Letters to the Editor
Take note MLTPA. This North Beach bar in San Francisco promotes itself with effective, wayfinding signage … and will host an open house at no cost! (Photo: Lunch)
Not ESTA-bien
Dear Editor:
This is an open letter to Mammoth Lakes’ Mobility Commission about the elimination of the Lupin Street stop where the Old Blondies was located. I contacted the Eastern Sierra Transit Authority office back in September when we discovered this change in the route. We spoke at length with a representative but he did not answer the following questions. We are still waiting.
When was the Lupin Street stop removed from the route? At which Mobility Commission or public meeting was this topic discussed and voted upon? What was the basis for removing this stop?
I am formally requesting answers to these questions.
We have been living on Lupin Street for more than 10 years. When the Trolley system was first implemented we rode the transportation system as an alternative to driving to the Village for events. We continue this approach today. The only time we do not ride the Trolley is when the event stops after 10 p.m. (as does the Trolley. Sort of ridiculous for Visitors expecting to ride public transportation from the Village back to their condos and Hotels and they find themselves stranded. However, that is a different problem).
This is an issue for the Mobility Commission to pursue if you are trying to promote public transportation for our visitors. In September we were at the Village and left the event early. As a result, we were able to catch the Trolley and found ourselves denied a drop-off at the Lupin Street Stop. The driver was adamant that there was no bus stop at the Lupin Street intersection. Being dark, it was difficult to determine our exact location. Again, we hopelessly argued with a driver we had never seen before. Suffice to say, we had to depart at Manzanita. Later the next week, I contacted ESTA requesting answers to the above questions to understand what happened to the stop and why the public was never notified of the route change. I am still waiting.
*It should be noted that this was the only stop removed from the entire route.
The other part of this change that is outrageous is the fact that California state money was spent to rehabilitate the frontage road and build out the bus stops, ramps, and sidewalks. The final work on these stops and the frontage road was completed less than a year ago. As a result, I am shocked that a bus stop completed within a year would be eliminated.
Furthermore, it would be one thing if I was an uninvolved citizen. On the contrary, we had extensive discussions with Ray Jarvis, Peter Bernasconi, Skip Harvey and Wendy Sugimara during the planning stages of the improvements. We wanted the sidewalks on the business-owner side of the street. We were told the plans were “locked in” and the State Transportation Improvement Program money was committed to these plans and they could not be changed. The sidewalks had to be on the sunny side of the street to link up with the ramps that led from the bus stops at Joaquin, Lupin and Manzanita. It would be unreasonable to expect someone in a wheel chair to depart the bus, travel down the ramp, and cross a street to the sidewalk.
The money was free so what is the big deal? As it turned out, although the money was “free,” the project could not be completed without additional contributions from the Town’s general fund.
Before more damage is done since ESTA has taken over the route, I am formally and respectfully requesting that the Lupin Street Bus Stop be reinstated. The appearance is that ESTA could easily add the stop back in to the route without much trouble. For the businesses along the frontage road and homeowners on Mono and Lupin Street this is a hardship.
I look forward to answers to the above questions as well as why one stop cannot be reinstated.
Amy Cutter
Mammoth Lakes
A letter for Gephart
Dear Editor:
I’m supporting Randall Gephart for judge. I have known Randy for 20 years. Our families have overlapped through Valentine Reserve classes, music lessons with the Felici Trio, AYSO Soccer and the Mammoth schools. I am voting for Randy because he is the most qualified candidate, and also a family man and a community volunteer.
Although both candidates are academically qualified, sometimes it is what you learn out of school that sets you apart. I know as a former public school teacher, that I was a much better teacher after I had a family. I learned a lot from my children, and from parenting. I think that Randy’s extensive involvement with our community as a volunteer for various children’s sports and other activities and having raised two children will help him to be a more informed judge when ruling on issues of family law.
Being a judge in a small county requires a judge to be versatile. In one week a judge in Mono County may have to rule on criminal issues, business disputes, probate, real estate problems and family law. Randy has both the versatility and experience to rule on all of these matters. My husband Dan joins me in voting for Randall Gephart on Nov. 2.
Leslie Dawson
Crowley Lake
Yes on Prop 21 for state parks
Dear Editor:
I’m not in the habit of telling anyone how to vote, but this year Prop 21 is near and dear to my heart. Many of you remember several threats of closure to our Eastern Sierra state parks: Mono Lake Tufa State Natural Reserve and Bodie State Historic Park.
I worked for California State Parks for more than 30 years, as a seasonal and as a Ranger in several parks. During those years, state parks budgets and staffing were cut more and more. Since I retired in 2003, conditions have become worse than ever. This surcharge will dedicate a funding source for our parks.
Proposition 21 will create a stable adequate fund source for our 278 California State Parks, some of the most magnificent places in the U.S. In exchange for an $18 surcharge on passenger vehicles, Californians will receive free day use in all 278 state parks all year! The surcharge would be paid with your annual DMV fees into a special Trust Fund. The Trust Fund will only be spent for state parks and wildlife conservation and cannot be used for other things, and cannot be taken away by the governor or legislature. The general fund dollars that would normally be allocated to parks will be freed up for education, highways, social services, etc.
