Boosting Spending in San Clemente

Re “San Clemente Feels Winds of Change Blowing Downtown,” Dec. 23:

I have been a resident of San Clemente for 10 years. It’s a great place to save money because there’s no place to spend it.

Things may be changing. The downtown merchants are finally getting the message: Cheap junk doesn’t sell to the people who live here.

Furthermore, it doesn’t create a sales tax base large enough to provide the basic necessities (parks, street sewers, etc.) a town of this size requires. My suggestion is to look to Laguna Beach or Del Mar for guidance. Both are fun places to spend time and money.

CATHY GANZE

San Clemente

* Regarding your Jan. 5 editorial, “Reinventing San Clemente”:

Many in San Clemente would disagree that the reinvention of San Clemente is headed in a positive direction. To put a positive spin on two stores closing is one thing, but it ignores the general deterioration of the original “downtown” area.

The prime commercial intersection recently lost the only bank in the downtown area. The “five and dime” referred to in the editorial carried a variety of goods that people living in the area must now drive some distance to purchase. There are numerous other vacancies in the downtown area. The City Council, city manager and Community Development Department have largely ignored the original “Spanish Village by the Sea” concept in favor of monotonous stucco subdivisions and mini-malls east of the original town.

The infrastructure of the city continues to deteriorate despite special assessments for everything from street repairs to street lights. City government has spent thousands of dollars on planning studies over the last decade with little to show for it.

It’s nice to have a stop on the commuter train route if the people using it for transportation to and from work or to the beach have a sense that they are in a viable community when they arrive. Vacant stores and poorly maintained downtown facilities will not help. If the city fathers want to “reinvent” the city they should reassess the formula they have used to date.

MAYA LAWSON

San Clemente