Subject: City Council Meeting, 2/117/26, Comment on Items Not on the Agenda From: Steven Nash >
To: "[email protected]" <[email protected]>,Steven Nash Date Sent: Monday, March 16, 2026 11:32:52 AM GMT-07:00 Date Received: Monday, March 16, 2026 11:32:56 AM GMT-07:00 Madame Clerk, please forward this to the City Council.
I want to thank the City Council, the City Manager and the Planning Manager for approving the funds for four members of the Planning Commission to attend the League of California Cities Planning Commissioners Academy. Training is vital for effective decision making for public servants. With housing law undergoing such massive transformation in California, it is imperative for planning commissioners to understand the ramific
ations of recent laws.
Of particular interest to me was the session on The Future of Parking in an Autonomous Driving World.
The 2026 League of California Cities Planning Commissioners Academy highlighted that autonomous and electric vehicles will require parking structures with higher electrical capacity, increased structural loads, and adaptable designs. Future planning must focus on active curb management for drop-offs, poten tial land
reclamation for redevelopment, and policy adjustments to combat increased congestion from cruising vehicles.
As California pushes AB 2097 (eliminating parking minimums near transit), this session explored what happens to asphalt in a world of self-driving cars.
Adaptive Reuse of Garages: Designing new parking structures with level floors and higher ceilings so they can be converted into housing or office space la ter.
Drop-off vs. Parking: Shifting focus from long-term parking stalls to "curb management"—creating dedicated zones for autonomous ride-shares to drop off passeng ers without blocking traffic.
Revenue Replacement: Discussing how cities can replace lost parking meter and garage revenue with "utility fees" for curb access or delivery zones.
How will we manage curb resources and parking spots? These questions need to be answered and regulated because robot cars will be here before we know it and where they park themselves will be a source of contention if cities have not implemented regulations. The owners of curb resources and the physical parking stalls will be very angry to find their spaces alr
eady occupied by strange vehicles, acknowledging that although homeowners do not “own” the parking in front of their residences they are still extremely possessive of those spots and would complain vehemently to the city if they felt those spaces were being monopolized by robot cars.
Thank you again.
Best,
Steve Nash
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Subject: Comment on Items Not on the Agenda, City Council Meeting of 3/17/26 From: Steven Nash < >
To: "[email protected]" <[email protected]>,Steven Nash < > Date Sent: Monday, March 16, 2026 12:00:28 PM GMT-07:00 Date Received: Monday, March 16, 2026 12:00:33 PM GMT-07:00 Madame Clerk, please forward this to the City Council.
In regard to the Community Services, Public Safety, and Housing & Economic Development Committee - Special Meeting, 3/10/2026, on the repatriation of indigenous artifacts, including human remains, from the Carnegie Art Museum collection, I would suggest the City Council instruct its staff and consult ants to be historically accurate when writing or speaking about our cultural and tribal resources.
Case in point, while reading the EIR Recirculated Draft of the Avalon Project, I came upon the phrase "The Chumash were heavily affected by the arrival of Europeans", in Section 4.4 Cultural and Tribal Cultural Resources.
Really? The Chumash were forced off their land, enslaved and forced to abandon their culture and way of life. It was genocide. I believe if you ask any tribal member they would agree with that assessment.
Words matter. We must not gloss over history to suit our needs or we are doomed to repeat it. The genocide of our indigenous people, the internment of our Japanese brothers and sisters during WWII, and the current situation involving ICE and the evil removal of the "other", all point to a craven ignorance of our, sometimes, soiled history.
We can do better. We can be better. But it starts with being honest with ourselves.
You have the power and the authority to implement this simple change. Remember, words matter.
Thank you.
Best,
Steve Nash
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