02/19/2020
In this morning’s email:
Tim,
1. What’s your position on rent control and vacation rentals?
2. What do you think is the biggest challenge to balance the city's budget and what are you going to do about it?
3. Why are there so many empty stores downtown?
Thanks,
C
Dear C
Thanks for your questions. It is a good way for me to tune up before I walk neighborhoods.
1. Rent control is largely a state issue. I see no local measures coming up. Nevertheless, I am a supporter of stabilizing rents. I was a very longtime renter. Vacation rentals deserve a community conversation and clarity about businesses and zoning.
2. Our budget depends on effective cost savings by people who know how to do city budgets--experienced people. It also depends on the vitality of the local economy which is related to your question three ...
3. Stores are empty because of rising rents and costs of doing business downtown. Some new rents are spectacularly out of line. Ask the property managers about this. Greed? Opportunity costs? More likely the difficult economy for local brick and mortar business. They compete with out of town exploitative franchises. They compete dramatically with online sales and the new digital platforms, which is what capitalism is adapting to. The whole thing plus the changing "tastes" of the new in-coming residents , e.g., the wealthy investors and the university, affect how and what businesses do. And which businesses we have. If the new residents come from Palo Alto, they want Palo Alto in some measure.
If we allow the online economy to create the city, it will put more locals out of business. We can see that the new developers, many are are backing the recall, will bring the cheapest contractors from wherever to do their building and other services. Local businesses will be left out. It is going to be a daily struggle to prevent the worst outcomes from this colonizing force from outside--and some go-betweens within our community are cooperating with it. They see an advantage by working with the future "overlords." I am sorry for the wisecrack. I am being facetious but not entirely. The barbarians are at the gates. They have been here for a while now. It needs attending to.
We cannot wish this digital economy away. We need to understand it and make it work for us as a city. I teach technology and ethics every year. I read and think about these things. Maybe I can help. I study "platform," "semio," "digital" capitalism." It has a lot of names. That means we are still trying to understand what it is.
Thanks. I hope to have your vote.
Tim
