Sacred places

Re “Saying goodbye to a Valley institution,” Dec. 28

Even I, who distanced myself from Sherman Oaks, know there are some sacred places in the Valley. The Sportsmen’s Lodge is one of them. The old must make room for the new, but the closing of this Valley landmark, slated for “refurbishment” by Malibu developer Richard Weintraub, hits especially hard.

Little comfort comes from Weintraub’s lobbyist representative, Steve Afriat, who says that “the only history that’s going away is the run-down operation that’s been there for the last 10 years. ... No one goes there anymore except the people who have been having lunches there for the last 20 years.”

It was within these last 10 years that my dear mother’s memorial service was held on those grounds, complete with ice sculpture. My father might be counted among those who lunched there. I myself have sipped a martini at the bar.

For their callous, arrogant dismissal of the old-school charm of the place, may Afriat and Weintraub choke, just a little, on a piece of the expensive cuts of meat they plan to offer in their new, high-end steakhouse.

Kathie Gibboney

Topanga