CRA News April 2008

Selected articles from the newsletter of the Carmel Residents Association

From left, Jean White, a former Citizen of the Year, Dianne and Chuck Elliott and Barbara Livingston, chairperson of the day's event as well as a former Citizen of the Year, had a chance to talk before the Citizen of the Year ceremony began. Barbara received many kudos for the great success of the celebration. See below for more about the event.

CRA April General Meeting:
Carmel firefighters--in their own words

President's Message
Carmel's urban forest and its history

by Roberta Miller

On our morning walks, Monte and I often look up at the towering pines and feel that tremendous sense of awe knowing we live in a place of such astonishing beauty. I had been thinking of writing a president's message about the pivotal role of the urban forest in Carmel's past, present and future, when I came across a letter Linda Smith sent to the city last July in response to the General Plan Update meetings. Voilá--the message I wanted to convey, but written with the depth of historical and biological knowledge that Linda has at her fingertips. So here, with her permission, is Linda's letter:

"As a 3rd generation Carmelite I want to strongly urge the city to provide the necessary resources to protect and nurture the historic native Monterey pines and oaks of Carmel's urban forest. Carmel's upper canopy pines with their oak under-story provide priceless intrinsic value as well as economic value to our city:

"• for the unifying harmony and beauty they provide in our skyline and for which the city has always been renowned the world over; "o for the many biological services they provide that enhance the health of our city's environment;

"• as a haven for wild birds, squirrels and other creatures, who add so much to our lives with their songs;

"• for the ecological role they play in the greater native Monterey Pine Forest of the Monterey Bay area;

"• for the key cultural role the forest plays in Carmel's history. Carmel is not just any town; it has always been a 'village in a pine forest.' Lately our forest has lost much of its natural harmony and cohesion as our stately veteran Monterey pines disappear and more and more non-native trees replace them. The urban forest is becoming more of an artificial hodgepodge. We should reverse this trend and make a commitment to replenish our native trees and shrubs in the city and require that newcomers contribute to this civic effort on private property; and

"• for the contribution our urban forest makes in fighting global warming.

"There has been some misunderstanding about the role of our venerable pines in Carmel's history. Some have claimed that the city's Monterey pines were all planted. Though many trees were planted by Papa Devendorf, who developed Carmel, and later by Judge John Catlin, of the first Forge in the Forest and then mayor of Carmel for many years, the majority of the city was indeed a native Monterey Pine Forest when it began.

"My father, Harry Lachmund, first came here as a boy of 11 in 1904 with his mother, brother, and grandmother. He later became a forest pathologist and he knew our forest intimately. Family photos and other historical photos corroborate his description of the extent of the native Monterey Pine Forest at that time. There had been a series of fires in the 1890s and in 1900, and many of the trees were young, but the forest extended to about Monte Verde from Carmel Hill. The Monterey Pine Forest was part of a larger and exquisite tapestry of habitats that included Coastal Sage Scrub and Maritime Chaparral to the northeast and to the southwest of Monte Verde, with the Coastal Terrace Prairie along the ocean and on Carmel Point. Amidst these unique habitats were scattered pines and oaks as well. This complex tapestry of vegetation provided homes for a multitude of birds, animals and plants long since disappeared from our landscape.

"The Monterey Pine Forest is a dynamic ecosystem. It ebbs and flows, expands and contracts, adjusting to climatic changes through time. It has been in an expansive phase this past 100 years, and if this beautiful area had been left to evolve according to Mother Nature's design, Carmel would probably resemble the natural areas of Del Monte Forest today. In any event, though no longer a natural forest, our urban forest is still the glue that holds Carmel together.

"Those artists, writers, poets and musicians who gave Carmel her original soul as a town, whose legacy has benefited Carmel throughout its history in incalculable ways, loved and honored the natural beauty and treasure of Carmel's trees and shrubs and they insisted on protecting them. I believe we should seek to replicate and restore wherever possible the vegetation that is native to this area, primarily our Monterey pines and coast live oaks, but also including the toyons, manzanitas, ceanothus, coffeeberries and other shrubs and plants that are part of the forest understory. We owe our forest nothing less than that we give it the honor it deserves and that we nurture and steward it for the future. We cannot improve on Mother Nature's design."

