350 Humboldt has been working to get Arcata’s City Council to
take steps to decarbonize buildings in the city, both residential
and commercial. So far we haven’t seen any action.
On
Thursday, March 25 the City Council will hold an important goal-setting meeting
starting at 6 PM. These kinds of meetings are only held every two years, and will set the Council’s preferences for action.
The meeting is fully open to the Zoom-public, with a
public comment period, and of course people can still communicate with
council members by email or written letter. There are two goals to ask
for:
1) a ban on natural gas in new Arcata buildings;
2)
a requirement that owners of existing buildings make them
more energy-efficient, “electric-ready,” or all-electric (the preferred option), as a condition
of City-issued building permits or at the time of the building’s sale.
Ordinances like this have already been enacted in Piedmont and Chula
Vista, California, and one is pending in Chico. These are ways to tackle the challenge of reducing the carbon footprint of existing buildings, a major source of Greenhouse emissions.
You can access the meeting directly at https://zoom.us/j/94264582395
This is the preferred route. It’s far better for the City
Council to hear people talk in person about what they need
to do.
If you can’t attend the meeting, you can email the City Council members at:   [email protected]. Emails
must specify the agenda item, and in this case it is: II:A and B;
Finalize City Council Goals, Objectives, and Priority Projects.

Unfortunately the City’s meeting conflicts with 350 Humboldt’s March General Meeting, which occurs at the very same time! (You’ll see an email about that meeting soon). There are important items that will be discussed at that meeting, so we completely understand if you wish to attend it instead. But if you can pass this message along to other Arcata residents, that’d be great!

Thanks, 350 Humboldt