‘Problem Is Not Greed but Freedom’

Sam Hall Kaplan’s comments (Oct. 18) regarding the Mulholland Scenic Parkway and the “shortsighted greed” of the residents are ignorant and insulting. If Mr. Kaplan had bothered to attend any of the meetings he would have heard residents speak emotionally about all the problems as a result of just a few overlooks that exist now.

Tons of garbage, graffiti, drugs, noise into early hours of the morning, property destruction, etc. He would have heard people who moved to Mulholland because of a love of scenic beauty, animals and privacy oppose being told how high they can build, how much they can expand, what color they have to paint their homes, and other limitations that deprive people of basic rights of freedom. Greed played very little part in what I heard at the meetings.

The Mulholland Scenic Parkway project is enormous. It demands in-depth study by The Times, not off-the-cuff remarks by an uninformed columnist. The east end, as an example, is very different from the west end in its needs.

The majority of homeowners are opposed to the more obtrusive, gauche subdivisions Mr. Kaplan refers to. The problem is not greed but freedom to live and do with your home as you please without hurting others.

ALLEN ROSE

Los Angeles

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