Ormond Beach

* Re “Give Ormond Beach Its Due,” Ventura County editorial, Jan. 9.

Is it too difficult to see that the Oxnard City Council has had the benefit of a free advisory panel of concerned local citizens for the past six years: the Ormond Beach Task Force?

And is it because the Task Force has consistently offered proposals that don’t meet the City Council’s agenda of unlimited cancerous growth and one-time, short-term profit taking that the council spent more than $70,000 of taxpayers’ money to hire the Urban Land Institute to come up with a proposal more to its liking?

What an incredible slap in the face to the Ormond Beach Task Force--a group of educators, property owners, agency people and environmentalists who have volunteered their time and expertise--and what an affront to all citizens willing to put in time to take care of their community.

The money used for the ULI study could have been used to protect and enhance our already beleaguered Ormond Beach. In my childhood, Ormond Beach was home to hundreds of thousands of nesting birds, a virtual avian sanctuary that our neglect and abuse have reduced to a few dozen nesting pairs. The ULI study money could have gone a long way toward providing better fencing and well-equipped citizen wardens to patrol the beach during nesting season. The Times’ editorial should have mentioned that. Appointing one person to manage this issue will not find consensus.

My modest proposal: Pursue plans to enhance, enlarge and protect the existing wetlands. How? By citing the owners of unleashed dogs on the beach, by impounding vehicles found on the beach and by insisting that absolutely no homes be built south of Hueneme Road.

Barring that, the best way to restore Ormond Beach is to clean it up and leave it alone.

DANIEL HAYES PEARSON

Port Hueneme