Bringing out the crystal ball to see Concord’s future

CONCORD, CA (April 26, 2023) — “We cannot change what we had for breakfast, let alone history” is an old Birsan family saying. As we reminisce on the 20th anniversary of our local paper, I want to take a look forward to the stories that might appear in the Pioneer in the year 2043.

The Concord City Council. Having shifted to a directly elected mayor and six city districts 10 years ago, the debate still swirls around whether term limits of 12 years is still too short. Meetings are every Monday, except during football and pickleball seasons.

DNA scanners. With DNA scanners on gun triggers having failed to reduce gun crimes, we put a scan application in public places – causing a divisive issue in the community. Youth, already used to them for phone and cyber implants for schooling, do not understand the resistance by the aging out Millennium Old Fogies.

Transportation. Autonomous cars failed to make an impact in individual vehicle ownership but did reduce road rage incidents. The high-speed rail project finally completed the link between Lodi and Fresno, but no one noticed. Electric car conversion reached 70% despite the five-day mass blackout in ’39 that duplicated the Donner Party on Highway 5 north of Redding.

Roads. After the extensive road repairs of the ’20s and then in the mid-’30s, the ever-cyclical repair and wear down continues.

Climate change. The one-foot rise in sea level finally got noticed when flooding on golf hole 13 shifted from only on King Tides to every high tide, forcing a change in the whole course.

The base. After a sustained start in the early ’30s, the myth of One Concord was torn up when the residents there petitioned for a separate city to be called Claycord, just as they created a charter school district for themselves. The battle continues.

Immigration/refugees. The mass influx of Taiwanese 11 years ago from the first and second Chinese Unity Invasions pushed the city to make Mandarin a school language requirement as well as Spanish and English. The influx more than offset the outflow of young families to Canada and other areas gaining from the rising world temperature and empty land.

Meanwhile, the July 4th parade still brings out the crowds and we still pledge “… indivisible with liberty and justice for all.” The hope remains strong that we will remember that our name is Concord not Discord.

Edi Birsan is a member of the Concord City Council. However, opinions expressed in this column are his alone and do not reflect those of the city. Send comments and questions to EdiBirsan@gmail.com.