June 1, 2023 Dena Jensen
This week the Whatcom County Council put out a news flash announcement requesting that community members provide feedback to the Incarceration Prevention and Reduction Task Force about the draft version of the Justice Project Implementation Plan. I sent an email in today that will be included in this blog post.
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April 3, 2023 Dena Jensen
In the email and graphic in this post there is a little more info related to Bellingham elected officials moving forward an ordinance to make public drug use illegal and considering related services. I sent the email to make sure elected officials had this information and to address some items from a response that one official had sent to a previous email about the ordinance which I had sent.
Continue readingMarch 31, 2023 Dena Jensen
On Monday night March 27, 2023, Bellingham City Council voted to advance (first and second reading) “An Ordinance Prohibiting the Use of Controlled Substances in Public Places” toward approval by a vote of 5-2. The earliest final vote on the ordinance will not be until the next regular Council meeting in two weeks on April 10, 2023. If approved on that date, the ordinance would go into effect two weeks later.
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March 21, 2023 Dena Jensen
I know there are people who have already read “Atul Explains Vote Against Jail Recommendations,” a letter to Whatcom County Council Chair Barry Buchanan that was published on Northwest Citizen about a month ago, but I think it could use some broader exposure.
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March 6, 2023 Dena Jensen
On February 21, 2021 Whatcom County Council voted 7-0 to approve a resolution accepting the the Justice Project Needs Assessment Report. The report includes many recommendations developed during the Stakeholder Advisory Committee needs assessment process, including one to “build a new jail.” The County will now be moving forward with an implementation plan. The resolution states that part of the plan will be efforts to hear our input.
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December 5, 2022 Dena Jensen
In this post is an email I sent last night regarding tomorrow’s 12/6/22 Whatcom County Council Committee of the Whole meeting. The COW agenda says Council will be discussing general meeting rules. It is left to community members who have some experience on where to find more details, to learn that apparently this discussion is to be solely focused on limiting our time to speak at their meetings. It would have taken very few extra words to say that on the agenda. Here is the link to the memo for the meeting: https://whatcom.legistar.com/View.ashx?M=F&ID=11493559&GUID=01A69383-70BC-41D5-A732-01A369E4CD18
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November 27, 2022 Dena Jensen
Sent: Sunday, November 27, 2022, 07:30:34 PM PST
Subject: Update on previous email related to information and activation for accessible severe weather sheltering
Dear Whatcom County Health Department, Whatcom County Council, and Whatcom County Executive Sidhu:
Below my signature line, I am including a copy of the email I sent you earlier today regarding information on the County website and various social media pages related to severe weather shelters being available.
I wanted to write again on a related matter having to do with the recording on the night by night shelter hotline, at 360-788-7983.
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October 31, 2022 Dena Jensen
On Friday of last week, I had posted on Facebook about a recent article in Cascadia Daily News, “Bike lanes to displace homeless campers on Cornwall. At the time of my post, I was just responding to information in the article. Since that time, I have had a chance to listen to a recording of the Bellingham City Council Members’ October 24, 2022 Committee of the Whole discussion of the proposal to eliminate parking on portions of four Bellingham streets, including the section of Cornwall Avenue that is near the Bellingham waterfront.
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October 18, 2022 Dena Jensen
Keep sharing the things you learn and observe with our officials that will help result in more and better services for our community members who are in crisis or are in danger of being so.
Here is an email I sent this evening to the Whatcom County Council and the County Executive:
Sent: Tuesday, October 18, 2022, 05:31:04 PM PDT
Subject: Services needed to address more regular occurrence of severe smoke events
Dear Whatcom County Council, and County Executive Sidhu:
I have been watching the rapid increase today in poor air quality due to wildfire smoke. I am including a couple screenshots.
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October 14, 2022 Dena Jensen
I sent the following email to the Whatcom County Council this afternoon related to the presentation on severe weather sheltering that was given on September 27, 2022 by the Whatcom County Health Department Human Services Manager to members of the County Council’s Committee of the Whole at their meeting that day. Here is a link to a transcription of that presentation along with some highlights from it: https://noisywatersnw.com/2022/10/05/transcript-update-from-the-whatcom-county-health-department-on-severe-weather-shelter-plans-noisy-waters-northwest/
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