Regents approve campus plans for ‘a new People’s Park’

Chancellor Carol Christ despatched the pursuing message to the campus neighborhood on Thursday:

I am delighted to share with you that now the Regents of the University of California voted to approve our strategies for a new People’s Park. We are grateful for the Regents’ endorsement, and for the potent backing we received from Mayor Arreguín, Vice Mayor Droste, Councilmember Robinson, three former presidents of the ASUC, the Telegraph Organization Improvement District and a numerous cross-segment of our neighbors, religious leaders, mother and father and alumni who offered published expressions of assist for the challenge.

I want to use this chance to present info on what lies ahead, report on the success of a new scholar belief survey about the challenge and explain preparing underway for university student engagement.

Our motivation to the unhoused persons in our group

The system the Regents carefully reviewed and approved has 4 major factors:

• Develop supportive housing for unhoused and very lower-profits folks in our local community
• Provide beneath-current market-amount housing for some 1,100 undergraduates in a new residential facility
• Protect more than fifty percent of the web page as revitalized green space that will be open up and available to all
• Build a community memorial and celebration of the park’s past and which means.

Even as we anticipate to start building in the coming 12 months, I want to guarantee the local community that we stay fully commited to what is a altered program. We have listened to the voices of professionals and activists, and will not start design right until we are in a position to supply housing and solutions to the 40-45 unhoused individuals at present sleeping in the park, as nicely as a daytime location to collect. This is steady with the university’s longstanding commitment to, and issue for, unhoused customers of our community.

Even as operate proceeds to make certain their needs will be fulfilled at the time the park is temporarily closed for development, our full-time social employee is in People’s Park every day, serving to to join those people in require with the companies and support they require. To day, he has identified long lasting housing for a lot more than 80 unhoused persons.

Listening to learners: Study benefits

We have also taken an vital move to assure we are listening to the full selection of agent university student views with regards to housing issues in standard, and options for People’s Park in particular. In late August, we engaged a major unbiased survey organization with extensive practical experience serving to university student voices to be read on campuses throughout the state. They conducted a scientific, random sample study of the graduate and undergraduate college student populations. The benefits show that present UC Berkeley learners support the People’s Park challenge by a 56{565afb6a7dd3ab7cf54100f70e42ab263dca1ef4e5addf37831397e398fc3d13} to 31{565afb6a7dd3ab7cf54100f70e42ab263dca1ef4e5addf37831397e398fc3d13} margin even ahead of becoming furnished with standard data about the project’s four most important features, as described previously mentioned. The moment educated about people factors, the study discovered that task support among Berkeley learners grew to a 64{565afb6a7dd3ab7cf54100f70e42ab263dca1ef4e5addf37831397e398fc3d13} to 24{565afb6a7dd3ab7cf54100f70e42ab263dca1ef4e5addf37831397e398fc3d13} margin, with 68{565afb6a7dd3ab7cf54100f70e42ab263dca1ef4e5addf37831397e398fc3d13} precisely supporting the construction of student housing on the web site. As aspect of our determination to comprehensive transparency, you are invited to evaluate the methodology and original info set, as properly as the precise survey that was despatched to college students.

That identical survey also uncovered important ranges of problem with regards to the project’s impact on unhoused folks. We shall carry on to heed and respect all those voices, by advantage of the aforementioned transform of plans and our dedication to new supportive housing on the People’s Park internet site. In addition, there is operate underway to expand and extend our educational plans and exterior partnerships that are targeted on addressing the results of, and establishing remedies for, the housing disaster in our town, state and place.

Opportunities to learn far more and get involved

We have also learned from the survey that a significant part of the scholar system lacks precise, in depth data about all that we intend to do in and for People’s Park. To assist address that gap, we have released a new People’s Park venture internet site with current information and facts and FAQs. In addition, we intend to produce ways for pupils and other users of the campus local community to get up to date, exact facts about the undertaking, supply input and responses, and discover about meaningful opportunities for participation in campus efforts to tackle the housing crises confronting equally pupils and the unhoused customers of our neighborhood.

Ever because we introduced strategies for the People’s Park challenge in 2018, I have been confident that we have an possibility for a earn-earn-gain benefitting our college students, unhoused people in our neighborhood, and our neighbors across the metropolis. Whilst I am appreciative of the guidance we have acquired, I know we have do the job to do to construct awareness, knowledge and help amongst all those who remain skeptical. I look forward to ongoing, significant engagement with each individual element of our community, supporters and opponents alike.