Article: What's your vision for the Sebastopol of 2034?

[tashabeauchamp]

Tasha Beauchamp
WaccoBB.net

How do you want your grown children to describe our town twenty years from now? This is essentially the question being asked at the

Community Identity Meeting
sponsored by the Planning Commission
Thursday, Jan 31
6:00 – 7:30 p.m.
Veterans Building
(282 S. High St.)

In 2034, I would hope that "Local Flavor, Global Vision" would still be our motto. (Okay, maybe "Local Flavor. Galactic Vision.")

I would hope that we would be known for supporting locally made products (the creative arts and our earth-friendly agriculture).

Sebastopol would be a town that regularly celebrated its culture and history.

"Remember that your great grandpa moved here in a VW wagon during the 1977 exodus from the Haight.")

Of course we would have evolved into an eco-tourist destination because our population was so forward-thinking that we incorporated technologies well ahead of our time. Others wishing to glimpse a charming and sustainable future would make it a point to zoom by on their hover crafts to see how we had become a self-sufficient, zero-footprint town so early in the century.

Our tendency to snipe at each other in the name of intellectual discourse would have gone the way of the dodo as we learned how to truly respect diversity, not just of the under-served, but also of people with differing political opinions. Without a major catastrophe, we came to realize that our common ground was larger than we thought and so we focused on what we could create constructively together rather than on the sharp edge of our differences.

I would hope that we would have mastered technology such that were no longer "drowning in information but starved for wisdom." We would have learned to wisely use the technology that furthered our lives, but we were no longer run by that technology. Perhaps the community may have incorporated an informal "Digital Sabbath" whereby everyone set down their devices and made sure to have a connected, face-to-face conversation with at least one individual a week. (!)

And how about creating transportation routes that favored bicyclists and pedestrians? The Sebastopol of 2034 would honor the quality of life that happens when people slow down, have ready access to open space, and are encouraged to meet together regularly to continue knitting the social fabric of community.

This is, of course, a Jetson-tinged vision of the future. But the priorities that serve as the foundation are not far off from those espoused by many in Sebastopol. (In fact, they derive from the "Slow City" priorities of the Cittaslow international network of 160 small towns around the globe that are striving to maintain their unique flavor in the face of a world that is rapidly becoming mono-cultural. Sebastopol requested and was awarded designation as a "Slow City" in 2010.)

Whether you agree with these priorities or not, please do come to the Community Identity Meeting this Thursday.

The meeting is sponsored by the Planning Commission and is a prelude to the update of Sebastopol's General Plan. None of the ideas expressed at the meeting will be officially binding on the City. However, the meeting does give the community a chance to share its vision with City government and begin the dialogue of what we do want our town to look like twenty years from now.

There have been many creative ideas shared in the meetings leading up to this one. Momentum is building in a very constructive way.

You do have a voice in City government. I urge you to take this opportunity to use it!

[Yakim]

Are there more meetings planned? I sadly missed the previous ones.

[Helen Shane]

Are there more meetings planned? I sadly missed the previous ones.

Common Ground: Building a Shared Vision for Sebastopol

Plan to attend a special community workshop on Saturday, February 23 from 8:30 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. to discuss key initiatives for the future of Sebastopol.

About every 20 years the City of Sebastopol updates its General Plan, the document which sets the vision and direction for future development.

In preparation for our next update (expected to begin in several years), we have a unique opportunity to collect some initial information by participating in a Sonoma State University student project.

Senior students in the Environmental Studies & Planning Department would like us to identify key community issues and policy objectives, to be explored at a half-day Sebastopol Community Workshop.

The Workshop will be held on February 23, 2013 from 8:30 am to 12:30 pm at the Community Church, 1000 Gravenstein Highway North, Sebastopol.

Information from the Workshop will inform student policy suggestions that will be given to the City Council and Planning Commission at a special presentation on April 23, 2013, and will be available for the official future General Plan Update.

In addition there is the possibility that some of the policy ideas may be implemented by the City separate from the General Plan update, so your issues, ideas, and priorities are important!

