RED ALERT -- OUR PROPERTY RIGHTS DENIED IN SANTA CRUZ COUNTY, CALIFORNIA

[Jonez712]

Recently, my family has decided to do some work on our backyard, which includes felling some useless trees. As many of you probably know, this is one of the most liberal counties in the country. In fact, Santa Cruz county employs more people than any other county in the state, aside from Los Angeles county. And the difference here is that our county has a population of less than 150,000, and Los Angeles county has a population of over 10 million...

Naturally, with this kind of ulta-liberal collectivism going on in a county, the Board of Stupidvisors will get out of hand. These mentally-warped fools have passed certain regulations, supposedly in the name of saving the "enviiiiironnnmeennt," that are outright un-Constitutional violations of our property rights. In an effort to save "old grooooowwwth," the illiberal stupidvisors have made felonious to fell a tree, a TREE, in your own backyard, on your own property that you bought and that you own, without a permit, which costs time and money to obtain.

So now we have to go down to the big county building (a shrine to liberalism) and get down on our knees and beg permission from the almighty stupidvisors to simply cut down a couple trees on our own property.

Sounds like a great liberal idea, doesn't it??

[Jonez712]

That's insane. We always hear about all these people getting shot up in Salinas, and while that's going on they're worried about the kind of flower you plant! That's a good liberal idea!!

[Jonez712]

Yeah, that's the problem, the 9th Jerk-it Court of Schlemielles doesn't make rulings based on the Bill of Rights and the rest of the Constitution.

And as a 16-year-old, I don't exactly have $500,000 to invest in that project. :p

[Fraulein]

I bought the plants anyway.

Good for you. There's nothing I hate more than an unsolicited finger-wagging lecture from some busybody stranger, particularly when the issue is so ridiculous.

[Jonez712]

Ha, some neighbor that guy is. :p

[eXe]

I hear ya, I live in Monterey myself, so I hear about santa cruz sillyness often. Sorry to hear they are giving you a hard time, perhaps something could just "happen" to these trees by "accident" :)

[Colinsky]

The case I liked was in Santa Barbara in the late 80s...actor Fess Parker was ordered by the fire department to clear hazardous brush from his property, or face legal proceedings. Parker cleared the brush, and then was fined $25,000 by the Coastal Commission for failure to get a permit to clear the wetlands brush.

[Laserman]

Me too here in the People's Republic of Boulder County, CO.

[Laserman]

Here in Boulder, CO we have formed a public group called The Land Use Coalition to combat our county commissioners and their unconstitutional regulations. We have been successful in fighting them. We have also gone around them to the state legislature to rein in their abuses. Half our membership are tax and spend liberals who were s%rewed by their own liberal Dem commissioners.

[Jonez712]

Sounds like a good idea, but here in California our entire leadership stands against us. You guys actually have a good governor and a GOP legislature over there in Colorado. :p

[kitkat]

***Here in Boulder, CO we have formed a public group called The Land Use Coalition...***

I am SO glad to hear that you are fighting them. Good for you.

[muawiyah]

Your trick is to Look at and enjoy your neighbors' trees while avoiding the cost of fertilizer and water for trees on your own property.

You should have checked into the laws before you moved to Santa Cruz. Sounds to me like you want some "outside agitators" from FreeRepublic to do a nightride to assist you.

Ain't gonna' happen. One thing for sure, just about all of us believe in the right of local folks to pass local laws and to keep the federales (and their state equivalents) OUT OF OUR NEIGHBORHOODS as much as possible.

I suggest you go to Democrats Underground for companionship in this one.

[RightWhale]

You still have time to study up on political theory and history before you can run for mayor. Get your theory and philosophy well under control and go for it.

[hedgetrimmer]

Check out this collectivist's dream program.....

Public comment sought on toilet retrofit program
By JONDI GUMZ
Sentinel staff writer
A calculation error means good news for builders in the Soquel Creek Water District, which is trying to reduce overpumping and prevent saltwater intrusion for its 45,000 customers.

Chris Regan, the district’s conservation coordinator, discovered a miscalculation Thursday in the formula used to figure the cost of retrofitting homes with low-flow toilets to reduce water consumption.

As a result, the cost for builders would be less than original projection of $4,600 per family home.

Regan said he would have new cost figures for directors to review July 1. Directors would have the option of amending the program they outlined Tuesday night. They planned to ask for public comment Aug. 5.

