South Laguna , even in the area above the hospital . Most troubling , I saw no signs warning anyone . I was given no notice .

As a resident of South Laguna , a father , a dog owner , and someone who cares deeply about the health and safety of my community , I am livid . Why would the City deliberately spray huge amounts of a poisonous and toxic substance where we walk and enjoy daily ? Why would they risk our health and the health of precious wildlife ? I understand the need to control fire , but is this really the only option an incredibly wealthy City like Laguna Beach has to control weeds ?

Glyphosate is highly toxic . Although the EPA notes it is safe if used correctly , it also acknowledged it does not have enough information to link it with certain health impacts . There is plenty of research linking it to health problems , including cancer , reproductive problems , neurological diseases , endocrine disruption , and birth defects . It has been banned by many cities all over the country and its use is restricted or banned in over 20 countries . Even Los Angeles county and Irvine prohibit its application on county property . We can do much better , Laguna Beach .

If I had not seen them spraying myself , my daughter would have continued to pick sour grass from that hillside .

Now , I will stay away for a while . Thank you , fire department and Laguna Beach , for taking away our sanctuary . Ramin Pejan , Laguna Beach

Here ’ s what may be a radical solution to Laguna ’ s downtown parking problem : do nothing .

Rather than spend tens of millions of dollars on parking lots and structures , why not spend that money on other much-needed city-wide , resident-serving projects , such as improvements to St . Catherine ’ s ?

One City Council member who ’ s all in on residents spending at least $ 30M ( City ’ s own calculations ) for the Presbyterian parking structure has doggedly declared that more parking will not bring in more traffic . But studies in the science of induced demand show exactly the opposite – that if you build it , they will indeed come .

Why must residents supply parking to anyone and everyone who comes to Laguna ? Current research shows that the Coastal Commission has not mandated any replacement for the roughly 70 parking spaces lost to the promenade and parklets . ( This is still being looked into and subject to verification .)

And a $ 79,000 IBI Group parking study the City commissioned stated that except for 5 % of the time during the heavily traveled tourist season , Laguna

already has sufficient parking . The study also shows that parking is never at 100 percent capacity .

The question is : how many more visitors do we want to come ? We already have 6.5M per year .

How much more is enough ? Would someone on the City Council please tell us the magic number ? Or is the sky the limit ? If that ’ s the case , we ’ ll never be able to spend our way out of meeting that goal . A town has got to know its limitations . And its priorities .

While we may have occasions where the lack of downtown parking is a problem , that problem may be part of the solution . Locals might have to live with limited parking for a few months every year , but limited parking may serve as residents ’ cost-free curb to overtourism ; if we don ’ t build it , far fewer are apt to come .

If we are to do anything , it may be best to create mobility solutions such as trollies that bring visitors in from just outside of town without adding downtown parking structures that further congest the area .

Just as to a hammer , every problem looks like a nail , and so too to every parking and traffic planner ; the solution looks like a parking lot or structure .

Whether these ideas are applicable or not , let ’ s consider all of our options before shelling out millions for solutions

that may only be looking for problems . Jerome Pudwill , Laguna Beach

Do city leaders have a responsibility to legislate measures to mitigate climate change ? Can climate measures be taken at that level of government ? Should our tax dollars be directed in this manner ? I believe the answers to all those questions are a resounding YES ! Tom Osborne ’ s Feb . 3 article , and other news organizations ’ coverage of the Climate Action Campaign Report Card press conference show that residents care about climate-related issues . In addition , plenty of local elected officials made it known that day they felt the same way and would be taking action . Councilmember Alex Rounaghi told us the Laguna Beach City Council is holding itself legally binding and enforceable under the state ’ s environmental law known as CEQA . Councilmembers Dr . Kathleen Treseder ( Irvine ) and Jose Trinidad Castaneda ( Buena Park ) reminded us they were elected based on their climate platforms . Thank you to all those elected officials who take climate action seriously . You are setting great examples for other cities , such as mine , and your neighbor Laguna Niguel . This gives me hope that we have reached the tipping point and ( hopefully appropriate ) action is now on the way .

Jonathan Light , Laguna Niguel