MAILBAG - Aug. 4, 2006

Jets fly too low over our heads

My answer to the Coastline’s July 28 question about aircraft noise July 28 is yes — it certainly does bother me and many others. Using the computer, I checked the altitude on one of the many extra noisy flights at 7:30 a.m. Friday and it was at about 7,000 feet above sea level and, therefore, 6,000 feet over my home at Top of the World.

The Federal Aviation Administration thinks that is an acceptable altitude, and it would be for airplanes just cruising. However, jets pushing to gain altitude make a lot more noise than if they were just cruising at altitude.

Almost every jet leaving John Wayne Airport and flying over Laguna is pushing to gain altitude and, therefore, making a lot of extra noise. They really need to fly out over the ocean to gain altitude to at least 10,000 feet before approaching the coastline.

DAVE CONNELL

Laguna Beach

A woman-only City Council on horizon?

Maybe we should give women the chance to run the government. This year, right here in Laguna Beach, we have that opportunity.

If we elect Verna Rollinger, Toni Iseman and Elizabeth Peason-Schneider, they would join Jane Egly and Cheryl Kinsman, so women would comprise 100% of the Laguna Beach City Council.

This, of course, would leave Steve Dicterow odd man out.

Which would be appropriate, unless he has a persuasive answer to what he plans to accomplish during another four years on the City Council.

If Dicterow hasn’t accomplished it during 12 years on the City Council, what confidence would one have that he could do any better during four more years?

GENE FELDER

Laguna Beach

City must limit new-home size

At a recent meeting on the progress of the revision of the land-use element of the general plan, Village Laguna members were disappointed to learn that the language of the section on preserving the distinctive character of our neighborhoods is vague and conditional.

From public comments and the attendance of representatives from a half dozen neighborhood organizations at Village Laguna’s recent meeting on this subject, we know that our concern about oversized houses in our neighborhoods is widely shared.

We hope that the planning commission and the City Council will take the opportunity provided by the revision workshops to give this problem their immediate attention.

The design review ordinance and the single-family residential standards already require that new houses be compatible in scale with their neighbors’ — but out-of-scale houses are still being approved all over town.

We think that the idea of an upper limit based on the median size of houses in the 300-foot noticing area has merit. Such a proposal should also have an absolute limit of 5,000 square feet, including garages and all enclosed structures on the site.

Community members who are participating in the planning commission workshops have suggested variations on this idea, but so far no such provision has been included in the draft.

The draft element does include the idea of neighborhood specific plans, but it’s obvious that this would take a very long time (we’re aware of one such plan that has been in the hands of the city for years without any sign of progress). Meanwhile, the neighborhoods we need to protect will be changing.

House-size limits aren’t unheard of — at least 30 cities in California alone have some sort of limit, and so do Three Arch Bay, the village center of South Laguna and Arch Beach Heights. There seems to be no reason we can’t have neighborhood-specific limits citywide.

We hope that our city’s leaders will commit themselves to a process of development of such limits at the earliest possible moment.

ANNE CAENN

Laguna Beach

Residents: get invol- ved in building issues

This letter is in response to the July 14 Coastline Pilot article titled “Shattering noise, nerves.”

First, I would like to correct the inaccurate statement, “a now-completed Mar Vista grading project.” Really? When did the grading finish — tomorrow?

City Manager Ken Frank claims residents should have appealed the Ceanothus project to the City Council. Just watch a few City Council meetings and you’ll realize why this would have been a waste of time and money.

But despite inaccuracies made by the press, Mar Vista is far from a resolved problem, regardless of the Coastal Commission’s decisions about the project.

Ken Frank has not taken any of the Mar Vista proceedings seriously from the start. The developer of the Mar Vista project has been put on formal notice by, I believe, every state and federal agency that has interfaced with the project, due to continual violations.

I believe Newton’s hypothesis was correct: “What goes up must come down.” Therefore, sooner or later, the ax is going to fall. I admit, it wouldn’t break my heart if it landed right between Ken Frank and his pension plan.

I commend the Kiehlmeiers for their effort with this catastrophic approval. I hope residents will use both the Ceanothus and Mar Vista projects (and Three Arch Bay — not even mentioned yet but can’t possibly be unnoticed) as their litmus test to become a member of their local community and/or neighborhood association.

Change and/or preservation can only occur if residents are willing to get actively involved and work to achieve a common goal, even though it may not impact you directly.

DEVORA HERTZ

Laguna Beach

Laguna has become sanctuary for illegals

By the government of the city of Laguna Beach refusing to close the Day Labor site, it has essentially declared Laguna Beach a sanctuary city, nullifying federal immigration laws.

Across the nation, in sanctuary cities from New York to San Diego, city officials prevent law enforcement from inquiring into anyone’s immigration status while making routine traffic stops; nor do they detain persons solely due to their immigration status or even inquire into their status. These policies have created safe havens for illegal immigrants, including criminal illegal immigrants.

The resulting policies not only tolerate crime Â… after all, illegal immigrants are law breakers, but actively aid, abet and protect criminal activity by handcuffing the powers of police.

Not only immigrants’ rights groups promote sanctuary cities. Business interests and some local residents want a steady source of cheap, compliant and exploitable labor, who, in all likelihood, will take their place in the so-called underclass.

Laguna Beach has become a sanctuary city to provide a safe place for people who have entered this country illegally to work and live without fear of deportation.

DOLORES KUSTIN

Laguna Beach