My guess is that the first set of permits was issued before the folks at Public Works realized Sonic’s splitter cabinets don’t comply with an obscure, but official, city policy concerning pole-mounted telecom equipment. They let Sonic go ahead with the work that had already been permitted, but they can’t issue the remaining permits (basically covering the area S. of University and W. of Shattuck) until either the official policy is changed or Sonic comes up with an alternative plan that complies with current policy. Negotiations around one or both of those alternatives may be what Sonic is working closely with the city on. Or something like that. That’s my theory, anyway.waiting... wrote:Why has the city issued permits for some areas but not others? Are there issues relating to specific parts of the city? You say you are working closely with the city but then a few pages back you said there's uncertainty around the time frame for permitting and activation in west Berkeley. I would imagine working closely with the city means you have insight into the process so you could provide clarity and certainty.
If the city is moving slowly, making things difficult, or not providing necessary information so you can give us accurate predictions, then we should contact our representatives. This is an important issue. Access to information is a fundamental human right at this point and they need to know that their constituents care about this so they can prioritize it.
I'm familiar with local building and planning departments taking their sweet time approving permits and other aspects of the building/planning process and I have observed that direct intervention makes a big difference with respect to how fast they get things approved.
I don’t see the harm in contacting your city councilmember (and a recent Sonic status update encouraged us to do so), and the same goes for the mayor, but Dane has discouraged us from engaging directly with city staff on the subject.
