Property rights should win Jeff Garner would...

Property rights should win

Jeff Garner would like to build a home for his son on a legal lot

dubbed “the dip house” by opponents of his project.

Garner is a longtime Laguna resident and respected architect. His

record of environmental awareness and building acumen speaks for

itself through the legacy of homes and buildings he has designed.

Not surprisingly, a few neighbors, in a class example of

NIMBY-ism, oppose him. They cite environmental and safety concerns.

Where was their concern for this environmentally sensitive area when

they built their homes along the same canyon?

The safety issues they raise make little sense. There has been a

house directly across the street from the proposed site for more than

half a century. People have routinely come and gone safety from this

residents without endangering pedestrians or drivers. You cannot

convince me that one side of Glenneyre Street is more dangerous than

another.

Central to this matter is a basic question of property rights. Can

the owner of a legal building site bought in good faith build on it,

or is that right overshadowed by the self-interests of a few

neighbors?

I urge the Design Review Board to recognize the objections of the

neighbors for what they are and to facilitate this endeavor.

I am also a neighbor of the proposed “dip house.”

MICHAEL HALLINAN

Laguna Beach

Mangels sets the record straight

I was surprised and disappointed to read in Karen Petty’s Oct. 8

letter (“Facts vs. Gene Felder’s politicking,” Coastline Pilot) her

assumption that “Anita Mangels, the current president of the Festival

of Arts Board of Directors, also made a recommendation to the board

to pursue a nonexclusive contract with ICM, “a creative management

firm.”

Nothing could be further from the truth. Prior to my election, I

made very clear to the board my opposition to a contract with ICM or

any other agency for the purpose of sanctioning or facilitating

productions of the Pageant of the Masters outside of Laguna Beach. As

a matter of fact, my desire to protect the pageant from just such a

contract was a major factor in my decision to run for the board.

After festival members elected me last fall, I introduced a motion as

chair of the by-laws committee to put an amendment prohibiting

licensing or franchising of the pageant to a vote of the membership,

and as president strongly supported holding a special election for

that purpose. That amendment was subsequently approved by over 94% of

members who voted.

Petty closed her letter by saying: “Let’s ... start by getting the

facts straight. No need to spread misinformation ... “ I hope this

clarification will help.

ANITA MANGELS

Festival of Arts board president

Laguna Beach

Candidate Campbell has his say too

Having just returned from vacation, I picked up a Coastline to get

caught up on what’s been going on in Laguna while my wife and I were

away. Much to my surprise, I made Gene Felder’s factual follies

(“Candidates’ history tells the real story,” Coastline Pilot, Oct.

1). To borrow a phrase from Ronald Reagan, “Well, there he goes

again.”

Yes, I am guilty of wanting to increase the Festival of Arts

revenues. The last time I looked the festival employees payroll

checks are not cashed because of my good looks. Since I have been on

the board, we have increased payroll for all employees across the

board in order to keep up with inflation, but to also bring many of

them up to current standards based on their industry. Consequently, I

know of at least three employees that have had enough money to buy

homes in the Laguna area. So, I am guilty of wanting to increase

revenues.

Next, “pursuing licensing the Pageant of the Masters to other

venues even though specifically in conflict with the new 40-year

lease with the city.” Well, there he goes again. Once again, Felder

has his facts totally mixed up, which is not a big surprise. First,

the licensing issue was not addressed in the lease, so one could

conclude that it was a loophole. It could have been addressed in the

lease or as an amendment to the by-laws of the Festival of Arts. I,

as well as the rest of the board of directors, chose to agree to the

by-law change, which was passed by our membership.

And last but not least is the covering of the Irvine Bowl. Where

did $4.4 million come from? Well, once again, there he goes ... oh

nevermind. The request to investigate the possibility of covering the

bowl and building a parking structure behind the playhouse came from

Paul Freeman during the lease negotiations. The board (yes,

everybody) authorized the feasibility study on both issues and

determined that the cost to do both would not be cost effective.

Before this election is over, we will probably see more of

Felder’s factual follies.

JOHN L. CAMPBELL

Festival of Arts board member

Laguna Beach

Parents should

have open minds

I would like to respond to the letter claiming that the Good News

Clubs in the public school is “bad news.” (Coastline Pilot, Oct. 1)

The author may have legitimate concern when the philosophy of the

Good News Club differs from her own, that is, if she encourages

sheltering her children. But she equates the Supreme Court ruling

about the clubs with slavery, discrimination and even

Japanese-American internment camps. This is a rhetorical punch that

can be made on both sides of the argument. In the polis, the law is

what we go by in civil action. Her attacks in this regard should be

toward her own Supreme Court, not faulting the Good News Clubs.

The author is also concerned about the Good News Clubs

proselytizing young people. But where are the parents in all of this?

