Water District fills two seats

The Laguna Beach County Water District filled two of the three

available water commission seats. It was a tie for the third seat,

and the final decision was deferred to the regular board meeting

scheduled for Nov. 19.

Environmental engineer Debbie Neev is the newest member of the

commission. Incumbent chairman Bruce R. Scherer was reappointed. He

has served on the commission for 26 years.

In addition to being involved with state port, coastline and

energy issues, Neev served with the Pipeline Safety Advisory Board

for the State of California, the Harbor Assn. of Industry and

Commerce and the Western States Petroleum Assn. Associates.

The candidates in the run-off for the remaining commission seat

are: Fredric Sattler, a retired corporate executive with a background

in management, insurance and finance; and Theodore Caldwell, a

college professor with a background in resource management and public

finance and member of Laguna Beach Advisory Committee of Sewers and

Waste Water.

The new commissioners will serve terms expiring in 2005.

-- Mary A. Castillo

Village Entrance design to be displayed

There will be a showing of the Village Entrance winning design on

Nov. 4 at the Laguna Canyon Conservancy dinner meeting.

Bob Borthwick, a member of the winning StudioOneEleven design

team, will present approved ideas and concepts for the proposed

project.

The meeting will begin at 6 p.m. (no host bar), with dinner at

6:45 p.m., at Tivoli Terrace on the Festival grounds.

Dinner tickets are $10 for members, $15 for nonmembers. Membership

is only $10 per person, per year. For reservations, call (949)

494-6465. The deadline for reservations are Nov. 2.

Azusa city manager talks of livable communities

Rick Cole, the city manager of Azusa and former mayor of Pasadena,

spoke to 75 residents and community leaders of Laguna Beach about

livable communities.

Melissa O’Neal, Toni Iseman, City Manager Ken Frank and city

planners were among the attendees, said Michael Hoag, organizer of

the event.

Cole discussed issues such as the nation’s reliance on cars,

“Smart Growth” and how to create a Vision 2030 plan that works best

for merchants and residents alike, Hoag said.

He noted that the traditional approach to dealing with traffic

problems is often flawed, citing specifically the El Toro/San Diego

Freeway/Santa Ana Freeway interchange. The interchange is now 26

lanes across, and traffic is just as bad. Cole pointed out the cities

and states are spending millions and billions of dollars on highways

that do little to improve traffic problems, let alone the quality of

life, Hoag said.

After discussing his experiences in city planning, Cole read an

excerpt from the Vision Laguna Web site. He lauded the first part of

Vision 2030, and said Laguna Beach has the potential to be the new

model. He urged the audience to take bold moves toward the future,

not incremental steps that will keep the town moving in the same

direction as the past 50 years, Hoag said.