By Tom Casley Santa Monica
Editor:
Congress established a commission on the study of affordable housing to study the deploring lack of affordable housing in the nation. They found this to be one of the biggest problems facing the nation today, especially for the elderly and poor. This problem facing Santa Monica residents is certainly beyond deplorable; it is a complete out rage. A trip to the Promenade will certainly prove my point. It is something less than a third country, a once proud shopping complex has turned to nothing less than a ghetto. If you were an out of town or foreign visitor, would you pay the rates of the fine hotels in Santa Monica, look at a scene like that? Yet the city blames their financial woes on hotels not being to capacity, the tourists being blamed for not filling our hotels. It’s time the city woke up and smelled the coffee, and certainly take the blame for allowing these conditions to deteriorate to this point. The city’s loss of tax revenue falls directly in their corner. The city’s answer to these problems facing the huge budget deficit is to immediately cut affordable housing to the bone, but build a huge public library, costing the city taxpayers dearly. Also expand a park, make it really big, so we can hide, our poor and elderly. The only solution to this gigantic problem is to get the broom out at the election, and get some real, civic minded, action politicians for all the people by the people. Sound familiar? You guys had your chance, and you blew it big time. No sympathy or sorrow, for those who don’t perform for its citizens. Next week’s saga is the city’s answer to affordable housing — a real price list of affordable housing. I promise that you will be astonished as a senior trying to survive in the city by the sea.
Tom Casley
Santa Monica
Pico effort inspiring
Editor:
Andrew Fixmer’s lead story “Pico residents walk to end area's violence” (Santa Monica Daily Press, June 3, 2002), was strong and right on, and inspiring to read. And here I thought they wanted to end the violence in Pico by using a helicopter from Hawthorne. No, people power can work wonders. Kevin McKeown’s quote, “Peace becomes possible when fellowship is forged face-to-face...” and Lucille Power’s “I have faith this will work,” gave me hope way beyond the disturbing sound a Blade Runner helicopter droning low and loud in the night ever could.
Thanks for the story.
Hank Rosenfeld
Originally published in the Santa Monica Daily Press print edition on June 4, 2002. Read the original PDF.