“Topanga Beach: Did Anyone Win?”
By Donna Dunwoody
The battle is over and the question is, "Did anyone win?" Thirty-five families lost their homes, the state lost a quarter of a million dollars a year in revenue, the Parks Department lost its bid to put in a parking lot, and it remains to be seen what the people will gain. All one can do is hope the state removes the foundations as well as the houses. There's foundation rubble that's been on Topanga beach for over four years.
The last houses were due to be bulldozed on Jan. 15. The families were served five-day eviction notices on Jan. 7. Many have no place to go. They just didn’t believe the state would give up the revenue now that Prop. 13 is in effect.
Tim Harvey has lived in his house for 11 years. He built a lighthouse on top of it.
When we first met, I asked if he had built it. He said, “Yeah, do you want it? Take it now."
The battle was a long one—eight years—and he's tired. As of Jan. 8, Tim and three others are all that are left. The vandal situation is bad. On Jan. 2 the state removed all police from the area.
Tim has had to run people out of his house. The night before, someone broke a window out of his car. It's hard to move and protect your place at the same time.
The state has told him that it can’t afford a policeman for the area. But can it afford to lose the rents? How many state employees will be laid off with the loss of a quarter of a million dollars?
What makes him the saddest is that officials have evaded the renters. He had hopes for a televised public debate. He is certain that the renters could have won a debate. In the light of Prop. 13, there is no logic to the destruction of the houses.
They thought Jerry Brown would come to their aid. He refused to discuss it with KABC's representative. Good ol' Jerry used to live in the last house next to the creek some dozen years ago.
It is all very well for a government to have vision, but what about a sense of humanity. Without that, machines would serve as well.
Government decisions are made by individuals and the decision to bulldoze the houses was made by State Parks director, Russell W. Cahill.
The battle of the beach is over, but the battleground is merely moving across the street. The State was denied a permit to build a parking lot on the beach by the Coastal Commission.
Now the State is planning to buy the rodeo grounds from the Athletic Club and put the parking lot there.
What about all the people who live in the rodeo grounds? What about all those houses?
