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bone-headed housing polices happily voted in by existing residents "Residents" have no such authority. Cities and counties don't even have an initiative or re

bone-headed housing polices happily voted in by existing residents "Residents" have no such authority. Cities and counties don't even have an initiative or referendum power open to residents, generally.

Johnny555 8y ago
But most communities do have an elected city council that's supposed to represent the will of the voters. In my community any attempt to build new housing results in a lot of current reidents showing up at planning meetings and complaining about how the new development will ruin their quality of life, take away street parking, and cause gridlock. Oddly, I only know of two people in my condo associate that work in tech, and both of us support new housing, the ones that are most vocally opposed have been here for 20+ years. Ok, maybe that's not so odd, the people that have been here the longest don't want more change.
- masonic 8y ago
  a lot of current residents showing up at planning meetings Do you go to such meetings? Do you watch them on cable access or view the tapes at City Hall? (Heck, into the 1990s, the only available video of San Jose city council or SCC Supervisors meetings were if we taped it ourselves.) In reality, almost all such meetings are lightly attended at best unless a "progressive" interest group transports then in. Almost all Bay Area city council try to portray themselves as "progressives". Even in stodgy San Jose, not one councilmember is a Republican.
  - Johnny555 8y ago
    Not all of them, but I go when I can. The last one I went to was packed full of neighborhood residents overwhelmingly against the development who were worried about traffic and parking. Though the development was right next to a Caltrain station, which is exactly where mid to high density development should be happening.
    - masonic 8y ago
      The last one I went to was packed full of neighborhood residents Please let me know the date of that meeting; I'd like to check out the tapes.
GeneralMayhem 8y ago
They do in San Francisco. There's the power of the referendum (for instance, Prop C 2016), but more importantly, there's the power of the "community review" [1], with which a dedicated neighbor can stall construction for years by forcing reviews and appeals. The rules in other Bay Area cities are slightly different in construction, but not in result. [1] https://hoodline.com/2015/11/sf-planning-101-how-community-input-affects-the-building-process https://hoodline.com/2015/11/sf-planning-101-how-community-i...
- masonic 8y ago
  They do in San Francisco. Hence the "generally". Those particular 47 square miles excluded. There's the power of the refererendum (for instance, Prop C) Prop C was a charter amendment, not a referendum. "Referendum" has a specific legal meaning in CA and is almost never used because the signature threshold is the same as for Initiative statues that you can bend however you want. Referendum takes just as much work with far less utility. a dedicated neighbor can stall construction for years by forcing reviews Again a random "dedicated neighbor" has no power to "force" anything... even in SF. In SF, especially, it's money that talks.

Johnny555 8y ago

But most communities do have an elected city council that's supposed to represent the will of the voters. In my community any attempt to build new housing results in a lot of current reidents showing up at planning meetings and complaining about how the new development will ruin their quality of life, take away street parking, and cause gridlock. Oddly, I only know of two people in my condo associate that work in tech, and both of us support new housing, the ones that are most vocally opposed have been here for 20+ years. Ok, maybe that's not so odd, the people that have been here the longest don't want more change.

masonic 8y ago
a lot of current residents showing up at planning meetings Do you go to such meetings? Do you watch them on cable access or view the tapes at City Hall? (Heck, into the 1990s, the only available video of San Jose city council or SCC Supervisors meetings were if we taped it ourselves.) In reality, almost all such meetings are lightly attended at best unless a "progressive" interest group transports then in. Almost all Bay Area city council try to portray themselves as "progressives". Even in stodgy San Jose, not one councilmember is a Republican.
- Johnny555 8y ago
  Not all of them, but I go when I can. The last one I went to was packed full of neighborhood residents overwhelmingly against the development who were worried about traffic and parking. Though the development was right next to a Caltrain station, which is exactly where mid to high density development should be happening.
  - masonic 8y ago
    The last one I went to was packed full of neighborhood residents Please let me know the date of that meeting; I'd like to check out the tapes.

GeneralMayhem 8y ago

They do in San Francisco. There's the power of the referendum (for instance, Prop C 2016), but more importantly, there's the power of the "community review" [1], with which a dedicated neighbor can stall construction for years by forcing reviews and appeals. The rules in other Bay Area cities are slightly different in construction, but not in result. [1] https://hoodline.com/2015/11/sf-planning-101-how-community-input-affects-the-building-process https://hoodline.com/2015/11/sf-planning-101-how-community-i...

masonic 8y ago
They do in San Francisco. Hence the "generally". Those particular 47 square miles excluded. There's the power of the refererendum (for instance, Prop C) Prop C was a charter amendment, not a referendum. "Referendum" has a specific legal meaning in CA and is almost never used because the signature threshold is the same as for Initiative statues that you can bend however you want. Referendum takes just as much work with far less utility. a dedicated neighbor can stall construction for years by forcing reviews Again a random "dedicated neighbor" has no power to "force" anything... even in SF. In SF, especially, it's money that talks.