[BerkeleyDailyPlanet] Councilmember Resigns at Meeting

[Updates from the Berkeley Daily Planet]

* harassed in any way to make this decision. Berkeley’s processes are
broken and I cannot continue to serve…I wish you all the best, but I am
resigning."*



*While those of us attending were still digesting that Kate Harrison
resigned, the mayor called a break and then resumed the meeting as if
nothing unusual had happened.*

* —Kelly Hammargren*

------------------------------
I have decided to resign from the Berkeley City Council effective February
15, 2024. I could say what office holders’ usually say – that I would like
to spend more time with my family – but that is not the reason. Nor am I
being harassed in any way to make this decision. I am doing so because
Berkeley’s processes are broken and I cannot in good conscience continue to
serve on this body.

The enormous impact of income and wealth inequality, predatory lending,
increased corporate ownership of housing, and market displacement are
complex issues that, when daylighted, make development interests nervous.
Proposals to require reasonable objective design standards to protect solar
production, insure adequate affordable housing funding and prevent
uninterrupted commercial blocks without articulation have been rejected
even as they are adopted by dozens of cities that build – like we do -- a
lot of housing. U.C. continues to master lease properties, which takes them
off our tax rolls. Property owners were asked to support a significant bond
while fees paid by property owners and developers of residential rental
buildings are discounted without justification.

It is a cruel irony that, as the Biden Administration recasts our national
dialogue away from 40 years of trickle-down economics, Berkeley is relying
on the market as the ultimate arbiter. Climate change is an existential
threat which requires we use all tools at our disposal – solar panels AND
infill housing. The impact of a focus on private profits impacts how we do
everything. The City is monetizing our Waterfront, has derailed the beloved
Kite Festival and free Mime Troupe park performances, has driven
recreational activities like the Chess Club off our streets and is not
protecting or adding green space.

Finally, issues are presented as a morality play with those who disagree
cast in the role of villains. Resident concerns about U.C. Berkeley’s
enrollment impact on housing and City services are not adequately
addressed. People with legitimate demands that there be public transit to
access BART stations and commercial corridors are vilified (we need to find
public alternatives to the combustion vehicle, not demonize those who are
right now dependent on them). People engaging in a healthy debate about
which policing tools are effective at fighting crime while protecting civil
liberties are derided as “ideologues” and “busybodies”.

As I said before, I know it will be considered quaint to highlight
transparency, good government and engaging the community. I am not
interested in process for process’ sake. But our current approach does not
reflect the skill or agility to develop the solutions we need to survive
our climate, health and inequality crises while understanding that change
is hard and must be implemented carefully. -more-
<https://berkeleydailyplanet.com/issue/2024-01-28/article/50571?headline=Berkeley-Councilmember-Kate-Harrison-Resigns-at-Council-Meeting--Kate-Harrison>


------------------------------
THE BERKELEY ACTIVIST'S CALENDAR; week of Jan. 28- Feb. 4
<https://berkeleydailyplanet.com/issue/2024-01-28/article/50568?headline=THE-BERKELEY-ACTIVIST-S-CALENDAR-week-of-Jan.-28--Feb.-4--Kelly-Hammargren>
*Kelly Hammargren*
*Monday January 29, 2024 - 05:19:00 PM*

*Worth Noting: *

The election to fill the vacant District 7 Council position is April 16.
City Council Committees except the Agenda and Rules Committee and undefined
“certain exceptions” are suspended until May 1. This does not affect
Commissions and Board meetings.


   - *Monday*:
      - At 2:30 pm the Agenda Committee meets in the hybrid format on the
      Feb 12 Council Council meeting agenda.
      - From 6 – 7 pm Speaking Up for Point Molate on BCDC Climate Equity
      Plan
   - *Tuesday:*
      - At 3 pm the HAC Subcommittee meets online.
      - *At 6 pm City Council meets in the hybrid format with placement of
      surveillance cameras on the Action Agenda.*
   - *Wednesday:*
      - From 12 – 3 pm in person appointments for assistance with
      Displacement Certificate Applications.
      - *From 6 – 8 pm is the online public meeting on the Woolsey-Fulton
      Bike Blvd.*
   - Thursday:
      - At 6:30 pm the Landmarks Preservation Commission meets in person.
      - At 7 pm the Housing Advisory Commission meets in person.

Check the City website for late announcements and meetings posted on short
notice at: https://berkeleyca.gov/

Directions with links to ZOOM support for activating Closed Captioning and
Save Transcript are at the bottom of this calendar.



