lagunabeachindy . com JULY 26 , 2024 17
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there ’ s no denying that their widely viewed social media posts have the unintended consequence of appealing to day trippers as well , as they depict our beaches as being solitary and peaceful . So , a little vigilance towards their marketing strategy and messaging needs to be implemented .
But are they to blame for the alleged 6 million annual visitors to our town ? Of course not . We ’ re all to blame . Who hasn ’ t posted a beautiful sunset on social media ? The world is just too bloated because , 1 . we have no predators , 2 . procreating is highly enjoyable , and 3 . the planet is incinerating everywhere else but here . Where are all those charred inland residents supposed to go ? Huntington ? They ’ re too discerning – and we ’ re too charming – for that . We are bearing the brunt of the weekend exodus from Hades .
So instead of doing the sensible thing and figuring out how to get them out of their cars before they cycle into town , ( and educating them on how a civilized society functions with signage , trash cans , and enforcement ) the anti-visitor forces want to penalize them – and us – for coming here . Here are some of the dopey ideas offered up in last week ’ s edition of this paper :
-Place an additional tax of up to 5 % on restaurants . Really ? Make it harder to survive in a seasonal resort town ( with exorbitant rents ) than it already is ? The writer stated that the restaurants could simply pass the cost on to visitors and not feel a thing . But 75 % of their customers are locals , according to every restauranter in town . So we have to eat the price increase ? No thanks . Aren ’ t our restaurants expensive enough already ?!
-Increase the bed tax on overnight visitors by another 1 %. Jesus , criminy , this is the gift that keeps on giving . Let ’ s not abuse it . It ’ s already a whopping 12 % on top of the astronomical room rates they pay . These are the good visitors ( well , there are fine people on both sides ) who patronize our merchants , don ’ t clog our streets , and behave . Do we want to further repel them by becoming unaffordable and uncompetitive ?
-Curtail the purchase of Laguna Canyon Road and Coast Highway , with wild , unsubstantiated claims that it would cost somewhere in the range of half a billion dollars to do so . Fact check : CalTrans will sell it to us for $ 1 , just as they did with Dana Point and Corona del Mar . But let ’ s assume those are the annual maintenance estimates . First , Caltrans has historically provided money , and there are federal and state grants to help cover costs . And even if it ’ s expensive , it ’ s the only way we can take control of our streets and mitigate our traffic crisis .
We have to reimagine circulation because our current infrastructure cannot support the volume of cars coming in .
Councilman George Weiss on Tuesday said that “ over-tourism is an unsolvable problem .” This is why we vote you into these positions , George ! Not to throw up your hands , but to do the heavy lifting and investigate what other cities are successfully doing . Or go back to our many studies like Complete Streets that offered up solutions decades ago . We have an urgent , metastasizing cancer that requires big thinking and brave action . As I ’ ve said before , we can ’ t stop the onslaught , but we can improve traffic flow dramatically by slowing them , diverting them , and keeping them from circulating downtown with periphery parking and alternative transport . There ’ s not a summer more to waste , Laguna !
Billy is the Chief Experience Officer at adventure sports company La Vida Laguna , and Executive Director of KXFM 104.7 , Laguna ’ s Community Radio . He can be reached at billy @ lavidalaguna . com .
GUEST OPINION :
Haiku Corner
BY CHERYL PROCACCINI
shrill calls pierce the air red tail hawks soar , circle in elegant courtship
lemonade berries ’ soft flesh nestled in wet leaves invite all to feast
pale grey morning mist suspended in air , shrouding hill tops , horizons
Cheryl is a resident of Laguna Beach and writes Haiku poems inspired by the local flora and fauna around her . She is also a certified EMDR psychotherapist and the creator of Birdsong and the Eco- Wonders , BirdsongTV .
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DAVIS LAW , APC 1000 N . Coast Highway , Ste . 10 • Laguna Beach , CA 92651 phone : 949.413.4754 tom @ tpdavislaw . com www . tpdavislaw . com