Response to bicycling article
EDITOR: Thanks for the comprehensive look at cyclists riding on our scenic roads surrounding Healdsburg (“Road Warriors,” Healdsburg Tribune, June 22, 2017). Living on very popular Westside Road, my attitude has evolved over the years regarding road use conflicts and it was helpful to get other points of view. Most interesting to me were comments made by Sergeant Crum and Spoke Folk owner Richard Peacock. Two weeks ago he (Peacock) was quoted as saying the only road he advises his customers to avoid is Dry Creek Road, and that he recommends both Westside and Eastside Road has safer roads to ride.
I disagree … I believe roads with designated bike lanes are safer than roads without them. My takeaway on last week’s article is that Richard believes there are distracted drivers on Dry Creek (distracted plus faster speed = more dangerous) but drivers on Westside and Eastside Road “are used to bike traffic,” therefore riders are safer. So Richard, you don’t believe we have distracted drivers here on Westside or Eastside Roads? I wish it were true.
Second point, Seregeant Crum was quoted in your article as saying, “bicycles are not required to stop and get out of way.” Having just finished studying the 2017 DMV handbook, I disagree. Under the slow moving vehicle section on page 58, it states that, “bicyclists and other slow moving vehicles … proceeding at a speed less than the flow of traffic … must turn off the roadway at the nearest place designated as a turnout or wherever sufficient area for a safe turnout exists, if a line of 5 or more vehicles forms behind them.”
And lastly, we live in a farming community. Our valleys offer beautiful scenic farmland views highly promoted and marketed by our city, our county and our state. Why are group rides (both nonprofit and for profit events) allowed to continue and grow in size and intensity without bothering to get special event permits? With harvest intensifying road traffic, why do we continue to allow bike events during it? It was last year during harvest that a rider was killed on Eastside Road while riding in the Tour de Fuzz bike event. This same event is planned once again during early September. Give our grape growers and vineyard management companies some love, and keep bikes off the road, at least during the harvest season. Life is better with balance, we need to find some.
Nancy Citro
Healdsburg
Housing solution
EDITOR: Ray Holley, managing editor of the Healdsburg Tribune, writes in his Main Street column on June 15, 2017, “The law of supply and demand is hogwash in this case,” when discussing our current local housing crises. This statement astonishes me. Henry Wood wrote in 1887: “The law of supply and demand is perhaps the most general and fundamental of all the brotherhood of natural laws, and we have direct relations with it at all times and under all circumstances.”
Surely something is at odds here. Dismissing basic common sense and nature’s balances is at the root of the problem of why we have a housing crisis. The cause of the housing problem is a lack of supply caused by overly restrictive controls; if you don’t understand this you will not be part of the solution. We are in the midst of doing nothing but nonsense right now, perhaps our generation (Baby Boomers) is just too tired and comfortable to really want to help. Unfortunately, by ignoring supply and demand dynamics, we exacerbate the problem instead of solving it.
The best and only way to supply a better balance to our housing needs is to build more houses. I have not seen one other idea that even comes close.
Jim Brush
Healdsburg
Message from Ducky
EDITOR: July 4 promises to be a fun filled day in Healdsburg. After the Boy Scout Pancake Breakfast, join me in the Plaza for the annual Kids Parade and Duck Dash presented by the Sunrise Rotary Club of Healdsburg. The event starts at 10:30 a.m. with the Kids Parade at high noon. Plenty of ducky activities for the entire family and live music with the Russian River Ramblers and KJZY radio. Adopt one of my friends and see us race to the finish line. The fastest ducks will earn their owners fabulous prizes. This annual event is a great way to celebrate our nations birth and our great community. See you Tuesday in the Plaza.
The Sunrise Rotary Rubber Ducky
Healdsburg
Loss of trees
EDITOR: This summer, thanks to the amazing generosity of the Healdsburg community, Healdsburg High School is undergoing exciting renovations. We are constructing a brand new agriculture science classroom, modernizing the 60-year-old Smith Robinson Gym, including a new floor, bleachers and acoustic treatments and finally, replacing the aged roofing and HVAC systems in the main building.
I am writing to make the community aware of an issue with our gym modernization that recently arose and was discussed at our last board meeting on June 21. When removing the floor from the gym, construction crews found that tree roots had grown under the gym and were forcing the cement slab to buckle. Two separate arborists were consulted to identify the trees and possible courses of action. It quickly became apparent that the roots were from four Coastal Redwoods that were unwisely planted too close to the building approximately 60 years ago. The trees in question are immediately adjacent to the gym and not part of the iconic “Grove.”
Because a functioning gym is a necessity for a comprehensive high school and essential for the start of classes in August, the decision to remove the invasive roots was made. Furthermore, without root systems intact, there is a risk that the trees may fall, presenting a huge safety hazard to our students and community members. Thus, the final decision was made to remove the trees.
While we regret having to remove the beautiful redwoods, we are committed to replacing them in the future with other equally desirable trees that are more suited to exist in close proximity to buildings. Furthermore, the wood from the redwoods will be harvested and used in district programs, such as projects in our Construction And Sustainability Academy.
Again, we are sorry to have to remove these trees, but do believe it is in the best interest of our students and programs. Should you have any questions or concerns please feel free to contact my office directly at 431-3488.
Chris Vanden Heuvel
Healdsburg Unified School District Superintendent
Disagrees with tone
EDITOR: Ken Buchignani’s June 22 letter misrepresented the tone of the June 5 city council meeting. The main item of discussion was for council members to approve or deny his appeal to their decision to grant the Paul Mahder Gallery a conditional use permit for a third-party operator to sell wine at the gallery. His characterization of the meeting’s attendees was so wrong that I wonder if he and I had been at the same hearing.
Mr. Buchignani described the many townspeople who turned out to support Paul Mahder as “[resembling] a uniformed emotionally charged, unruly response to a serious citizen’s concern …”
That is not an accurate description. Those who showed up for the hearing listened politely when he and his attorney addressed the council. If there were attendees there in support of Mr. Buchignani, they did not make themselves known.
In contrast, those many people who got up to speak were unanimous in their support of Mr. Mahder’s project, citing his many contributions to the community to make Healdsburg a better place to live. After the first 10 or so speakers, I stopped counting.
It’s hard to tell if this show of support influenced the council members’ decision to deny the appeal, but that was the right decision to make. After many months of dutifully responding to the city’s requests and requirements, Mr. Mahder is finally able to move forward with his project.
Randy Varney
Healdsburg
