LBindy_5.19.23 | Page 21

lagunabeachindy . com MAY 19 , 2023 21

Letters

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You claim to want to keep Laguna , Laguna . But the result of your efforts look xenophobic . It looks anti-family . It looks anti-poor . Anti-young . Antichange . Anti-progress .
So please stop sending your well-organized team of speakers to heckle the council and city staff during meetings . It wastes hours . It amounts to bullying , and you slowly alienate your few remaining supporters . It lacks class . Michael Ray , Laguna Beach
Wonderful that the Hano family trust has given $ 15,000 to our Laguna Beach library , one of 30 plus branches of the Orange County library system . When my first computer burned out , I used one of the computers at the library and read the LA Times and the New York Times .
The library staff is always helpful , with the south end of the building being a children ’ s library , including books and computers and the north wing filled with musical tapes , movies , and books to check out and computers to use .
For me , our library is a magic place downtown where you can come in , rest , relax , and if you like , read . In addition , there are regular presentations for children and adults , from the balloon man to our own Jheri St . James and
her fellow belly dancers . How lucky we are to have our own library manned by professionals who know how to help you learn and enjoy the many services it has , including being able to check out books , musical tapes , movies etc . and use their computers - or simply step out of the busy downtown hub bub and sit and relax . Roger Carter , Laguna Beach
Sad news about Anneliese . We first met in 1971 , days after the feature story about her preschool on Manzanita appeared in the Los Angeles Times . A year later , I worked as a congressional aide in Washington , DC , but often thought about our meeting .
When I returned to Laguna in 1974 , I visited Anneliese . She offered me a job because she remembered I spoke a bit of German and had graduated from USC from the School of Education . Not only that , Anneliese gave me a place to live . So there I was , teaching my class of mostly 4-year-olds during the day and serving as the school ’ s groundskeeper before the first child arrived the following day .
Best of all , I felt like a member of the family . Anneliese ’ s husband , Paul , and I took a wine class together and made several trips to Napa to stock his cellar . In addition , I shared many dinners with their daughters Ruth and Liesa and
Anneliese ’ s cousin Margot . To this day , I count Gregg and Kathy Abel , who lived up the street , Don Romero , whose sons attended Anneliese ’ s , and fellow teacher Heather Sparkuhl and her husband , Pat , as some of my oldest friends in town .
The last time I saw Anneliese was five-plus years ago . She was obviously ill , but she still had her sense of humor and special way of connecting with little ones . Anneliese , you may be gone now , but to countless thousands of children and their families , you never will be forgotten . RIP , my friend . Denny Freidenrich , Laguna Beach
The Supreme Court Takes Up “ Home-Equity Theft ” ( Wall Street Journal headline , April 21 edition ). The Laguna Beach Unified School District is advocating a variation on that theme .
In 1970 , Joni Mitchel released the lyrics , “ They paved paradise and put up a parking lot .” Let ’ s hope that doesn ’ t happen in a Laguna Beach residential neighborhood ( our paradise ). The District ’ s Facility Plan adds massive two-story parking lots , fences and lights . It covers green space with an imposing two-story administrative building , and all without the setbacks we citizens are required to follow . The plan is a conundrum for a school board that touts itself as being green and an electronic sign that proclaims , “ Take Care of Your School & Community ” ( corner of Park Ave and Short St ). Yet , the architectural renderings show a black ( asphalt ) and grey ( stucco / concrete ) environment replacing a green park-like setting . Surely , the paved neighborhood environment , along with the noise and lights will diminish environmental quality and thereby amount to home equity theft . A pity for neighboring homeowners .
The District Plan , the lynchpin of which is an “ aquatic center ,” has been under consideration for years and was not revealed to the citizens of Laguna Beach until about a month ago . The superintendent specifically forbade community input at an earlier date . Now that the plan has been revealed , neighbors -- not the architect or anyone at the District ( board members , superintendent , or his underlings in charge of facilities and maintenance ) -- bothered to research CIF pool requirements ( links available at Sensiblelaguna . org ). When proposing the second biggest project in Laguna ( behind the Montage ), it ’ s time for the advocates of the plan to step up and do their jobs ; pay attention to neighbors , official specifications and not just the wishes of a few . And start living instead of just speaking “ green !”
Merton Hill , Laguna Beach
Verdant springtime views from Harvest
Savor fresh , local ingredients , storied canyon views , all crafted in the artistry of Laguna Beach .
Harvest at The Ranch at Laguna Beach 31106 S . Coast Hwy . ( 949 ) 715-1376