.
.
.
Sometimes watching local politics is a little like watching one of those robot vacuum cleaners keep smashing headlong into the wall in front of it. No matter how many times it smacks into that wall it will try again evidently hoping for a different result. Mission Viejo has its own mighty little band of mindless robots smashing repeatedly into walls – I call them the naysayers.
This hearty band of naysayers even have their own publication in which they repeatedly “publish” their “views” and “opinions.” Last week I reported on a nonsensical post in that publication that condemned the City of Mission Viejo for partially funding movie nights in the park, arts and crafts classes at the senior center and City sponsored pancake breakfasts. Rather than admitting that this was a ridiculous attack on something of great value and minimal cost, several group member were up in arms freely slinging accusations and and condemnations. I rarely have had this much fun with folks so ill suited for a battle of wits.
Rather than just let this issue pass, this miniscule publication attacked again:
Returning to the message of last week’s post, the function of government is not to entertain. If a city government met its responsibilities and had money left over, it should lower taxes instead of continuing to take money to become the people’s entertainment center. When government usurps a private-sector role, private initiative will diminish or take its enterprise elsewhere.
I am happy that these folks are going to tell us the role of government – it would be awful to have to form our own opinions about that – oh wait, we have the responsibility to do just that in a democracy – form our own opinion as to the role of government and then vote accordingly. Mr. Tyler and crew are just upset that they are constantly spanked by the electorate in the polling place. In fact, Mr. Tyler continually tells the electorate how stupid they are for not voting in the way he recommends.
Even though he professes to be a Republican, he has espouse a consistently ANTI private property rights position. Last year Mr. Tyler penned the now infamous Measure D that was placed on the Mission Viejo ballot. This was the ultimate NIMBY (Not In My BackYard) measure aimed at stopping all use and re use of property within Mission Viejo. Thankfully the electorate was smart enough to see this and defeated Measure D 62% to 38%.
Ironically, one of the rallying calls of the Naysayers is for the “return to civility at City Hall.” Until the naysayers stop and think about what they are saying, they are creating an atmosphere of antagonism that makes civility very difficult.
Mr. Willis. If Measure D had passed, then the residents of Palmia would have had a chance to vote on whether or not the city should change the developer requested changes in the project he begged to have approved on Los Alisos.
They begged us to rezone the K-Mart property from Commercial to residential. The project was approved for 245 FOR SALE OWNER OCCUPIED TOWNHOMES. 38 were to be ‘affordable’. First they asked that the ratio of very affordable be lowered to affordable. Then they sat on their approval for 5 years and posted for sale signs trying to flip their property.
All very well and good. Three of the board presidents have written letters supporting the original project and advising that we would oppose any changes to the accepted plan. Once again the developer is trying to change the rules. The rules they made….
They have been working in the dark with city staff, at least one council member and the developer. This has never been agendized, and the residents have not been made aware that the new board president (a former board president) is (according to city hall) telling the developer that he can proceed with his project to now change to 325 apartments (higher density) with four story parking structures (over city code for height).
This Wednesday afternoon, UDR is finally on the Master Agenda. I have asked my neighbors do they know what this posting means? It has no description, and my neighbors do not know that they plan to switch the approved plans for the K-Mart site.
Yes, the K-mart site has been fallow since the early 2000’s. But, the city is not at fault, the developer is. What guarantee is there that any new higher density project will be built this time around? They could get approval, sit on it, and come back in another four years for even higher density. It seems that they have a goal in mind but don’t want opposition, so they keep changing the rules.
Our board said no deal, stay with the plan. At first. They city said no deal, at first. Now since Measure D was defeated by developer money ($125,000), they are back for the slam dunk. Trust is very fragile. None of the players are keeping their word here and I can only hope that this senior community roars to life again (as they did against the airport) and stays the original course approved for the townhomes.
I’m glad my city puts on these types of free events. I take full advantage of them because they’re usually free and a great way to relax with friends and neighbors. These naysayers, or as I like to call them: Whining, paranoid and delusional malcontents, aren’t happy if they don’t have something to complain about. That’s mostly a function of none of them having lives outside their computer screens and overblown conspiracy theories.
Well said, Mr. Willis. And I might point out that the city doesn’t tax anyone so it’d be pretty tough to lower it. However, Mr. Tyler himself seems to avoid taxes by registering his cars in different states, avoids getting a driver’s license for 21 years, and God only knows if he even pays state and federal taxes on any income he might come by. These naysayers, or as I like to call them: people with schlicht for brains wouldn’t have a thing to say if English was devoid of negative words.
Weren’t Dale and crew also against the electronic sign at the corner of La Paz and Marguerite? They are really bitter.