Opinion Piece by Samuel Strait – September 9 2016 – I suspect that it should be clear to anybody not born under a political activist’s rock that the Triplicate’s pretend angst over Roger Gitlin’s repeated calls to have Safeway, or rather SOMEONE to do something about the Looooooong standing mess that occupies the space immediately south of Safeway in the Jed Smith Shopping Center. It is simply too convenient politically for the Triplicate and its editor to pitch a fit about a long standing problem that existed well before Rodger Gitlin came to town. Editor Fornoff’s face should be red with embarrassment over the fact that the Triplicate’s very own vending machine was removed from that particular location due to the unsightliness of the area no doubt, or maybe just low sales.
Just to bring the Triplicate, Editor Fornoff, reporter Tony Reed, Safeway Manager Brian Ridgely, and Democratic shill and regular activist Bill Lonsdale up to speed, that particular area is known around the area as the “Black Hole Of Crescent City”. For years it has been a regular hang out for local and transient vagrants who don’t exactly treat it or the people that pass through with respect. Year around it accumulates trash like a landfill and the smell of urine can be over powering at times. Whether or not Mr. Ridgely chooses to point fingers at every single one of this communities many problems as the cause of this problem is irrelevant. Whether or not the Triplicate and Tony Reed have chosen to create a narrative to cast Rodger Gitlin in a negative light to score political points, while ignoring Ms. Murray’s activities in July is also irrelevant. Whether or not the “Savior of the Environment” when it suits him, Bill Lonsdale, creates a false narrative of “Cyber Bullying”, the bottom line is that either Safeway and its manager Brian Ridgely, Crescent City and its police department, or the owners of Jed Smith Shopping Center have a long standing blight and vagrant issue. If Crescent City ever hopes to resurrect itself as a tourist mecca, this kind of behavior, particularly out of commercial interests such as Safeway and its manager, Mr. Ridgely, cannot continue. The appeal of the 101 corridor through Crescent City is a huge influencing factor for visitor who may wish to pause their journey and spend money locally. For Mr. Ridgely, the Triplicate, and Mr. Lonsdale to even suggest that this area is not an issue is preposterous. Further, to obstruct any effort to initiate a clean up and continued maintenance of the area should be viewed as obstructionist and condemned in no uncertain terms. Yet our very own newspaper and regular, when it suits him, environmental savior, is obstructing that effort. Mr. Ridgely, as it would be with any responsible business owner or manager should be falling all over themselves to clean up and mitigate such a mess without being prompted. The very fact that this is not the case should reflect negatively on Mr. Ridgely’s handling of the management of Safeway.
I would venture to guess that politics is the chief motivating factor and not what is beneficial to this community. Perhaps it is time that a concerted effort be made to lobby for change at the Triplicate by contacting Western Communications in Bend, Oregon to ask for a more perceptive and less political editor. Perhaps then the Triplicate can get back to reporting the news rather than go on political “Witch Hunts”.
The manager if you can call him that is a racist women hater and stereotypes everyone. Get rid of him and the rest of the mess is gone. The manager cares about him only, not even the safety of his customers but his employees whose rights… workers rights he breaks daily, hourly and no one complains because they cannot afford to lose their job.
What you failed to mention is the blighted state owned properties that are full of homeless camps that surround Safeway and are the root of Safeway’s problems. and Gitlin does nothing about it. In fact he has not attended a single meeting that pertained to the homeless problem prier to him blaming Safeway. Rodger Gitlin needs to take some the blame for Safeway’s problems and quit blaming others for his inactions.
I didn’t mention the property behind Safeway because it is a completely different issue and not germane specifically to the appearance of Safeway itself. Safeway fronts on Highway 101 North and everyone that is not trying to politicize the problem Safeway presents with a poor visual impact to those that drive by, know this. The fact that homeless people who hang about Safeway and contribute to the problem of a seedy exposure where really no other store along the entirety of a six block long strip mall can be included with Safeway as seedy, is a problem that Roger Gitlin has identified. It is a problem that is Safeway’s exclusively as a store in that area, unless you wish to have Roger stand out in front of Safeway to move the vagrants along or perhaps pressure wash and generally clean up the trash from the sidewalk in front of Safeway every day. Roger, and even his entire group of blight warriors are not going to be able to clean up every trashed property in the County according to each individual person’s perception of which properties are a priority at the moment. You might just cut him a bit of slack if he concentrates on those that effect us most in terms of visual appearance and impact to the public.
To suggest that because he has not been front and center in waving a magic wand to solve a homeless problem that has been on going since before Roger was a Supervisor is a bit much and I do not believe that any efforts to this point by anyone at any meeting have resolved that particular issue. What you seem to miss is that other store owners who have the same IDENTICAL “ROOT OF SAFEWAY’S PROBLEMS”, DO NOT SEEM TO HAVE THE SAME KIND OF PROBLEM KEEPING THEIR RESPECTIVE STORE FRONTS CLEAN! So while Roger has been active in trying to urge Safeway and its manager to clean up their act where exactly is his blame in the matter? A better question to ask, is why are a select group of local citizens, which include his opponent Kathryn Murray, Safeway Manager Brian Ridgely and the local newspaper editor Robin Fornoff, spending such a great deal of effort at politicizing this issue as opposed to simply getting a relatively simple task done as have other stores have done in the very same strip mall under the very same circumstances? Once you take the politics out of it, it becomes kind of simple when you think about it. So what exactly is your political motivation?
Chop down that big bush that creates cover, whereby, casting light on that “black hole”, and plant flowers in it’s place.