CRA News February 2004

Selected articles from the newsletter of the Carmel Residents Association

Lou and Elisabeth Ungaretti are featured in this month's CRA Profiles. The patio wall behind them was built in 1937 by Elisabeth's father, using locally-made adobe bricks.

It's Citizen of the Year Time

President's Message
It's election and learning time!

by Larry Rodocker

It's election time again in Carmel. The 2004 election is right around the corner and electioneering is starting for mayor and two city council seats. You may know who the candidates are and general comments made by them on why they want to be elected. However, this is a very important election and there are major issues which will influence the future of Carmel-by-the-Sea.

So, for whom will you vote? What are you going to do when approached by a candidate and he or she says, "Hello, I am a candidate for office here in Carmel. I can make a difference and would sure like to have your vote on election day. Will you vote for me?" Will you give this candidate your vote or will you ask first how he or she stands on key issues. The following, to me, are important questions the candidates should answer:

1. What steps are needed to balance the city budget while still maintaining a high service level?

2. What are some new revenue streams to strengthen the financial picture for Carmel? The key word is "stream." Revenue must be continuous and, if possible, impervious to economic downturns.

3. How strongly do you support the Carmel Fire Department? Should it be consolidated with another outside entity?

4. While the firehouse is being seismically retrofitted, should it also be upgraded or should a new firehouse be built at a new location? How would this be financed?

5. What should happen to Flanders Mansion and the Scout House?

6. How would you make the Sunset Center a financially-independent (subsidized as little as possible by the city) operation while retaining a world-class operation?

7. How important are reforestation and the replacement of major trees as they die?

8. How will you maintain an open city government and keep the public aware of city issues?

CRA PROFILES
by Walter Gourlay

Elisabeth and Lou Ungaretti,
quintessential Carmelites

Elisabeth and Lou Ungaretti moved from San Francisco to Carmel on April 21, 1971. "I'm very sure of the date," says Elisabeth, "because it was exactly six weeks after our second child, Cynthia, was born." Elisabeth had grown up in Carmel in a family that had resided here for generations, but as a young woman in vibrant San Francisco she had at first been reluctant to move back to the "sticks." "I thought it was filled with old fogies," she recalls. But after the two moved here she found that most of her new friends were her own age or younger.

Lou, son of a concrete contractor, was born in San Francisco and attended Lick-Wilmerding, a private college- preparatory school, the oldest high school in the city. He was drafted into the Army in 1946 and discharged the following year. Accepted by Cogswell College in San Francisco, he majored in building construction, went to work for his father in the concrete business and later became a contractor on his own. During this period he taught concrete technology through a union program for apprentices, and then in the Manpower Development Training Program set up by the federal government for unemployed youth. "Those kids were pretty tough," Lou says, "but I was tougher. Of course I was younger then." In those days, he reflects, there were jobs if you had the right training, but those conditions no longer exist.

Mutual friends introduced Lou to Elisabeth Gilbert and "one thing led to another," Elisabeth says. They were married in November, 1966, in Bridgehampton, Long Island, where her family was then visiting. "It was windy and cold," they both recall. They were eager to return to the California climate.

Elisabeth attended Anna Head School in Berkeley, and then Radcliffe. Her interests were English, history and art, "I was a typical liberal arts undergraduate," she observes. After a year she relocated in San Francisco to work on the reservations desk of United Airlines. In the late Fifties she travelled in Europe for a year and a half and upon returning to San Francisco worked for Lufthansa until she met Lou. "And the rest," she jokes "is history."

Not wanting to live in a big city, the couple checked out various locations and although Elisabeth was hesitant, they finally chose Carmel. They've never regretted the decision and have come to love this community by the sea. "I liked the atmosphere, the trees, and the ability to walk all over town, meeting other people who were walking," Lou says.

Lou had a contractor's license, and built and remodeled houses. A major project was the remodeling of their own house, in which Elisabeth had grown up, on Torres and 10th. It had a distinguished Carmel history. Both James Hopper and George Sterling, members of the famed "Bohemian crowd" of Carmel in the early part of the last century had lived in it. Their group included Jack London, Mary Austin, Sinclair Lewis and other writers who no doubt visited the house. "It took us three months," Lou says, "to exorcize the ghosts," referring to the antiquated wiring and archaic plumbing left from the past. The house had burned down in 1926, but the beams had been salvaged, and it was rebuilt in 1927.

The couple have two children, Elena, now living in Sacramento, and Cynthia, residing with her husband in Boston. When the daughters went off to college, Lou retired from his contracting business and he and Elisabeth devoted their time to serving the community they had come to love. In 1991 Lou was elected to the Board of Directors of the Carmel Residents Association, and became its treasurer. Since then he's been an indispensable member. Among his many contributions he's been a mainstay of the Hospitality Committee, where his genial good humor has been a byword. A current member of the CRA Board, he's also on the Board of the Tor House Foundation.

For some time Lou was a member of the committee which surveyed landlord-tenant relations and studied how to get more resident-serving businesses in town. Later he was on the Business District Advisory Committee, composed of business people and residents, which advised the city administrator and City Council. That group, Lou says, has been ignored in the recent past by the city administration and is now defunct.

