Letters to the Editor

EDITOR: Since moving to the east side of Petaluma, I have been subjected to terrible traffic problems. The impending development of property on the corner of Corona/N. McDowell will consist of a SMART train depot and homes. This will increase traffic jams.

The Council needs to take care of traffic first before adding more than 111 homes and depot traffic. The developer went to the Planning Commission to change the plan. He proposed more houses with only 5% affordable housing, a few lawns, no play areas for children, and no commercial businesses.

The property boundaries are railroad tracks, Corona Creek and N. McDowell/Corona. The Planning Commission rejected the developer’s modified plans twice. The developer then bypassed this decision and went to the city council.

I am rebutting Steven Aiello’s letter saying Brian Barnacle was not for the SMART train. Brian is in favor of the train depot but not in favor of the developer’s housing plan as approved by incumbents on the city council, Healy, Kearney, King and Miller.

Brian is part of a group alliance that sued the city over this developer’s plans that was not part of the city’s guidelines for building on this site.

The Rainier crossing is also to be built in a flood zone. We need crossings but let’s be sensible and do it right. Brian Barnacle is for the residents and coming up with plans that will make sense for all.

Pat Vollmer
Petaluma
October 15, 2020
Petaluma Argus-Courier

EDITOR: Politics is a tough business, but intimidation and threats should never be part of it. A local business who allowed signs for Brian Barnacle have been threatened in a letter that they will be boycotted if they don’t remove these signs.

The letter did not come from any one of the incumbents, but the policy positions touted in the letter is suspiciously close to campaign literature and public statements made by the three incumbents. We need change in this town to meet the new challenges with creative ideas. We could start with ending the nasty political tricks the incumbents have been using for years to save their positions of power.

Leadership is about bringing people together. Brian Barnacle is a leader we can trust.

Janice Cader Thompson
Petaluma
October 15, 2020
Petaluma Argus-Courier

EDITOR: To listen to the forum comments of our City Council incumbents, you’d think it was the 1960s or even the 1990s. In fact, we are now entering the third decade of the 21st century.

We face huge challenges on almost every front. Even so, claiming their extensive experience, the current City Council incumbents want to continue to give us more of what got us here. The special character of our town is at stake.

In a world where retail has shifted toward the online access of Amazon, we don’t need more retail malls. Where there are few precious building opportunities, we don’t need to exclude our working class by building more market-rate and luxury housing. Where an increasing number of 911 calls are for homeless and mental health issues, we don’t need to devote scarce resources to military-style weapons.

We have a clear choice. We can go back to the well and vote for leadership that hangs onto power by voting for projects favored by campaign donors and their special interests. Or we can cast our vision forward and select young leaders like Brian Barnacle, who is from Petaluma and has a strong background in climate policy and city planning.

We can make the most of our chance for a new vision for the fairgrounds. We can bring a laser-like focus on building a General Plan for the future. He has the bold ideas that can guide this town toward a secure future, and away from the dogmas of the past.

David Powers
Petaluma
October 15, 2020
Petaluma Argus-Courier

EDITOR: The other day I received a call from someone named Dick Sharkey telling me about a corrupt city council candidate named Brian Barnacle. I had never heard of Brian Barnacle, so of course, as a proud Petaluman, I had to look into this “monster.“

I have reviewed Barnacle's credentials, endorsements, and issues and cannot find anything to oppose, but rather find a qualified candidate with priorities aligned with science, decency and optimistic grit. His main priority seems to be the environment, which a majority of Americans now agree with.

Sharkey's voice message also stuck with me because of the obvious adorable shark vs barnacle image that came to mind. So for those of us who love metaphor: Barnacles are a filtration system for the ocean ecology, cleaning the environment for other organisms. Barnacles are also particularly vulnerable to pollution because of their janitorial role in the ecosystem.

I am so proud of Petaluma for the ambitious steps we are taking on climate action. I plan to vote for Brian Barnacle because he supports those efforts.

Amy Atchley
Petaluma
October 15, 2020
Petaluma Argus-Courier

EDITOR: Of the 17 years I have been able to vote, this upcoming election is the most important one to me yet. There is so much at stake and we all need to not only get ourselves out to vote, but urge those around us too.

Now more than ever, we need leaders who not only understand and take climate change seriously, but also have experience working with creative and effective ways for cities to reduce their carbon footprint. It is crucial that we act now to restructure our streets to decrease traffic, improve street safety and encourage alternative modes of transportation such as those adopted by European countries. If you care about climate action, take a look at which of our city council candidates have the overwhelming number of climate-related endorsements and be sure to vote for those candidates.

