Fox Canyon Neighborhood Association, Inc.

The City Heights Area Planning Committee

Re: Response to your letter dated 09/02/04,

September 4, 2004

Ms. Lara Evans, Senior Planner,
Planning Department
202 'C' Street, MS-4A
San Diego, CA 92101-3834

Re: Response to your letter dated 09/02/04, Subject: Splitting the CHAPC in two Planning Groups.

Dear Ms. Evans:

It was with a great deal of interest and respect that I had the opportunity to read your quick response to the email sent. Above all, I want to recognize your dedication, time and patience with me in dealing with this subject, and I do commend your knowledge of the subject matter. In addition, your consultations with Mary Wright and Betsy McCullough lent me the solidarity of a well founded response and future actions.

It is refreshing to read that we both completely agreed in some points made in the email. However, without having any knowledge of City Council Policy 600-24, Standard Operating Procedures and Responsibilities of Recognized Community Planning Committees, and Administrative Guidelines for Council Policy 600-24, I am at a comparative lost of the list of controlled and standard behavior expected as proper action and procedures for such committees.

Whereas, derogatory and expressed behavior might NOT completely violate Council Policy 600-24 or one of its (sub) sections, it might violate the spirit of the Policy, and the perception of fitness, fairness and due process; open mind debate of issues at hand, and NOT be moral or ethical in a forum of this nature. Therefore, the continued assertion of the following points:

1. As an ADVISORY group, the functions of any Area Planning Committee is to be reactive and representational of the council received, will, needs and desires of its constituents, as its primary duty. Hereby, the need to assert our rights to have the committee members loyal to the wishes of their constituent, at all cost Then, see if a proposed development fits, and if it's consistent with existing and approved area plans. Lastly, see if such proposed development fits with the existing character, scale and style of the host location, community and neighborhood. Therefore, when elected members of a committee set forth and vote for issues addressing only their own particular vision, philosophies and agendas, emotions, knowledge and desires over the objections, needs and wishes of their constituents, they have become DYSFUCTIONAL, non representational and disenfranchising to their constituents.

2. When an area planning group, as a matter of its official land development policy tends to exclude certain CLASSES of People and organized groups [neighborhood Associations] without appropriately, logically and objectively addressing their rights to existence, needs for better housing and appropriate community amenities and infrastructure as a whole, first, such Committee has broken the "public benefit" objectivity of its functions, has became exclusionary towards such classes of people and therefore, DYSFUNCTIONAL. And staff has witnessed these.

3. When MISINFORMATION and coaching are open, rampant and the basis for public policy and decision making; certain Classes of People and organized groups get systematically excluded from the benefit of appropriate representation, discourse; from presenting a logical case to affirmed their rights and are negated the opportunity to appropriately improved their lot. Therefore, such classes or groups of people may look elsewhere for relief and redress. Council and staff scrutiny and the suggestion of splitting the committee in two are just some that quickly come to mind and others follow.

4. In a free and capitalistic society, Corporations are legal citizen of the State upon which they conduct business and are incorporated. Therefore, Land Development Corporations can be subjected to hate crimes and discrimination, as well, just as any biological person would. Whereas, corporations are relentlessly portrayed as unfit and not welcome, in a particular community, to conduct their best business, and when this fact is the committee's sole basis for a decisional vote; when reviewing and recommending approval or denial of a proposed project for a particular area, undue and selective exclusion has occur. Thus, the Committee is DYSFUNC-TIONAL, although, not covenant braking of Council Policy 600-24. Staff has witness this.

5. We should always remember that all city government IS nonpartisan and that forums like the Planning Committees should always be FREE of politicking. Notwithstanding, 1st Amendments rights, when such Land Planning Committees are forums to time consuming, emotionally charged political speeches, the politicizing of serious land development issues affecting people livelihoods, in addition, to the public airing of personal vendettas, disputes and arguments between committee members and the public, that has nothing to do, again, with the Land Development issues at hand, such committee has become highly DYSFUNCTIONAL. Regardless of what Council Policy 600-24 states and facts that staff has witnessed.

Hereby, for "Public Benefit", it is highly recommend tape-recording all CHAPC meetings for accurate record keeping and research. Relaying on staff witness is not historical record, facts might be selective and prong to human error, actions that we should always shield our excellent staff from.

Although, extremely sympathetic, highly and acutely aware of your response point # 4, when there is a strong citizens confidence in the honesty, fair process and superb procedures of government institutions and satellite organizations, the price of serving a totally satisfied and confident community is PRICELESS.

With you help, I will continue to study these matters to seek appropriate relief and to imbed in Council Policy 600-24 [or the Administrative Guidelines for the Policy] recommendations to improve the Area Planning Committee and make it more responsive to and perfect for the classes of people that it represents and to further polish its assigned duty, mission and objectivity.

Ms. Evans, in parting, I just want to thank you again for your availability, time and understanding that the resolution and control to these issues are primordial for total confidence in the CHAPC institution, its procedures and decision making process. As always, I wish you well and the best of happiness and health.

Respectfully,


Jose Lopez

Cc: S. Gail Goldberg, Planning Director
Betsy McCullough, Deputy Director
Mary P. Wright, Program Manager
Steve Russell, CD3
Ron Lacey, CD4
Aimee Faucett, CD7
Elyse Lowe, CD7
Michael Sprague, Chairperson, City Heights Area Planning Committee.