Mailbag - Sept. 9, 1999

DARE DOESN’T MAKE THE GRADE

A recent study by the University of Kentucky raises serious questions

about the effectiveness of the DARE Program. It should be noted that

there are many other studies and experts who would support these facts.

Further, the California Board of Education does not endorse DARE.

It would seem appropriate at this time to follow the lead of other school

districts and consider teaching basics rather than such touchy-feely

subjects as the unsuccessful DARE Program.

JOHN BOAG

Huntington Beach

BONING UP ON THE BOLSA CHICA ISSUE

I think the community should have the facts on the Sandover project. This

project is ON the Bolsa Chica mesa, not “near the Bolsa Chica mesa” as

the Independent printed on Aug. 19 (“Developer waits for court ruling on

bones”).

Also, the article states “a Native American’s cheekbone fragment, a

tooth, a cog stone and a grinding stone were discovered” when the Koll

Co. was grading the property on Aug. 4.

At the hearing on Aug. 11, the Koll lawyer said a broken cog stone and a

bone fragment were not unique and that was all that was found.

For the record, Judy Suchey, a forensic anthropologist and consultant to

the medical examiner and coroner for the counties of Los Angeles, Orange,

Riverside and San Bernardino was called on Aug. 5. Her report says the

prehistoric human remains are extremely fragmentary, consisting of only

one tooth and multiple small fragments of the cranium and that the

remains are consistent with being from one individual.

The puzzling thing to me in this report was that apparently the coroner’s

office wasn’t even shown the cog stone that the Koll lawyer tried to

denigrate as not being unique.

At the hearing, Suchey was there to testify and Koll objected to any

testimony at that hearing.

Hopefully, the judge will listen at the Sept. 8 hearing. The artifacts

were mishandled by the Native Americans who were hired by the developer’s

archeologist, Nancy DeSautel.

There should have been an environmental-impact report on this project and

we would have been saved this travesty.

EILEEN MURPHY

Bolsa Chica Land Trust member

ART CENTER SUPPORTERS TURN EFFORTS TO SANTA ANA

This week a bright light went out in Huntington Beach. The Huntington

Beach Art Center board, which brought a much-needed dose of creative

innovation, adventure and progressive energy to our city in the course of

a one-hour meeting, morphed itself into the Grand Central Arts Forum.

Having been invited to bring its talented support efforts to an exciting

new arts center in Santa Ana -- whose backers, the city of Santa Ana and

Cal State Fullerton, have made a commitment to development and exposure

of the arts -- the Art Center board willingly switched its affiliation to

the Grand Central Arts Center.

We can expect big things from Grand Central, where resident artists will

not only brighten Santa Ana with art but provide a healing presence to

the previously decaying inner city. The newly affiliated Grand Central

Arts Forum will help them achieve that goal. It is unfortunate that the

residents and officials of the city of Huntington Beach failed to see the

potential and value in the Art Center program that for four years brought

national acclaim to this sleepy beach town. The talented backers of that

program will now help bring the arts spotlight to another community. It

is our loss.

LINDA SAPIRO MOON

Huntington Beach

TAX BY ANOTHER NAME, STILL A TAX, COURTS SAY

Wouldn’t you think that someone (the city attorney perhaps) would advise

the Huntington Beach City Council that several California cities have

tried to use the fee ruse to circumvent the legal requirement to hold a

general election to pass new taxes, and lost the ensuing court battle?

(“Panel deciding how to pay city’s repair bill” July 29). And so the

legal precedent has already been established. What chicanery!

If the council is seriously concerned about funding for rebuilding the

city’s infrastructure, it seems to me they should start with

restructuring and reorganizing the city staff. When was the last time

this happened? Why is it OK to have 31 city employees drawing down more

than $100,000 in pay every year? Answer: it isn’t.

Recall the Independent article several months ago regarding these

salaries. Many of these people drawing this money are not managers or top

executives. Seems to me the City Council and the city administrator and

executive staff need to create a lean, mean operating machine before they

tackle the job of rebuilding the city’s facilities. Then they can develop

a detailed plan, including funding requirements and sources, to rebuild

the city.

I am sure Huntington Beach residents would like to see such a plan before

they are asked to provide funding. Maybe then the City Council won’t have

to resort to calling a new tax a fee to go around the law.

Do we need to rebuild the city’s infrastructure? Of course. Do we need

new or more taxes to do this? Maybe. In any case, if more dollars are

needed, it is up to the voters to say yea or nay to the new taxes, not

the City Council. And, if the City Council persists in going forward with

this fee approach, I feel it is only a matter of time before they are

challenged in court. And they will lose.

GIL NIXON

Huntington Beach

CITY BUSINESS DESERVES BETTER BIDDING PROCESS

The fiasco that has befallen our City Hall is another example of the

deficiency of the lowest-bidder process (“Paint job has City Hall coated

in discontent,” Aug. 26). Under this process, any Tom, Dick or Harry with

a contractor’s license can submit a low bid along with alleged

competency. This is how Huntington Beach got stuck with a shoddy

contractor.

The process needs to be changed so that acceptance of a bid gives

substantial weight to a contractor’s experience and proof of competency

along with low price. This will ensure that problems of this nature will

not occur in the future.

MARK A. ROSS

Huntington Beach

MILE SQUARE FOXES DESERVE A CHANCE

I think it would be a tragedy to see [the red foxes] killed. I play golf

at this course several times a year, and I saw a fox for the first time

several weeks ago while playing and was overwhelmed by its beauty. If

they cannot coexist with the ecosystem at Mile Square Park, I would

rather see them put in zoos than to be eliminated. I completely agree

with the last statement of your article stating that “all wildlife

deserves to be treated with respect whether they are endangered or not.”

JEFF NOFAL

Huntington Beach