Linda Lachmund Smith
Carmel
July 9, 2007

Linda Smith is a co-founder of Monterey Pine Forest Watch, which is dedicated to preserving the Monterey Pine Forest located on the Monterey Peninsula.

The Carmel Residents Association loses a part of its history

Howard Skidmore, 1917- 2008

Howard Skidmore has been involved one way or another in almost everything the Carmel Residents Association has done in its 21-year history.

A former board member, Howard was a beach cleanup volunteer from the beginning, with his own self-made pick-up tool. In later years he brought a chair and kept an eye on the operation from headquarters at the top of the hill.

When the CRA put on the successful 1994 library fund raiser featuring cartoonist Charles Schulz, Howard was, of course, involved. Exceedingly generous, for several years, as an active participant in the CRA Chili Fiesta in Devendorf Park, he matched the proceeds of the day, doubling the contributions CRA was able to give to the city. Similarly, during lunch at Asilomar, following a CRA tour of the facility, Howard surprised those at his table by treating them to wine and then picking up their entire lunch check.

Zaza Skidmore, an early co-chair of "CRA Dines Out," enlisted Howard's help to get that activity successfully launched.

For years Howard was the dashing master of ceremonies for the Citizen of the Year celebration at the Scout House, enlisting Peggy Purchase to run up the aisle with "the envelope" when he called for it. A professional newspaper man, Howard loyally served as copy editor of this newsletter for years, always willing to rush when necessary and always making welcome suggestions to improve the quality of the publication. [Oh how he will be missed by this editor!]

CRA members fondly remember the talk, Famous People Who Have Met Me, given by Howard in Nov., 2001. The newsletter announcing the meeting ran a front-page photo of Howard with President Harry Truman.

Finally, Howard loved Carmel's magnificent pine forest and took every opportunity to write about it and promote its care and preservation. In 1991, when Burl Ives agreed to give a benefit concert for Carmel's trees, Howard, of course, was one of the small group which drove to the San Jose airport to meet Ives and his family.

While this article is focused on Howard's involvement with the Carmel Residents Association, his career as a newsman for the New York Herald Tribune, a vice president of C & O and B & O Railways and a public relations consultant, who served as special assistant to tycoon Cyrus S. Eaton, was fascinating and distinguished.

Fire safety in the village--we need an open and honest dialogue

What do the City Council and City Administrator say?

According to Mayor Sue McCloud and Council members Karen Sharp and Ken Talmage at the CRA Candidates' Forum, Carmel's fire department is well staffed with no gaps in public safety. And, according to City Administrator Rich Guillen, in an open letter [as a paid advertisement] in the 14 March Pine Cone, "The [fire] staffing level complies with what is commonly referred to as the "2-in/2-out" OSHA regulation which requires fire fighters to work in teams of two. One team enters a building while the second team remains outside and ready to immediately rescue the inside team. Two of four firefighters are Carmel Regional Fire Ambulance (CRFA) employees who are also certified for medical aid. One is a fire fighter/paramedic and the other is a fire fighter/EMT."

What is the Citygate report?

Citygate Associates was commissioned by Carmel, Monterey and Pacific Grove to study the possibility of consolidating the three fire departments. After the release of this study last June, all three cities agreed to move toward the Citygate recommendation to "merge the fire management teams of the three cities to provide an immediate improvement in management support services and the structure to conduct the long range planning necessary to actually merge the operating portions of the three city fire services."

What do the firefighters say?

Carmel firefighters are concerned because the city recently pulled back from negotiations with Pacific Grove and Monterey. According to Guillen, it is because of the April election and the costs involved. Carmel firefighters' pay is the lowest in the county so adjustments would have to be made in a merger.

The firefighters state that the current arrangement whereby the city contracts with Pacific Grove to have Fire Chief Andrew Miller serve also as our fire chief and with the City of Monterey for fire duty chiefs has been beneficial to Carmel. They say morale has never been higher and training has never been so professional. They also know that the current arrangement is only a temporary fix, which is why the three cities, Carmel, Pacific Grove and Monterey, have engaged in consolidation talks. The firefighters are very supportive of the proposed consolidation because they believe that it is Carmel's best option to have high-quality fire services at a price the community can afford.

