<div dir="ltr"><div class="gmail_default" style="font-family:arial,helvetica,sans-serif"><div id="m_-944829458619890925gmail-content"><div id="m_-944829458619890925gmail-second_col"><div><div><div><div><p><em><br> harassed in any way to make this decision. Berkeley’s processes are broken and I cannot<br> continue to serve…I wish you all the best, but I am resigning."</em> <br><br> <br> <strong>While those of us attending were still digesting that Kate Harrison resigned, the mayor called a<br> break and then resumed the meeting as if nothing unusual had happened.</strong> <br><br> <strong><strong> —Kelly Hammargren</strong></strong> <br><br> </p><hr>
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. <br><br>
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.<br><br> 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.<br><br>
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”.<br><br> 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.
<a href="https://berkeleydailyplanet.com/issue/2024-01-28/article/50571?headline=Berkeley-Councilmember-Kate-Harrison-Resigns-at-Council-Meeting--Kate-Harrison" target="_blank">-more-</a>
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<a href="https://berkeleydailyplanet.com/issue/2024-01-28/article/50568?headline=THE-BERKELEY-ACTIVIST-S-CALENDAR-week-of-Jan.-28--Feb.-4--Kelly-Hammargren" target="_blank">THE BERKELEY ACTIVIST'S CALENDAR; week of Jan. 28- Feb. 4</a>
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<i>Kelly Hammargren</i>
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<i>Monday January 29, 2024 - 05:19:00 PM</i>
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<strong>Worth Noting: </strong><br><br>
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.<br><br> </p><ul> <li> <strong>Monday</strong>: <ul> <li> At 2:30 pm the Agenda Committee meets in the hybrid format on the Feb 12 Council Council meeting agenda.</li> <li> From 6 – 7 pm Speaking Up for Point Molate on BCDC Climate Equity Plan</li> </ul> </li> <li> <strong>Tuesday:</strong> <ul> <li> At 3 pm the HAC Subcommittee meets online.</li> <li> <strong>At 6 pm City Council meets in the hybrid format with placement of surveillance cameras on the Action Agenda.</strong></li> </ul> </li> <li> <strong>Wednesday:</strong> <ul> <li> From 12 – 3 pm in person appointments for assistance with Displacement Certificate Applications.</li> <li> <strong>From 6 – 8 pm is the online public meeting on the Woolsey-Fulton Bike Blvd.</strong></li> </ul> </li> <li> Thursday: <ul> <li> At 6:30 pm the Landmarks Preservation Commission meets in person.</li> <li> At 7 pm the Housing Advisory Commission meets in person.</li> </ul> </li> </ul> Check the City website for late announcements and meetings posted on short notice at: <a href="https://berkeleyca.gov/" target="_blank">https://berkeleyca.gov/</a><br><br>
Directions with links to ZOOM support for activating
Closed Captioning and Save Transcript are at the bottom of this
calendar.<br><br> <br><br> +++++++++++++++++++++++++++++<br><br> <br><br> <strong><u>BERKELEY PUBLIC MEETINGS AND CIVIC EVENTS</u></strong>
<a href="https://berkeleydailyplanet.com/issue/2024-01-28/article/50568?headline=THE-BERKELEY-ACTIVIST-S-CALENDAR-week-of-Jan.-28--Feb.-4--Kelly-Hammargren" target="_blank">-more-</a>
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<h2>Public Comment</h2>
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<a href="https://berkeleydailyplanet.com/issue/2024-01-28/article/50570?headline=The-Ohlone-Greenway-Grift--Carol-Denney" target="_blank">The "Ohlone Greenway" Grift</a>
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<i>Carol Denney</i>
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<i>Monday January 29, 2024 - 05:41:00 PM</i>
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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. <br><br>
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.<br><br> 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.
<a href="https://berkeleydailyplanet.com/issue/2024-01-28/article/50570?headline=The-Ohlone-Greenway-Grift--Carol-Denney" target="_blank">-more-</a>
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<a href="https://berkeleydailyplanet.com/issue/2024-01-28/article/50569?headline=SMITHEREENS-Reflections-on-Bits-Pieces-Rumors-Steaks-Molars--Gar-Smith" target="_blank">SMITHEREENS: Reflections on Bits & Pieces:Rumors,Steaks&Molars</a>
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<i>Gar Smith</i>
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<i>Monday January 29, 2024 - 05:26:00 PM</i>
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<strong>Did Bert, Ernie and Big Bird Really Condemn Genocide?</strong><br>
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.
<a href="https://berkeleydailyplanet.com/issue/2024-01-28/article/50569?headline=SMITHEREENS-Reflections-on-Bits-Pieces-Rumors-Steaks-Molars--Gar-Smith" target="_blank">-more-</a>
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<h2>Editorial</h2>
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<a href="https://berkeleydailyplanet.com/issue/2024-01-16/article/50556?headline=Holy-Land-Blues--Becky-O-Malley" target="_blank">Holy Land Blues</a>
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<i>Becky O'Malley</i>
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<i>Tuesday January 16, 2024 - 05:21:00 PM</i>
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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.
<a href="https://berkeleydailyplanet.com/issue/2024-01-16/article/50556?headline=Holy-Land-Blues--Becky-O-Malley" target="_blank">-more-</a>
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<img src="https://berkeleydailyplanet.com/locads/images/ad0.jpg">T<a href="https://berkeleydailyplanet.com/issue/2024-01-28/article/50570?headline=The-Ohlone-Greenway-Grift--Carol-Denney" target="_blank">he "Ohlone Greenway" Grift</a>
<i>Carol Denney</i>
<i>01-29-2024g</i></div><div>
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<a href="https://berkeleydailyplanet.com/issue/2024-01-28/article/50569?headline=SMITHEREENS-Reflections-on-Bits-Pieces-Rumors-Steaks-Molars--Gar-Smith" target="_blank">SMITHEREENS: Reflections on Bits & Pieces:Rumors,Steaks&Molars</a>
<i>Gar Smith</i>
<i>01-29-2024</i>
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<h2><a href="https://berkeleydailyplanet.com/issue/2024-01-28/article/50571?headline=Berkeley-Councilmember-Kate-Harrison-Resigns-at-Council-Meeting--Kate-Harrison" style="font-size:small;font-weight:normal" target="_blank"><span>Flash: Berkeley Councilmember Kate Harrison Resigns at Council Meeting</span></a><span style="font-size:small;font-weight:normal">
</span><i style="font-size:small;font-weight:normal">Kate Harrison</i><span style="font-size:small;font-weight:normal">
</span><i style="font-size:small;font-weight:normal">01-30-2024</i><br></h2></div></div></div></div>