If parents don’t want their children in the clubs, then they should

say keep them out. In addition, aren’t parents supposed to be talking

with their children about the things they learn each day? If children

are impressionable to the Good News Club, they are even more

impressionable to their own parents who are supposed to be spending

time with their kids.

My hunch is that the Good News Club sounds much better than

allowing the television to baby-sit our kids in the afternoons which

too often happens. Many parents send their kids to Good News Clubs

because it is one of the few places left in our society where

children can actually receive moral teaching, especially for families

that cannot afford private education. Many parents are grateful for

this, Christian or otherwise.

In addition, the author is concerned that the public school is a

new location to recruit children. But the school has already become

an arena to recruit children in the ideas of an atheistic secularism

in their classroom. Anyone with an amateur understanding in

philosophy would know that it is so. There is no neutral ground; and

let’s not pretend there is. Besides, isn’t it a virtue today to be

open-minded? Why do we want to shelter our children from a wider view

of knowledge?

With the oncoming force of postmodernism and spirituality in our

culture, I think it is healthy for parents to move into the 21st

Century and discover that it is good for our children to be exposed

to spiritual things. Our children may actually grow up more adjusted.

Don’t forget, it was Ted Bundy who claimed that he murdered 40 women

because he couldn’t justify the value of human life based on his

secular education.

I think none of us should underestimate the power of ideas. We

cannot avoid them. What we should be doing is allowing our children

to learn to think by exposing them to different ideas and engaging

them with intelligent conversation at home, rather than immersing

them in another group think activities that helps neither American

values nor our children when they one day become Supreme Court

Justices.

DALE FINCHER

Laguna Beach

Village Laguna

forum will go on

In many past election years (most recently in 2000 and 2002),

Village Laguna has held a candidates’ forum in the City Council

chambers -- sometimes in cooperation with the League of Women Voters,

sometimes not -- and broadcast it on community television.

This year we were in the midst of planning a similar forum when we

learned that the city manager had forbidden the use of the chamber’s

video equipment for anything but council meetings. When Councilwoman

Toni Iseman asked her fellow council members to allow this use, all

four of them endorsed the city manager’s stand. Several of them took

the position that the equipment could properly be used only by

government bodies, while others suggested that if we were the League

of Women Voters instead of who we are the use might be acceptable.

We were disappointed, of course, but not discouraged. We’ve since

found another place for the forum and are expecting to videotape it

for posting on the Laguna Broadcasting website and later broadcast on

Channel 30. The time is 7 p.m. Thursday in the auditorium at South

Coast Medical Center.

The questions will be prepared and asked by representatives of the

local press. All three council candidates have indicated their

availability. We’re looking forward to a lively exchange and invite

everyone to attend.

BARBARA METZGER

Laguna Beach

Anti-Baglin group is noticeable in town

There seems to be some confusion as to who and what is behind this

newly formed committee, “Laguna Beach Citizens for Good Honest

Government and Civility in Local Politics and Therefore Against Wayne

Baglin.”

Let’s set the record straight. The committee was formed, and is

backed by a company called Arbitech LLC, a large electronic

wholesaler with some 40 employees.

Arbitech occupies much of the space in the Nolan building at the

corner of Thalia and Catalina Streets where Reef Liquor used to be

located. I assume they support Mayor Cheryl Kinsman as, for a time;

they displayed her sign in their window and also parked an open

convertible in front of Baglin’s office with her posters displayed on

the seats.

The committee’s form 460 filing indicates, as of Sept. 30, that

these four officers of Arbitech have contributed this amount of money

so far. Of the four only William Poovey lives in Laguna Beach.

Torin Pavia C.E.O. $10,000.00

Douglas Kari Sr. V.P. $5,000.00

William Poovey C.O.O. $10,000.00

Glen Harrick Acct. Exec. $1,000.00

Due to the expanding nature of their business (estimates sales for

2004 is $120 million) there is an increasing amount of truck traffic.

Although the business belongs in an industrial area, they were

approved to operate because someone made an error at City Hall,

according to City Manager Ken Frank. Arbitech says that they were

given permission to use the alley behind the building to load and

unload and as a result stacks of pallets, both empty and loaded are

seen on a daily basis, much like a warehouse loading dock.

I don’t know the reason for the animus against Baglin. I do know

that this small town doesn’t need smear and attack ads in a local

election. Against anyone. I wonder if Kinsman asked for this help,

approved of this help, or has asked the committee to stop. Will she

have to report the $26,000 as campaign contributions?

DENNIS TAYLOR

Laguna Beach

Letter about Village Laguna is not true

While reading Bill McDonald’s letter to the editor last week

(“It’s time to call it like it is,” Coastline Pilot, Oct. 8), I

couldn’t decide if he was trying to break the Laguna record for the

most untruths ever to appear in a letter or if he could possibly be

that ill informed.

I have tackled a few of the most egregious in order to set the

record straight.

