Lightnews — Scholar-powered news

Jake Berman @lostsubways.com · 10h

Eric Adams naming a public building after noted corrupt jackass? Game recognize game.

Chase Madar @madar.bsky.social · 11h

Excellent potted bio of the late Bernie Kerik, a scuzz for the ages. Mind-boggling how he stuff so much corruption (on multiple continents) into one life. Fine reportage like this is why I subscribe to @hellgatenyc.com hellgatenyc.com/city-jail-na...

Adams Administration Quietly Renames the Tombs for Disgraced Criminal Bernard Kerik

The Lower Manhattan jail facility briefly bore Kerik's name once before, until he was convicted of corruption.

hellgatenyc.com

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Jake Berman @lostsubways.com · 19h

Just like with Costco and toilet paper, trains are cheaper when you buy in bulk.

Trenvista in English (formerly Rail News Vista) @trenvistaen.bsky.social · 20h

Germany aims to reunify the procurement of PSO trains in order to make their acquisition and maintenance easier and cheaper. The model is based on that of the VDV Tram-Train consortium.

Germany's 27 states join forces to make joint train purchases

Since regionalisation, purchasing has become fragmented, losing the benefits of economies of scale.

www.trenvista.net

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Jake Berman @lostsubways.com · 1d

Note: it's not where you'd expect.
-Staten Island: Most of the island.
-Brooklyn: Bay Ridge, Boro Park, Bensonhurst, Marine Park, Flatbush, Bath Beach, Canarsie, Sheepshead Bay, Gravesend.
-Manhattan: UES, UWS.
-Queens: Ridgewood, Middle Village, Maspeth, Howard Beach, Ozone Park, far Eastern Queens

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Jake Berman @lostsubways.com · 1d

So, on the ballot propositions for NYC. Here's the map of the neighborhoods where housing will be fast-tracked if Question 2 passes. They're the community districts that have built the least affordable housing.

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Jake Berman @lostsubways.com · 1d

This is the best explainer I have read about SB79. @mnolangray.bsky.social did a great job of getting this law over the line.

M. Nolan Gray 🥑 @mnolangray.bsky.social · 1d

By popular demand, @aceckhouse.bsky.social and I have put together a deep-in-the-weeds explainer on SB 79. Enjoy!
substack.com/home/post/p-...

Everything You Need To Know About SB 79

…but were too afraid to read about in the actual bill.

substack.com

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Jake Berman @lostsubways.com · 1d

(note, betteridge's law of headlines applies here, the author's answer is 'no')

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Jake Berman @lostsubways.com · 1d

"My timeline is full of bots and Nazis. Should I have stuck around?"

Jonn Elledge @jonnelledge.bsky.social · 3d

The platform formerly known as Twitter may be horrible, but it is still shaping policy. So were we all wrong to leave?

Was the left wrong to leave X for BlueSky?

The platform formerly known as Twitter may be horrible, but it's still shaping policy

www.newstatesman.com

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Jake Berman @lostsubways.com · 2d

I'm just saying, if LA leaders had done more to fix the housing crisis, SB 79 never would have passed. Reap what you sow.

Newsom approved a bill to make it easier to build more homes. Why do LA leaders oppose it?

It may boil down to power and money.

www.nbclosangeles.com

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Jake Berman @lostsubways.com · 3d

They did, but I fully expect Beverly Hills (population 31,027) and *maybe* South Pasadena (population 25,656) to go over 35,000 once they actually start building things. There's a LOT of available land in that quarter-mile ring.

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Jake Berman @lostsubways.com · 3d

NorCal: Menlo Park 33k, Burlingame 31k

LA: Beverly Hills 32k, San Dimas 34k, La Verne 32k, Lawndale 31k

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Jake Berman @lostsubways.com · 3d

The outer half-mile circle doesn't apply in cities sub-35k, but some are *real* close to the cutoff. It should kick in once building starts. Cities between 30k and 34,999 population within SB79 zones, per CA Dept of Finance's most recent estimates are:

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Jake Berman @lostsubways.com · 3d

Statutory definition is "a passenger rail station." In the absence of a judicial or statutory definition, it's the plain meaning.

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Jake Berman @lostsubways.com · 3d

I'm glad! I was involved in the RHNA fight a few years ago, and hoo boy, Culver's proposed rezoning was just as bad as Santa Monica. (But not as bad as Whittier, which wanted to put all the people in fire zones, or South Pasadena, which said they'd sell off City Hall to build affordable housing!)

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Jake Berman @lostsubways.com · 3d

That whole 15 stations business was a part of the deal to get the bill through. I'm not a fan, but this is why I'm not a politician. Also, one would hope that a future expansion restores the old Tier 3 proposal, which rezones everything near commuter rail like SMART and Capitol Corridor.

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Jake Berman @lostsubways.com · 3d

Honestly, even an extension of the Sac light rail wouldn't get you enough. There's no way you can justify more than 3 stations in Davis and 2 in West Sac.

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Jake Berman @lostsubways.com · 3d

@idothethinking.bsky.social was working on one, I think.

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Jake Berman @lostsubways.com · 3d

Yeah, you need >15 passenger rail stations to qualify as an urban transit county, and Contra Costa has exactly 15. Of course, when the Hercules Capitol Corridor station opens, Contra Costa loses that exemption - but nobody apparently thought of that.

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Jake Berman @lostsubways.com · 3d

This is definitely something my Asian relations would be interested in. A granny flat for your 75-year-old auntie is just, well, normal.

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Jake Berman @lostsubways.com · 3d

Sorry, guys. You're still in range of Menlo Park.

two men in tuxedos are sitting next to each other and one of them says i 'm sorry

ALT: two men in tuxedos are sitting next to each other and one of them says i 'm sorry

media.tenor.com

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Jake Berman @lostsubways.com · 3d

Note: it's not clear whether the outer circle applies to Menlo Park or not - the city's population was 33,780 at the 2020 census, just short of the cutoff for the outer circle to apply.

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Jake Berman @lostsubways.com · 3d

But the smaller cities? They're stuck with it. 6x/

a man with a beard is talking to another man in a room .

ALT: a man with a beard is talking to another man in a room .

media.tenor.com

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Jake Berman @lostsubways.com · 3d

In bigger cities - LA, San Jose, SF - there's a lot more room for playing games, since there are many more stations in play. LA City has over 50 Metro stations; San Jose has 39 VTA light rail, 5 Caltrain, and a BART station, with more on the way; basically all of SF is SB79-ed. 5/

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Jake Berman @lostsubways.com · 3d

On top of this, SB79 rezoning hits single-family neighborhoods first, because the law prohibits demolition of anything rent-controlled that's larger than a duplex. Suburban-style single family homes are not rent controlled at all, and they're usually owner-occupied. 4/

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Jake Berman @lostsubways.com · 3d

Same thing in LA. Culver City has two stations. South Pasadena and Redondo Beach have one each. Beverly Hills will have two once the Purple Line extension opens. But critically, there's nowhere they can reallocate their zoning budget without risking a cripplingly expensive lawsuit. 3/

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Jake Berman @lostsubways.com · 3d

In San Mateo County, (Bay Area), Belmont, San Carlos, Menlo Park and Atherton each only have one train station - so there's nowhere else they can "reallocate" the budget. There's some room for gamesmanship, but nothing like the bullshit we saw a couple years ago with the state quota process. 2/

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