However, with Carmel's indecision, the other two cities are moving ahead to consolidate their management. This means Carmel's status could change; we might have to pay more to the two cities or could even be told to find another arrangement. It also means that--because the city pays firefighters so much less than neighboring cities--Carmel risks losing long-time firefighters who know how to navigate our community with its quirky addresses.

What do we mean by inadequate staffing?

According to the Citygate report, using the ambulance crew for 2-in/2-out fire staffing "is not a complete solution as the ambulance covers a much larger area than the community of Carmel-by-the-Sea. Given this, the ambulance crew is often unavailable for structure fire staffing." "The time it takes an incipient room fire to fully engulf a room is 4 to 5 minutes ..."

For this reason, Citygate recommends that "Carmel needs to have 3 career firefighters assigned daily to the engine company rather than the present 2 in order to have an effective fire and EMS presence at the scene of an emergency. While this represents an added cost of about $400,000 per year to the City of Carmel, this added staffing need would be there regardless of whether Carmel operated its own fire department or merged line operations with Monterey and Pacific Grove."

How often is our ambulance away from Carmel?

A quick look at just one week of ambulance calls listed in the March 14 Pine Cone not only surprised us but points out exactly why the ambulance crew would not always be able to get suited up and arrive at a fire in those critical four minutes.

Feb. 26: Two Carmel-by-the-Sea (CBTS) calls with patients transported to CHOMP; one call to Forest Lodge Road in Pebble Beach--transport to CHOMP

Feb. 27: CBTS call--transport to CHOMP; dispatch to Cypress Drive

Feb. 28: dispatch to Palermo Way in Pebble Beach--transport to CHOMP

Feb. 29: CBTS call--transport to CHOMP

March 1: dispatch to Alice St. in Monterey March 2: dispatch to Congress and Lopez in Pebble Beach --transport to CHOMP; dispatch to Carmel Middle School --transport to Natividad Medical Center in Salinas

March 3: CBTS call--transport to CHOMP

What about having our own stand-alone department?

Many remember when Carmel had its own fire chief and assistant fire chief and wish that could happen again. According to the Citygate report and the current firefighters, to hire the personnel necessary for a stand-alone department today would be a fiscal impossibility for our small village. Back in the old days, Carmel depended greatly on volunteer firemen. Today that won't work; volunteers aren't available because of many factors, including the increased time required for more extensive training and high housing costs.

But we don't have many fires do we?

Actually, there have been quite a few serious fires already this year. And, if Carmel were to suffer a catastrophic fire (remember Huckleberry Hill in Pebble Beach?), with inadequate staffing, the damage to residents and businesses could be extensive and, with liability issues, could cost the city far more than the consolidation would.

What's next?

We believe that issues of public safety and the city's potential exposure to financially devastating liability make the City Council's delays in addressing this issue completely untenable. To date, the City Council has not even put the issue on the agenda to permit open discussion. Neither our dedicated firefighters nor the residents of Carmel should have to wait any longer.

City holds workshop on Economic Revitalization

• Attract shoppers to side-street stores with tasteful signs
• Identify current and desired mix of business
• Draw new restaurants and retail stores with "market profile sell sheets"
• Locals Night on Thurs. to create a buzz
• Free 60-day trial period for music permits
• Install charming map boxes with fun and informative maps
• Allow tasteful corporate signage to draw upscale events
• Support new events by providing clear criteria and direction
• Improve and add better public parking signage
• Install multi-space meters for extended parking
• Develop a plan for construction of a multi-level city parking structure
• Streamline permit process to 30 days
• Broaden zoning ordinance to expand retail categories
• Increase utilization of city parks for events
• Develop a green city plan
• Add attractive night lights in commercial district, especially for safety reasons
• Communicate revitalization efforts to the community
• Conduct visitor and resident research after three years -- (We don't understand why the committee is doing this last rather than first.)

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