We’ll have the fence to merit Hall...

We’ll have the fence to merit Hall of Fame home runs

At the new layout for the Laguna Beach High School baseball field,

the distance to right field (the shortest) is 263 feet, and with a

30-foot fence, it would take an approximately 500-foot home run to

clear the fence.

Major league scouts will be lining up to watch our high school

athletes belt one over center field, again over the 30-foot fence.

That will be an approximate 630-foot home run.

One other dimension of note: The approximate height required for a

pole to add lighting later on to an athletic field? Go ahead, guess.

DAVID SMITH

Laguna Beach

Let’s not forget about all

those who lose to trees

Sure, the Laguna Beach Unified School District should take

residents’ concerns with the loss of their views when building the

new baseball field fence.

But it will be hard to resolve because of the related safety

factors from high balls going over a low fence and possibly hitting

people or property. Given all that, the many hundreds of us who have

lost, are losing or will eventually lose our precious views to

overgrown nonnative vegetation can really relate to how those

residents feel even though we don’t get all the press coverage that

this issue is getting. In the case of losing Laguna’s beautiful

unique view-sheds to overgrown vegetation, there is no conflict

between having views and safety. In fact, the same vegetation that is

obliterating public and private view-sheds is often the overgrown

vegetation that is creating the fuel for a major destructive

holocaust in Laguna.

Since all of our precious views should be protected, it is

disconcerting to note that the occasional private or public view-shed

endangered by a new or modified structure is a major issue for a few

impacted neighbors, the Design Review Board and often the City

Council. And now a fence that at least can be sort of seen through

becomes a major issue. But, a growing problem that many hundreds of

damaged citizens have been bringing to the City Council’s attention

for more than 10 years gets nothing but lip service and ineffective

solutions.

Many others cities that had similar, but not nearly as bad,

situations have taken action to protect view-sheds from excessive

overgrown vegetation. Our city powers have been so ineffectual in

solving this problem that they have let a lot of their potential

income from property taxes erode away. But worse, this overgrown

abundance of nonnative vegetation has made our neighborhoods ever

more vulnerable to the danger of a major fire; and that makes them

negligent in their primary duty to protect the residents of this

city.

Happy Labor Day to all of you.

DAVE CONNELL

Laguna Beach

City should have cared for runoff

Few experiences are as enjoyable as watching a toddler joyfully

splashing around in a puddle. This is our grandson, given any chance

he gets. However, it is a dangerous pastime for a toddler at the

south end of Blue Bird Canyon Park. Unfortunately, this is urban

run-off full of numerous toxic and carcinogenic constituents and is

not as much fun

When the city spent more than $1 million on the Blue Bird Park

renovation, the top priority should have been public health and

safety where proper drainage would be put in place to prevent the

unsafe accumulation of toxic urban runoff. Sadly, this did not

happen. Where were you City Council and City Hall, asleep in the

cradle?

Had we but known this when we read about Mayor Cheryl Kinsman’s

campaign to raise funds for the rocket ship, we would never have

donated our money. Rather that our mayor and the City Council, keep

their minds on what’s truly important for the health and welfare of

the community at large, by watchdogging City Manager Ken Frank and

City Hall and being much more aggressive about such environmental

hazards.

We can’t possibly ignore this cesspool and we would like to know

what is going to be done about it?

ALEX AND CHARLOTTE

MASARIK

Laguna Beach

Multiuse trail would lead nature’s demise

This letter is in response to Ed Merrilees, who expressed an

interest in having a “multiuse trail” extending from Ben Browns

through the Wilderness Park.

I would like a lot of things. I would like to see the shuttle run

24/7 in its own travel lane, the church and government to address the

population problem. I would like “more trees and less bush”.

We need to develop a conscience and determine what some of these

costs will be to the future. This would mean placing the needs of the

Wilderness Inhabitants first on our priority list.

“Multiuse trail” to me means including off road vehicles. I

wouldn’t want an off road vehicle in my living room. I will brazenly

take liberty to assume our bobcats and other fauna wouldn’t like one

in theirs either.

It would behoove us to adopt a “leave no trace” policy. Currently

a policy of this type would depend on self regulation. I know

Merrilees is capable of this; however, self-regulation has not been

effective when it comes to general public usage.

Our wilderness areas already look like slums. I like trails too.

Unless a proactive approach, one that incorporates the thinking

involved with the vision process is strictly applied, I can’t support

leaving our footprints behind in our wilderness areas.

DEBBIE HERTZ

Laguna Beach

Husband isn’t

last on the list

Barbara Diamond wrote a wonderful article on artists helping each

other by establishing venues that would fund grants to those in need.

I would like to also thank the most important support and help in

my life now and when I was battling for my own survival of

metastasized lung cancer. I mentioned the help I received from the

artists, St. Catherine’s Catholic Church and my community and

inadvertently and regrettably did not mention my husband, Michael

England: teacher, comforter, steadfast, always there, loving person.

I publicly ask his apology for this oversight and assure him that

I could not have made it through without his constancy and love.

Thank you for giving me the opportunity to correct my statement,

and thanks to Barbara Diamond for writing about all of the festivals

that have programs in place to help artists in need.

ANNE ENGLAND

Liaison Festival of Arts Artist Fund

Laguna Beach

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