+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++



*BERKELEY PUBLIC MEETINGS AND CIVIC EVENTS* -more-
<https://berkeleydailyplanet.com/issue/2024-01-28/article/50568?headline=THE-BERKELEY-ACTIVIST-S-CALENDAR-week-of-Jan.-28--Feb.-4--Kelly-Hammargren>


------------------------------
Public Comment
The "Ohlone Greenway" Grift
<https://berkeleydailyplanet.com/issue/2024-01-28/article/50570?headline=The-Ohlone-Greenway-Grift--Carol-Denney>
*Carol Denney*
*Monday January 29, 2024 - 05:41:00 PM*

Something kept bothering me at the second presentation in two days of the
"Ohlone Greenway Safety Improvements Project" at the North Berkeley Senior
Center. A small thing perhaps. But there was nothing safe about the safety
project.

That wasn't all. It was being raced through a process as though lives were
at stake. And the only lives in jeopardy I could see were those intending
to use the pathways as pedestrians after having them widened to accommodate
electric bike and electric scooter users as well as bike commuters.

I walked home thinking, what is this all about? There's no actual safety in
this plan, which my neighbors and I only discovered that night included the
removal of eleven mature trees unmarked on my full color map. Only one tree
was marked on the map for removal, a coast live oak referred to as dead.
One was left to guess where the other trees were, what kind of trees they
were, and how long they might survive and contribute to a natural landscape
if they were not considered to be, as the map put it, "constraints". It
shocked the room to hear of eleven trees planned for removal to accommodate
bicycles and electric vehicles intending to "share" a widened pathway with
pedestrians. Pedestrians in Berkeley know what "shared-use" means. It means
leaping out of the way, if one can, of 30 mph vehicles heading right for
you and expecting you to move because, well, because they can. Here at the
corner of University and San Pablo you can expect derision from the police
if you report this kind of thing. Their attitude is, what do you expect;
you live in the wrong part of town. -more-
<https://berkeleydailyplanet.com/issue/2024-01-28/article/50570?headline=The-Ohlone-Greenway-Grift--Carol-Denney>

SMITHEREENS: Reflections on Bits & Pieces:Rumors,Steaks&Molars
<https://berkeleydailyplanet.com/issue/2024-01-28/article/50569?headline=SMITHEREENS-Reflections-on-Bits-Pieces-Rumors-Steaks-Molars--Gar-Smith>
*Gar Smith*
*Monday January 29, 2024 - 05:26:00 PM*

*Did Bert, Ernie and Big Bird Really Condemn Genocide?*
A tasty bit of disinformation now circulating on Smartphones worldwide was
recently released by a beloved rogue intelligence agent whose name is being
held as a state secret. Alas, there is no footage to support this report.
But it's fun to imagine. The message read as follows. -more-
<https://berkeleydailyplanet.com/issue/2024-01-28/article/50569?headline=SMITHEREENS-Reflections-on-Bits-Pieces-Rumors-Steaks-Molars--Gar-Smith>

Editorial
Holy Land Blues
<https://berkeleydailyplanet.com/issue/2024-01-16/article/50556?headline=Holy-Land-Blues--Becky-O-Malley>
*Becky O'Malley*
*Tuesday January 16, 2024 - 05:21:00 PM*

Well, there’s plenty of blame to go around, that’s for sure. This
publication and many more are filled with passionate denunciations of
Hamas’s brutal invasion of Israel and Israel’s appalling war against the
people of Gaza ( most of whom happen to be women, old folks or kids) by
both sides. Some opinion writers choose one side to support, but many say a
plague on both their houses. -more-
<https://berkeleydailyplanet.com/issue/2024-01-16/article/50556?headline=Holy-Land-Blues--Becky-O-Malley>

The "Ohlone Greenway" Grift
<https://berkeleydailyplanet.com/issue/2024-01-28/article/50570?headline=The-Ohlone-Greenway-Grift--Carol-Denney>
*Carol
Denney* *01-29-2024g*

SMITHEREENS: Reflections on Bits & Pieces:Rumors,Steaks&Molars
<https://berkeleydailyplanet.com/issue/2024-01-28/article/50569?headline=SMITHEREENS-Reflections-on-Bits-Pieces-Rumors-Steaks-Molars--Gar-Smith>
*Gar
Smith* *01-29-2024*
Flash: Berkeley Councilmember Kate Harrison Resigns at Council Meeting
<https://berkeleydailyplanet.com/issue/2024-01-28/article/50571?headline=Berkeley-Councilmember-Kate-Harrison-Resigns-at-Council-Meeting--Kate-Harrison>
*Kate
Harrison* *01-30-2024*
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