An open message to Arcata's City Council, and to every living, breathing person in Arcata who cares about our future. ---- Does a decision need to be made as to the fate of L Street, whether it's going to be a park or a thoroughfare street, prior to Ben Noble formulating much of the Form-Based Code? ---- This is the Council's chance to take an appropriate leadership position. To act otherwise is hypocrisy.

This “May 14, 2024” version contains changes that the Planning Commission has never seen or discussed. It contains changes where the Commission said not to change. It contains inadequate changes for things that the Commission wanted changed. It's still missing many things that the Commission brought up and did not fully resolve. It has Inclusionary Zoning wrong. And still no planning for the L Street woonerf and linear park.

There has been no economic Analysis of Gateway construction -- even though the Commissioners requested this. In June, 2023, Planning Commission Chair Scott Davies asked for an economic analysis about cost feasibility -- what it would take to build in the Gateway area. It has never happened.

This message was sent to the full City Council, the Planning Commissioners, City Manager and ComDev Director. Thi is a critique of the initial look at the latest draft of the General Plan. The General Plan 2045 draft and the Gateway Area Plan draft are supposed to be ready for a Public Hearing on May 14th. In my view, these documents are not ready.

The General Plan 2045 draft Environmental Impact Report was released to the public on January 29, 2024. These are the sections of the full document, in smaller PDF files for easier reading and downloading.

The General Plan 2045 draft Environmental Impact Report was released to the public on January 29, 2024. The public comment period runs until March 18, 2024, 5 p.m. At 1,990 pages, this draft EIR is another example of the Gish Gallop -- lots of information, but not easy to find what is pertinent.

Once a year, Arcata's Planning Commission presents a report to the City Council of its activities and progress over the previous year. This article contains videos and written reports as presented in 2023, 2022, 2021, 2020, and 2019. Also includes the DRAFT written report for the 2024 presentation.

The letter below was sent on November 28, 2023 to the members of the City Council, the Planning Commission, and the Community Development Director. It outlines some (not all) of the larger issues regarding the expansion of housing that have not been adequately brought up for discussion or resolution. Estimate reading time 6 minutes.

The presentation on the Ralph M. Brown Act, from the December 6, 2023, Arcata City Council meeting. By City Attorney Doug White and associate attorney Nubia Goldstein. With questions and discussion from the City Council members and comments from members of the public. 1 hour 10 minutes.

For their September 26, 2023, joint study session, City Councilmembers and Planning Commissioners were invited to supply their pre-meeting policy ideas. Their ideas were supplied a few hours prior to the meeting, as an addendum to the standard agenda packet. Each person's comments are included in this article.

Three new articles: A high-density building, the State Density Bonus Housing Law, and reducing regulatory costs. The State Density Bonus Housing Law and how it affects us here in Arcata is the single most important issue facing the Planning Commission with regard to the success of the Gateway Plan.

Eric Loudenslager, Board of Directors member of the Arcata Fire Protection District, weighs in on some of the challenges of the Gateway Plan, and some requests for information and involvement.

Reading time: 5 minutes -- The Plan is not just about just creating housing. The Plan needs to be about Community. These are are PEOPLE-ORIENTED NEEDS that are part of the promises of the Gateway Plan, but not likely to occur unless we actually take some action.

The Agenda Packet for the August 22 joint City Council / Planning Commission meeting has this in the staff report: "The Planning Commission completed its initial review of the Gateway Area Plan and the Gateway Code on July 11, 2023, and provided a recommendation to the Council for adoption."  ******** What the Planning Commission provided to the City Council is not recommended for ADOPTION -- just discussion.

The City wants to destroy a quiet strolling pathway so that car and truck traffic will be split between L Street and K Street. Meanwhile, cities all over the world are attempting to get rid of car traffic in favor of walkable public spaces. A "Plan B" has been promised since January, 2022. An inadequate discussion of alternatives finally emerged in August 2023, over a year and a half later.

"So the way that we add equity into our community... is by increasing the demand." David Loya speaks at the Feb 12 2022 Planning Commission on housing supply and demand. This article was originally written May 30, 2022 -- over a year ago. It exposes the vast misunderstandings and distorted viewpoints of David Loya, Arcata's Community Development Director, with regard to what determines the costs of housing. Please read and see if you can make any sense out of what Mr. Loya is proposing for Arcata.

At the August 2, 2022, Transportation Safety Committee meeting Chair Dave Ryan spoke for 9 minutes on just why the plan's L-K Street Couplet should be abandoned -- and replaced with an L Street Linear Park and walking pathway -- and why this is the heart of a successful Gateway plan for Arcata.

The following is a letter sent by Fred Weis to the City Councilmembers. According to the Planning Commission's absurdly accelerated schedule, they are expected to deliver recommendations of a draft of the Form-Based Code, a draft of the Gateway Plan, and a draft of the General Plan following their meeting on July 11th. It is expected that these drafts will be rough and incomplete. With all the work that the Planning Commission has to do, you'd think they'd be working overtime, right? Nope. Their meetings have been shorter than ever. 