"Carmel was a more comfortable place to live ten years ago than it is today," Lou recalls. "The changes that have taken place since the rise in property values are ruining the town. The whole concept of Carmel as a small town has changed. There's less and less community involvement, and fewer residents to draw from."

Elisabeth has been equally active in the community, and is equally outspoken. At about the same time Lou joined the CRA Board, she joined the Board of the Carmel Heritage Society and is currently on the Board of the Carmel Public Library Foundation. In 1995 she was appointed to the Cultural Commission by then mayor Ken White. She chaired it for two years. "It was a great group of people working to preserve the character of our community," she says. She particularly enjoyed working with former city staff member Brian Donoghue, who she says was "great." Elisabeth deplores the fact that the Commission is being ignored these days by the present city administration. "It's not only a shadow of its former self," she says, "but nobody in City Hall now listens to it."

They both fear for the future of Carmel. "I get very emotional about what's going on," Lou says, "even though I'm very even-tempered for an Italian."

The Ungarettis visit Cynthia and her husband in Massachusetts frequently and love to dine at the restaurants in the North End, the famed Italian section of Boston. And every couple of years they travel to Italy, where Lou has family. But their hearts remain in Carmel.

Winter Storm Preparation and Awareness
by Carmel Fire Department Captain Mitch Kastros

In late December a storm dropped over three and one-half inches of rain upon us in a span of about four hours. The City's storm drains and curbs were unable to properly route the unusually large volume of water in the ways they were designed. The tremendous overflow in the streets forced runoff not only into, but also through people's yards, threatening damage to property. The fire department received about twenty calls within a short period of time, quickly exhausting available resources. Calls needed to be prioritized and people had to wait for help.

There is still a good portion of winter left and storms will be hitting us off and on for the next several weeks. Although we do not normally receive storms with the magnitude of the one in December, there is always that possibility. With this in mind, an ounce of prevention will certainly go a long way in preventing problems.

With our advanced technology, up-to-the-minute weather reports are available through the Internet. If you do not have access to quick updates, call the fire department and we will provide you with whatever information we have.

Many citizens in town have electric pumps that can be activated automatically or manually. They should be serviced regularly and checked frequently to make sure debris is not inhibiting their function. We recommend if you are planning on installing this type of system, get one that can handle larger volumes of water. Although you may not need this kind of capability that often, when the time comes, you will be prepared.

Make sure your rain gutters and downspouts are cleared of debris to allow water to exit properly. Clogged gutters can cause unexpected flooding and other property damage. The fire department will help you in this situation, but during heavy storm activity, as mentioned earlier, it may take us a while to respond to your call. All of our resources will be committed in these situations, and the availability of our neighboring departments for mutual aid will most likely not exist.

If you suspect you will need sandbags, prepare in advance. The time to locate and fill sandbags is not during a heavy storm. If you have had problems in the past or suspect you may have them during the winter, keep some filled sandbags handy. Empty sandbags along with a sand pile and shovel can be found in the Vista Lobos parking lot on the west side of Torres between Third and Fourth. The sand and bags are located inside the Torres Street entrance to the complex. At the moment, the fire department has a limited supply of filled sandbags, so if you think you might need some, now is the time to call.

Portable generators can ease the frustration and concern that come during a power outage, but only if used properly and according to manufacturer's specifications. Most portable generators are designed to have appliances plugged into them. They are not designed to back-feed, or be plugged into outlets or other receptacles to provide power to a building. This is a risky and illegal practice that can ruin the generator, electrical systems and appliances, cause a fire and/or electrocute someone in the field who thinks he or she is dealing with a dead wire or electrical system. This situation occurs when a generator is plugged back (back-fed) into a receptacle, which causes power to be generated in the building. The power also feeds back into the service wire, which supplies power to the building, and also back into the primary utility wire. A small generator can supply enough energy to seriously injure, or kill an unsuspecting worker who thinks the environment is safe.

If you need to have your entire building powered during an outage, generating systems which are safe and legal can be installed. PG&E or a licensed electrical contractor are the best available resources for more information.

Local history lecture

Enterprising Women:

Anne Nash and Dorothy Bassett

Longtime Carmel resident and CRA member Lani Fremier will give us insight into the bygone days of Carmel when she shares the diaries of Anne Nash, who in 1921 built a home in Carmel along with her friend Dorothy Bassett. Lani will present a colorful description of the struggle of two women to support themselves and build a life in the community.

The program will be held on Monday, Feb. 22, at 10:30 a.m. and 2:30 p.m. in the Park Branch of the Harrison Memorial Library, corner of 6th and Mission streets.

OLD CARMEL
by Connie Wright

Frederick Bechdolt:
one of the Carmel bunch

Fred Bechdolt, Jimmy Hopper and Michael Williams, in 1911, on Ocean Avenue. Photo by Louis Slevin, photographer and postmaster. The post office is to the left in the photo. The photograph is courtesy of the Local History Room, Harrison Memorial Library.

