DANGEROUS TENEMENT PROJECT
I live at Dominican Oaks, a community of over 200 seniors on Paul Sweet Road. Santa Cruz County is facing dangerous threats from at least 20 new high-rise tenement housing projects, creating health and safety hazards. Why? Because state laws now allow developers to bypass local zoning and permitting requirements, taking away local control of community planning.
One of the most egregious of these proposed projects is right next to us at 3500 Paul Sweet Road, a six-story, 105-unit tenement building crammed into a tiny half-acre parcel.
Paul Sweet Road is the only evacuation route for Dominican Oaks as well as other surrounding residences and businesses. Hundreds of additional cars from this new project will create gridlock on this dead-end street that is so narrow that trucks and fire engines cannot turn around. This ill-conceived project will turn that sole lifeline into a bottleneck.
Our senior residents move slowly, using canes, walkers or wheelchairs, requiring more time and assistance to evacuate during a fire or other emergency. This project could significantly delay or block the ability of residents and emergency vehicles to reach the hospital quickly, resulting in the difference between life and death. Protecting clear and reliable access to medical care should remain a priority for planning decisions in our area.
In addition, our neighbor, Dominican Hospital, has an active heliport. Yet this project does not conform to FAA regulations for building height near a helipad. The maximum height for this project is limited to three stories.
Santa Cruz County does need more housing. But housing should not come at the cost of public safety. This project, in this location, is simply dangerous. It jeopardizes emergency access, evacuation safety, and the well-being of hundreds of vulnerable seniors.
Virginia W. Lieb | Santa Cruz
ANGELS AMONG US
We were having dinner at a sushi restaurant downtown last week, prior to attending the symphony at the Civic, when something very nice and totally unexpected happened. Our server came up and said that someone—who wanted to remain anonymous—had paid our bill! I have no idea who it was—or why they chose a couple of boring and ancient retirees for their largesse—but if it was anyone reading this, Thank You! What a nice gesture. I shall try to pay it forward. The world is often so dreadful, but nice things can happen. Thank you.
Isabelle Herbert | Aptos
STOP BIG BROTHER
Doorbell cameras can make me feel more secure from intruders on my private property. Cameras on every street corner tracking me as I go about my day—not so much.
Local cities have installed 38 Automated License Plate Readers (ALPRs, aka Flock cameras) at intersections and want to install more. By law, the data can only be used by agencies within CA, but already there have been over 200 unintentional breaches in Capitola alone.
Here’s the problem: out-of-state agencies request and then share the data with ICE. We all know of the cruel tactics used by ICE, against anyone they choose. Capitola’s data sharing may have been accidental, but that would be small consolation to innocent people caught up in an ICE raid.
I grew up reading fiction about “Big Brother is watching.” I certainly didn’t expect to see it become a reality in my own city. Do we really want the government to track our every movement?
Removing these cameras is one small but significant step we can take to push back on mass surveillance.
Stephanie Singer | Santa Cruz
COVER BANDS VS ORIGINALS
Interesting read in the GT this morning on cover bands v. original music.
As a commercial trumpeter, I’ve played all genres of music, which means playing other composers’ work. Classical, symphonic wind ensembles, jazz big bands, musicals, church services—it’s all about playing the ink. But I’ve also played in bands that perform a mixture of originals and cover songs, but those covers are usually obscure.
Straight cover bands just don’t do it for me, either playing with or listening to. I find great joy playing original music, supporting musicians who are searching for new sounds and new lyrics. I hope your readers step out and seek the various original bands.
Dan Young | Goodtimes.sc
