Editor,
I moved to Laguna Beach 26 years ago taken by the overall striking beauty and nonconformity of the city. Surrounding cities, to me, were too uniform and manicured. I bought a house in South Laguna, in large part, because of the large pine tree in the front yard and a good view of the ocean.
I think it’s crazy that someone can buy a house behind me tomorrow, fully aware of my tree and its size, and demand that I remove it or prune it to roof level. If pruned, there would be nothing left of the tree. Additionally, there is a large tree centered in my ocean view. The tree is about 300 yards from my house. However, I find it absurd that I should be able to demand, as a Jonny-come-lately, that the owner of the tree bisecting my view be compelled to prune or cut down the tree. As a matter of fact, I think the tree makes the section of ocean I do see more interesting. Imagine that!
However, the Citizens for View Preservation, as I understand their position as presented in our local papers, would support the aforementioned actions. I think the CVP proposal is nothing more than a negotiation strategy. By taking an extreme position one can hope to significantly shift a truly balanced outcome, based on compromise and common sense, toward the extremist’s opinion, which might be held only by a vocal minority. View equity committee member Morris Skenderian is right in wanting to know the interests of the silent majority.
Lenny Vincent, Laguna Beach
