On Having a Cupertino Planning Commissioner Threaten to Get You Fired, Local Democracy, and Free Speech, with Richard Mehlinger
2019-07-04
Ray Wang, a Cupertino planning commissioner, threatened to get Richard Mehlinger fired, after a hubbub over a NextDoor post in which Mr. Wang called YIMBYs "fascists". We discuss the story, what it means for participation in local democracy, with some tangents, on the real nature of fascism.
Richard Mehlinger on Sunnyvale: Corn Palace, Blue Bonnet, and weak protections for tenants
2018-07-19
We talk Sunnyvale with Richard Mehlinger of Livable Sunnyvale, and Max Kapczynski of Palo Alto Forward. Sunnyvale still has a corn field, which is going to be developed... into single family homes (?!?!?!). We talk why, as well as the history and latest with the evictions of the Blue Bonnet mobile home park, to be turned into relatively low-density townhomes. Who bears the weight of change in Sunnyvale, and why? Too, we talk about the future of expanding tenant protections to Sunnyvale renters through a 12-Month Lease program, and how Catholic social teachings have influenced Richard's thinking.