Editor,
I never tire of the panoramic vistas of the ocean and the open space behind in and around Laguna – the original scrub vegetation (all of which is captured on many early landscapes in museums). That all changed when early settlers were told to plant 40 trees if they wanted to homestead land. With no further thought for the future or the impact this would make, they planted eucalyptus trees, which quickly spread, and grew tall (up to 100 ft. or more). Too bad these trees have no commercial value except firewood or as painted on canvases. Some call these heritage trees for some reason, which confuses many.
With so many trees in the way, folks started building on the hillsides to capture once again the uniqueness of our topography. As often happens, some folks planted more eucalyptus trees, etc., to please themselves and annoy others by blocking views and then refusing to maintain them.
Instead, they shout – enjoy your view through the leaves. Yet, these folks are happy when the city saves money to buy open space, which has no trees. Huh? Oh, also to buy their own veggie/event venue in South Laguna.
So please place a potted plant in front of your face and see if you enjoy your view between the leaves. If you do, then join those folks who live at the bottom of our hills and plant more trees to annoy your neighbor. Realize you have lowered your property value and your neighbor’s, you are ignoring the wisdom of science, common sense, and the fire authority in the town and the state.
What’s the worst, your insurance company may cancel your policy and you may encounter a loss of property and possibly of life with the next fire in town.
Ganka Brown, Laguna Beach