The district is the first in the county to consider a zero-impact water conservation program. Among the key elements:


Builders must replace water-wasting toilets with low-flow models at a 1.2-to-1 ratio. That figure was chosen because toilets become less efficient as they age, consuming more water. Under the new calculation, eight older toilets — not 12 — would be replaced to offset water use for each new single-family home.

Builders would pay up to $410 for a toilet and up to $50 for a showerhead and faucet, based on a national average. If costs were higher, the owner of the existing facilities would pay.

The district would charge $46 for inspections of new toilets.

To assist builders, the district would compile a list of customers interested in low-flow toilets.
"I see this as an opportunity to address the water deficit," said director Bruce Jaffe, who was elected to the board in November. "It’s expensive upfront, but it’s a fraction of the cost of a supplemental water supply."

Directors agreed overpumping was a problem but spent considerable time hashing out the details of the new program.

They opted to hire a new employee rather than contract for inspections. The cost, including salary, benefits, a truck and a computer, would be about $82,000.

They also discussed whether builders should pay for toilet retrofits or whether district ratepayers should shoulder some of the expense.

Eventually, they agreed to target new construction first and, in six months, push existing customers to install low-flow toilets.

Regan pointed out Thursday the cost would be less because of the miscalculation.

More homeowners are replacing toilets with low-flow models since the county adopted a policy requiring the change when homes are sold. The district offers a $75 rebate as an incentive.

Rebate requests jumped to 87 in one month, compared to 30 to 50 before the county policy changed.

However, not everyone is sold on the idea that new hookups should replace toilets for district customers to save water.

"You expect me to go down the street and ring door bells and ask people to put in low-flow toilets?" asked Roger Stonier, who is planning to build a home. "I don’t have the time."

Regan said he expected plumbers to see the new rules as a business opportunity and help builders find properties to retrofit. That was the case in San Luis Obispo, he said.

Contact Jondi Gumz at jgumz@santa-cruz.com.
http://www.santacruzsentinel.com/archive/2003/June/21/local/stories/09local.htm

[Scothia]

HUH? What kind of flowers did she have planted?

Just your normal, everyday annuals. Apparently Barney Fife of the Flower Patrol thought we'd use too much water for them and ordered us to pull them out.

Another customer got very upset. It didn't matter if the plants were sterile. She insisted that I was about to commit a crime against Mother Earth. She just would NOT shut up. No proof in the world would satisfy her.

True story: Construction worker guy I knew, whom I'll call Ed, was doing a job at a farm devoted to animal rights located outside of Watkins Glen, NY. (Yes, you read right: an animal rights farm. They "shelter" animals which are "liberated" from regular farms.)

He was minding his own business, when approached by one of the guys for whom this so-called rescue of animals is a religion. Conversation went like this:

Animal Rights loony, aggressive and sneering: "So, Mr. Construction Man, what are you having for dinner tonight, hmmmmm?"

Ed, trying hard not to punch out the pasty-faced hippie getting in his face: "Chickens. Two of 'em. Raw!!"

[Scothia]

Yeah I'm only 16, meaning I can neither vote nor circulate petitions.

You're only 16 and you're posting here? Yeeeeehaaa! Give me more hope for the future!

[DannyTN]

I'm sure some roundup drilled into the roots would probably acomplish the same thing only faster.

[Lancey Howard]

Well, hammer some big copper nails into the tree trunks and wait awhile, then (presumably) you can cut down dead trees, no? Maybe a healthy dose of 'Roundup" on the leaves would do the trick, I don't know.

But truthfully? I would get out of that toilet as fast as my legs can run. Flee. Just get out. Don't end up like those white farmers in Zimbabwe who stuck it out for too long, hoping against hope for a miracle, only to end up either murdered or with their farms confiscated from under them.

The time to get out of that foul pisspot is NOW.

Good luck,
LH

[Sir Francis Dashwood]

There's nothing I hate more than an unsolicited finger-wagging lecture from some busybody stranger... Me too. I usually use some really foul language (that I won't use here) and create a huge scene, then happily go about my business as if nothing happened.

[graycamel]

This is California, especially Santa Cruz:



I saw this place in Venice Beach but the pic was from a website. The protesters are Tibetans.

[Jonez712]

Yeah I was 10 years old when we moved here. Thanks for the kind suggestions though.


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