Keep the City Attractive

Thousand Oaks Auto Mall dealers say they need a new electronic sign--an eyesore--to be successful (“An Uphill Road for Regional Auto Mall,” Dec. 8). But their sales growth has held up better than their rivals in Oxnard, who have a Las Vegas-style freeway sign. Thousand Oaks Toyota, with even less visibility than the auto mall dealers, does more business than any of them.

The problem appears that the dealers were only able to put aside their differences and get together on joint advertising in May of last year, something that the Cerritos dealers have been doing since 1981.

Thousand Oaks has a long tradition of setting tough design standards on commercial buildings and signage, with the result that the city is an attractive place to live and work. Let’s keep it that way.

WILLIAM E. BECHER JR.

Westlake Village