Because of my aversion to meetings, I am not a member of Village Laguna, but I have long been a grateful fan of that organization. Thus, I was horrified to see the ad attacking VL in your recent issue.
I would ask anyone who pays attention to that ad to ask two questions: 1) Why is Laguna Beach so much more beautiful than all the other coastal cities in SoCal? (Think about Huntington Beach, Newport Beach, Corona del Mar, and San Clemente, all of which were once charming seaside villages but are now hideously overdeveloped.)
The answer is that Village Laguna has fought for decades to establish and protect the magnificent belt of green open space that surrounds our city and to preserve the village character by fighting against those who would build huge hotels and turn charming historical cottages into “McMansions” a la CdM.
2) Why would someone place such an ad? Answer: Perhaps because they want to put an end to Village Laguna’s influence and, similar to Liberate Laguna, are waging a war against the very people who have fought for decades to preserve the unique character of Laguna Beach.
I encourage all residents to show their support for Village Laguna’s work by attending the Charm House Tour, VL’s primary fundraiser. It is clear to me that the big money developers hope to bankrupt Village Laguna; let’s show them that we support our town by attending the tour in record numbers.
Tickets can be purchased online at Village Laguna’s website or locally at a number of businesses in town.
Kris Evans, Laguna Beach
Kris, what you call “preservation” others, including myself, call obstruction. The restrictions Village Laguna has influenced over homeowners has eroded our property rights and this is the reason that Liberate Laguna exists and I was elected. The residents of Laguna have had enough and want the freedom to express themselves through their homes. They no longer want to be told what color to paint their bathroom or whether they can remodel a shack built decades ago to suffice for a week or two in the summer. You ask “why would someone place such an ad” well, it’s to inform the public that Village Laguna uses the money raised from the sale of tickets to the Charm House Tour to fund City Council campaigns and other aspects of their political agenda. Political Action committees are required to clearly post what the funds raised are being used for so that the public can decide if they’d like to participate in a donation where the funds are being used against their interests. Imagine being mired in the building process for years and finding out that you just contributed to a group that encourages this type of behavior.
I encourage the residents who’ve had a bad experience building or remodeling in this community to boycott the Charm House Tour!
Peter Blake
The stated objective of VL is one that I’m sure nearly everyone can agree on – that we want to preserve what is good about Laguna Beach and to prevent over development.
But, that is the “stated objective”. And then there is the reality. Those of us who voted for Peter Blake did so in large part because we see the forest through the trees. We know too much of a good thing when we see it. And too much regulation, too much interference, too much power over private citizens is NOT a good thing.
Isn’t that how our system is supposed to work – checks and balances? So, when the machinery behind VL has shown itself to be geared toward growing the government and shrinking the citizen, naturally we are concerned.
Blake shares our concerns and anyone who is qualified and runs for City Council, next time around, will most likely enjoy the full support of those voters who understand that the tyranny of the Design Review Board (and others) needs to be compelled to exercise some restraint.
Restoring a system of checks and balances is essential to making Laguna Beach great again 😉