Letters to the Editor

Editor:

While it is difficult to see one’s living expenses increase, after having read the president’s column, which explained the 2025 budget (Nov. 14), I would like to thank GRF President Janet Isom and the GRF Board, first for the explanation, and second, for their work in trying to mitigate costs that are seemingly out of their control.

The lion's share of the increase ($21.72/month) in our assessment is primarily due to insurance and utility cost increases.

These have risen dramaticalthe ly over the past handful of years, almost 150% for insurance and 30% increase for water. This is a travesty of mismanagement by the state, primarily Gov. Gavin Newsom.

Insurance costs have risen exponentially in California due in part to forest mismanagement, resulting in catastrophic fire damage over the past handful of years. California has been warned for decades that it needs to clear-cut forests and clean out the underbrush. It has refused to do this, citing environmental concerns. Couple this with the decrease in water delivery to Central Valley due to water being funneled out to the ocean to protect a delta smelt, we are left with overgrown forests, dry underbrush, and not enough moisture to protect these forests from the ravages of wildfires.

California is in the beginning stages of a financial death-spiral. Costs are rising exponentially. Wealthy citizens and over-taxed, over-regulated corporations are heading for the exits.

Again, thank you to Ms. Isom and the GRF Board. Elections have consequences. We replaced a national mistake. Let’s now work to fix the oncegreat state of California.

Earick Ward Mutual 7 Editor:

This is in response to the letter published from Gerri Wright (Nov. 14) who suggested that the OCTA city bus stop be removed and relocated to the St. Andrews Shopping Center. The city bus has no impact on the current configuration at the Main Gate to bar LW internal traffic on Del Monte crossing Golden Rain as a thoroughfare. That was instituted as a security measure to prevent cross traffic getting t-boned by incoming vehicles.

LW is a hub controlled by OCTA and it is the only bus stop for more than two miles on the east side of Seal Beach Boulevard and the only one on the west side of the boulevard for at least three-fourth of a mile. There is no place for a hub that controls north- or southbound city buses at the shopping center, which, again, is not owned by Leisure World.

One can sympathize with the inconvenience to residents on Del Monte and and that area no longer being able to have immediate through access. However, that is symptomatic of the original design of LW for one-car families before the advent of InstaCars, Door Dash, Amazon, etc., and the dramatic increase in traffic.

Mitzi Winks Mutual 5 Editor:

I live very near to the Main Gate and all the changes this year have made entering and exiting LW more difficult. It is frustrating to wait in the left lane behind multiple guests who need passes while the left lane is empty. Go back to how it used to be, with guests on the left and residents on the right.

Also the barricades preventing cars from Golden Rain going onto Del Monte are a bad idea. Now residents going that direction have to exit Leisure World, then come back in. How does this make any sense? This is not safer. And the latest “improvement,” making those who exit Leisure World from Del Monte go down Golden Rain and make a U-turn, is not an improvement.

I thought the new gate system was going to be the arms and the RFID, not traffic redirection. The gate arms seem to be working well, the rest is a mess.

Holly Davis Mutual 15 Editor:

According to the U.S. Department of Transportation, left turns are among the most dangerous maneuvers a driver can make. This is because drivers must anticipate multiple elements to operate their vehicles safely. Statistically, left turns account for about one-quarter of all car accidents.

This is particularly true for older drivers. And left turns are involved in a disproportionate percentage of fatal pedestrian accidents. Due to the new barricade system, I am forced to make multiple left turns between trying to exit Leisure World or return home from the Clubhouse 6 area. Multiply my left turns by the vast number of residents in Mutuals 12, 14, 15 and 16. These barricades have created more of an unsafe traffic situation than we had before. And with more accidents, GRF’s insurance premiums will go up. Thank you for continuing to try to improve our traffic issues but please do not make this unsafe situation a permanent situation.

Feliza Dixon Mutual 15 Editor:

Kindly add my name to the many who wrote to this editorial section and gave reasons for eliminating the Main Gate barricade. I believe that valid concerns were stated.

A concern that I have is obtaining emergency medical care when every minute can count.

For those of us who live in Mutuals 14, 15 and 16, especially those with chronic life-threatening problems, the thought of emergency services spending extra time to leave the complex because of the barricade to receive needed help at a medical facility is scary. Ira Kaget Mutual 15 Editor’s note: The two-week trial using barricades to reconfi gure traffic flow ended Nov. 22. The goal of the trial was to find an effective way to end cross traffic at the gate. As challenging as this period was, the purpose of the temporary barricade was to test safety recommendations made by Urban Crossroads (the traffic engineering firm hired to address the conflict points at the Main Gate) before any permanent installations were made. The matter will next be considered at the GRF Facilities Committee meeting at 10 a.m., Tuesday, Jan. 7, in the conference room in the Administration building.

There will be no more letters to the editor printed on the subject as residents who want to comment can do so at the committee meeting.