From Penny@cozad.com Thu Nov  8 05:04:34 2001
Date: Tue, 06 Nov 2001 08:43:33 -0800
From: Penny Cozad <Penny@cozad.com>
Subject: Thoughts on the Housing Element


Hi everyone.  

I sat in on last night's Rent Review Advisory Committee meeting
and the 3rd presentation of the Housing Element to the "public".
At this meeting there were 3 Renewed Hope representatives and myself
in the public audience.

Since Deb and I will be gone next week, thought I would share some
thoughts that are currently rampaging through my skull.

   1]  

We all should, as individuals, contact any of the other known
neighborhood groups and all the city's committees and boards, and
even the City Council members concerning the unreasonable deadline
for approving the Housing Element Draft.  In the first 2 presentations
by the Planning Department, it was clearly stated upon questioning
during the committee meetings, that a final draft may not be out
until January or February.  So the "deadline" was already not in
stone.   In last night's presentation, Stephen Belcher (presenter)
said that "they" would take comments right up until the City Council
Meeting - which is Dec 18 - I think.  This is unreasonable!  The
Draft has only been available to the public since the end of October.
That would give someone, who knew precisely when the document was
available, a month and a half to read the document and come up with
thoughtful questions.  It simply isn't fair or reasonable, especially
since the public STILL doesn't know it's out there and ready to be
approved!  I just bought the document yesterday, and I may be the
only individual who has purchased the thing along with maybe 3 or
4 groups.  Not a widely distributed document!

   2]  

Last night, one of the public comments reminded the board that the
city's committees and boards were not elected by the community and
that the planning department who wrote the draft were paid employees.
He urged the committee to keep the community's interests in mind
when making decisions.  The committee got just a tiny bit defensive.
I was sitting in the "audience of 4" thinking that his comment was
right to the point, but that only the 4 of us thought so.

   3]  

I talked with Joe Woodard, and he will try to set up a meeting with
the League of Women Voters.  They were one of the few groups to
purchase the draft.  They were represented by someone at the first
or second presentation and had some good/thoughtful comments.

   4]  

The approval of the Housing Element has huge ramifications on our
city's lifestyle.  I am not trying to say that the draft is bad or
evil, or that there are necessarily "political hidden agendas"
written into it.  But the public should have a whole lot more
understanding of it, and the option to alter it before it becomes
LAW.   How do we reach more people? Our email list should be a
whole lot longer.

    5] 

This Housing Element is stated to be "just a policy" and "not
written in stone", that it doesn't represent an actual number of
housing units that will be built, just a suggestion on how and
where the city could fulfill its state mandated housing requirements.
It is, however, a developers wish list map for Alameda.   The only
way things would get changed that I have found so far is at the
Planning Board meetings when the developer submits his proposal
for a development.  Only the land owners within a few hundred feet
of the development will ever be notified and have the chance to
comment.  No one else will get to comment or affect any change.
This "policy" will also affect changes in zoning....that is not an
easy thing to "change".

That's all for now.  Talk with you all later, 

Penny