AgdaPkt 2019-10-28 Joint SA PFA - Laserfiche WebLink

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CLK-Pamela Aguilar From: Sent: To: Cc: Subject: October 28, 2019 Janet Walworth <walworthjanet@gmail.com> Sunday, October 27, 2019 4:28 PM CLK-Pamela Aguilar, Council -Ian Bain; Council -Diane Howard; Council-Giselle Hale; aaguire@redwoodcity.org; Council -Janet Borgens; smasura@redwoodcity.org; Council - Diana Reddy; PWS -Vicki Sherman; Forward of Internet E -Mail Diane Bailey, IdaRose Sylvester Recommendation to Adopt All -Electric New Construction or Prohibition of Gas Use for Proposed Ordinance on Energy and Green Building Standards Toward the Adoption of Reach Codes Mayor Bain and City Council Members Redwood City 1017 Middlefield Road Redwood City, CA 94063 Dear Mayor Bain and City Council Members: In connection with the consideration by the Redwood City Council of the adoption of an Ordinance on Energy and Green Building Standards leading to the adoption of Reach Codes for future construction in Redwood City, the Campaign for Fossil Free Buildings In Silicon Valley ('FFBCSV') submitted a letter to the Redwood City Council dated October 28, 2019. I signed onto such letter as a member of the Peninsula Interfaith Climate Alliance, a member of the coalition of organizations making up FFBCSV. I fully support the FFBCSV letter, and strongly urge that you follow the request set forth in that letter. The letter likewise urges that the Redwood City Council follow the recommendation of Redwood City Staff for the adoption of an ordinance which would lead to Reach Codes which would require fully electric new construction or prohibit the building of any gas infrastructure in buildings. This would lead to adopting Reach Codes akin to those adopted in Menlo Park, Mountain View and Morgan Hill as well as San Mateo County. The letter points out that nearly fifty percent of residential gas fires are caused by natural gas connections according to the National Fire Protection Association and that roughly fifty percent of fires occurring after earthquakes are due to gas. This leads me to highlight three points for your consideration. First, I would point out the all too obvious reality that California currently faces an onslaught of fires due to drought and climate change which is absolutely terrifying. I recall just a few weeks ago being very concerned to read that the Sunnyside Fire was racing toward Aliso Canyon gasworks. Mercifully, this fire did not reach Aliso Canyon. Now the entire state has been declared an emergency by Governor Gavin Newsom due to the fires currently burning. I don't need to reiterate the current emergency the state of California is facing. Given the fires that we face now as well as those fires and earthquakes that we will face in the future, the last thing we need to do is include gas in the equation of our residential housing. Safety should be of paramount concern.