Bear Essentials December 20th: Nature strikes back
December 20, 2024
Nature strikes back
In this week’s edition: Mother Nature is on a rampage across the Golden State, using tornadoes, killer squirrels and cows infected with bird flu as the instruments of her destruction. But the week was not without good news! One of the NCC’s signature legislative wins is paving the way for a blockbuster housing project in Berkeley and our rainfall and snow levels are looking flush. All this and more in the final 2024 edition of Bear Essentials! Enjoy; we’ll see you in 2025!
AB 2011 FOR THE WIN!
Berkeley just hit the fast-forward button on housing development. In a record-setting move, the city approved a massive 739-unit project atop the North Berkeley BART station in just 10 months, thanks to AB 2011. (The game-changing permitting approval law was enacted in 2023 with strong support and advocacy from the NCC.) Over half the units in the Berkeley development will be affordable, with rents tied to 20–70% of the area’s median income. The ambitious project—Berkeley’s largest ever—spans 13 buildings, features 48,000 square feet of open space, and prioritizes affordable housing and transit access. With $100M+ already secured, construction is set for 2026. Long a development battleground, Berkeley is now a poster child for fast-tracked housing reform. As the kids say, “Let’s goooooooo!!!”
🤫 Everything you should know
🐔 🦠 🐮🚨 - BIRD FLU EMERGENCY — Bird flu has leveled up, and California is hitting the “don’t-panic, but uh oh” button. Governor Newsom declared a state of emergency as H5N1 jumps from wild birds to dairy cattle, infecting more than 645 dairies in a month. The virus isn’t ready to star in a pandemic thriller sequel yet, but experts warn it’s perfecting its script. Meanwhile, raw milk’s getting the side-eye, a child tested positive in Alameda, and only one dairy in 1,000 is actually testing its milk supply. The governor’s decree unleashes emergency powers to throw money and manpower at the problem before it spills further into birds, cats, raccoons—or worse, us. NY Times
🧑🌾 💰- GOV’S RURAL REBOOT— Gavin Newsom’s Master Plan for Career Education puts $100 million toward jobs where skills—not just degrees—take center stage. Announced at Shasta College in rural Trump country, the plan scraps degree requirements for many state jobs, rolls out “career passports” to certify skills, and gives veterans and volunteers college credit for real-world experience. For rural communities where big opportunities feel far away (sometimes hours, like the nearest Costco), Newsom’s blueprint aims to make stability attainable without a four-year detour. Republican Assemblywoman Heather Hadwick called it a win for overlooked regions, proving that job growth doesn’t always come with a cap and gown. KCRA
🚅 🛤️ 💸 - HEADACHES FOR HIGH SPEED RAIL — California’s high-speed rail project—once a $33 billion dream, now a $100 billion albatross—has Republicans sharpening their knives. Leading the charge, Rep. Kevin Kiley aims to shut off federal funding, while the Trump administration could revive its old playbook: clawing back unspent grants and stalling progress in court. California Democrats, bracing for battle, argue delays will only drive costs higher. Critics like Elon Musk and Vivek Ramaswamy dismiss it as a “wasteful vanity project,” while state officials scramble to show progress and secure $4.7 billion more to finish the Merced-to-Bakersfield segment. For now, California’s bullet train races against political derailment. LA Times
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🎧 🔊 🎧 ON THE POD: FIRE ESCAPE
Amika Mota felt like she lost everything the day she was sentenced to prison for nearly a decade. But as her world burned down, she learned how to fight fire from inside Central California Women’s Facility (CCWF), one of the largest women’s prisons in the world. Mota and her team of incarcerated firefighters responded to calls from inside the prison and out in the community, including the homes of their correctional officers. Anna Sussman tells Mota’s story in "Fire Escape" a new podcast series from Snap Studios at KQED and Wondery. The California Report Magazine’s Sasha Khokha spoke with Sussman about Mota’s story, the experiences of incarcerated firefighters in California, and what she hopes people will learn from the series.
🌨️ ❄️ ⛷️ Huge H2O Haul
As a “family” of atmospheric rivers steams toward California, the state’s reservoirs and crucially important snowpack are already well above average levels for this time of year. And although that’s great news for 2025, we at the New California Coalition can’t help but think ahead to the inevitable next drought. Crossing our fingers and hoping for rain and snow might be an exciting gamble for some folks, but we’d prefer to dramatically improve our water capture, storage and delivery systems.
👀 🚨 🐿️ 🔪🚨 Killer Squirrels!!!
As if we didn’t have enough to worry about (e.g., tornadoes in the Santa Cruz mountains) now we have to sweat the squirrels. Oh, I’m sorry — you thought they were cute little wilderness scamps? Wrong. According to new research, these bloodthirsty murderers have been slaughtering their California vole cousins in the Bay Area’s Briones Regional Park. The macabre scenes have disturbed scientists and suggested a dark new future for humanity once they turn their insatiable appetites upon us.
