La Habra Heights is an extraordinary city in the sprawling urban area of the Los Angeles Basin. We are fortunate to live in a natural, secluded, private setting. Although our homes are private, our local decision-making is completely open to view by all residents who wish to see and/or participate in the process. We have an unusually high level of community involvement in our local government, which has several implications.
We have gained local control over local land use. For over forty years, our citizens have protected our secluded lifestyle against encroachment by developers who were often supported by formidable opponents the Los Angeles County Board of Supervisors. Resident activism has been essential in order to halt threatened intrusions on our lifestyle and to prevent the loss of one-acre zoning. The activities of the LHH Improvement Association prior to and during Incorporation, the Community Development Committee (which put together our General Plan in the mid-1970s), and the recent activities of the Committee to Protect the General Plan are examples of citizens organizing to protect our community.
We make decisions for ourselves. In the urbanized mass culture of late 20th century California, citizens can rarely have as much real input as we do into crucial community affairs. The history of our City and its major milestones shows that we have always relied on the energy, intelligence, and hard work of residents to keep La Habra Heights the nice place that it is. We encourage even more involvement from all residents.
We have public servants who are accessible and accountable to us because of the small size of our local government. In contrast to most communities, we know who our decision-makers actually are. Exercising a "watchdog" function on our City government is therefore much easier than in those communities where citizens have to figure out how to develop "connections" to "insiders" who are the decision-makers.
La Habra Heights has not been immune to a drop in property values. Part of the decline may possibly be attributed to lax building and zoning code enforcement and inattention to problems such as storage containers, junk cars, and road deterioration. Instead of resolving these issues, most members of the previous City Council seemed focused on getting the Powder Canyon project built.
Only through citizen vigilance was this trend recently reversed. For example, the current City Council has held several open meetings for the purpose of discussing the Roads Project. Residents have been involved in every stage of the process. Multiple hearings are being held and informational publications have been sent. The volunteer Roads Subcommittee has worked hard to develop a plan that is both economically and technically feasible for our small residential community.
New tasks await us in the future as we continue to "clean up" our City and maintain or improve our property values. Roadside vegetation needs to be controlled for access and safety. Landscaping that blocks the views of neighbors needs to be addressed. Properties in violation of our City's code need to be brought into conformance.
Some quality of life issues are intangible: community values such as
safety, privacy, seclusion, and scenic beauty are not "worth"
a specific amount of money. Yet all of these things eventually impact,
in some fashion, the actual dollar value of our homes and properties. Protecting
and enhancing our investment does not just provide greater financial security
for us. It is what makes life in the Heights so enjoyable.