Imagine Fanita Ranch in Fire's Course
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San Diego Union-Tribune
LETTERS
Imagine Fanita Ranch in fire's course
November 13, 2003
Connie M. Willis' Nov. 6 letter, "The no-growthers hurt our city," blames her perceived problems in Santee on government and Van Collinsworth.
It seems to me democracy is just fine in Santee. Willis should recall that Fanita Ranch wasn't developed because over 60 percent of Santee voters did not want it developed. Now, in the wake of the tragic fire that burned through Fanita Ranch, that decision is even more prophetic.
Imagine the destruction that might have occurred had nearly 3,000 units been built there. Our terrific firefighters would have been stretched much thinner trying to protect an incredibly larger Santee urban area, not to mention the impossibility of quickly evacuating an additional 10,000 residents from that cul-de-sac of land with limited vehicular access.
The people of Santee should take pride that their wisdom may have saved lives and property.
Since Willis is a mortgage broker, she's most likely aware of the huge amount of refinancing that has occurred in the past few years. Many of us who have refinanced are staying in Santee and upgrading our homes. Many Santee homeowners are remodeling and adding additions to their houses. As a result, Santee is increasing its move-up housing stock and tax base without the added expense of sprawl.
Meanwhile, Santee has more housing, more children and more shopping in the core of our city than we've ever had. That's the definition of "smart growth." And frankly, thanks to Van Collinsworth and Preserve Wild Santee's efforts, our center of town is more pedestrian oriented and quality designed than originally planned. Santee's finances are sound and we have the highest median income of any city in the East County. Can we do better? Sure. But building houses miles from our town center and adding tens of thousands more car trips per day to our already overburdened streets will not make Santee a better place for those of us who live here.
G.T. WALTERS
Santee