MAILBAG - March 7, 2008

Council punted on parking issue

Shame, shame, shame on you, City Council! Led by Kelly Boyd, who had his head down and couldn’t look the audience in the eye, you simply stopped the potential residential parking plan.

A quick, simple vote by the three council members who may have business interests in town, and obviously don’t care if residents up the street from the retail businesses on Coast Highway are inundated each day and night by employees, beachgoers, and shoppers/tourists.

What’s the matter “” too tough an issue for you? Would you have to actually get involved, Councilman Boyd, and maybe read the traffic consultant’s report?

When you talk about government mismanagement, after the traffic consultant, who was hired by the city, did an excellent job of getting the facts on the parking issues, instead of asking him (a professional) for some parking management programs, the council subcommittee sent it to the Parking/Traffic/Circulation committee, who are not traffic professionals.

They then sent it to the Planning Commission, they are not traffic professionals; from there, to the city staff and council members, and they are not traffic professionals or traffic management specialists.

The results have been negative. “How can we do this?” “It’s too hard!” “There’s no easy solution!” Many hours of meetings by nonprofessionals trying to figure out a solution, but NEVER coming up with one, clear total solution that people can respond to. Ask any five people what the City Council’s parking management plan, is and you will get five different answers.

So”¦ forget the residents and their quality of life issues “” just say “NO.” Thanks a lot!

JACK CAMP

Laguna Beach

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Children could be put at risk for cell tower rent

There is a lot of controversy about cellphone towers and potential life-threatening health risks if exposed to radio-frequency emissions, a form of electromagnetic radiation, from cell towers. Here is the most important piece of information to remember.

Although there are no studies showing conclusive evidence directly linking radio-frequency emissions from cell towers to life-threatening illnesses, there are also no studies showing conclusive evidence that radio-frequency emissions from cell towers do not cause life-threatening illnesses.

Do the incentives come close to matching the potential risks involved? The city of Laguna Beach, and its council members seem to think so.

And they’re willing to put you and your children, and me and my children, at risk for a mere $2,000 a month to prove it.

WESTON HODGES

Laguna Beach

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Coast Inn plans don’t pencil out

I read with great interest the stories regarding the Coast Inn in Laguna Beach. I was very curious because I am a licensed real estate agent pretty familiar with the commercial market here in Southern California.

Now, I am sure the Mr. Udvar-Hazy is a very smart man. You don’t become a multibillionaire unless you are a smart businessman, but I have to tell you that his plans for the Coast Inn and the Boom does not make any sense to me.

He is trying to sell the building for $14 million and let’s say will spend another $6 million to fix it up. And he is going to cut the number of rooms in half to make them bigger, so that will leave about 11 or 12 hotel rooms.

Twelve rooms at $20 million equals close to $1.7 million per hotel room. This would make Mr. Udvar-Hazy’s hotel about the most expensive price per room of any hotel in the world.

Seems like he would have to charge $5,000 per night per room if he ever wants to get his money back. Makes the Montage at $800 a night seem like a bargain.

And then, I read that there won’t be a restaurant on the ground floor, but instead an art gallery or a salon.

Well, the rent for this space will have to be $100,000 per month, and that’s a lot of haircuts. I have never seen a successful hotel big or small without a bar or restaurant as an anchor.

It appears to me that Mr. Udvar-Hazy is just proceeding with this poorly thought out new plan to spite the gay community and all our friends in Laguna Beach who used to so love the Boom Boom Room.

Why not make everybody happy and donate the building back. If I had $3.1 billion, that’s what I would do.

We can redo the bar in airplane theme in his honor “¦ we could use the wings of a planes for the bars ... landing strip on the dance floor “¦ space drinks “¦ it would be amazing!

Laguna Beach