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Show Letters To The Editor The editor welcomes letters to be written in this public forum, from any and all parties. Letters should be concise and to the point as possible. Type-written double-spaced letters are preferred but hand written letters will be accepted. All letters should be signed, but names will be withheld if a specified reason is stated. No unsigned letters will be published. Writers should keep all letters under 250 words if possible, longer letters will be subject to possible editing. In general, all letters will be published as they are written. No libelous, obscene or malicious copy will be accepted. Dear Editor: In reference to Mrs. Adams letter Feb. 9, 1978 in your paper and to all of those not living in the soil subsidence problem area, 1 feel an answer must be made. Mrs. Adams states that if when we first saw our houses cracking we would have stopped watering and landscaped in Cacti and Chipped Rook we could still have stayed right there. If Mrs. Adams was at the hearing held by the City Council where Mr. Kalisher gave his report on the(soil problems she will know that he stated that although the surface watering might have some small measure of effect on the sinking problem , that it was mostly the underground water that was causing the problem. When he was asked specifically if it would help save the houses if we used artificial turf, Mr. Kalisher replied that he wouldn't say it would have no effect but that it wouldn't help enough to warrant the expense. I personally would like Mrs. Adams to know that we have no side lawn or back lawn and our greatest sinking problems occur on the side that we have never watered at any time. Mrs. Adams also insinuates in her letter that the homes are not built properly when she alludes to the new buildings back east whose roofs are caving in when others have stood for hundreds of years. Mrs. Adams, we purchased our home after it had been built by others... when we purchased it we had to assume that Cedar City Building Codes had been followed and City Iaspection had assured that. If this was not so then certainly we cannot be held to blame but it is the responsibility of the builder and the City Inspector. I can assure Mrs. Adams that many homes that are having problems have been built properly and many have taken extra precautions adding extra steel, etc. Since we began having subsidence problems we have been deluged with comments such as: "If we had put some steel in the foundations", "If we had built properly", "If we hadn't watered", and "Everybody knew it wasn't good to build up there for years". Well... Most of us did build properly.... some put extra steel in the foundations. ...some didn't water.. ..and we still have problems. To those of you who knew for years that it wasn't a good place to build (And I refer Dear Editor: I have about decided that our lovely Cedar City is goig to the dogs. I look at my poor ole pooch, locked up in my backyard, and think of all the good she could be doing if I'd let her run loose and fertilize the neighbors lawns. Why with all the free fertilizer that gets spread in this city, it's a wonder the lawns aren't green all year round. Or perhaps our dog could play policeman, like the poodle up the street. He barks at everybody; enemies, friends, neighbors, cats, and falling snowflakes. His owner assured me, though, that I needn't be afraid. All I have to do when he comes after me is stamp my foot at him, and he would run for home. I tried it. ...and after I got my ankle out of the "guardians" "guar-dians" mouth, I was the one who ran for home! And have you noticed how our local dogs love to share garbage? But we humans make life awfully difficult for them, putting it in plastic bags and all. But they do work hard to get most of it out and distributed to the neighborhood, with the help of the wind. And some dog owners get rather hot under the collar, if vou dare suggest that they tie Fido (or Phydough) up. It's a matter of priorities. After all, what's more important, the dog's social life, or some human who has the audacity to walk on the sidewalk in front of the house. Dogs really do try to better themselves, however. I always see two or three waiting in the school yard. Then several more come with the students, and by the time recess rolls around they can all go out and play that old favorite game, "tip-toe through the toidy" loser gets to go home and change shoes. Before the city is completely gone, I'll get on my high-topped high-topped boots, and my spray can of Doggie No, and run the gauntlet to the grocery store. Name withheld by request Dear Editor: In reply to Lina Adam's note in the Record last week: I would like to tell her she is very much uninformed of the situation and problem the Highland Park area is having. When we moved to Cedar we were told there was some gypsum problem, but if you would