4 minute read
Editor’s Note
DISCOVER OJAI MONTHLY
Bret Bradigan
HOMES ON THE RANGE
"We're only three missed meals from chaos." — Attributed to Vladimir Lenin
Speaking recently on our podcast with Dan Parziale about his imminent Mesa Farm project, transitional living facilities on a 10-acre East End property, got me thinking about apparently insoluble problems. Homelessness certainly qualifies. There is a crisis of kids aging out of the foster care system into a world with little to no support. As he mentioned, the greatest predictor of a child ending up being homeless was having been homeless at some prior point in their lives.
The vast gulf of privilege that separates us doesn't feel sustainable. It feels like someone, somewhere, must be sharpening the guillotine blades. Eric Hoffer made the astute observation that the people closest to the knife's edge of survival aren't the ones who start the revolutions. They are too busy trying to survive. It is those who are one rung from power, or those recently dispossessed of their power. The poor are, however, the ones who pay the highest cost for chaos.
Ojai has long been a place of inequality, as is any affluent place where most of the people who work here can't afford to live here. Affordable housing is another one of those seemingly insoluble problems; a Venn diagram of it and homelessness would show lots of overlap. So if we were to find a solution, it would solve several problems at once:
• Homelessness, first and foremost. Though any honest observer would understand that many factors contribute to homelessness, not just the lack of affordable housing. Addiction and mental health are twin, coinciding and self-perpetuating problems. Still, it is easier to start your trip down recovery road with a roof over your head.
• Traffic. Imagine how much more pleasant Ojai would be without the long lines of traffic coming in and out every day, if the people who staff our restaurants and hotels, teach our children and police our streets didn't have to commute in and out?
• Air quality. Again, fewer miles being driven means many fewer tons of carbon being spewed into our closed basin; the Ojai Valley is ringed with mountains and the air doesn't circulate well, as evidenced by our often-poor air quality index scores.
• Social infrastructure: Ojai is famous for our vibrant community life, the world-class events we host, our service clubs and volunteer spirit. This otherwise positive social identity could be even stronger if the people who worked here also lived here. When everyone has skin in the game, so to speak, the barriers between income, class and race fade or at least blur in a widely-shared sense of unity. We'd be building more rungs on the ladder of opportunity.
• Progress. Have solved one problem is the best predictor for being able to solve another. The sense of achievement perpetuates itself. As the aphorism puts it, "If you want to go fast, go alone. If you want to go far, go together."
No magic wand will create enough affordable housing units for Ojai. It will likely take a combination of things, some more popular and achieveable than others. Very few people are keen on density, the Californian love of sprawl is too ingrained. But judicious infill can be a big step, and be much more energy-efficient and easier on the environment. Accessory dwelling units (ADUs) are coming onboard in encouraging numbers. Voucher programs, emergency rental assistance funds, organizing community land trusts and tiny home parks, in combination, can go a long ways, too. Reducing requirements for parking also eases up the expense and difficulty of construction. As Jane Jacobs wrote, "The greatness of a city can be measured by how difficult it is to park." A little walking might be a good thing for us.
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Dale Hanson
Ojai Valley Real Estate
(805)646-7229 B.R.E. 01229522 Notary Public dale@ojaivalleyrealestate.com
Call me for your real estate needs. Residential, commercial, or business opportunity.
Great location for commercial business or restaurant. Large parking in back. The building is updated and very clean. Forced air and heating, 3 private offices. A bath room and small wet kitchen. Separate attached unit with 3/4 bath and private entrance and address. $775,000