General Plan issues include traffic, development standards, parks, noise, earthquake and other safety considerations, economic vitality, the environment, urban design, and health concerns.

What are the important challengesand opportunities facing Sebastopol? How can we shape our future to preserve and enhance the things that make Sebastopol a very special place?

You may have valuable insights to contribute to this community dialog.

For more information, contact the Planning Department at 823-6167.

[pnicholson]

this is UN Agenda 21, people. no matter what happens at this 'shared vision workshop' it will be reported that there was 'consensus'. you will have no input, though sadly there will be those who do not recognize this. you will be 'guided' to believe that what these communitarianists come up with was your idea. please be circumspect. please speak up when you see the manipulations. these are run by the indoctrinated minions facilitating the implementation of one world dictatorship under the un charter and agenda 21. don't think so? i strongly suggest you check it out thoroughly. then pass it on.

start here: https://www.democratsagainstunagenda...da-21-why.html

Common Ground: Building a Shared Vision for Sebastopol

Plan to attend a special community workshop on Saturday, February 23 from 8:30 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. to discuss key initiatives for the future of Sebastopol.

About every 20 years the City of Sebastopol updates its General Plan, the document which sets the vision and direction for future development.

In preparation for our next update (expected to begin in several years), we have a unique opportunity to collect some initial information by participating in a Sonoma State University student project.

Senior students in the Environmental Studies & Planning Department would like us to identify key community issues and policy objectives, to be explored at a half-day Sebastopol Community Workshop.

The Workshop will be held on February 23, 2013 from 8:30 am to 12:30 pm at the Community Church, 1000 Gravenstein Highway North, Sebastopol.

Information from the Workshop will inform student policy suggestions that will be given to the City Council and Planning Commission at a special presentation on April 23, 2013, and will be available for the official future General Plan Update.

In addition there is the possibility that some of the policy ideas may be implemented by the City separate from the General Plan update, so your issues, ideas, and priorities are important!

General Plan issues include traffic, development standards, parks, noise, earthquake and other safety considerations, economic vitality, the environment, urban design, and health concerns.

What are the important challengesand opportunities facing Sebastopol? How can we shape our future to preserve and enhance the things that make Sebastopol a very special place?

You may have valuable insights to contribute to this community dialog.

For more information, contact the Planning Department at 823-6167.

[theindependenteye]

>>> these are run by the indoctrinated minions facilitating the implementation of one world dictatorship under the un charter and agenda 21. don't think so?

No, don't think so. I've read lots of the stuff about Agenda 21 and the world conspiracy, and in my view that's the same mindset that labeled every progressive movement from the 1920's on — unionization, civil rights, etc. — as Communist-inspired. If the Reds had promoted the Sermon on the Mount and the Ten Commandments, we'd have to be dead set against them. "Do unto others as you would have them do unto you" could be spun as a deliberate plot by fanatic followers of Christ to take away our Godgiven right to blow our enemy's head off.

Obviously, any principle extended to its extreme can be a curse -- e.g, "Go forth and multiply..." -- and certainly could be the tactic of a conspiracy. But to me the program outlined in Agenda 21 is sane, humanistic, and a viable proposal for the survival and betterment of humankind. I would certainly be open to detailed analysis of how some of these goals can be attained without the purported negative results. And I'd be interested in any broad worldview/action plan that someone feels is better.

In a way, I'd be more hopeful if Agenda 21 was the product of a secret conspiracy rather than a well-meaning screed from a semi-impotent international forum. We might have more chance of survival.

Certainly YMMV.

Peace & nonconspiratorial joy—
Conrad

this is UN Agenda 21, people. no matter what happens at this 'shared vision workshop' it will be reported that there was 'consensus'. you will have no input, though sadly there will be those who do not recognize this. you will be 'guided' to believe that what these communitarianists come up with was your idea. please be circumspect. please speak up when you see the manipulations. these are run by the indoctrinated minions facilitating the implementation of one world dictatorship under the un charter and agenda 21. don't think so? i strongly suggest you check it out thoroughly. then pass it on.

start here: https://www.democratsagainstunagenda...da-21-why.html

[Helen Shane]

In response to pnicholson:

Your take on the general plan prep meetings is inaccurate. There was no concensus. The meetings were for input by the public...and all were invited. Attending were many who have been following the process and attending planning and council meetings for months or years.

