Hutchinson on Valley Secession

* I am an African American who does not always agree with Earl Ofari Hutchinson’s analysis, but thank God for his April 6 column, “Minorities Could Lose Out in Secession.” Yes, a Valley city government would be smaller than a united Los Angeles’, but the idea that the new city, larger than two San Franciscos, will have this nimble, small-town government is absurd! Hutchinson cuts to the real reason for Valley separation--a cabal of wealthy, white, spoiled homeowners who think the world revolves around them and are offended at sharing power in a multicultural city.

Of course our city has problems and not everything is always fair--that’s life in any big city--but can you really imagine London, Paris or New York disintegrating into rival fiefdoms? A city is only as good as its citizens, and self-centered cowards never built anything.

DAVID KELLY

Los Angeles

* Here we go again. Divisive elements in society see everything in black and/or white with no consideration to facts. Many of us in the Valley are tired of supporting an entrenched bureaucracy in City Hall. Too often we are taxed to support City Hall projects without concomitant returns to the benefit of Valley residents. We need only look at recent examples of bad management:

Belmont high school--$200 million with an additional $10 million or more to clean up.

Police station bond--another bond, this time for more than $750 million, to be paid disproportionately by Valley homeowners. This one supposedly has a promised station for the Valley.

Bad realty investments by the city to the tune of $65 million.

A South-Central L.A. elementary school on which construction was halted in 1996; $3 million in construction costs, $1.5 million in damages to the unfinished structure and the likelihood that the majority of the structure will have to be razed and rebuilt.

The real color involved in Valley secession is green.

HAROLD E. BOUCHER

West Hills