EDITOR: The views expressed by T.J. McDonald about Croy Fire
victims in his letter published in the June 10 edition of The Times
seem overly simplistic and needlessly harsh to me. I believe he
could have made his point better without the slurs and brutal
recommendations.
EDITOR:
The views expressed by T.J. McDonald about Croy Fire victims in his letter published in the June 10 edition of The Times seem overly simplistic and needlessly harsh to me. I believe he could have made his point better without the slurs and brutal recommendations.
Many of the Croy fire victims had made strenuous efforts to obtain legal permits in spite of the oppressive, confiscatory county “no-growth” policies of the past. Many of them built to code and expended great efforts and life’s savings. Many of them fought a continuing battle against thieves, vandals, dumpers, fire starters, destructive 4-wheelers, shooters, and pot growers, largely from surrounding urban and suburban areas. Many of them spent more money on maintenance and protection of the land and infrastructure to the benefit of the community at large than they would have paid in taxes for a permitted home.
If Mr. McDonald wants to blame someone for the $9 million cost of the fire, he should consider county policies that resulted in the 80-year accumulation of brush which fueled the fire. If they had spent a fraction of that amount helping those landowners in their efforts over the years in brush removal and creating fire breaks, the fire would have been much less severe. Considering that there are still hundreds of “illegal” homes in great expanses of similar steep, heavily fuel-laden regions of the county, this more than an idle point.
Roy Guist, Morgan Hill
