What do you know that I don’t? THE LAY OF THE LAND

One of our local activists was Lois Sidenberg. Just five years earlier, Lois (along with Campbell Grant) co-founded the Carpinteria Valley Association. She was never shy speaking out about a threat to the community, be it a bad development proposal, an action taken by the Carpinteria City Council or any other danger.

After the blowout, she became particularly engaged, often showing her unique wit. When confronted by an oil company official who asked, “Mrs. Sidenberg, is it true you told reporters that you wanted to ‘get rid of those oil rigs?’” Lois replied, “I was misquoted! I said I wanted to get rid of those G-- D--- oil rigs!”

A year earlier, in 1968, Lois had led the successful first fight to save the Carpinteria Bluffs from development when Humble Oil wanted to build a refinery there (an actual refinery, not “just” oil wells). In doing so, she demonstrated to the community a defiance of oil companies that would inspire future generations.

Another year before that, in 1967, Lois and the recently-formed CVA fought a proposal for a 334-acre marina development (including docks for 1,000 boats, an island with a yacht club and 531 residential lots with private docks). The defeat of that proposal set the stage for permanently protecting the Carpinteria Salt Marsh that provides valuable habitat, flood control and water quality protection.

A few decades later, through the efforts of an army of community members informed by history and with a vision for the future, the Carpinteria Bluffs were saved from yet another development proposal (a 150-room hotel, 287 condo units, 25,000 sq. ft. of retail stores), and the property was purchased by the public for permanent preservation.

In 2010, despite an extravagantly-funded election campaign by the oil company Venoco, Carpinteria voters soundly defeated (71% to 29%) the infamous Measure J proposed by Venoco, which would have allowed them to bypass normal planning processes and slant drill from coastal bluffs into the offshore “Paredon” oil reservoir despite the documented significant environmental impacts.

Knowing and understanding our community’s history helps us put current events into context. Our “community memory” allows us to recognize a threat that may appear at first to be a “reasonable compromise.”

But is that enough? Does our history fully prepare us for today’s decisions? Believing and acting as if it does might be considered to be the very definition of arrogance.

Times change. Technology advances. The economy not only has cycles but evolves over time. There can be a tension between “This is how we have always done it” and “Here is a different approach that has worked in other communities.”

Consider that in the examples above, some relative newcomers played important roles alongside longtime Carpinterians.

New arrivals often come here specifically because Carpinteria has maintained its small beach town vibe. They bring a fresh perspective of how increasingly rare and important that is, and they bring an energy and urgency to protect it.

The “community memory” of longtime residents brings local history, identity and our community’s unique culture to today’s decisions. Newcomers can add valuable outside perspective and experience. The best decisions involve learning from each other and melding our perspectives to develop the best approach for Carpinteria.

It can be challenging to be open to new perspectives from those who don’t have the same experience we do. We need to recognize that others have different backgrounds, knowledge and history which may be valuable in addressing today’s issues. For both long-timers and new arrivals, a little humbleness allows us to acknowledge that someone else may know something we can learn from. We need to ask questions like “Why do you consider this a good idea?” or “What do you think are the biggest issues with this proposal?”

Community projects should be equitable

Regrettably, the new owners of Sandpiper Mobile Home Park have unveiled a reiteration of a massive solar project that they want to keep secret from the rest of the community.

The main reason is that we are under rent control and this is a sure way to increase revenues without a rent increase. Also, they are not sharing any of the benefits with the residents and are only doing this to maximize their profits. All of this could’ve been avoided had they tried to work with us, but all they have accomplished is to increase the angst and ire of the entire mobile home park.

Last year this project was resoundingly rejected by our Architectural Review Board (ARB) as being monstrous in size and more in line with non-residential settings. A retired electrical engineer friend of mine examined their first project and found that after five years, the initial costs of the project would be paid and they would enjoy enormous profits for the next 20 to 30 years.

All we ask for is equity in the project. Three simple things come to mind: help with rising electrical costs, electric vehicle charging stations and support with rooftop solar panels. This is not a lot considering the magnitude of the project. All have been refused by these owners. Their next step is to try and get a very skeptical ARB to approve this fundamentally flawed and unsafe project. Something interesting is that the main contractor for their project is the nephew of California Representative John Garamendi. John, if you recall, earned a reputation as the most effective protector of consumer interests in the nation. I asked his nephew about this and his reply was that it was “just a business decision we had to make.”

Bob Franco Carpinteria

Groundwater fees should be based on use

I agree with Scott Van Der Kar’s assertion in his letter to the editor (CVN Vol. 29, No. 40) that the Carpinteria Groundwater Sustainability Agency (CGSA) fee should be based on water usage. The state of California did not require our area to form a GSA because of the acreage of the basin but because our water basin has been using too much water and is over-drafted by 50,000-acre feet, while natural recharge occurs at less than 2,000 acre feet a year.

What is most upsetting is that our public servants have taken the easy way out by charging fees based on acreage, not the water usage that created the problem. Doing the right thing is not always easy and taking the easy way out comes with costs. By choosing to charge a fee that is not based on water usage, the civil servants of the CGSA have lost the respect and confidence of those they govern.

Kim Jones Carpinteria

Coastal View News welcomes your letters

Letters must include your name, address and phone number. Letters are subject to editing. Letters over 300 words will be edited in length. Submit online at coastalview.com

or the really

difficult one: “What do you see as the weaknesses in my idea?”

The work to protect what we appreciate about our town will never end. There will always be new challenges, threats and opportunities. The right path forward will come from combining the best everyone in the community has to offer.

It is imperative that we each invite other perspectives to complement our own.

Mike Wondolowski is president of the Carpinteria Valley Association (facebook. com/carpinteriavalleyassociation), a local organization dedicated to maintaining the small beach town nature of our community. In over 30 years of involvement in planning issues, he has witnessed visionary successes, as well as decisions that were later widely regretted. When not stuck indoors, he can often be found enjoying Carpinteria’s treasures including kayaking and snorkeling along the coast, running or hiking on the bluffs or the Franklin Trail, or “vacationing” as a tent camper at the State Beach.

Not a day goes by that your not remembered Ben.