COPA defeat takeaway #2: Concerns about displacement often exaggerated, unproven
At the 3.27 SJ Council committee meeting that rejected the Housing Dept’s COPA proposal, there was a lot of talk about how gentrification and development drive lower-income people away from their neighborhoods. But there was scant data to support those conclusions. In fact, according to BuildingSaltLake.com, two decades of research across the US shows that many common assumptions about the connections between displacement, gentrification, and new, high-density, high-rent development are just plain wrong.
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Stanford Law lessons: DEI depts quietly pull the strings at local institutions
In the wake of the Bay Area's Stanford University free speech scandal, Reason's Josh Blackman asks what everybody is wondering but doesn't want to say out loud: Why was the law school's DEI dean the de facto spokesperson for Stanford? Blackman unravels how Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion has stuck its nose into all issues possibly correlated with discrimination (big surprise: it's most of them) and, as a result, has commandeered how local higher ed administrations deal with problems.
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Bay Area jailbreak enthusiasts turn their attention to (convicted) first-degree murderers
Local decriminalization devotees, among them Sen. Cortese (D-SJ), are promoting Californian SB 94 to reduce our jails' elderly population. How? By reducing sentences of CA'ns who were either sentenced to death or are serving a life sentence without the opportunity for parole. The Globe's Michael Rushford argues that the only winners of SB 94 will be dangerous criminals who have committed first-degree murder—and the losers, individuals and families wanting to live and travel safely.
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SFSU hedges on upholding free speech following assault of guest speaker
The Bay is experiencing deja vu all over again: Another invited speaker at a local university's student org has been canceled for offensive beliefs. This time, women's sports advocate Riley Gaines was physically threatened by an aggressive, screaming mob at SFSU. After the incident, admin has acknowledged the value of free speech while labeling the protest as “peaceful” and offering the hecklers “healing” via DEI services—not even a slap on the wrist. California Globe's reporting below.
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Studies show: Accountability-free, taxpayer-funded housing frequently destroyed by residents
Analyzing LA’s Skid Row Housing Trust and SF’s Tenderloin Housing Clinic, Built in the Cloud’s Adam Mayer discusses why barrier-free Housing First policies inevitably feed into a “vicious cycle” of property damage and expensive unit repairs—as similarly observed in SJ.
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☆ Perspective: To reach its housing needs, SJ needs to jettison ordinances like the Ellis Act, which constrain densification where we need it most
Local housing provider Dean Hotop cuts to the chase: If SJ wants to preserve its greenbelt (which it should), we need to find ways to build upwards within our Urban Growth Boundary. Outdated ordinances like the Ellis Act—which make it economically infeasible to densify older, low-density properties—stand in the way of an abundant housing supply and common sense, and have to go. An Opp Now exclusive.
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LA case study: "Mansion Tax" a backchannel giveaway to unaccountable nonprofits
In the NY Post, Susan Shelley—Howard Jarvis Taxpayers Association's VP of Comm's—untangles LA's latest homelessness hotfix, by the name of recently-passed Measure ULA. No surprise here: Residents making high-value real estate transactions are being asked to fork over some big coin, but none of it will go to emergency shelters or transitional housing. Rather, the takings go to the same people who wrote the ordinance: nonprofits peddling the discredited Housing First mantra.
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The Drug user/union nexus
National media has had a field day with allegations that a SJ Police Officers' union leader has been regularly importing illegal drugs. Little commented upon, in this coverage, is the movement to unionize drug users—and the touchpoints between union organizing, drug distribution, safer drug usage, and decriminalization. Commentary from Workers World explains.
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☆ Sen Jones: CA needs SB 31's “compassionate approach” to homelessness
While some local news sites are making outrageously false claims about Senate Bill 31's anti-street squatting stance, Senate Minority Leader Brian W. Jones sets the record straight in this Opp Now exclusive. He explains how SB 31, along with CARE Court, can provide much-needed services to the unhoused while mitigating the negative neighborhood impacts of runaway encampments.
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A progressive's perspective: Why the Left should champion de-zoning
Henry Grabar's Slate interview with YIMBY advocate Hawaii Sen. Brian Schatz highlights the need for bipartisan support for deregulating local housing construction. Abolishing onerous zoning codes, says Schatz, can address nationwide housing shortages, allow for a variety of new units created (not just high end), and preserve a vibrant free market—without the hassles of top-down gov't interference (looking at you, SB 9).
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☆ Khamis: SJ needs holistic homelessness strategies
A recent article in local news labels proposed Senate Bill 31 as “criminalizing homelessness” by making it a misdemeanor to take up residence on sidewalks and streets 1,000 ft. from “sensitive areas.” Past SJ councilmember Johnny Khamis clarifies why effective law enforcement, substance abuse/mental health, and housing solutions must be blended to keep our community's families safe. An Opp Now exclusive.
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Woke Stanford student bullies might face “character”-related bar investigations
If Stanford won't punish its students' anti-free speech harassment, says litigator John Banzhaf, the real world should. Banzhaf is brandishing the potentially career-killing threat of bar complaints against Stanford Law students who heckled federal judge Kyle Duncan, citing “very clear” policies against disruption and the need for law practitioners to—hold your breath, Silicon Valley—listen to the other side.
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