Yeas, Nays Speak Out on Measure A Rent Control Plan

Measure A is about stopping out-of-town developers from overturning a decision made by our elected officials. It’s about not letting developers build a multimillion-dollar beachfront project on the last stretch of coastal property in Laguna Beach. It’s about preserving our neighborhoods and letting the people of Laguna Beach decide for ourselves what’s best for our community.

Not willing to accept the majority decision of the City Council, the out-of-town park owner and his development partners at Merrill Lynch Hubbard of New York decided to take matters into their own hands. Almost immediately after our City Council acted to protect Laguna Beach mobile home residents from excessive and inordinate space rent increases, mobile home park owners and developers paid professional signature gatherers to qualify a referendum to overturn the decision.

They want to repeal the ordinance for one reason: So they can move forward with their plans to develop million-dollar estate homes and condominiums on the beachfront property.

But the potential loss of affordable housing and the destruction of our beachfronts aren’t the only reasons to support Measure A; there is the issue of traffic as well.

The fact is, the residents of the proposed 249 housing units on the beachfront would drive onto Coast Highway every day, adding an average 2,000 vehicle trips daily to the already congested road, with no traffic mitigation plans proposed.

Contrary to what these developers claim, the mobile home rent stabilization ordinance will have absolutely no effect on the city’s financial well-being, city services or the Laguna Canyon purchase.

The ordinance will not cost the city or residents of Laguna Beach anything more than the minor administrative fees associated with any municipal ordinance. In fact, park owners and mobile home park residents would pay for all hearing costs.

The majority of mobile home park residents here are senior citizens living on fixed incomes. Mobile home parks provide a majority of the city’s affordable housing stock and the city could lose federal funding if the number of affordable housing units is significantly reduced.

Most mobile home park residents stand to lose their homes if Measure A is defeated.

Don’t let out-of-town developers overturn our City Council’s decision and build a multimillion-dollar beachfront project on the last stretch of coastal property in Laguna Beach.

City Council members Robert F. Gentry, Ann Christoph and Lida Lenney; Village Laguna, South Laguna Civic Assn., Laguna Canyon Property Owners Inc., Canyon Acres Homeowners Assn. board of directors, Laguna Residents for Neighborhood Preservation and other concerned organizations, civic leaders and Laguna Beach residents all support Measure A.

Vote yes on Measure A on Nov. 19. Together, we can stop developers and preserve the character of Laguna Beach.

SAM ALESSI, Chairman, Laguna Residents for Neighborhood Preservation, Yes on A