build for that problem and would keep the water away from your foundations, you would have no problem. So we, as many of our neighbors, put thousands of extra dollars into constructing con-structing our homes. If Lina would ride into area, she would find many of the homes that are having to Chamber of Commerce President Carter's letter in the Chambers February Newsletter as well as to the at least one hundred people who have told me that since the problems began) IF YOU KNEW NO ONE SHOULD BUILD THERE WHERE WERE YOU WHEN THE CITY ZONED IT FOR R-l BUILDING OF HOMES???? Believe me, all of us who are facing financial disaster wish with all our hearts that you'd have told the council then, so we would'nt be in this mess today. There's an old Italian proverb that says, "After the ship has sunk everybody knows how it could have been saved." Let's change that ship to house and have a good proverb for Cedar City. We have a problem... whether anyone wants to admit it or not... it is a disaster... It's a disaster for those of us who have to move our homes and face financial ruin... It's a disaster for our good neighbors who aren't having problems but whose houses have no value because of our problems... It's a disaster to those now buying and moving into new homes elsewhere in the city where such problems could occur in a few years... It's a disaster to everyone who works and lives in Cedar City. Now are we all going to sit around and talk about what should or should'nt have been done... or are we all going to bury our heads in the sand and pretend it isnt happening... or are we going to get busy and solve the problems and then move forward "A better City" because we know we can solve our problems and have the knowledge to avoid such disasters in the future??? Evelyn O. Delta manti real proDiems, don t even have lawns all around their homes. Some of them didn't even get a chance to get them planted before having problems. Also cement has been poured all around most of our homes for extra protection, with rain gutters going out on all sides of the home to drain water well away from the homes. All precautions have "been taken by these people and yet their homes are sinking. low, in the last six weeks, we have had three water lines break in the area, and heaven only knows how much water got underground before it bubbled to the surface. Since we have lived here, there has been three main water lines break, along with around six private ones. Now either the city needs to up-grade the water line materials or the land is actually moving as was stated in the report given to us from the State Geological Survey. I think Lina owes us an apology for making a statement indicating that we were a bunch of dumbbells in the Highland Park area. Name withheld by request Dear Editor: I feel as though Ms. Lina Adams should have "held her peace" a while longer. Ms. Adams had a very simple sollution to our problems on Highland Drive - stop watering lawns. Maybe the government should have saved $30,000 and asked her for the answer. It's strange though, the knowledgable men who did the study don't agree with her answer. Quite frankly, I'll put my trust in the geologists. Dear Editor: As a member of the American Party, the only National Political Party that takes an unequivical stand against the Panama Canal giveaway, I should like to pose some thoughts for our Senators. IF you vote to keep our Panama Canal because: 1. We own it; the original treaty was "a grant in perpetuity" with no suggestion of it being a lease or renewal date because it was intended to be a final absolute transfer tran-sfer of sovereignty in perpetuity. 2. It is important to our national security. 3. It is very important to our economy. 4. To give it to Panama is to give it to our Communist enemies to further their Marxist goals of world domination. 5. The giveaway is unconstitutional without House approval. 6. We have nothing to gain, but much to lose; let's keep it. 7. It is requisite with upholding your oath of office. Then, dear Senators, you are Patriotic Americans and deserve the thanks and gratitude of us all. Mrs. Avon Payton Most of the homes in this area are as well built as any in Cedar City, even the ones built one hundred years ago (some of which have the same problems we do). People here are very careful of the amount of water used on their yards. Some have no lawns and don't water at all. It doesn't help the situation, though, when city water lines keep breaking as three have done since Christmas and others in the past year. I feel this is due to earth movement. Now, I feel Ms. Adams owes the residents of Highland Drive an apology for the insinuations made in her letter. If the people of Cedar would help us instead of fight us in getting some help, we'd gladly get relocated and the situation could clear up. Alter all, Cedar is our home too. We don't want to see it suffer. Name withheld by request |