Letters to the Editor: Offshore drilling is not only bad for the environment, it can harm tourism and O.C.’s economy

On Feb. 3 hundreds of people descended on Main Beach in Laguna Beach to protest the Trump administration’s call for offshore oil drilling. Having served as the coordinator of the No on Offshore Oil Drilling coalition of cities and the county in 1985, I have a deep appreciation for the task these protesters are facing now.

Our campaign started with the cities of San Clemente, Laguna, Newport Beach and Huntington Beach joining forces with the Orange County Board of Supervisors in total opposition to the Reagan administration’s plan to open up the coastline to massive drilling. By the time Donald Hodel, the secretary of the Interior, arrived in Newport Beach for a public hearing, more than 20 Republican mayors and all five GOP supervisors publicly denounced the plan.

I vividly remember Harriett Wieder, then-chairwoman of the Orange County Board of Supervisors, dumping 14,000 postcards in front of the secretary.

In order to shut down the Trump administration’s plan to drill off our coast, it is going to take more than a coalition of elected officials this time around. Surfrider Foundation and others are going to need key business leaders in the county to work their back channels and communicate directly with the White House. That’s what happened more than 30 years ago.

Offshore oil drilling not only poses an immediate risk to sea life along the coast, it also can cause longterm, serious economic chaos for the county. Lest anyone forget, if O.C. beaches are closed due to an oil spill, hundreds of thousands of tourists, spending billions of dollars locally, will find another place to visit for the day or vacation for a week.

A far as we were concerned in 1985, that simply wasn’t an ecological or financial risk anyone was willing to take. My hope is that same reaction still is true today.

Denny Freidenrich

Laguna Beach

Process will stifle action on toilets for the homeless

Re: “Bathroom proposal requires more input”: I disagree with Costa Mesa council candidate Brett Eckles’ assessment of the need for an extensive community input process. This would only delay any action on a pressing need.

Further, I was disappointed that Mr. Eckles so broadly dismissed the organized efforts the city is making to help the homeless, calling the proposal for portable toilets a piecemeal approach. Costa Mesa’s Network for Homeless Solutions has been active in the community for some time.

I do agree with Mr. Eckles that the bathrooms in Lions and Wilson parks should be re-opened under the same monitored conditions.

I could not support a six-month period of community input for this matter. The toilets have been written about in the newspapers for some time, and further comments can be made at City Council meetings.

Mr. Eckles seems to invoke a fear that our neighborhoods are going to be taken over by these portable toilets. I’m sure they will be placed where they are most needed and not enough will be purchased to cover the city and invade our neighborhoods.

Let our city get on with the task of helping the homeless rather than putting unnecessary roadblocks in the way.

Margaret Mooney

Costa Mesa

Not-so-silent majority opposes over-development

Re. “Activists sometimes overlook property rights”: In his letter to the editor, political donor Bob McCaffrey vilified activists as being anti-property rights and anti-development. However, he might be surprised at how much we have in common.

For example, we both support property rights and sustainable development. If property has a specific development right delineated in the General Plan and zoning codes, we need to respect those rights.

However, our opinions diverge from there. Mr. McCaffrey appears to feel that the term “property rights” is synonymous with “build whatever you can get away with.” I do not support this view, as evidenced by my vocal opposition to the Museum House and the latest high-rise condo tower, Koll Residences.

The character of a city is the result of its General Plan, which determines the intensity of development and its zoning rules, which determines what buildings will look like. Our zoning rules should be consistently applied to all properties (unless unusual circumstances exist). We all benefit when the rules are applied consistently and equitably.

When our city allows frequent exceptions to zoning rules, we end up with big-box houses that are not in character with their neighbors. When our City Council approves high-rise, high-density projects like the Museum House condo tower, our city creeps ever closer to looking like Miami.

Mr. McCaffrey’s views will likely influence the Team Newport City Council members more than my own, given his extremely generous support of their election campaigns, but I hope that giving voice to the not-so-silent majority in our city who are concerned about over-development may someday level the playing field and result in a council that will hear my voice as clearly as his.

Lynn Swain

Newport Beach

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