Letters to the editor: Issues with leaf blowers; a vote for T.O. council candidate

Leaf blowers noisy, ineffective

I was under the impression that gasoline-powered leaf blowers have been banned in California. If this is the case, it hasn’t stopped the armies of clueless workers out there from irresponsibly blowing around dust and particulate matter, polluting the air with dangerous carbon monoxide, and disturbing the peace with the obnoxious whining noise these machines make.

I’ve found that many of the workers who use leaf blowers use them in a senseless and uncalled-for manner, like blowing around garbage and leaves on an already windy or rainy day. One of the workers who does grounds maintenance at Hobson Park off Petit Avenue blew debris from the gutter at my car, then went over and attempted to blow the leaves out of the sand-covered kid’s play area. This created a huge cloud of dirt and debris and did not accomplish anything. And that wasn’t the first time I’d seen a worker do something so ridiculous there.

Another time I was in the restroom at a park in Agoura when a worker actually came inside with his leaf blower and attempted to push around what little dirt and leaves there were on the floor. That was about all I could take.

Most of the time these leaf blowers are unnecessary and help workers do little more than move piles of debris from one spot to another. They’re also noisy, they pollute the air, and they stir up huge amounts of dust and allergens. If they are in fact illegal, steps must be taken to restrict their use. Perhaps imposing fines on the landscaping companies that utilize them would be a good first step. Or maybe the cities that contract these companies could be hit with fines.

Greg Lanner, Ventura

Adam should be out; Schwartz in

There’s only one logical choice this year for Thousand Oaks City Council District 4: Jeff Schwartz.

Al Adam and his political cronies have engaged in shameful behavior: repeatedly and intentionally lodging baseless and misleading claims about the issues and voters’ concerns in order to divert attention from Adam’s own shortcomings and the real reasons why he needs to be voted out of office.

Adam refuses to acknowledge that the crucial issue about term limits is his moral hypocrisy in running again after 12 consecutive years in office after he wrote and promoted a 2012 term limits initiative that limits all other councilmembers in the future. Adam refuses to accept any responsibility for voting for disastrous government programs such as the Shangri-La Quality Inn fiasco where taxpayer money was misallocated and misspent.

Adam is dangerously drunk on political power and the big money he receives from billionaires, wealthy corporate executives, developers, and other politically connected fat cats who profit off decisions he makes on council. Adam is shamefully trying to buy his way into a fourth term in office using big special interest money. We should not keep voting for a career politician like Adam who refuses to acknowledge his shortcomings and who attempts to financially dominate elections. Twelve years of Adam has been more than enough.

Jeff Schwartz is the fresh blood with new ideas that we need on council. Schwartz is not bought and paid for like Adam is. Schwartz can be trusted to work for taxpayers like you and me, not the corporations or wealthy special interests. That’s why all voters should support Jeff Schwartz for council this year.

David Assael, Westlake Village

This article originally appeared on Ventura County Star: Letters to the editor: Issues with leaf blowers; a vote for T.O. council candidate