Soka Is Not a University
The Letters column Oct. 14 included a letter from L. H. Jacobson that addresses the Soka development. Nice letter, bad facts.
Jacobson states he is “a resident of Calabasas.”
Calabasas is a big place. One must guess that Jacobson lives far from the subject property.
He calls it “SOKA University.”
It is not a university. It is not accredited anywhere in the United States. There is no faculty, no curriculum and no student body other than 90 kids from Japan who are learning English.
“The land has been developed for many years.”
It is absurd to equate the existing buildings scattered around the site with the massive urban development proposed by Soka: 84 buildings with 1.74 million square feet of floor space, 30 acres of paving with parking for 2,500 automobiles, and the uprooting of many of the 4,200-plus mature oak trees.
“It is not Virgin Parkland.”
Correct. But it is the next best thing. The existing buildings are far apart and blend with the surroundings. It would be ideal for a Park Service headquarters and park.
The basic complaint against the proposed Soka development is one of land use (or misuse), not race, religion or their foreign origin, as some have suggested. They often use this tactic to cloud the one overwhelming issue: This massive urban development does not belong in this rural natural parkland.
WILLIAM P. WELLS
Calabasas
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