Mailbag - Aug. 31, 2000

Quality of life is more than a traffic inconvenience. On a daily basis

I drive Newport Beach from corner-to-corner. On the weekends, I drive

down to the Balboa Peninsula from the area of Fashion Island, where I

live and I have been driving this same area as a resident for 47 years.

Previously, I would drive this area as a weekender or vacationer while

growing up and coming here for vacations and weekends.

My observation is that the amount of traffic, although greater, moves

better than it ever has in the history of our city. I have made it a

habit to time various trips when the traffic has been at its worst. For

more than 25 years, my office was in Fashion Island and I lived on the

Balboa Peninsula. Even before the new bridge was put across Back Bay, the

most that it ever took me when I was stopped on Jamboree Road at the

Newporter Inn to get to the Arches Bridge was 15 minutes.

Today, at peak hours, when I leave my office at Cannery Village and

drive to Granville, the time from the Arches Bridge to Jamboree Road is

seven minutes.

At the ideal time of day when there is no traffic at morning,

midmorning or midafternoon, it takes four minutes, so this is three

minutes out of my life. Friday nights, we drive from our home at

Granville to the peninsula between 5 and 6 p.m. At this time, it can take

17 minutes to go from Newport Center Drive to the Arches Bridge. That is

an extra 10 minutes out of my life!

I wish everybody would join me in not looking at the worst side of

everything, but look at the good side. You can move around Newport Beach

almost all of the time with no hold up in traffic at all. If you must

travel at peak hours, and I try not to travel at peak hours if I can help

it, and you are sitting in traffic on Coast Highway, think of what a

wonderful city we’re living in, where you can work, live and play, and

don’t have to drive the freeways and congested areas that the less

fortunate must experience every day.

Our quality of life is so superior to almost any place in the world,

it is difficult for me to imagine that it can be spoiled by a minor

traffic inconvenience.

Look at it my way and see if you’ll not be a lot happier.

Quality of life is determined by our natural and built environment, by

the quality of the people we have attracted to out community and in the

pursuit of excellence. Our city abounds in all of the above.

BILL FICKER

Newport Beach

New, young candidates needed

The Pilot recently wrote an editorial about the usual lack of

candidates running for Newport Beach political offices, including

trustees of our school board (“Where have all the candidates gone?” Aug.

3). Admittedly a sorry situation, not the least of which is that it

encourages, reruns by those who have already gifted us with their

services.

True, as time passes we forget our history and some of the unfortunate

details soften. But certainly, not all of Newport Beach political history

has been inspiring. Much of it may be the reason for our growing apathy

in our town leading to a deep seeded reluctance to run for local office.

It is significant that for a town as small as Newport Beach and its

school district to have suffered two major criminal embezzlements plus a

major mismanagement of school district funds, is sufficient to traumatize

the younger generation. I believe ways can be found to encourage fresh

young blood to take the field in Newport Beach politics. And to empower

them with the knowledge that they can and will do a better job of

management and oversight then did their elders.

REBA WILLIAMS

Newport Beach

Citizens should trump developers

Costa Mesan’s are waging a never-ending battle against big developers.

The City Council being pro business is caught in the middle, and most of

the city is not aware that it is going on. People need to become more

aware of what developers are asking for ... much too high a density, even

though the City Council has made it very clear, that they want to lower

density.

In a meeting held on Aug. 18, the Citizens for the Improvement of

Costa Mesa -- composed of local activists -- made plans to reach out to

the citizens and apprise them of the situation. Only recently has the

entire city become aware that we are all links in a chain. If one link is

weakened, the entire chain is in jeopardy of breaking.

Local activists from our fair city have heard the rallying cry and are

raising their voices in a chorus of disenchantment.

We speak to the City Council, when it is apparent when we walk in the

door that an issue is going to be rubber stamped. Why are we wasting our

time to no avail? Even thought as in a recent issue, we represented a

large part of the city.

It is time the City Council listened to us and took to heart what we

say. We are the constituents and voting citizens.

JANICE G. DAVIDSON

Chairperson, Citizens for the Improvement of Costa Mesa