The Bulb is a construction dump in Albany, CA, that's been closed down for years. There was a strong squatter's community that was chased out a few years back. Now it's the home to a thriving indigenous development effort.

The Powers That Be want to develop the Bulb into a Recreational Facility. The regulars want it to be left the way it is.

It's a fascinating battle about what constitutes an environment. The Planners take the view that since the Bulb is man-made, the usual environmental rules don't apply. The regulars posit that the method of creation is irrelevant and that the Bulb is now it's own natural environmental system to be protected.

It seems to turn traditional battle lines on their head. Developers usually claim that the natural history of a site has no standing while environmentalists claim that a vital ecosystem is nothing but the continuation of a specific and inviolable history.

So what's the real deal? It's not about whether the Bulb is going to be developed, but who's going to do it and how long is it going to take to get it done. I say let the regulars take care of.

Sure, it's going to take longer and there's no way upfront to tell what it's going to be. But that's not enough, compared to the benefits.

By letting the regulars take care of this business, the result will be more interesting, more responsive to actual needs and, most importantly, cheaper.

Besides, who knows what cool stuff they may come up with? Already there's over 50 distict works of art on the north shore (and some of them are really very good). There's an obervation platform looking west over the Bay. There's a thatched refuge for shelter. There's a solstice ceremonial theater. All perfectly good uses, and none which could have been Planned with traditional, bureaucratic processes.

Amos Satterlee
June, 2002