It’s a matter of record that there are many organizations as well

as individuals who are opposed to moving the Corporation Yard to Act

V. There are myriad reasons, not least of which is to use the money

saved from the move to build a parking structure in the Village

Entrance. The plan to build this structure would create more parking

for the residents of Laguna while preserving the peripheral parking

for out-of-towners

There was an attempt to take over the Festival of Arts, not the

Pageant of the Masters as McDonald states. The threat came from

within the organization itself -- not from without. A few years ago

there was a majority of the festival board members, some of whom

didn’t even live in Laguna who were in negotiations with the city of

San Clemente to move the festival there. Then last year the board

majority pursued the licensing of the pageant to out-of-town venues.

The membership voted against both proposals and also voted to change

the majority of the board.

These changes reflected the goals of the membership to keep the

pageant unique and always in Laguna and never to have it franchised.

The Laguna Beach City Council did not “cancel the sensible

hillside elimination of fire-prone bushes by goat control” before the

fire in ’93. In fact, our home was saved because a few weeks before

the fire the goats had been on the hillside behind our house. After

the fire the Los Angeles Times reported that it was because of the

city’s innovative program of using goats for fuel modification that

helped stop the fire.

If the then-proposed second Top of the World reservoir had been

built in time for the ’93 fire it would not have saved any homes.

According to the Los Angeles Times Nov. 14, 1993 article, “Water

Pressure Burned Laguna,” “Distribution problems-and not low

supply-hindered fight, records show millions of gallons went

unused.... The main culprits: dwindling water pressure, inadequate

pipeline connections and insufficient pumping capacity.” The Times

noted that at 7:30 p.m., the Alta Laguna reservoir had a water level

of 137,000 gallons left in its tank.

The Laguna Beach City Council did not block any county action for

improvements on the Laguna Canyon Road from El Toro Road to the

freeway (to which I assume McDonald was referring). And you might be

interested in knowing that there hasn’t been a fatality on that part

of the road since the county repaved and re-striped it about three

years ago.

McDonald, I don’t know who’s steeling your signs but if it’s 13-

to 15-year-old boys I would suggest its boys being boys but maybe

it’s the same person who’s been taking Sheryl Harbold’s Jane Egly

signs.

JOHANNA FELDER

Laguna Beach

City negligent with Mar Vista land

Mar Vista couldn’t be a better example of a pro-development City

Council and how valuable community assets can be easily squandered

away into the purse pockets of private corporateers.

Council members calling the open space zoning on the Mar Vista

parcel a technical error legitimized illegal activity engaged in by

the property owner for the past 14 years and was inconsistent with

the community’s values.

In 1990 the owner had two residential units on the property and

was seeking the approval to build a third. The meeting minutes from

1990 clearly state, “The location of the two existing residential

structures on the same parcel creates a zoning inconsistency.”

The owner was given several choices. 1) Keep the two you’ve got

and bring them into compliance. 2) Don’t use them as residences and

receive the approval to build a new house. 3) Tear them down and

build one new house.

He opted to leave the existing structures and in good faith was

given the approval to build a new house in the R1 zoned area of the

parcel. In 1990 the approval was for a 4,000 square-foot-house, which

he never built. Last year the City Council upheld an appeal for the

approval for a 28,000 square-foot home.

To quote Councilman Wayne Baglin, “It’s a big house in its own big

neighborhood.” I think he must have meant, “It’s a house the size of

a strip mall yet without any of the industrial permit requirements.”

Isn’t he supposed to represent other residents also?

In addition, the property owner has received a healthy property

tax incentive for the last 14 years for having land as open space.

Being zoned as open space, residential units are not allowed. So how

could the owner pay revenue taxes for the income received from what

has turned into four rental units. I fail to see the hardship or

endless problems being placed on the owner. Any hardship of the owner

he has brought on himself.

It is a hardship onto the residents of this community. Created by

indiscriminate rezoning of our open space into acreage that can be

built on. You’ve got to give if you want to get. That goes with being

part of a community. He got his approval to build in 1990, for which

residents were supposed to receive 10 acres of open space. His

building approval has since expanded to five times its original size,

the owner just got cleared of 14 years of illegal activity, he also

just got some of this land given back to him along with the go ahead

to build on it and he will get the rest of it back in seven years

when the trail has not been installed and the permanent open space

rolls back into the property owners hands when reaching the 21 year

marker. So what will the community have received as compensation for

the destruction of our open space land. Nothing. If anything it

should be considered a taking.

As for our city and its council, What a disappointment each of you

are. It was obvious you had not even read the staff’s report.

Not long ago, Mar Vista was listed in the Federal Register as a

National Landmark for its environmental beauty and species diversity.

Similar to places like Yellowstone National Park and Yosemite Valley.

You just needlessly squandered away what many believe was the most

beautiful parcel this town had.

DEBBIE HERTZ

Laguna Beach

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