People have complained that regular tax dollars should cover expenses like taking care of our parks. In a perfect world, that would be the case. Parks need to be maintained, cared for and kept open NOW. This small surcharge will allow every Californian free entry and dedicate a funding source that is not at the mercy of the political climate and the election cycle.
Hundreds of volunteers worked thousands of hours to obtain the 700,000 signatures to get this measure on the November ballot (after two failed legislative attempts). There was no corporate funding.
YES ON PROP 21 FOR STATE PARKS!
Janet Carle
Retired State Park Ranger, Lee Vining
Yes for Magit
Dear Editor:
Until I retired last year, I was the Executive Officer and Clerk of the Mono Superior Court and I was privileged to enjoy 20 years of public service on behalf of the court. I deeply care about the court, its duty to administer justice fairly, wisely and compassionately for all, and the recognition and respect of the public that it is doing so. I am not an attorney, nor do I have any ties, personal or otherwise, to either of the judicial candidates. I have nothing to gain by endorsing either candidate and may even incur the disappointment of some with whom I have worked by stating my opinion.
Nevertheless, while both candidates have many years of experience as attorneys and both possess the intellectual ability required for the job, I am voting for Mark Magit.
I feel strongly that Mark has substantially more relevant experience, including the administrative experience necessary to manage the operations of the court; that the conduct of his campaign reflects the highest of professional and ethical standards that a judicial officer must adhere to; that he is not indebted to any of the special interests that have been introduced into this election; and that he has the commitment, energy and passion to be an outstanding judge and to so serve the public for many years to come.
Bob Dennis
Mono Superior Court Executive
Officer & Clerk (Ret.)
Just answer the question!
Dear Editor:
The citizens of Mammoth Lakes don’t want to call, visit the website, attend a Mammoth Trail meeting, sign up for a newsletter, or wait for real snow on the ground to attend an open house to find out what MLTPA (Mammoth Lakes Trails and Public Access) has done with hundreds of thousands of dollars of taxpayer money.
We want to know if MLTPA will ever put a shovel in the ground and build something, or are we spending a million dollars on an elaborate plan?
“As our town responds to historic challenges,” why should it stay the course on a project that has already used a million of mostly taxpayer Measure R dollars? The Town is losing employees, economic times are tough. Are we using taxpayer dollars wisely?
Just answer the question and let’s communicate effectively with each other.
We look forward to hearing for you.
Jane Baer
Mammoth Lakes
Pass on this Buck … please!
Dear Editor:
Washington Insiders … that’s what the upcoming election seems to be about, along with many other important issues.
Rep. Buck McKeon has represented us since 1993, and has been attentive to our county’s needs in the past. Now that he has established himself as a senior minority congressman in the committees on which he serves, he gets a lot of attention in Washington from contributors who want his help. This appears to be at our loss. He seems to care much more for the special interests he sees in Washington, than to the needs of very people who he is elected to serve. In my view recent Mono County happenings should raise our collective antennae.
On September 15, 2010, Rep. McKeon introduced his bill, HR 6129 for consideration by Congress. The bill is titled “Mono County Economic Development Act of 2010”(HaHa!). In my opinion, this is just more Washington bull. I talked to a number of our County elected and appointed officials to ask how this bill came to be. Clearly we should be flattered at the attention our small county is receiving from Congressman McKeon and his staff.
The only problem is that no one I spoke to saw this bill or a draft of this bill, or even had a conversation with anyone from the congressman’s office before it was put submitted in Washington. Where did Congressman McKeon get the great idea that releasing land in and around Bodie State Park would be helpful to our county economy? It wasn’t from the extensive hearings he held here in the county, because he held none.
I really don’t care who we vote for to replace Rep. McKeon and other career politicians. It is absolutely clear that we need new people in Washington to lead us in solving the problems created by our entrenched Washington Insiders, wherever we find them.
The mess in Washington was created equally by greedy elected representatives of both parties who no longer have any regards for the needs of our great country.
Gordon Alper
Mammoth Lakes
Hankel responds to Newbry
Dear Editor:
This letter is in response to Greg Newbry’s, which attacked my character by claiming that I was supporting Mr. Gephart for Judge because I was “angling” for the public defender job. He said I “lacked integrity and professional ethics,” apparently because I am not supporting his candidate.
Yes, I am definitely going to apply for any opening in the public defender’s office — but that has nothing to do with my opinion on who would be a better judge for Mono County.
I am friends with both Mark and Randy. I have also, unlike Mr. Newbry, had the opportunity over many years, to appear in court with each of them. I have done so on many occasions with Randy. I have only done so on a few with Mark because he’s chosen positions which have kept him out of the courtroom. When I asked District Attorney George Booth why Mark left the DA’s office, he responded that Mark didn’t like the process — battling it out in court.
When I applied for my first judicial internship, my judge told me that f I really wanted to be a judge, I should be a trial lawyer, and I should love to be in the courtroom. In my experience, those people who love the courtroom choose jobs where they are in the courtroom. That means that they are a litigator or work for the Public Defender or the District Attorney.
Both Mark and Randy are good lawyers. I just want a judge who’s walked the walk. Randy has been in a law practice and/or one of the Mono County Public Defenders for his entire career. His experience as a litigator, and his ability to listen to each party and then make a considered, fair judgment is what counts with me.
Therese Hankel
Mammoth Lakes
