Editor:
There seems to be an elephant in the room as the community continues to discuss historic resources. To its credit, I believe the planning commission listened with open minds and asked perceptive questions during its March meeting. Many if not all those in attendance with properties designated (arbitrarily they believe) as historic resources, i. e., on the city’s historic inventory, felt that the Heritage Committee’s proposal to regulate them as if they were on the historic register would amount to the confiscation of their property rights. Inclusion of a property on the historic register, with its benefits as well as further regulation by the city, is voluntary. Further concerns about a consequential decline in property values were expressed.
On the other hand, concerns about preserving the character of the city (however defined) were expressed via the Heritage Committee in their draft proposal, currently under consideration, for increased regulation and restrictions on property owners of any property on the historic inventory (not just those on the voluntary historic register). Effectively, historic inventory property owners would be conscripted to accept the same regulations that historic register property owners accepted voluntarily.
Ironically, there was no request to change the municipal code. The city council asked the Heritage Committee to update the historic inventory, acknowledged as invalid.
The Heritage Committee, apparently on its own, has identified “shortcomings”. It believes that these “shortcomings” necessitate changing the city’s code to impact all so-called historic properties. Herein lies the “elephant.”
The city, already with a reputation of being difficult to work with, would further that reputation with its draft proposal, increasing bureaucratic hassle and the cost of maintaining these older properties. The root issue is the de facto overreach of the city in controlling what individuals can do with their investments, and how they can do it. The elephant is power creep.
David S. Watkins, Laguna Beach
