March 20, 2023
Greetings & Thoughts
Talking about this week’s KBYG topic and lunch plans
Know Before You Grow will be Wednesday evening. As is our new standard, information can be found on the Urban Chat calendar.
I’m excited about the topic. I like the rigor the authors bring to their analysis of the causes behind rates of homelessness and the earnestness of the author who will speak to us via a video recording.
However, I’m aware this will be the second straight KBYG forum to touch on homelessness, and wonder if some might be wondering about the connection between Urban Chat and homelessness. Well, the Urban Chat mission statement includes “Housing to meet community needs” and community needs certainly include paths out of homelessness.
But more importantly to me, I believe that living downtown may be the best possible route to escape homelessness permanently. This is because downtown living offers more chances of the casual sidewalk encounters so beloved by Jane Jacobs, thereby creating more useful personal relationships, while also accomplishing much of life without the need for a car, thereby saving a major life expense.
I hope to see all of you on Zoom Wednesday evening.
Also, please note the newly-scheduled Scannell Development workshop on their 500 Hopper Street project, further described below.
On a personal note, today is my birthday. Indeed, it’s a milestone birthday, although I won’t share which one.
In about 2017, I began a personal tradition of going out for lunch every day of my birthday week, visiting restaurants I enjoy but don’t visit often enough. For the obvious reason, that tradition went on hold for the past three years. It will be rebooted this week and early next week.
I’m otherwise engaged today, doing a transit odyssey with an old friend, and have the regular Urban Chat lunch on Thursday. But tomorrow (Tuesday), Wednesday, and Friday this week plus Monday and Tuesday next week, five days total, I’ll be lunching around town. I’m fine dining alone, never having enough time for the reading I wish to do, but I enjoy good company even more. If anyone wants to meet me over a birthday lunch and talk about Urban Chat, life in Petaluma, or anything else, let me know. I’ll share my list of restaurant destinations.
Questions or comments? Let me know. – Dave Alden 707-338-8388
P.S. New folks can be added to this conversation through the Urban Chat website. Unsubscribing can be done below.
Calendar Notes
See our new monthly calendar here!
Upcoming Meetings
All events are open to the public and everyone is encouraged to participate in person or on-line.
Monday, March 20 (Today!) – Petaluma City Council
The Council will consider approval of the Housing Element.
The public portion of the meeting will convene at 6:30pm. Other meeting information is on the Urban Chat calendar.
Tuesday, March 21 (Tomorrow) - Scannell Development
Scannell will host a workshop on their 500 Hopper Street project, attempting to find a community consensus around a development plan for the challenging site. Urban Chat has supported residential use of the 500 Hopper Street site, but has pushed for an increased accommodation of sea level rise and facilitation of reduced car-dependency.
The in-person meeting will convene at 6:00pm at the Courtyards by Marriott, 700 Caulfield Lane in the River Front project.
Monday, March 22 (This week) – Know Before You Grow
KBYG will continue with housing, a high vote-getting subject in our recent poll of forum participants. We’ll offer a Zoom forum on a recent book, “Homelessness is a Housing Problem”. The book argues that individuals may become unhoused due to unemployment, substance abuse, or other personal reasons, but the regional homeless rates correlate most closely to the availability of housing. The Q&A will dig into the statistical arguments and discuss what our town should be doing.
The forum will convene at 7:00pm. Other meeting information is provided on the Urban Chat calendar.
Thursday, March 23 (This week) – Petaluma Urban Chat
The monthly meeting of Urban Chat is almost always agenda-free, allowing an enjoyable and enlightening conversation to wander freely over the urbanist landscape.
The conversation will commence at noon. Other information is provided on the Urban Chat calendar.
Thursday, April 20 – Petaluma General Plan Advisory Committee
GPAC will convene for their monthly meeting. The topic isn’t yet finalized but may be flooding and sea level rise.
