A ROYAL CITY by Lark Jursek

By Lark Jursek

If I am elected to the City Council of San Luis Obispo, I will set the quality of the downtown and the quality of the neighborhoods as a very high priority. I do not consider San Luis Obispo as an ordinary city. I believe that it is destined to be a Royal City with higher standards than most other cities of the world.

My top political priority will be to help create and preserve San Luis Obispo as a Royal City. The term "Royal City" means , to me, a city with higher standards of cleanliness, appearance, reliability, and safety. It is a city that is a "special place", and is noted for quality neighborhoods and a quality downtown area.

I believe that the four or five major annexations and developments that are planned for San Luis Obispo are reasonable proposals for ordinary cities. BUT I do not consider San Luis Obispo as an ordinary city. I am, therefore opposed to these major plans for annexation and development.

I believe that the commercial developments that are proposed would cause more harm than good to the City. I believe that the population growth is reasonable, and should continue at the present rate, or slightly higher.

The traffic congestion and the damage to the quality of neighborhoods is being caused primarily by the rapid commercial growth. The population growth is not the problem. There is no reason that San Luis Obispo needs to have the STATUS of being the industrial or retail hub of the County.

BIG is not always BETTER. We have a beautiful downtown. Let's not spoil it now by putting up buildings every place there is an open space. We need to keep, not only the open space around the city, but also the open space within the City. The developers can make a lot of money, if they can build where services are already provided, but they make their profit at the expense of everyone else. It's time for the people of San Luis Obispo to "Take back the City."

The S. O. A. R. initiative may not be perfect, but it is a start in the right direction. I do not believe that any of the major developments should proceed until the people have a chance to vote on S. O. A. R.

`If the people of San Luis Obispo are against rapid commercial development, they should be followed. FREEDOM means, to me, that the people of a city should have the right to determine the kind of a city that they want to live in, and the kind of a city that they want to leave to coming generations. Many brave men and women gave their lives for the cause of liberty.

The people may not be as smart as the "experts", but I would rather follow the will of the people, than follow the will of the "experts" who often seem more concerned with their love of money and power than they are for anything else.

I did not put my life on the line in World War II so that a County Board of Supervisors could impose their will on a city like San Luis Obispo.

It is impossible for the citizens to micromanage any city. This must be done by the "experts". BUT the people can, and should , be encouraged to express their feelings in regard to the major issues, and GROWTH is right up there with the ECONOMY as a major issue that should be in the hands of the people.

"In God We Trust" is on all of our money. Our trust is our collateral. When "In God We Trust" ceases to have meaning, and we begin to trust in a few individuals, we will have a problem with the ECONOMY that no "experts" will be able to fix.

If you agree, please vote for Lark Jursek for City Council on November 7th. Thank you.