HG: My Perspective on our town, Los Alamitos
January 10, 2013 in 2013 Issues, City Budget, Crime and police, Highlands Guy's Thursday Columns By: Highlands Guy
(Los Alamitos, 1/10/2013 by Highlands Guy) Current estimates by the US Census Bureau put the population of the world at about 7 billion humans. They say in the good old United States we have close to 312 million fellow Americans.
Let’s narrow things down a bit, with our friends and neighbors in the Golden State at around 37.7 million. Down one more notch to Orange County, containing 3 million folks. And, you guessed it, at the bottom, or top, of it all is Los Al with about 11 and a half thousand gentle souls.
If my numbers are right this puts us at 0.00002% of the population of the Earth.
More numbers to think about. The FY2012/13 Los Al budget is $16,593,296.00. The budget for the country of Nauru is $13,500,00.00, and for the Pitcairn Islands is $1.028m.
An old study put the global average annual income at $7,000.00. India is in at $3,627.00, and Russia at a whopping, $21,245.00. Compare this with 45% of your neighbors bringing in $75,000.00 or more. And just for a bit more point of reference, the stats show at least 45% of us have college educations. We equal Japan, are just above Ireland (at 43.9%), and compare to women in Afghanistan at just 12.6%.
In a really elite group?
Those are the numbers. Seems to me that puts us in a really elite grouping. And I would put forth that the numbers indicate more than meets the eye, or more correctly, less than meets the Los Al eye.
One of the conclusions one can make is that yes, we are an infinitesimally small part of the global community. But what also emerges is that with our cultural, social, and civic resources, we can, and should be, so much more. And I think this is even more evident with the recent push for ideas on how to spend seemingly, excess money in the city coffers.
With this in mind there is no reason we should not have really good parks, with grass, lighting, and irrigation systems that reflect our affluence. And while we’re talking parks, how about some upgrades to the tennis courts. Geeze, even our brothers and sisters in little ‘ol Rossmoor enjoy courts with consistent playing surfaces that are kept free of debris.
And before I forget, I’ve got to throw in that for all the uproar and money spent at the last minute for street pole Christmas decorations, it sure seems reasonable that most of them should work. Come on guys, it’s not that big of a deal. I’ve seen higher quality stuff in cities without the foundational support or folks with the where-with-all found within our boundaries.
And without any reservations, we should expect our streets to be safer than in most places around the world, including Huntington Beach, Schenectady, Katmandu, and Port Au Prince.
Anything missing?
Given our myriad of resources, we should be dazzled by the arboreal splendor as you stroll through our neighborhoods and along our main thoroughfares. But, sadly, that is not the case.
We fall all over ourselves to brag about the 900+ API scores in the LAUSD empire, yet can’t claim to have a book store anywhere near our city.
When one crosses into Los Al from anywhere else, and missed seeing the little signs with our name on them, would you know you’re in the city?
And what city worth its weight does not see local folks walking all over the place? Not only is it a health benefit, but it is a positive influence on local businesses, as well as a passive crime deterrent.
Steps towards doing better:
So, from the perspective of a really elite group of people, synthesized down from a global population, there should be no reason that we shouldn’t enjoy all sorts of things related to generally accepted quality of life components.
It’s not rocket science folks, it just takes an effective paid staff pushed to excellence by the governed.
“Our species needs, and deserves, a citizenry with minds wide awake and a basic understanding of how the world works.”
-Carl Sagan. (1934-1996) Astronomer, astrophysicist, cosmologist, science
communicator.
…And that’s just the way I see it.
I live here in Los Al, but I don’t walk here. I like to walk in pretty places, with trees. It nice to walk without car exhaust in your face. Not gonna happen here in los al.
“And what city worth its weight does not see local folks walking all over the place? Not only is it a health benefit, but it is a positive influence on local businesses, as well as a passive crime deterrent.”
Drive down Brookhurst from Westminster to Bolsa. Not a lot of people “walking” around. Try Beach from Bolsa to Edinger. Von Karman Ave from Campus Drive to the 405?
Not a lot of walking going on. Not every location in Southern California is 2nd Street in Belmont Shore or Main Street in Huntington Beach or Main Street in Seal Beach. Heck, leave Main Street in Seal Beach going north to PCH and look for walkers from Bolsa Ave to the County line along PCH… nada!
I once walked from South Street and Studebaker to Katella and Lexington. Everyone thought I was nuts. We don’t walk. We, for the most part, won’t even ride a bike. Not long ago I dropped my car at Matrix Motors (Cerritos and Valley View), walked to Costco and picked up some things. Put them over my shoulder and walked the mile home. I agree walking is good, but in the entire walk I didn’t see anyone else doing it, and I never will.
So, let’s break out of Disney-like fantasy and deal with the reality that we live in our motorized boxes. Whether it be the Poe/Edgar/Jempsa fantasyland of a downtown concept, or the belief that somehow we will all abandon our speedy cages and move back to the leisurely pace of walking places, it’s not reality. Look at any parking lot and watch the mad dash each car makes to get the closest spot to the store door. There would have to be a major shift in reality before Los Al was a walking paradise, or even an idea that has legs.
HG, I’m not knocking the thought. I walked a mile or two in those shoes. But then again, I am a guy who walked uphill to and from school, three miles each way, in the snow that was three feet deep in the drifts when I was a kid (just ask my kids, they have heard that enough) so walking is not foreign to me. It’s just in CA you walk at a destination. The mall, the beach, the pier, or even a park (and yes, I agree that we should make ours as attractive as possible in Los Al)..
Highlands guy as usual has hit the nail on its proverbial head. However, it is hard to spend the money infrastructure when the council is faced with difficult alternative… a 9% raise for staff making over $100k/yr.
Budget decisions become easier when those in charge remember who works for whom. Managers of people need to be firm but fair and realize that in army and a corporation (including the corporation called “The City”) everyone is expendable.
JM is correct in his reality assessment. Los Al is a “bedroom” community. Most people work outside the city, our businesses primarily service oriented. We are 99% built-out. Like it or not we are a patch work of development and not a planned community like Irvine. That does not mean cannot evolve and become updated. We can, but it has to be done by taking the long view with respect to zone changes (today) and the realization that the city (future) will continue beyond our temporary involvements. Example… the zone change from industrial to retail of the corner of Katella and Portal (Davita). That parcel of land is not just the corner it extrends back another 2 acres. In 25 years that will become a major retail location in the city.
Like JM I told my kids I used to walk 2 miles to school in the snow with the wind blowing so hard that I would take one step forwar and get blown 2 steps back, so I had to walk backwards just to get to school.
Does this remind you of anyone? http://www.ocregister.com/articles/agran-382984-krom-park.html
If anyone in Los Al thinks that our past city council meetings were unusual, childish or unproductive then you live with your head in the sand. Los al council meetings are no different than any other city in the USA. Don’t think for one minute that all the council members want the BEST for their city. Some do it for their personal legacy, some do it for their future chance at higher office, some do it because they are tired of seeing their tax dollars going down the toilet.
Be grateful when you vote for that sincere candidate that they actually turn out to be the council member who really does want to do the best thing for the community. The council member who does the right thing which sometimes means they will vote differently than their fellow council members. It’s OK to have a discussion, even if it become heated. It’s NOT ok to form a kingdom and let the common people eat cake much like they did here and in Irvine. That fall from the throne can be a hard one !