Letters to the Editor
Rent Control Not
Dead
To the editor:
In an article on
page 8 of Wednesday's Mirror (Apartments in Region Are Good as Gold),
you said, "The end of rent control in Santa Monica has triggered
a rush here....." Is this an accurate statement?
It was my
understanding that rent control is still operative. It is only when a
tenant voluntarily vacates an apartment that the rent can be raised.
That is a little different. There is still control in that the
landlord can only raise the rent on current tenants a specified amount
(usually a very small percentage of the rent) each year. No?
Just checking,
J. Turner
Santa Monica
True. Rent
control has not ended, but the point of the story was how
dramastically vacancy decontrol has changed the dynamics of the
market.
Why Not Enforce
the Law?
To the editor:
Land’s sake--it sure is hard to cross the streets in
this city, what with no cross walks for miles around and no effective
reminders to drivers that they are obliged to stop when a pedestrian
is crossing the street.
I guess the city thinks putting our tax dollars into
speed bumps, stop signs, median strips and other traffic-clogging
devices is more important than enforcing the pedestrian right-of-way
laws. What happened to the resolve that was so strong when the 15 year
old was killed in the crosswalk on Montana to put increased police
energy into enforcing pedestrian safety? I've read that it has worked
in other cities, why not ours?
Louana Seibold
Santa Monica
Fountain of
Youth
To the editor:
Life is always surprising! If one lives to 84,
especially. One’s creative drive often defies illness. This past
month was a time of trial for me, thus. Yet I was as fascinated as
ever wwith poetry, art and music. Perhaps one does not grow old in
Santa Monica. I’ve been here since 1979, and yet feel ageless
mentally.
I like your emphasis on culture.
Joseph Krengel
Santa Monica
Getty’s War
To the editor:
When did the Getty Trust declare war on the people
living near and on the rim of the Getty Villa? This "jewel"
of a museum is set in a small canyon between Pacific Palisades and
Sunset Mesa in Malibu.
I just read a letter sent to the residents of
Brentwood urging them to bring two friends or family members to a
hearing on the enlargement and remodeling of the Getty Villa. It was
titled "SPECIAL ALERT! SPECIAL ALERT! and ended with "YOUR
HELP IS NEEDED!" Directions to the hearing and RSVP prepaid
postcards were enclosed.
What is happening? Does the Getty Trust need help to
fight us because we didn’t agree exactly with their ideas?
We have peacefully co-existed for many years despite
traffic, landslides, flooding, fires and numerous other catastrophes.
There were times when a few eyebrows were raised over easements,
commercialism, parking and a burial, but we managed to co-exist. As
far as I know, we settled our disputes without calling in "All
the King’s Horses and all the King’s Men" to declare war.
Please, this is not war, it is an attempt to keep
peace between the people most affected by the outcome.
Lois B. deButts
Pacific Palisades Stupidscape
Rising
To the editor:
Four days a week, I sit in front of a window directly
opposite the exit of the Pico Blvd. McDonald's restaurant. The Santa
Monica Stupidscape, the nightmare middle of the street boondoggle,
becomes an obstacle course for fearless drivers daring to turn left.
The only way they could have made this insane project
worse would be to cheat the taxpayers out of even more money as there
are no pork barrel projects worth less than this one. Well, actually
it will get worse when they finish cutting the sidewalks in half and
fat people won't be able to pass each other without walking off the
curb into the street.
Bunnie Meyer
Santa Monica
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