Davis in 250 Words (Part 5)

Each week the Davis Vanguard asks candidates a question. Here's the fifth question, my answer, and a link to the article.

What do you think the most important pieces of the Downtown Plan are - and would you make any recommendations of changes before the final plan is approved?

We lack a joint vision for the future of Davis and a roadmap for how we can move forward together. This is an important step with dense, yet diverse housing, a focus on pedestrian infrastructure, and an introduction of form-based code which provides guidelines for developers and an outline of what Davisites can expect for the future.

Specific Improvements:

• Let’s explore overlay zoning for Affordable housing. This would allow for different types of development but only if a significant portion (to be determined) is affordable. Dedicated Affordable housing is an important missing piece.
  
• The plan could give increased attention to tree cover. There are many illustrations of nice tree-lined streets, but we must plan to actually create them.
  
• I would like to see the inclusion of more creative options for increasing street safety and place making. Let’s have a conversation about limiting private vehicles on Third Street.
  
• We should encourage quick transitions. A vacancy tax, for example, could help prevent long term vacancy while a property owner waits for an opportunity. 
  

Finally, I believe we should have in place a schedule to regularly update planning documents, so that they continue to represent the community’s vision and allow us to remain proactive. I suggest we schedule for revisiting the planning commission and downtown plan advisory commission in 2025, community outreach in 2026, and an updated draft in 2027 which look further toward the future. 

Planning on a continual basis prepares us for the future by shaping it!

Vanguard Article