    Screen Shot 2018-02-16 at 2.41.45 PM

    Can Davis grow its way to affordable housing?

    In short, no. And you should be highly suspicious of anyone who is claiming that it can. They are either wishful thinkers, misinformed, or being deliberately misleading.

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  • Nishi 2.0 @ City Council Post Mortem

    The discussion of Nishi 2.0 at the February 6 City Council meeting had my head spinning. Here are just a few of the things that happened that I was stunned by:

    • Robb Davis rightly limiting the developers' time to present their case, only to have Rochelle undo that by asking the developer for a repeat of the Planning Commission fiasco, even though she or any other citizen could have watched that video had they cared to see the developers' well-over-an-hour presentation. Rochelle in effect completely undid Robb's directive.

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