[custom-facebook-feed]Opinion Piece By Donna Westfall – March 3, 2017 – Our elected officials, Congressman Huffman, Senator McGuire and Assemblyman Wood have let Gov. Brown know the urgency of dealing with Last Chance Grade (LCG). The crux of the letter boils down to the fourth paragraph to “move the project for any eligible Emergency relief program funding from Federal Highways Administration THAT SHOULD BE AVAILABLE LATER THIS YEAR.” That’s nine months away.
Do you get that sinking feeling that Gov. Brown is not going to blink twice at our little neck of the woods? After all, we’ll only lose $130 million per year which is a drop in the bucket compared to the larger communities in Southern California. Our town and those along the Oregon Coast may dry up and turn to dust when LCG falls into the ocean, but Southern California should be intact.
Here’s what I don’t understand. If our Supervisors understand that Emergency Funding might come through AND it only means another patch job on LCG instead of re-routing the road, aren’t we just kicking the can down the road? Do you really believe that the land is sinking or shifting but it’s still safe to drive?
Why is it so hard to conceive of an alternative idea for three of our Supervisors, Cowan, Howard and Hemmingsen? Are they stuck in a political tug-of-war just because they may not care for the personalities of Gitlin or Berkowitz?
One thing good, out of many good things in the 12 step programs, is the philosophy Principles Above Personalities.
What is the principle here? All of the supervisors have expressed their concern about the safety of LCG. Then what remains is how do we get from Point A to Point B? What makes the most sense? Re-routing the road makes the most sense.
More later.[custom-facebook-feed]
Yes, it’s an alphabetical list, but we’re on there!
https://www.gov.ca.gov/docs/1.23.17_December_Storms_Emergency_Proclamation.pdf
The governor has first mention of Del Norte in this proclamation.
Jesse, The problem being that no where in Governor Brown’s declaration is any mention of a bypass around the affected area, simply repairing what is already there seems to be what is intended as the remedy. Not very much more than what has been going on for years….
I’d bet dollars to doughnuts that the governor doesn’t know anything about LCG, if he’s even heard of it. The proclamation is not specific enough to intend any remedies for anything other than funding to complete projects as planned. The words ‘repair’ and ‘reconstruction’ can certainly include rerouting to ensure a lasting solution. Can this be viewed as something positive?