Welcome to Monitor Notes, a weekly roundup of news items, event announcements, and updates on past Bay Area Monitor articles.
High-Yield Housing Bonds?
The League of Women Voters of Oakland hosts a virtual discussion tonight at 6 on “Affordable Housing and the Unsheltered: What Your Bond Dollars are Building Today.” The group’s Unsheltered Task Force invited four local housing officials to discuss recent progress in building permanently affordable housing and temporary housing such as community cabins and safe RV sites. They’ll also explore if these options are sufficient to meet the present need. Read about city and county bond measures helping to fund housing before attending the event.
Electrical Switch
What will it take to electrify your home? Find out during an April 8 webinar at 7 p.m. with LWV Alameda and Community Action for a Sustainable Alameda (CASA). Participants will learn how to make their dwellings healthier and contribute to local regulations reducing home emissions. A panel that includes City of Alameda Public Utilities Board President Ann McCormick (pictured) will talk about what will be required in homes, steps to take now, online resources, and regulations in the works. While the event is focused on Alameda, it could be a good introduction for anyone whose interest is sparked by learning electric homes’ benefits.
Surviving to Thriving
Acterra and 20 other community organizations will host an online climate justice event with environmental and social justice advocate, Dr. Mustafa Santiago Ali, on April 2 at noon. During the discussion, “A New Day: From Surviving to Thriving,” Ali (pictured) is expected to talk about systems, policy, and how we can get to a better place that’s resilient and equitable. He’s the vice president of environmental justice, climate, and community revitalization for the National Wildlife Federation, in addition to several other professional hats that he wears. Read more about Ali’s work in his bio.
Dry Spell
Last week, two California state water agencies warned that continued dry conditions are likely to result in water shortages, and farms, businesses, and homes should plan accordingly to reduce and conserve. With that possibility, it’s important to know how water is allocated to understand better the tradeoffs the state’s water managers make during droughts, according to the Public Policy Institute of California. Its Water Policy Center offers a few new resources to understand the situation we’re facing. Watch a video to learn how Californians use water or read a March 29 blog with a six-point plan to prepare the state’s freshwater ecosystems for drought.
Navigating Transit Integration
New legislation could help the Bay Area’s transportation network navigate its way out of the pandemic by establishing an integrated public transit system to improve commutes and increase ridership. Assembly Bill 629 (Chiu) would call on the Metropolitan Transportation Commission (MTC) to create a fare integration pilot program with a special pass that allows riders to travel across more than one operator while paying a limited, fixed fare. It also proposes a standardized transit mapping and wayfinding system, the use of real-time data to ensure schedule predictability for transfers, and a transit priority network to get buses moving faster. The bill’s history and other features are described in a March 24 San Francisco Examiner article. The measure, referred to the Assembly’s transportation committee last week, builds on MTC’s Blue Ribbon Transit Recovery Task Force, which meets April 26.
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Banner Photo by Paul Hames/California Department of Water Resources