Letters

Another lawsuit? I was disappointed to read that a couple is planning to sue the city over the first Bay Meadows project. We have just suffered through the cinema lawsuit which cost the city and its taxpayers thousands of dollars and more recently the lawsuit against the high school district which cost students, teachers, and taxpayers millions of dollars that could have been spent in the classroom. Is there no end to this litigation?

If you remember, a small group of people didn't like the cinema. It would destroy downtown. It was too big. It would create so much traffic and no one could find a place to park. Now the only complaint we hear is that the downtown cinema is too small. And most people are counting on the cinema to keep downtown going during economic bad times.

According to your story, this latest attempt to make a point through lawsuits concerns the supposed failure to abide by Measure H in the approvals for Bay Meadows I or what is called the Franklin project. It is ironic that the authors and supporters of Measure H were on the Planning Commission and City Council that approved this project. Two of the primary Measure H authors were on the planning commission. And the three council members who approved the Franklin project were all supporters of Measure H. In fact, two of them were elected to the City Council on a support Measure H platform.

A fourth member of the council, another leader in Measure H, could not vote because of a conflict of interest but he was involved in the project behind the scenes. The only council member who opposed Bay Meadows was the council member whom many considered pro-growth and vigorously opposed Measure H. So, of course Measure H was very fresh in the minds of the city attorney, the council, the Planning Commission and the public when this project was approved after two years of workshops, meetings and public hearings. Did any of the proponents of Measure H (including the couple who is suing) raise the issue then?

Last night at the scoping session of the EIR for Bay Meadows II, we heard legitimate concerns and questions raised by the public that need to be addressed before any new development is approved or opposed. I'm sorry to hear that another group has resorted to lawyers to get what they want.

Sue Lempert

San Mateo

Who are the others?

Editor,

I would like to know who are the