At the June 13, 2023, Planning Commission "special meeting" Chair Scott Davies asked the question "And do you know or have you looked at what percentage of the actual buildable parcels in that 138 Acres is the ratio of those orange parcels to the total acreage of the Gateway Area?" **** This question is critical for understanding development in the Gateway area. The key is the phrase "the actual buildable parcels."

Original article: June 16, 2022 --We've been promised the 3D modeling for at least four or five months now. *** ONE AND A HALF YEARS NOW **** Why is 3D Modeling so important? Look at the pictures here and decide for yourself.

A letter to Arcata's City Councilmembers and Planning Commissioners: This draft Form-Based Code has about 40% of the information and code that is needed for a good Form-Based Code. It fails to provide for the intents and interests and purposes of the Gateway Plan. It does not fulfil our needs.

Affordable Housing, Home Ownership, and Gentrification were featured topics for discussion at the May 9, 2023, Planning Commission meeting.  But there was no discussion of affordable housing or home-ownership opportunities at that Planning Commission meeting.  No discussion at all -- just a staff report on this crucial topics. **** This is that staff report -- with COMMENTARY.

Now at eighteen months from the introduction of the Draft Gateway Area Plan, the wonderful world that was promised by the plan seems ever more unlikely. I refer to that wonderful world of “thousands of housing units that are environmentally sustainable and affordable to people in all income ranges” and “a broad range of housing densities and types, including rental and owner‐occupied options” that is promised on the opening page of the Draft Plan and continued in that theme throughout the document. *** Let’s look at what’s been ignored over these past eighteen months.

According to Arcata's Municipal Code, the Planning Commission shall hold regular meetings twice monthly. In violation of this Code, the Commission has not been holding regular meetings.

Note: This article was written June 10, 2022 -- almost one year ago. The topics that are brought up then are still current. The same issues that existed in May 2022 still exist in May 2023 -- one year later.

The Community Development Department provided improper maps and information to the Planning Commission on the recommendation for rezoning these parcels along Alliance Road. The Planning Commission inadvertently created a "spot zoned" parcel -- actually a spot-zoned portion of a parcel. ********The question is now:  What is the Planning Commission going to do? Leave it as it is, and hope no one wants to ever redevelop the "blighted" buildings? That does not seem like a thoughtful path. Or will they figure out how to make this improper rezoning correct.

At their April 27, 2023, meeting, the Planning Commission brought up rezoning on two specific areas in Arcata. This discussion and survey of each of the Commissioner's positions went on for about 38 minutes. Unfortunately, this topic was not listed as an agenda item for that meeting. To have this discussion was a violation of California's Brown Act "sunshine" law. What's worse, the Commissioners had specifically requested that this be on the agenda for that evening, and Community Development Director David Loya had not done put it there, even after being told on at least three occasions.

The City's maps for the proposed rezoning of 10.5 acres area near 17th & Q Streets to Residential High Density are missing important details.  There are 8 new images -- can take 5 minutes to look at the images and read the descriptions. Does an up-zoning of the 17th & Q area to Residential High or Medium Density do much to help create housing for Arcata? No, it does not.

At the April 11, 2023, Planning Commission meeting, the matters of how to achieve increased safety on K Street and the fate of what the Commissioners want to see on L Street -- Linear Park or thoroughfare road -- was discussed. Eventually there was a vote. The vote was tallied as 4 to 2 -- with 4 members supporting the motion and 2 opposed. ******** The motion changed mid-way through the voting discussion, and does not match what the Commissioners had expressed as what they wanted.

Again and again and again, we hear it said that the Foster Avenue Extension was 20 or 30 years in its planning, and that if it hadn't been proposed and planned for then it never would have happened. The Foster Avenue Extension and the proposed new L Street couplet are different roads, for different purposes, in very different environments, and with completely sets of buildings (both existing and proposed) alongside them. Consequently they will have very different planning processes. The situations are 100% different --they are like night and day. There is very little in common between the two roads.  *** WITH AERIAL PHOTOS ***

How to contact Arcata's City Councilmembers & Planning Commissioners, and how to attend a City Council or Planning Commission meeting -- in person, via YouTube, via Zoom, or on the phone.

What happened at the April 11, 2023, Planning Commission meeting? The Chair first announced that there would be just a single period for public comment. Then, after a one-minute private discussion with David Loya, the Chair relented and allowed additional public comment at the conclusion of the main topic of the night. Video and transcription.

As just about everyone knows, just by saying something is true -- that does not make it true. And just by calling something by a certain name -- that does not make it be what you call it. *** So how is it that "Regular Meetings" became "Special Meetings" -- just by calling them that?