Point Reyes Light - October 28, 1999

The Light's endorsements for Nov. 2

Bolinas Public Utility District - Sharp and straightforward, incumbent Vic Amoroso deserves his seat as long as he cares to fill it. Unsurprisingly, he's said he'd rather serve with old ally Paul Kayfetz than Malcolm Ponder. In fact, he says he'll quit if Ponder wins and the new board either, a) lets Ponder vote on Mesa Park matters if he keeps his Mesa Park duties, or b) starts fiddling with 28-year moratorium on new water hook-ups to get a water supply for Mesa Park.

We don't think the race is all that portentious. We like Ponder. But this election, like the one back in 1993, is mostly about Paul Kayfetz, whom we think is just too effective to leave off the board.

His critics contend that he picks on people beyond what's needed to carry his point. And certainly, there's no convincing excuse why after14 years, BPUD can't help Mesa Park get even one lousy drinking fountain.

But there's no denying that BPUD during Kayfetz' tenure was an energetic, formidable body. What he does do, better than other West Marin public figure, is make local politics seem not just necessary but urgent, even adventurous. He clearly relishes the action.

We just hope that after a six-year break from the board, he's ready to follow more of his productive instincts. In recent months, while not a board member and after a long bout with illness, Kayfetz helped get opposing parties together to start resolving the Bolinas Cemetery road flap. He could stand to do more of this.

The Light endorses Vic Amoroso and Paul Kayfetz for the BPUD board.

Inverness Public Utility District - Absent any problems, incumbent directors Barbara Dewey and Bill Campbell should be returned, with James Landreth filling the third slot. Inverness newcomer David Douglas should be told not to go away. The guard in West Marin is aging, and in five years, he'll likely have more invitations to serve on public boards than he can handle.

Lagunitas School District - We hope veteran trustee Richard Sloan gets reelected. He's a free spirit, parents like him, and he's passionate about the district. Plus he does stuff that wouldn't even occur to a sane trustee. For instance, he's just returned from Los Angeles, where he volunteered for a course on inspecting playground equipment, just to aid in the construction of a new playground on the district's lower campus.

But we've got to tweak him some. He's one of the cadre carrying on about Supervisor Steve Kinsey being an evil menace, which is a thin idea that wore out long before Save the Valley's under-attended displays of half-phony outrage. We'd expect a little more savvy out of Sloan, is all. And surely, the measure of a school is not whether its poop is kept separate from a neighboring subdivision's.

For the other seat, we're endorsing Denise Bohman, a parent with a son in the district's Academics & Enrichment program. She's attended nearly every school board meeting in the last four year, knitting seven baby blankets in the process, and could no doubt work well with any of the other trustees.

The Light endorses Richard Sloan and Denise Bohman for the board of Lagunitas School District.

Laguna School - Keith Soreng is our choice over Frances Beretta, who frankly acted a bit too put out by our call.

Measure H - The newest building at Nicasio School is 50 years old. Under Measure H, the district would float a $2.5-million bond to build two permanent classrooms, a new wing for a library, media center, science lab, and art classroom, plus a multi-purpose building with gym, stage, and kitchen.

The bond would be retired in 25 years, with district landowners each year paying roughly $60 for every $100,000 of assessed property value. Strangely enough, the district has never had a parcel tax before. Such an excellent school seems long overdue for excellent facilities. Yes on Measure H.

Measure O, for Inverness voters, is simply a housekeeping measure authorizing the release of property tax revenue to fund the Inverness Volunteer Fire Department. Yes on Measure O.

Measure M, for all West Marin voters, simply renews a $40-per-parcel annual tax for paramedic service on the coast. Obviously, with the closest emergency room almost an hour away from some points in West Marin, many local residents owe their lives to the quick show of paramedics and emergency medical technicians stationed nearby. Yes on Measure M.

College of Marin - Unfortunately, trustee Howard Schoof of Point Reyes Station is quitting, leaving the countywide body without any coastal representative. The district is inching out of its financial trough, which is the good news. The question remains of how to find more money and recruit more students, when Marin's population hardly grows.

Trustees Frank Parnell, Phyllis Metcalfe, and Fairfax Lumber's Larry McFadden (a longtime member of the Marin Agricultural Land Trust Board) are all worth reelecting. To fill Schoof's seat, we like Otis Bruce, who's youngish, graduated from a community college, serves in a zillion civic groups, and doesn't even say where he works in his ballot statement; in fact, he's a Marin deputy district attorney.

We endorse Frank Parnell, Phyllis Metcalfe, Larry McFadden, and Otis Bruce for the Marin Community College District board.

Point Reyes Light Cover | News | Coastal Traveler