Letter: Laguna at a Crossroads

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There is a reductive, binary mindset permeating our town. I understand why this status exists on the national level, but not why it has infected us so strongly here in Laguna.

Our civic division largely comes down to how to come out of this transitional period we are and have been going through for a while. This involves everything from reinvigorating our local businesses to coming to terms with how to deal with the inevitable ever-growing number of outside visitors and all that that entails.

This situation started long before the pandemic inflicted further challenges on our local businesses, largely as a result of online retail competition and generally rising costs. It will require creative thinking and insight to find a way to maintain what many of us consider the heart and soul of our town while moving forward. But when that complex situation is often reduced to “they don’t want anything to change…” or “they want to keep Laguna preserved in amber” on one side and “developers want to turn us into another Las Vegas, Newport, Miami Beach, etc.” on the other, we end up where we are now.

I personally know of no one who actually supports either of those extreme positions. Mo Honarkar, for example, is no more the devil than is Toni Iseman or Village Laguna. Simply because Mr. Honarkar is a developer, doesn’t mean he wants to ignore the input of our community. Nor should those of us whose priority is to maintain the charm that makes our town different, ignore the valid complaints of shop and home owners who feel too restricted by our current city codes and processes. Much of what is impacting our town is the result of outside forces, not our local government, however, we do need a city council with vision working hand-in-hand with an involved citizenry to move beyond our current gridlock. Mostly, we need to stop simplifying and marginalizing the other guy’s point of view.

Laguna is a special place that has undergone all manner of change over the decades while still maintaining its soul and I firmly believe it will continue to do so. But we need to understand and accept the inevitability of change and we need to work together to carve a path forward that we all can be happy with and proud of.

Marshall Aren, Laguna Beach

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