Davisville

It's fundraising week, so I dedicated this week's program to a discussion among three of KDRT's public-affairs program hosts -- Gitane (right), Lois Richter, and yours truly -- on where they (we) get ideas, what makes a good show, and the spirit of community radio, which can range from ramshackle to polished. Lois co-hosts the Davis Garden Show with Don Shor, plus hosts her own program That's Life. Dr. G hosts Heart to Heart -- and among other things tonight, explains why she can't really give advice on air to people in Davis who might otherwise call with their problems. As she says, microphones are better now than they used to be. Even if a guest with a problem were never named, Davis is still small enough that their voice might be recognized. 

Davis is headed for a ditch, financially, but doesn’t have to land there. Dan Carson, chair of the city’s Finance and Budget Commission, is one of several people in town who are trying to engage the rest of us in helping Davis make a few course corrections now, before we start going over the edge. Today on Davisville we talk about the problem, what caused it, what we can do about it, the forecast that describes what’s coming, and why most people in Davis aren’t paying attention. At least, not yet.

Housing is expensive and scarce, in Davis and in regions all over California. Clearly, the supply has not kept up with the growth in population. Brian Hanlon is executive director of California YIMBY (for “Yes In My Backyard”), a new group, largely backed by technologists, that is urging the state to get serious about building more houses and apartments. Lots of them. Wherever they're needed. It supports several proposed laws now before the state Legislature, including one that would reduce barriers to new housing in communities that don’t take their state-defined share of growth. On today’s Davisville, we talk about remedies he supports and how they’d play out here.

If there’s now a trend to share things, rather than own them, then the classic community library fits right in: It was created to own books in common for a community, and anyone with a library card could take the books home. But the Yolo County library now offers much more than books on shelves, including Chromebook tablets and hotspots you can borrow, job help, e-magazines, wi-fi, bilingual storytimes, and computer help. All at no charge. Scott Love manages the Stephens branch library in Davis, and today on Davisville he talks about how the library has evolved because of the internet, its egalitarian values, what it offers today, and where it’s headed.