Letters to the Argus-Courier, May 19, 2023

Well fees

EDITOR: Living in unincorporated West County where most residents rely on their wells for potable water, we are already burdened with considerable costs to maintain our wells and service our drinking water.

There is proposed legislation in West County to meter wells which would add additional costs and is frankly inequitable. Why should local homeowners be metered at the same rate as our farming and winery neighbors, when they are far greater consumers of water than the average homeowner? These commercial entities should have stricter water regulations, and will continue to over-consume until proper legislation is implemented.

In areas where water is offered as a utility, metering water services and penalizing people when they are over their water allowance could incentivize water conservation, however living in the country on our own regulated wells, we have the built-in incentive of water conservation — the more water we use the more we are straddled with costs to maintain and service our wells.

Residents should not be burdened with well metering, only commercial entities. If the city or governing body provides no resource, protection, or value in the event of aquifers or wells running dry, then they have no right to regulate homeowners’ wells.

Maia Hawkins-Litvin

Sebastopol

A welcome surprise

EDITOR: In this seeming era of ubiquitous divisiveness, I want to share an offsetting experience I had: I loaded 40 16-foot boards from Friedman’s onto the rack of my van and headed home. I didn’t strap them down really securely because I figured I lived close and would just drive slowly. Unexpectedly, my transmission decided to fail as I headed up East Washington Street in traffic. My van lunged unexpectedly, and all 40 boards slid off onto the road behind me. Nightmare.

A dude in a Lexus jumped out of his car and I thought, “This guy is pissed and going to tell me how stupid I am.” He immediately started grabbing boards and lifting them back onto my van. Then a cop showed up, and I thought, “Oh, no, he’s going to bust me.” He turned on his lights and smiled at me compassionately saying, “It happens.” Then a man in a pickup came and offered to load it all onto his truck rack, which we did. I tried to give him $60 for his help. He said, “No way. This has happened twice to me too.”

All three of my preconceptions were wrong. Life and people can be very sweet.

Nathaniel Roberts

Petaluma

Preserve Historic District

EDITOR: John Patrick Sheehy’s article, “The Birth of Petaluma’s ‘River City’ Revival” is timely — published only weeks after the announcement of the proposed hotel, Appellation, on Petaluma Boulevard and B Street.

The hotel would be sited within the Historic District that former Mayor Helen Putnam and others created, and embraced by locals and visitors alike. I moved to Petaluma in 1985 and was impressed by the lively and thriving use of the historic downtown despite considerable development offering shopping and other services. Residents used the downtown everyday to conduct business, dine out and shop. It was a place I wanted to live.

Time does not stand still and Petaluma has doubled in size and development since I first arrived, but the Historic District has always been a constant — a restful respite from the sameness of strip malls and shopping centers. With a few exceptions, the district is mostly intact.

The Petaluma Hotel and Sunset Line and Twine were renovated into lovely hotels that maintain the character the Historic District. Allowing Appellation to be built as proposed would be a slap in the face to those who invested a lot into renovating old buildings and maintaining the architectural character for their businesses.

As Mr. Sheehy reminds us, the Historic District didn’t just happen and we have a lot to lose if we allow it to be chipped away by developers who have no idea what Petaluma is about.

Nancy Rogers

Petaluma

Historic buildings

EDITOR: Your coverage of historic buildings in Petaluma has sparked an interest.

I have been told by the proprietors of the Petaluma Collective Antique and Militaria Mall that their building at 300 Petaluma Blvd N. was once a Levi Strauss factory and outlet. I can find no collaboration of this but assume you would be better equipped to do so if it were true.

I am assuming it might make a good article for your newspaper, to which I am a subscriber.

John McNees

Petaluma

Send letters to publisher Emily Charrier at [email protected].