With home affordability continuing to get more challenging here in Petaluma, we need a leader that can advocate for a system that makes it possible and even encourages builders to build homes that put the first step back on the ladder of homeownership for entry level buyers. This is why I’m voting for Brian Barnacle. We need Brian’s dynamic energy and forward, innovative thinking to move our city in a positive direction. You can learn more about Brian and his priorities at www.brianbarnacle.com.

Steven Cozza
Petaluma
September 24, 2020
Petaluma Argus-Courier

EDITOR: As a resident of Petaluma Estates mobile home park, I began to attend city meetings last fall because I was concerned about the ill-conceived plan to build single family homes at Corona and North McDowell. This would be a housing development “for families” but one lacking adequate places for children to play and without a plan for safe access and crosswalks.

Although the Planning Commission repeatedly rejected the project, it was finally approved because council members Healy, Kearney, Miller and King were more aligned with the wishes of the developer. It took a lawsuit to bring the project to a halt.

The meetings are where I first heard Brian Barnacle speak. He always supported the adjoining SMART station but argued against the design of the housing project. He presented ways in which the development could make our community more livable. I was disturbed because its developer was asking the city for a deviation from the zoning in the General Plan, at the same time our City has embarked on an update to the Plan that will bring it up to current standards, plan for both today and tomorrow, and embrace the vision expressed by our community.

The location is zoned for Multi-Use, which allows both commercial and residential use, meaning a development of housing plus a place where I might walk across the street to meet a friend for coffee, pick up some milk and fresh produce, walk there instead of driving. Just think of it, small businesses offering everyday services within walking distance of where people live. A real neighborhood.

We need people at City Hall who can make it possible, and Brian Barnacle should be part of it. He has the knowledge and he cares. I see his commitment to help make Petaluma a city that works for all, and I urge everyone to vote for him for City Council.

Nancy Mosk
Petaluma
September 17, 2020
Petaluma Argus-Courier

EDITOR: Of all the things we need for a more resilient Petaluma, at the top of my list is change on the City Council. We need new voices, voices backed by vision and experience to look and plan ahead, not back. People who don’t just say they believe in climate change, but people who actually work hard every day to guard against climate change. Our Council needs leaders, not followers, leaders who make a difference and work for all of us, not just some of us.

As I look out my window, or try to this week, I am humbled by the forces of nature. It’s hotter than normal, dryer than normal, and far more fires than normal, but definitely not normal. We can’t just sit back and blithely say, “this is the new normal.” We can’t accept that this is the new normal.

We need leaders who will help us fight for a livable normal, reduced traffic congestion for cleaner air, safer streets so we can walk and bike, energy security to protect us from rolling black outs. We need a “climate champion” to quote 350 Bay Area Action, “a civic leader to lead climate-positive initiatives and support action-oriented policies.”

Brian Barnacle is that person. Please join me in electing Brian Barnacle to our City Council. We need his voice, we need his leadership, and we need his experience in clean energy to help put the right policies in place in order for our City be livable well into the future.

Beverly Schor
Petaluma
September 17, 2020
Petaluma Argus-Courier

EDITOR: Wednesday morning, I woke to a dystopian sight. Instead of sunshine or fog, everything was bathed in an orange glow — the glow of sun trying to break through heavy smoke. I was sad, even heartbroken. I thought of the birds and other animals who cannot go indoors to escape the smoke. I thought of the trees and other plants, which are suffocating with the soot coating their leaves, their source of energy and oxygen.

What are we doing to our planet? We haven’t paid attention to the warning signs, and we haven’t taken the kinds of action that are needed. We have not treated our mortally ill home (planet) with the urgency needed. And now our own lives are at risk.

What does this have to do with Petaluma? Didn’t we declare a Climate Emergency? Didn’t we create a Climate Action Commission?

The Climate Action Commission is a good idea, but it has little power over a City Council majority (Mike Healy, Gabe Kearney, Kathy Miller, and Dave King), who constantly vote as a bloc.

Wishful thinking seems to dominate their decisions, ignoring the data of the recent past as regards climate change, and insisting that flood plains and river corridors do not exist where, in fact, they do. We were told the Auto Mall and then the Factory Outlet Mall would not flood, but they did flood. The City Council was warned, but they ignored the warnings.

When will the City Council start to pay attention to the good citizens who earnestly research issues and carefully prepare their comments, only to be gaslighted after hours of testimony?

Fortunately there is an answer to that question. The City Council will start to pay attention to the community when the community decides that it no longer needs the three reactionary incumbents who are up for election, and chooses to elect three new council members who know how to listen and who have dedicated their lives to the well-being of the community. Who are they?

Barnacle, Pocekay, Wallack. It is time to plan for the future.

Beverly Alexander
Petaluma
September 17, 2020
Petaluma Argus-Courier