I attended about four of the sub committee meetings, the pre meeting planning meeting and finally, the meeting on 2/23.

Comment by the public were all over the place...many viewpoints, some held by many, some by a few. It resulted in lots of daylight regarding possible needed or desired changes to our general plan; comments by people prompted others to jump in with ideas and issues. It will be very useful when we get into the actual process. The material gathered on the 23rd will be posted on the city's website and I will copy it to this site as well, when the report is available. During the update process the whole document will be reviewed at public hearings of the planning commission and the city council, which means there will be a lot of public discussion about it before it is adopted.

To the naysayers - there are many of us who believe that the process is and should be democratic, and are watchdogging it to ensure that it is.

Stick around.

[Peace Voyager]

I'd really like to produce a public forum on this issue, where all sides can be respectfully presented and investigated. Anyone interested?

>>> these are run by the indoctrinated minions facilitating the implementation of one world dictatorship under the un charter and agenda 21. don't think so?

No, don't think so. I've read lots of the stuff about Agenda 21 and the world conspiracy, and in my view that's the same mindset that labeled every progressive movement from the 1920's on — unionization, civil rights, etc. — as Communist-inspired. If the Reds had promoted the Sermon on the Mount and the Ten Commandments, we'd have to be dead set against them. "Do unto others as you would have them do unto you" could be spun as a deliberate plot by fanatic followers of Christ to take away our Godgiven right to blow our enemy's head off.

Obviously, any principle extended to its extreme can be a curse -- e.g, "Go forth and multiply..." -- and certainly could be the tactic of a conspiracy. But to me the program outlined in Agenda 21 is sane, humanistic, and a viable proposal for the survival and betterment of humankind. I would certainly be open to detailed analysis of how some of these goals can be attained without the purported negative results. And I'd be interested in any broad worldview/action plan that someone feels is better.

In a way, I'd be more hopeful if Agenda 21 was the product of a secret conspiracy rather than a well-meaning screed from a semi-impotent international forum. We might have more chance of survival.

Certainly YMMV.

Peace & nonconspiratorial joy—
Conrad

[Jay Cimo]

2034? I'd begin this year by vastly improving public transit and creating more pedestrian and bike paths. Also continue to improve the local/community "scene" that folks would seldom need to leave town to get there needs met; i.e. develop more campus style living in town. Also find ways to keep the cost of rent from going "Marin", if you catch my drift; keep gentrification balanced with open mindedness, the area could easily lose it's character and become just another a dull "Trustfundville". Sebastopol should strive continually to be a hub for artists, creative types and bohos.

this is UN Agenda 21, people. no matter what happens at this 'shared vision workshop' it will be reported that there was 'consensus'. you will have no input, though sadly there will be those who do not recognize this. you will be 'guided' to believe that what these communitats come up with was your idea. please be circumspect. please speak up when you see the manipulations. these are run by the indoctrinated minions facilitating the implementation of one world dictatorship under the un charter and agenda 21. don't think so? i strongly suggest you check it out thoroughly. then pass it on.

start here: https://www.democratsagainstunagenda...da-21-why.html

[amalia]

Yes, more bike lanes!
I used to bike into town every day along 116 from Bloomfield Rd.
Got tired ( & scared) of riding on the shoulder of a busy highway.
Too many close calls.
Please help me get out of my car again & let me safely commute to town.

Amalia

2034? I'd begin this year by vastly improving public transit and creating more pedestrian and bike paths. Also continue to improve the local/community "scene" that folks would seldom need to leave town to get there needs met; i.e. develop more campus style living in town. Also find ways to keep the cost of rent from going "Marin", if you catch my drift; keep gentrification balanced with open mindedness, the area could easily lose it's character and become just another a dull "Trustfundville". Sebastopol should strive continually to be a hub for artists, creative types and bohos.

[wescounty]

Are there any further meetings planned? Please let me know. WesCounty