MAILBAG - Aug. 10, 2000

I am puzzled by the decision to not honor the Burlington Coat

Factory’s lease, which is supposed to be honored until 2025 [“Burlington

gathers signatures to stay at mall,” July 13].

The Huntington Center was a ghost town for years, but despite that,

Burlington was a destination. People in Huntington Beach shopped there

because the store offered good value, quality merchandise at an

attractive price. New parents appreciated having the baby store upstairs.

We kept hearing that the city needs revenue from retail when they

wanted to bring Wal-Mart in.Then why try to run out a perfectly good

mid-priced store? I just don’t see courting one retailer while snubbing

another. They all bring in the revenues, don’t they?

I think it’s great to bring upscale shopping here to Huntington Beach

at The Crossings but not at the expense of retailers who have loyally

rented formerly dead retail space and served the community.

Burlington could bring in people to the new mall that would then shop

at the new stores. A deal is a deal, right? Not just until something

better comes along.

CATHERINE CALDERA

Huntington Beach

COASTWATCH WILL BE WATCHED CLOSELY

Forgive my skepticism, but when Steve Bone, the same man who wants to

place condominiums on the Little Shell wetlands as part of the Hilton’s

expansion, starts an “environmental group” called Coastwatch, I have to

wonder about his motivations [“Watchdog group forming to monitor coastal

waters,” June 29].There is already an organization called CoastKeeper

fighting ocean pollution off our coast.

Perhaps Bone is reluctant to join forces with CoastKeeper because

CoastKeeper is one of the organizations suing the [California] Coastal

Commission to prevent the Hilton from building the condos on the Little

Shell wetlands.

The formation of Coastwatch reminds me of the formation of the Bolsa

Chica Alliance by the Koll company to confuse the public after the Bolsa

Chica Land Trust was formed in the early 1990s. The land trust, of

course, opposes any development of the Bolsa Chica, while the alliance

completely supported the development of the wetlands and the Bolsa Chica

mesa.

I truly hope I am wrong in comparing Coastwatch to the Bolsa Chica

Alliance. I hope that the formation of Coastwatch is a sincere effort to

help solve the problem of ocean pollution.

The proof will not be in Bone’s words, but in the actions of this new

organization.

I eagerly await my misgivings to be proved wrong.DICK LeGRUE

Huntington Beach

SINGING THE PRAISES OF THE PARADE PANEL

We have been so busy with the alleged corruption in City Hall that we

have forgotten to praise the accomplishments of the Fourth of July parade

committee and its dedicated chairwoman, Patricia Stier. They put together

a great local parade with a small-town feeling.

I am not a child, but I could see that the kids and their parents

loved it. Some of us old-timers enjoyed the tributes to war vets and

their families. It was the best of Americana in our proudest moments.

Bravo! Good, clean family entertainment. Do it again, Pat. The only

thing I missed was a Marine Corps band. Maybe next year. Please?

RICHARD McGRATH

Huntington Beach

PROBLEMS WITH CITY TREES STRIKES A FAMILIAR CHORD

I read with amazement and amusement the letter from Dorothy V.

Nalbandian [“A long wait, still nothing,” June 29]. I was sure it was

written by my neighbor, Joe Bernardo. He has the exact circumstance at

his house -- he has standing water in front of his house that sometimes

covers half the street.

As for myself, I had to have my sewer dug up shortly after moving here

in 1986, at a cost of nearly $800. At the present time, the roots [of

city trees] are lifting my concrete driveway, causing it and part of my

garage floor to crack.

We too have collected the names of our neighbors on a petition in July

1993. Since then, we have waited patiently for work to begin, but nothing

has been done. Joe and I have made repeated phone calls to Don Noble and

Chris Gray. The only response has been from Don Noble, who told Joe not

to worry about the water in front of his house because this year was

going to be a drought.

I left five messages with Chris Gray’s office but never received a

return call. Also, I personally wrote and hand-delivered letters to each

City Council member, as well as the mayor and City Administrator Ray

Silver. The only response I got was from Mayor Dave Garofalo on May 23,

who passed on my concerns to Ray Silver and Robert Beardsley with a

promise of being contacted in three weeks. I have heard nothing.

If they had money to fix the problem streets, why not start with the

streets that had been on the waiting list the longest? That is what we

were told in 1993 when we got our petition together. We played the game

according to the rules, and now someone has changed the rules.

To all the City Council members as well as the mayor -- remember

Nalbandian, Joe Bernardo and myself, as well as our neighbors, are all

probable voters in the next election. You can bet we will all remember

your non-response.

ROGER HUGHES

Huntington Beach