Key agenda items surrounding housing and cannabis policy pushed late into night or delayed as city leaders again are forced to wade into an issue over which they have little, if any, control
I so appreciate your summarization of the meeting I was unable to attend. After growing up in Pacheco & later moving to Martinez decades ago, it is clear the health of local residents is not a priority in our County. Federal Glover is retiring. We need to elect the right candidates to take our concerns seriously and actually do something. PBF only exists to be a corporate profit machine, but it is at OUR expense. With a health crisis of my own right now, I will be following this closely. Thank you.
The Refining Company representatives made a scheduled visit to the City Council which has included a Q&A. The City Council and Mayor also asked questions. Many in the audience gave testimony about the increasing flares, gasses, fires, house-shaking and banging from the efforts of the refinery to start up after a forced shut-down from equipment failures. Don't they have the ability to petition their representatives for help? The gasses cause headaches, and irritation to membranes of eyes, airways, and County Health was present to hear. Don't people have the need to communicate public heath problems with their health officials in a public forum?
Yes, they do. It seems that's what happened. The council pushed back all the important items on their agenda until late in the night and allowed the bulk of the meeting to be consumed with the refinery issue, over which they have little control. So the activists had their say and got to go home at 9, and those of us who cared about housing and cannabis policy waited around until 10, 11 and midnight to have our say.
As the story pointed out, the officials with the real power to regulate the refinery's operations (the Board of Supervisors) weren't there. To the degree that health officials from the county health department were there, they largely got a free pass from the audience (and were even cheered) for 13 months of foot dragging and empty promises about the type of investigations we would receive and the urgency they would take.
Refinery activists got what they wanted, a chance to shame refinery officials for their constant screwups, and got to go home at a decent hour. Those of us who wanted robust discussions on housing and cannabis policy (things the council actually has power over), not so much. That was my take on the night's events.
Dr. Tzvieli was the true hero of the night, in my opinion (I don't blame him as much as county bureaucrats and supervisors for the county's poor handling of the refinery problems). Not only did he address the community's concerns about the refinery, he hung on for an additional four hours to offer input on cannabis policy and the welfare of youths, something the council never got a chance to take up (and something I've been asking them to do for the better part of a year) and that the public clearly had no interest in.
Great reporting as always, thank you for your focus on Martinez in the absence of any other meaningful hyper-local coverage. I understand the frustration that other important topics were pushed to the late-night hours. I was grateful for the organizers for calling people to the meeting (my first time to City Hall, it’s always a good thing to bring more people face-to-face with local governance!) AND, it sounds like the organizing for public action may do well to shift towards direct contact and engagement with the people who DO have regulatory power.
Thanks for your coverage, grateful for this resource you provide.
I so appreciate your summarization of the meeting I was unable to attend. After growing up in Pacheco & later moving to Martinez decades ago, it is clear the health of local residents is not a priority in our County. Federal Glover is retiring. We need to elect the right candidates to take our concerns seriously and actually do something. PBF only exists to be a corporate profit machine, but it is at OUR expense. With a health crisis of my own right now, I will be following this closely. Thank you.
Thanks so much for the continued support, Alice!
Thanks a lot Craig.
The Refining Company representatives made a scheduled visit to the City Council which has included a Q&A. The City Council and Mayor also asked questions. Many in the audience gave testimony about the increasing flares, gasses, fires, house-shaking and banging from the efforts of the refinery to start up after a forced shut-down from equipment failures. Don't they have the ability to petition their representatives for help? The gasses cause headaches, and irritation to membranes of eyes, airways, and County Health was present to hear. Don't people have the need to communicate public heath problems with their health officials in a public forum?
Yes, they do. It seems that's what happened. The council pushed back all the important items on their agenda until late in the night and allowed the bulk of the meeting to be consumed with the refinery issue, over which they have little control. So the activists had their say and got to go home at 9, and those of us who cared about housing and cannabis policy waited around until 10, 11 and midnight to have our say.
As the story pointed out, the officials with the real power to regulate the refinery's operations (the Board of Supervisors) weren't there. To the degree that health officials from the county health department were there, they largely got a free pass from the audience (and were even cheered) for 13 months of foot dragging and empty promises about the type of investigations we would receive and the urgency they would take.
Refinery activists got what they wanted, a chance to shame refinery officials for their constant screwups, and got to go home at a decent hour. Those of us who wanted robust discussions on housing and cannabis policy (things the council actually has power over), not so much. That was my take on the night's events.
Dr. Tzvieli was the true hero of the night, in my opinion (I don't blame him as much as county bureaucrats and supervisors for the county's poor handling of the refinery problems). Not only did he address the community's concerns about the refinery, he hung on for an additional four hours to offer input on cannabis policy and the welfare of youths, something the council never got a chance to take up (and something I've been asking them to do for the better part of a year) and that the public clearly had no interest in.
You know they do, Kathy, retiring or not! Also, we should have our congressmen there, DeSaulnier and Thompson.
Yes. Thompson is replaced by Garamendi, a guy you may remember as a young crusader against powerful insurance companies.
Great reporting as always, thank you for your focus on Martinez in the absence of any other meaningful hyper-local coverage. I understand the frustration that other important topics were pushed to the late-night hours. I was grateful for the organizers for calling people to the meeting (my first time to City Hall, it’s always a good thing to bring more people face-to-face with local governance!) AND, it sounds like the organizing for public action may do well to shift towards direct contact and engagement with the people who DO have regulatory power.
Thanks for your coverage, grateful for this resource you provide.
Thank you so much for the support and kind words, Nicole. I really appreciate it!
Really good recap, Craig! Thanks and hope we all have a safe and happy holiday.
Same to you, Marlene! And thanks for being my most loyal, consistent subscriber!