More Dia de la Muertos, Oakland, 2022
California
Greener Than You Think
Then it hit my eyes.
Mrs Dinkman's lawn, I mean.
The one so neglected, ailing and yellow only yesterday.
It wasnt sad and sickly now. The most enthusiastic homeowner wouldnt have disdained it. There wasnt a single bare spot visible in the whole lush, healthy expanse. And it was green. Green. Not just here and there, but over every inch of soft, undulating surface; a pale applegreen where the blades waved to expose its underparts and a rich, dazzling emerald on top. Even the runners, sinuously encroaching upon the sidewalk, were deeply virescent.
The Metamorphizer worked.
-- Ward Moore, Greener Than You Think (Gutenberg.org)
Mike Davis, "California's Desert Ecosystems Will Never Recover," The Nation, September 16, 2020
Bums’ Paradise
Documentary about the Albany Bulb before, during, and immediately after its emptying.
California SB 902
This bill, which passed the state Senate by a 33-3 vote June 22, would allow cities to grant by-right zoning approval for up to ten units in transit- and job-rich areas.
The bill is now headed to the Assembly for review.
In short, SB 902 would permit, but not require, local governments to implement zoning ordinances to permit housing projects of up to 10 units without CEQA (California Environmental Quality Act) review, if the housing is located in a transit- or jobs-rich area or in an urban infill site.
San Francisco-based State Senator Scott Wiener says that this bill “provides cities with a powerful new tool to quickly re-zone for increased density.â€
The bill was introduced following the Senate defeat of Wiener’s SB 50, a controversial housing production bill that would have preempted local control of zoning.
“If SB 902 becomes law, it would be among the most powerful tools cities have to increase the number of affordable homes in our cities,†read a June 23 statement from advocacy group California YIMBY celebrating the bill’s victory in the Senate.
-- Larchmont Chronicle, July 1, 2020
Sen. Wiener Takes another Shot at Upzoning State's Single-Family Landscape (San Francisco Business Times, June 23, 2020)
Bay Area Budgeting 3
California Legislature OKs Placeholder Budget as Talks with Newsom Continue (San Francisco Chronicle, June 15, 2020)
Oakland Schools Face $35 Million or More in Budget Cuts (East Bay Times, June 13, 2020)
SF, Other Bay Area Counties Facing Huge Bill from California at Worst Possible Time (San Francisco Chronicle, June 12, 2020)
California Legislature Pressing Forward on Budget Vote without Deal with Newsom (San Francisco Chronicle, June 10, 2020)
California Has One Week to Pass a Budget. Congress Doesn’t Plan to Help in Time — If at All (Sacramento Bee, June 8, 2020)
“Mutually Repugnant:†Gov. Newsom and Lawmakers Pursue Budget Compromise (CalMatters, June 7, 2020)
Editorial: California Lawmakers Need Federal Bailout to Plug Budget Holes (San Francisco Chronicle, June 6, 2020)
Editorial: California Legislature Needs to Get Real on Budget and Stop Counting on Federal Bailout (San Diego Union-Tribune, June 5, 2020)