 |
|
|
|
|
Editorials
Let's just make certain there are no loopholes
It looks as if a coalition of interested parties has found a way to make it possible for luxury homes to coexist with a mountain fire station and it's noisy helicopters.
That's good. That's very good. One doesn't have to go back very far in the history of the Santa Cruz Mountains to know how important the Alma Fire Station and its helipad are to the safety of those hillsides. Even downtown Los Gatos was seriously threatened in 1997 when the Cats fire moved perilously close but just six acres and six building were destroyed. In1985, the Lexington fire destroyed 13,000 acres and some 42 structures.
In a report last fall, the town concluded that the helicopter--out of commission during the earlier fire--was the key reason for significantly less damage in the 1997 fire.
It is to the credit of Councilwoman Sandy Decker that late last year, Santa Clara County Supervisor Don Gage's office, the California Department of Forestry, the town of Los Gatos and the Committee to Save Our Fire Station actually sat down and talked about various problems created by the placement of luxury homes in the Alma station's back yard.
Not surprisingly, those on the side of the luxury homes have been arguing that having helicopters coming and going around their homes could deflate the value of their property.
Of course, common sense would seem to dictate that building a luxury home in the mountains where there isn't firefighting capability at the ready isn't such a smart move, but the inconvenience of the helicopters seemed to be more of a concern.
Disclosing the existence of the nearby helicopter pad to new owners should help, but let's hope that the language of the disclosure has been carefully screened by legal experts. People who buy luxury homes can usually afford to hire expensive lawyers to find loopholes in contracts.
It's hard to imagine that, even with the move of the helicopter barn a little further from its present location that the comings and goings of the big whirly-birds will not begin to grate on those who've paid for a luxury home.
Another Thumb's Up
Last year, the Los Gatos Community Foundation awarded its first ever Thumb's Up award to Brian Hinman for buying the property where the Alma Fire Station sits and offering a 50-year lease to the CDF for $1 per year. If he hadn't stepped in, the battle between luxury builders and CDF would have been moot since the state could not come up with the money to keep the station at its present site.
Although the foundation did not intend for it to be an annual award, members chose Council Member Joe Pirzynski as the award's recipient this year. During Pirzynski's term as mayor last year, he went far beyond the call of duty in bringing events to the town which the entire community could embrace.
To this year's winner of the Thumb's Up award, we say hat's off!
|
|
|
|
Los Gatos, California Since 1881
