Permaculture, the Santa Cruz Warriors and Micah Posner’s shelter sleepover strike a chord with readers.
Hoping This Is Not Sarcasm
Just wanted you to know I really liked your permaculture feature (Home & Garden, April 24), and also enjoyed reading “How the Santa Cruz Warriors Took the City by Storm” (Currents, April 24).
I can guess how much work it takes to gather and present all that goes into each issue, and I appreciate the good work you are doing. Thanks for the contribution you are making to our community.
LeAnn Meyer
Santa Cruz
Hoping This Is Sarcasm
With all the current focus on making Santa Cruz a safer place to live, I certainly hope that changing certain problem areas will be part of that solution. One particular area that should be of concern is Neary Lagoon Co-op at the end of Chestnut St. As a former neighbor of the city-mandated, low-income housing project, I will be glad to have that great location renovated and swept clean of the section 8'ers who currently occupy a neighborhood that is (thankfully) becoming a safer and more affluent area. In order to maintain and encourage that security, Neary Lagoon Co-op should shut down, let them all move to hotels, shelters, or Watsonville, then re-opened so I can move in and pay a fair market price for the great location. After all, why should low-income people have such a desirable location, close to the beach, downtown, and shopping when people like me spend more money there?
Name Withheld By Request
Santa Cruz
FROM THE WEB
Fighting Chance
Re: “Shelter Sleepover” (Briefs, April 24): I think that it takes courage and heart to attempt putting yourself in the shoes of others, especially when you may have a public or political reputation to protect. I commend council member Micah Posner for not shying away from the reality of the homeless issues our county is facing, and although I don’t agree with fabricating a story to get his foot in the door or gain the confidence of the people who use the shelter for support, I think the larger point is clear. Obviously this shelter is necessary. It needs to stay, and could use additional funding for programs that help people get back on their feet after tough addiction issues, or financial hardships. Excluding those who choose a transient lifestyle, there are those who truly seek to be active and useful members of a community and society. That is why the shelter exists, and should continue to work to ease the incredible emotional and mental burdens that come with not being able to provide for oneself or family. It is these basic services and access to support that have made it possible for me, a current graduate student, to get up when I myself was homeless and broke. People are incredibly strong, if only given a fighting chance and a shoulder to lean on in tough times. It is no proud or easy place to be in one’s life when you find the bottom, and the journey back to normalcy is long and winding. Please share this sentiment with our council members as they debate how best to support those most in need of opportunities to reintegrate and build positive options in their lives.
Amber Schat
Crash Course
Re: “Shelter Sleepover”: Wow. One night in a homeless shelter, and now he’s an expert with the power to “Do something about it!” This reminds me of all those college kids that go to some third world country and come back and have a crystal clear understanding of the personal plight of the native peoples of…wherever.
Brian Christian
