Wharf, LA fires a warning on emergency response

This past December, our County Emergency and Resilience Team sent out a survey asking for public comment on a new emergency plan; while sent at a very busy time, I hope the team got a fair number of responses. Evaluating the wharf evacuation is also important.

The Sheriff’s Office is in charge yet with their staff few in numbers and stationed all over the county can they — by themselves — handle a mass emergency operation: evacuations, loose pets, crowd/car and road control, including many in panic?

Will the county be recruiting a large volunteer emergency “force”; will it properly train them?

Countywide it is time to order weed control and abatement.

The final emergency plan: Our roads are clogged now so how do we get out and where do we go? Issues and layouts differ by neighborhood.

Hopefully, the basics of what we should do and where we should go is organized by neighborhoods with pointers publicized frequently!

The LA fires and the Dec. 23 waves are a warning and a lesson. Let’s heed what gets learned!

— Patti Brady, Santa Cruz

Consider the many obstacles to passenger rail

Santa Cruzans and even some members of the Regional Transportation Commission need to wake up to the reality of the passenger rail planning going on now.

Here are just some of the obstacles that must be overcome to initiate passenger rail here:

1) Tear down and rebuild the Capitola trestle.

2) Replace 22 additional bridges, including the one over the San Lorenzo.

3) Replace all of the existing tracks, which are over 100 years old and unusable.

4) Shore up the tracks at Manresa and other locations where the cliffs beneath them have crumbled.

5) Move or destroy numerous mobile homes encroaching on the corridor in Live Oak and Capitola.

6) Get permits from the Coastal Commission to eradicate hundreds of eucalyptus trees serving as endangered monarch butterfly habitat.

7) Build elevated tracks in front of the Boardwalk, while reconfiguring Roaring Camp’s rail access for pedestrian and emergency vehicle access, including a plan for sea level rise for these tracks as well as those crossing Watsonville’s sloughs.

Are we all completely out of our minds?

— Lisa Smith. Soquel

Nesting birds took priority over fixing wharf

For years, nesting birds have taken priority over fixing the wharf. In a cost-benefit world, the birds benefited at the expanse of the wharf. We all know how that worked out.

A loss of a few nesting sites during wharf maintenance would have been way less than the nesting sites lost when the 150 feet of the wharf collapsed.

When discussing maintenance with conservationists the words, “it could collapse” should be used.

— Chelsea Wagner, Soquel

Grateful for acts of kindness from local group

I am writing this to recognize the wonderful men and women of Santa Cruz’s Residential Resource Recovery Services. Not only do they always have time to smile and wave to my daughter who loves running to the door to say hello on trash day, but recently, on a day I had forgotten to take my cans out they went above and beyond. As the driver of the truck serviced the other side of my street he remembered there was no can out at my address. He stopped, exited his vehicle and approached my gate to ask if I had a can I needed emptied.

It was a prime example of the wonderful job they do on a daily basis and an act of kindness and service I believe needs to be commended. Thank you for all you do. Your community members, often ones who are yet to be awake, appreciate you and all you do.

— Paul Johnson, Santa Cruz

Response to Trump federal aid threat to state

If Trump plans to revoke billions of dollars to California because we oppose some of his draconian plans, is there a way we can withhold the more than $500 billion we pay in federal income taxes from our state – one of the top four tax contributing states in the country? We support many “red” states.

— Donna Hall, Soquel