POOR LEADERSHIP-MISSED OPPORTUNITIES

By David W Grill

The Lompoc City Council has shown poor leadership in their record of MISSED OPPORTUNITIES. There is a sad list of errors of ommission and choices not made.

1. The Danish conpany which makes "Lego" building blocks for children asked the city of Solvang to partner with them to build a LEGOLAND THEME PARK like the one already built in Denmark. Solvang said no. Lompoc could have said yes, but Lompoc was silent. Now the city of Carlsbad is the host of Legoland and benefits from the tourists who eat and sleep and spend.

2. There was a company in Lompoc named Computer Science Corporation (CSC). They occupied the large building at Laurel Avenue and R Street. They were evicted from their location when the County of Santa Barbara purchased the building. CSC asked the Lompoc city council for help but were turned down. CSC took all of its HIGH PAYING JOBS and moved to Santa Maria. The city council did help the Ford dealership stay in town, and several small businesses. Why did'nt the city council help CSC? The loss of so many engineering jobs is unforgivable.

3. SURF BEACH was closed to protect the plovers. Santa Barbara has plovers and that beach is not closed. Some beaches have fenced the plovers into safe areas and allowed human access to continue. Surf Beach is scheduled to be closed for 25 years or longer. Why can't the city council negotiate a fenced enclosure compromise? Have they tried?

4. There is a bicycle tour called the Solvang Century. Several years back the bicycle group was very unhappy with the cold treatment they were receiving from Solvang. Lompoc could have easily captured the event and had a Lompoc Century. Lompoc is perfect for BICYCLE TOURISM, but actually the city council has done nothing about bicycle tourism.

5. The BURTON MESA PRESERVE is in our back yard. The city council could have influenced the development of trails for hiking and horseback riding. Nothing has been done.

6. Lompoc is tied for first place as the best bird watching place in America. (It is defined by most number of species. The other location is a little town on the gulf coast of Texas.) Has the city council encouraged birding tourism by mapping trails and building blinds? Nothing has been done to encourage BIRDING TOURISM.

7. What has been done to encourage SPACE LAUNCH TOURISM? Launch times are rarely a secret anymore. Many people would like to see a big launch. What has the city done to encourage space launch tourism? Nothing.

8. A retired business lady donated a downtown lot with an old Victorian house on it to the city on the condition that it become a children's library called CHARLETTE'S WEB. The city council promptly bulldozed the house, but has no money to build a new library. Now the lot grows weeds. Why didn't they just use the old house? What were they thinking?

9. I saved the best for last. FESS PARKER came to Lompoc to build a winery, a restaurant, and a small boutique center. All of this would be at the gateway to Lompoc and entirely replace the Grefco remnants. The escrow stumbled over a dispute of $175,000. The city council could have stepped in and saved the deal, but they did nothing. Now Fess Parker is doing his thing in Santa Maria.

A city council member should not be asleep at the switch. A city council should not be too narrow to see opportunities as they become available. That is POOR LEADERSHIP. We must not allow any Sleeping Beauty to be returned to a position authority. A good leader will hear opportunity knocking and open the door. A good leader has the vision to see what is possible and get it done.