Frederick (Bech) Bechdolt, writer, was born in Pennsylvania, July 27, 1874. The family moved to Seattle, where his father was a professor of German at the University of Washington. Bech took his degree there in 1896. Next he mined for gold in Alaska, drove sled dogs on the Chilkoot and White Pass Trails and ran a drill underground to build the Cascade tunnel. Later he drew on these experiences in his fiction.

In 1900 he took up newspaper work and had the police beat on the Seattle Star, Los Angeles Times and San Francisco Morning Call. He met with prisoners in their cells at San Quentin and Alcatraz and took up their cause.

In 1906 Sam McClure, publisher of McClure's Magazine, invited Bech to discuss writing an exposé of graft in San Francisco with a Carmel writer on McClure's staff, Jimmy Hopper. Bech came with Tom, a burglar, who Bech was trying to reform as his valet. Nothing came of the exposé project, but Jimmy and Bech became life-long friends. Bech gave up journalism and moved in with Jimmy in 1907 in a cottage on Camino Real. There they collaborated on a novel, "9009," with fictional characters but accurate, detailed material on prison life, whose thesis is that prison makes monsters out of men. This novel was part of the muckraking movement of the early Twentieth Century, exposés of corruption in many phases of American life. Carmel writer Lincoln Steffens' The Struggle for Self Government on business and government in America is an example.

9009 concerns itself with the brutalizing effects of prison life and the convict John Collins soon learns that the other prisoners and the guards are totally corrupted by the system, deadened, and laugh at each other's misery. Collins, convict 9009, is always referred to by the number in the prison section of the narrative as a dehumanizing touch. When the prisoners pour off metal from the prison foundry into ladles, "the trick is to spit into your neighbor's filled ladle," causing an explosion which severely burns him. This happens to 9009, who leaps on his tormentor and goes to the dungeon for ten days. He wants to kill a prison guard who has tormented him, but lacks a weapon. He laboriously makes a knife from a stolen file, "his progress was slow but exquisite from its slowness. He was greatly delayed by the necessity of parting [hiding it from the guards] with the object of his tenderness," the only tenderness shown in the novel. He delays killing the guard so that he may most fully enjoy what he is doing. He kills the guard and escapes. The narrative now refers to him as John Collins once again, but he is hopelessly depraved and kills five people from whom he asks directions. Pursued by the sheriff and his posse, and knowing that they are near, he lies on the grass in a mountain meadow, under a blue sky and little cloud, but feels only "lassitude" as the sheriff shoots him dead. Although finished in 1908, the novel finally found a publisher in 1909, the delay caused by publishers' fear of the subject. It created quite a stir in publishing circles. Jimmy and Bech called their home "Cottage 9009."

In 1907 he met Adele Hall and married her in 1908. It was a devoted marriage and he built a house for her in the 80 Acres area of Carmel.

Bech became one of the Carmel bunch. Along with Mary Austin, George and Carrie Sterling, Jimmy Hopper and others, he was depicted in a ridiculous cartoon in the Los Angeles Times in 1910, which unfairly showed them as pretentious wastrels. Bech was an original member of the Forest Theater Guild and played the part of Serra in a pageant in 1915. He participated in abalone feasts and drank with travel writer Charles Warren Stoddard, a pal of George Sterling's, at El Adobe in Monterey.

He was one of Carmel's most prolific writers, publishing a number of novels and short stories dealing with local color. Tales of the Old Times deals with Texas after the Alamo. Bech was also an ardent Democrat, served on the city council twice, partly to thwart Mary Austin, who was trying to grab control of the Forest Theater, served as police commissioner, temporary postmaster and worked for police reform.

He died in Carmel on April 12, 1950.

New book from Fran Vardamis

Are you a mystery lover? If so, go immediately to the Thunderbird Bookshop and buy CRA member Fran Vardamis' latest book, Pity the Children!

Published by Silk Label Books, this is the third in Fran's Yannis Lavonis mystery series. The first two books in this series were Russian Doll and Ancestral Voices. This time, Captain Lavonis of the Athens police department is responsible for security at the 2004 Olympic Games. All should be under control, but the excitement and mystery begins when the teenage son of an American CIA agent is missing and Lavonis is expected to keep everything detrimental to the Greek image under wraps. Of course, that is impossible!

Fran has a wonderful ability to intertwine descriptions of today's Greece with references to its rich history. But, we will say no more, since the book is such an entertaining read. [Your editor is exhausted from reading it late into the night!]

This time, the Hatton Canyon Freeway is really dead!

Gillian Taylor of the Ventana Chapter of the Sierra Club reports, "I've just gotten word that the California State Supreme Court denied the petition for review submitted by the pro-Hatton Canyon Freeway group, which they hoped would reverse our previous legal wins on Hatton Canyon!

"Many thanks go to our attorney Michael Stamp, who was instrumental in this successful legal battle, and to our allies in this effort, The Monterey Peninsula Regional Park District and the Hatton Canyon Coalition."

Remember that your City Council is on T.V.

City Council meetings are taped and re-broadcast
Sundays, 8 a.m. - 12 noon on
KMST Channel 26