Marin IJ Readers’ Forum for Nov. 26, 2023

Marin veteran’s book is an excellent account

Thanks to the IJ for the article about Darren Walton (“Marin veteran opens up about Vietnam War experience in new memoir,” Nov. 11). The book — titled, “Di Di Mau: Tigers, Rock Apes, the Jungle … and War” — is a great account of his year in Vietnam as a Marine. The story is a firsthand account of what war is like to a young man. It takes you into the jungle with him. I couldn’t put it down.

I have been to Vietnam twice. I have a fascination with the country because I came of age during the conflict. I am intrigued by the complex history of the region. Walton’s book reports on an important piece of U.S. history. I highly recommend reading it and traveling to Vietnam. It’s such a beautiful country with some of the best beaches.

— Carol Hannon, Belvedere

MMWD planners must factor in all the costs

It’s good news that the Marin Municipal Water District Board of Directors is getting serious about increasing capacity at our local reservoirs (“Marin water district plots reservoir connection plan,” Oct. 18). This is a long overdue and realistic solution to our water needs.

There is also talk about building a desalination plant, possibly on the Petaluma River. While this sort of plant may indeed produce thousands of gallons of usable water, I wonder how they plan to transport this water to actual users’ homes and businesses.

Will it be pumped over many miles to existing reservoirs? I worry it will be costly. And how many years of environmental studies would be required before it could even break ground? Will they build a new reservoir near the plant? It all leads to more cost and studies.

Given that so much treated water from Las Gallinas Valley Sanitary District plant can’t find its way to our gardens, toilets and washing machines due to lack of pipelines and related cost of said pipelines, it seems like transporting desalinated water is another “pipe dream.”

— Elaine Reichert, Santa Venetia

Many concerns about plan for former golf course

Questions abound regarding negotiations between The Trust for Public Land and Marin County for the former San Geronimo Golf Course.

There is $130,000 of county money sitting in a purchase option escrow account along with another $449,700 being spent studying feasibility choices. Primary focus seems on the idea of relocating the county fire department’s headquarters to the 21.83-acre clubhouse parcel. Big numbers of $70 million and up have been discussed based on preliminary sketches made public in June. The scale for what is labeled a “training facility, station and headquarters” makes me wonder.

The current headquarters sits on 1.6 acres. A county paid “fire facilities vision plan” drawn in 2010 has the headquarters, including environmental protection elements missing from the June sketch, sitting on 8.5 acres. San Rafael’s new fire training facility at Third and Mary streets (with multiple large engine bays, plus a training tower) sits on just a 0.6-acre parcel. To be fair, the county does have unique equipment pieces (such as a bulldozer), but the San Rafael department appears to actually be larger than the county’s department.

Does the county need space more than 13 times the current headquarters dimension? It comes at the expense of future use of remaining land for active recreation and social use enjoyed by thousands for almost 60 years when it was a golf course. There are other sites in San Geronimo Valley — with ready access to Sir Francis Drake Boulevard — that wouldn’t have replaced a green fireproof valley gem with an industrial complex.

Now is the time to stop ill-advised actions by county supervisors. They are creating divisiveness in the community, a blight on the property (now carpeted in thistles and dead trees), an eyesore to everyone driving by and land unusable for recreational enjoyment.

— Mike McLennan, San Rafael

CHP deserves credit for handling bridge protest

I am writing in regard to the recent demonstration that shut down westbound traffic on the San Francisco Bay Bridge (“Westbound lanes of Bay Bridge closed as protestors call for Gaza cease-fire,” Nov. 17).

I watched local news coverage on television from 9 a.m. to 11 a.m. I thought the California Highway Patrol officers did a fantastic job handling the protesters, who had to have their cars towed away before, gradually, two lanes of traffic were able to move.

It was a terrible situation for law enforcement and the civilians waiting to move their cars to wherever they were going.

— Marie Lazzari, Novato