10 MONTEREY COUNTY WEEKLY AUGUST 29-SEPTEMBER 4, 2024 www.montereycountynow.com It’s not that long ago that bulletin boards were one of the main resources to find out about community events, school announcements and job opportunities. They still exist, but information is increasingly online. And now there is an app, Nurbli, that is creating an online bulletin board so Monterey County residents and beyond can access information about their school district and local government at their fingertips. On Aug. 14, South Monterey County Joint Union High School District approved a one-year pilot program to include Nurbli as part of its resources to reach out to the indigenous community among its four high schools. “We are excited to try out the app and to see if parents respond well,” says Griselda Delgado, the district’s assistant superintendent of educational services. Benito Sanchez is a Greenfield High School graduate and Triqui speaker. He is also a software engineer who was motivated to develop the app after the Pajaro flooding in 2023 affected many indigenous residents. SMCJUHSD became aware of the app during a brainstorming meeting at Hartnell College in which representatives of different organizations discussed information accessibility for Monterey County’s population of Mexican indigenous speakers. Delgado, who has been in the county for about a year, says she realized parents weren’t getting information in their native language, and providing written translated documents wouldn’t be helpful either, since many cannot read. Greenfield Unified School District is also using the app; Sanchez has reached out to Gonzales Unified as well. The app provides more than a physical bulletin board. It invites a user to add their zip code, set the app’s interface language—English or Spanish— and the language they want for audio. The app populates with flyers and similar materials that are available in the local area. Users can then read them in their original language or listen to them in English, Spanish, Mixteco de San Martín Peras, or Triqui Bajo. Currently, Nurbli includes flyers about after-school tutors at King City High School, low-cost internet service, and the Monterey County Rape Crisis Center help line. The app is still in its infancy; it launched in May, and the volume of information remains pretty slim. Sanchez says it will grow as more entities, including local governments, school districts and organizations sign up and post updates about services, public meetings and other engagement opportunities. After Carmel barely made a deadline in April to turn into the state their eight-year housing plan, known as a housing element, some residents became alarmed that the plan to add a required 349 units in the tiny village included a provision that commits the city to building 149 units of very low- to low-income units on cityowned parking lots, including at the Sunset Center. It’s the exact opposite of what residents repeatedly told the Carmel City Council they wanted, says former councilmember Victoria Beach. “The idea of clumping people who are lower-income together is a discredited housing strategy,” she says. Beach and others began looking for a solution to satisfy the California Department of Housing and Community Development, which certified Carmel’s housing element. They named themselves Affordable Housing Alternatives and in July the council gave the go-ahead for the city’s Community Planning and Building department to collaborate with AHA. At a joint community meeting of about 50 people held on Aug. 21, AHA members presented four possible alternatives to adding the “magic number” of 149 units: creating more accessory dwelling units and junior ADUs; converting small hotels into housing; building above commercial sites; and adding units to church properties. Beach says a combination of these ideas could allow the city to reach its goal. While some residents in attendance were still in denial that the city must meet the state’s housing requirements or wanted to load up on ADUs and junior ADUs in name only, others urged their neighbors to be welcoming to the workers who commute to the city daily because there is nowhere affordable to live in Carmel. AHA members hope to create a viable plan by next year. Under Carmel’s current housing element, the city is required to release by December 2025 a request for proposals for developers who might be interested in constructing units on city parking lots. App Chat South County school districts embrace technology for language translation. By Celia Jiménez NEWS ON THE DAIS Monterey City Council meets and accepts public comment. Tell your elected officials what they are doing well and what you think they can do better. 4pm Tuesday, Sept. 3. Colton Hall, 580 Pacific St., Monterey. Free. 646-3799, monterey.gov. CONTINUED CARE Monterey County Behavioral Health holds a focus group to gather feedback on residential care facilities and how to improve them for people living with severe mental health illnesses. 5:30-7pm Tuesday, Sept. 3. NAMI Monterey County Office, 152 W. Gabilan St., Salinas. Free. 755-4510, bit.ly/3yQGh0j. CIVIC ENGAGEMENT Marina City Council meets to discuss city business, as well as hear from the public. 5pm Wednesday, Sept. 4. City Council Chambers, 211 Hillcrest Ave., Marina. Free. 884-1278, cityofmarina.org. THINKING OF YOU Family Service Agency of the Central Coast is gathering cards for National Grandparents’ Day to deliver to people living in assisted and skilled nursing facilities in Monterey, San Benito and Santa Cruz counties on Sept. 8. Volunteers are needed to write these cards. Deliver cards to Family Service Agency/I-You Venture, 104 Walnut Ave. #208, Santa Cruz; or Santa Cruz Volunteer Center, Attn: FSA/I-You Venture, 1740 17th Ave., Santa Cruz. 459-8917, cleveland.n@fsa-cc.org, fsacc.org. FAMILIES FIRST First 5 Monterey County, which provides services for families with children through age 5, seeks a new commissioner on its board to fill a vacancy. Applicants should have knowledge of trauma and mental health, and have experience living or working in North and South counties. Applications are due Sept. 24. 4448549, first5monterey.org. PUBLIC INPUT Seaside residents, workers and interested parties are invited to participate in a survey for housing and community development needs. It’s part of a process to update the city’s consolidated plan document every five years. Survey is available in English and Spanish through Sept. 30 at surveymonkey.com/r/2N8NFZL. One by One A group of Carmel residents is determined to find affordable housing they can support. By Pam Marino Software developer Benito Sanchez with Nurbli, the community centric audio translation app he created, that is available on Apple and Google Play. E-MAIL: toolbox@montereycountynow.com TOOLBOX Users can listen in English, Spanish, Mixteco or Triqui. DANIEL DREIFUSS
RkJQdWJsaXNoZXIy MjAzNjQ1NQ==