Leakage Problem Starts at the Top

Re “City Learns From Sewage Leak Case,” letter, April 1:

One did not have to read too deeply between the lines in Mayor Pam Julien Houchen’s letter to the editor or Dana Parsons’ column “City Discovers Its Plea Was No Bargain” (April 1) to discover the real “leakage” over the past several years in Huntington Beach. It was the leakage of leadership.

The actions of past City Councils have left the current one with all kinds of messes to deal with. Two new council members, elected in November, show tremendous leadership potential but have walked into crises that have forced them into an uphill learning curve. Houchen has the unenviable task of addressing these crises during her term as mayor. It isn’t fair, but it is reality.

The story “Huntington Beach May Impose Property Fees to Fix Sewers” (April 1) seems to show the current City Council to be courageous enough to buck political turbulence and do what it takes to mitigate this infrastructure problem.

TIM GEDDES

Huntington Beach

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The Huntington Beach City Council allowed the city to overbuild without worrying about existing water and sewer systems and whether they could handle the thousands of additional homes. The Planning Department should have made the developers--not taxpayers--pay to upgrade the systems.

The city recently was caught taxing property owners for the city employee retirement system, which the city should be paying--the renters who live here use city services, not only property owners. We did not elect new people (whom I voted for) so they could dip in our pockets for more taxes! Someone should investigate why Huntington Beach allows developers to overbuild and not contribute to the well-being of the entire city. Or is it that they contribute to the right pockets? Look close at the Wal-Mart.

WILLIAM GLASGOW

Huntington Beach