Laguna Beach Mayor an Impediment

Your article on South County cities working together to find solutions to regional growth problems (Cities Join Forces to Tackle Common Growth Problems, Dec. 29) had only one flaw: It included Mayor Robert F. Gentry of Laguna Beach. The other mayors described in the article clearly display an appreciation of what can be achieved when cities take a cooperative, “let’s find a solution” approach, rather than an adversarial one. Unfortunately, Mayor Gentry all too much epitomizes the eco-elitist attitude that has been displayed by the current council majority in Laguna Beach.

The events of the last few years do not warrant the implication that Laguna Beach is “cooperative.” When the California Coastal Commission and Orange County approved the Smithcliffs project, located in a small county “island” in Laguna Beach, the city sued them both. More recently, the city has filed suit against the county for approving the Rossmoor Business Park in what is now the city of Laguna Hills. I guess that this is the thanks the county gets for kicking in several million dollars toward the purchase of Laguna Canyon.

And while I certainly do not expect Laguna Beach to support the construction of the San Joaquin Hills Transportation Corridor, I am certain that the city could be taking a more cooperative approach to finding some solutions to the traffic woes of all of South County. Unfortunately, this litigation-minded approach is finding its way back to City Hall, as the Irvine Ranch Water District has filed suit against Laguna Beach for its interference in the Smithcliffs matter. Maybe in the future this situation will improve, but at present the city has a long way to go in the area of cooperative planning.

JAMES M. LAWSON, Laguna Beach