Monday, May 23, 2023

To:         Planning Commission Chair Scott Davies, Vice-Chair Dan Tangney,
             Commissioners Judith Mayer, Peter Lehman,
             Matt Simmons, and Joel Yodowitz. Community Development Director David Loya.

From:      Fred Weis
Subject:  The May 16, 2023, Creamery Meeting was not what the Commissioners requested

• The May 16th Creamery Meeting was essentially hijacked by Community Development Director David Loya and taken over for his own purposes.
• There were, by my count, 42 people in attendance in addition to the three staff members. Following the 15-minute introduction by David Loya, close to half of the participants left.
  
• Why did they leave? Because they were expecting (as was I) an open meeting, where ideas could be discussed and concerns heard. Instead they were told that staff had selected six topics, and that the discussions were to be centered around those six topics. 
• There are five articles on the May 16th Creamery meeting and background info on the Arcata1.com website. At this time — six days after the meeting — the three most popular of these articles have been viewed 364 times, 346 times, and 232 times. That is to say, there are hundreds of people in Arcata who are following this issue — the issue of the Creamery District people not being heard. 
• What the Commission wanted to see come out of a meeting with Creamery District residents, businesses, and concerned citizens is well-documented. It was originally intended as an open meeting, where Arcata residents could tell the Planning Commissioners what their views are on the potential impacts of what the proposed changes from the Gateway Plan might be. It transformed from a “we’ll go there” concept to a “they can come here” decision, and then became a “David Loya will go and report back to you” arrangement. That arrangement has not worked out well, from the perspective of creating open dialogue.
• From the staff report:   “The objectives of the meeting were 1) to collect information on outstanding concerns and hopes regarding the Creamery District related to the Planning Commission’s Concerns and Solutions set adopted in November of 2022….”
  This was done only minimally. In the 1-1/2 hour meeting, David spoke to concerns that participants had written down for around 3 minutes and 11 seconds.
  
• The existing staff report is a fraction of what went on at this meeting. Among what is missing in the staff report is the reaction from the participants after David Loya announced that the conversation would be held to those six topics.
• The outreach letter sent by David Loya was addressed to “Dear Current Occupant.” I do not consider “Dear Current Occupant” to be very inviting or respectful — particularly when sent to a business that’s part of the economic engine of our community. There are approximately 90 individual businesses in the Creamery District, and an unknown number of residents — perhaps 50 or 100, as a guess. 
• The outreach letter included this line: “This meeting is intended to provide stakeholders with more direct access to staff and more time to ask questions and provide comments.”
• Despite David Loya telling the Commission that he was reaching out to the business community, I saw only three businesses represented. (Perhaps staff can tell us of others who were there.)  Jackie Dandenau of the Playhouse, Crystal Henson of the 9th & L storage units, and Brian Finigan of the Creamery Building.
• The pre-chosen topics did not include, the L Street linear park vs. couplet street question, as one example. David Loya told the group that the Linear Park was not one of the topics on that evening’s list of topics to be discussed. But people could bring it up at the “Open Ideas” table.
• Nor did the topics include building heights in the Creamery District or the notion of having the Creamery District be a “5th” designated Gateway district (as opposed to being part of three different Gateway districts).
• I had audio recorders at each of the three tables where discussions took place and have made transcriptions of those discussions. For two tables I recorded video. The videographer Eric Black also recorded some video of the meeting.
• Much of value was indeed accomplished at the meeting. There were many good discussions, and David, Jen Dart, and Gillen Tener Martin answered many questions. But the people attending (and those who left) had a difficult time expressing their concerns.

• Why was this meeting so controlled? The Commission requested this meeting as a listening session. But it was set up as an information resource. Participants could get their questions answered — if their questions were one of the pre-chosen topics.
• The staff report includes photos of the posters (I think all from the “Open Items table”) and the Post-It notes that people had written comments on. If you want to read the posters and notes, the notes have been transcribed and can be read at:  
  What People Wrote – at the May 16th Creamery meeting
  https://arcata1.com/what-people-wrote-at-the-may-16th-creamery-meeting/

• As one participant wrote to me: “Many folks wanted to talk about building height and the linear park. Even though those seemed relevant at the ‘cool things we want to keep’ and ‘design’ table — Gillen really pushed back on that and didn’t want it discussed. Community members kept finding ways to try and get it into the comments (by saying ‘keep the trail’, ‘make it a car-free area’).”
• To remind the Commissioners:  This is hardly the first time that Director Loya has changed what you asked him to do.
  At your April 22 meeting, you clearly told David Loya to put the rezoning issue on the agenda. He did not do this — resulting in a Brown Act violation at your April 27 meeting, at which rezoning was discussed and action was taken despite not being on the agenda. At your April 11 meeting, in a “straw poll” vote on the L-K couplet, the Commissioner who seconded the motion actually rescinded his “Aye” vote and changed it a no after the motion changed from the L-K couplet being “an” option to be considered to being “the” option — at David Loya‘s urging. These are recent examples.

• Similarly, the Commission found that it could not rely on staff’s portrayal of the views and decisions of the Transportation Safety Committee.
• The staff report on the May 16 Creamery meeting is inaccurate because of what the report has left out. Please ask David Loya for clarification.

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Further notes and links:

• The intention of what this meeting should be was discussed by the Commissioners at your November 8, 2022, meeting; at your March 14, 2023 meeting; and briefly two weeks ago at your previous meeting on May 9th.

  From your November 8, 2022, meeting:
  “So that we go to their space, and listen to what they have to say. We can call it
  whatever we want — a listening session, a reach-in rather than a reach-out.”
  What David Loya told you on March 14:
  “I think the intent, or at least my understanding of the intent behind the
  Commission’s action to try and hold a meeting in the Creamery District was: One, to
  make sure that you’re getting out into the community and doing some good
  engagement. And number Two, to recognize that the folks in this area have an
  added interest because the, you know, their lives will change from from
  development. And they own property out there, they own businesses, and
  wanted to be able to, you know, extend that hand.”

• The Staff Report from Community Development Director David Loya is in the packet for
  your May 23, 2023, meeting. In it is stated:

  “The objectives of the meeting were 1) to collect information on outstanding
  concerns and hopes regarding the Creamery District related to the Planning
  Commission’s Concerns and Solutions set adopted in November of 2022, and
  2) for staff to provide information and foster conversation about issues related to the
  Plan’s expected impacts on businesses and residents in the Creamery District, on the
  Creamery Building, and on the Creamery District as a whole.”

Clearly “to collect information on outstanding concerns and hopes, etc.” is not what was done.

Links:

Creamery District meeting – May 16, 2023 – What the People want – Updated May 21
https://arcata1.com/creamery–district-meeting-may-16-2023-what-the-people-want/

What People Wrote – at the May 16th Creamery meeting.  Transcriptions of all the posters and Post-It notes.
https://arcata1.com/what-people-wrote-at-the-may-16th-creamery-meeting/

May 16th Creamery Meeting: The discussion is minimized in the Staff Report
https://arcata1.com/may-16th-creamery-meeting-the-discussion-is-minimized-in-the-staff-report/

For the 12-minute video segment of your November 8, 2022, discussion on this, and a transcription of what the Commissioners said, go to:
arcata1.com/david-loya–trashes-the-creamery–discussion-may-16-2023/

“The Planning Commissioners asked for a meeting with the Creamery community. At the time, Community Development Director David Loya agreed. But when the meeting occurred, it was not what the Commissioners had requested. As we have seen so many times, Director Loya did what he wanted to do. And once again Director Loya disregarded the expressed wishes of the Planning Commission — and disregarded input from our community.”