Council of Infill Builders’ David Mogavero’s Infill Presentation

On July 12, 2021, at a Special Environmental Council of Sacramento (ECOS) meeting (Joint Session: Land Use & Transportation, Air Quality and Climate Change Committees) architect David Mogavero spoke to ECOS.

How can we encourage infill development and discourage green-field development?

David Mogavero is a Board Member of the Council of Infill Builders, and a past president of ECOS.

David Mogavero addressed these questions:

How do we calculate infill capacity?
- How many market-rate and affordable dwelling units will we need in our region?
- How much infill housing development capacity do we have?
- Would still we need more greenfield development?
- What density criteria are used to determine needed infill development capacity?
What are potential problems with larger high-density infill developments?
- Nearby residents often resist higher density, affordable housing near transit hubs.
Small, high-density infill development problems:
- Do we need accessory dwelling units (ADUs) and multiplex housing?
- How can we make small projects easier to finance and build?

Missed it?

Click here for David Mogavero’s slideshow.

More Info

Learn more about ECOS committees here: https://www.ecosacramento.net/about-us/committees.

To learn more about the Council of Infill Developers, visit their website at http://www.councilofinfillbuilders.org/.

Climate Rally at Sac City Hall on June 25

ECOS encourages your participation in this rally (with safe distancing).

From the Sacramento Climate Coalition:

The heat this year has already been another brutal reminder that our planet is heating up. The current heatwave, like last summer’s, is worse because of climate change, and is just a foretaste of what the weather will bring going forward. The climate emergency requires an immediate response from our government officials!

Join us Friday, June 25 at 10:30 am to 11:30 am on the patio in front of City Hall, 915 I Street, Sacramento, CA 95814 to demand our elected officials and city staffers use 2030 as their goal for eliminating GHG emissions, as they committed to in 2019 when they adopted the Climate Emergency Declaration. Unfortunately when staff make presentations, and when the Mayor made a recent commitment to start the process of planning for electrification of existing buildings: they use 2045 as the goal. As scientists tell us this is simply not fast enough to avoid the worst of what climate change has in store.

We will have signs and banners and maintain social distancing. But of course you can bring your own signs if you wish. You can learn more about this campaign to get the City to join SMUD and the County for a Carbon Free 2030 at our website’s Take Action page.

Photo by Markus Spiske from Pexels

Caltrans Active Transportation Survey (July 16 deadline)

Do you live in any of the following counties: Butte, Colusa, El Dorado, Glenn, Nevada, Placer, Sacramento, Sierra, Sutter, Yolo, Yuba?

If so, please fill out this survey for Caltrans by July 16, 2021.

Your survey response will help Caltrans plan for biking and walking near you. Please click through the following screens to identify concerns that you believe need to be addressed to improve walking and biking on and along State Routes near you.

Take the survey

Photo by PNW Production from Pexels

Developers funded Sacramento County climate action plan

Environmentalists see a conflict.

By Michael Finch II | June 10, 2021, Updated JUNE 11, 2021 | The Sacramento Bee

Sacramento County leaned on developers last year to help fund its long-delayed climate action plan, raising conflict of interest concerns among environmentalists who say the early drafts do not have enough detail to be an effective blueprint for reducing greenhouse gas emissions.

…

In the eyes of some environmentalists, the financial arrangement suggests a conflict of interest. Each of the five firms wants the Board of Supervisors to expand the boundaries of where new development is allowed to include their projects. And that decision is in conflict with the aims of the climate plan.
“I know some environmentalists were concerned that the county’s staff was compromised in this way,” said Ralph Propper, president of the Environmental Council of Sacramento. “There were a lot of concerns about that but the county was pleading poverty.”
https://www.sacbee.com/news/local/environment/article252009793.html

Click here to read the full article.

Photo by Pok Rie from Pexels

Western Soils and Plants are Parched

June 5, 2021 | NASA

For the second year in a row, drought has parched much of the United States from the Rocky Mountains to the Pacific Coast. Following one of the planet’s warmest years on record, and with precipitation this year well below average in the western U.S., scientists and government agencies are watching for diminished water resources and potentially severe fire seasons.
https://earthobservatory.nasa.gov/images/148419/western-soils-and-plants-are-parched

Click here to read the full article.

California teen: I’m marching 266 miles, from Paradise to San Francisco, for climate justice

By Lola Guthrie | June 07, 2021 | The Sacramento Bee

The climate crisis isn’t a future threat. It’s as real and tangible as the ash drifting across the sky. I’m no longer comforted by the thought that adults will clean up their mess. I feel outraged and hopeless.
That’s why I’m marching 266 miles, from Paradise to San Francisco, with fellow youth activists from the Sunrise Movement. We’re marching for climate justice and fighting for every community.
https://www.sacbee.com/opinion/op-ed/article251903963.html

Click here to read the article in full.

Photo by Lode Van de Velde. License: CC0 Public Domain.