Letter: Lack of Santa Cruz County Support for CZU Fire Victims
Dear County Supervisors, State Representatives, and associated staff:
I am writing today as your constituent and copying representatives of local media to express my support of CZU fire home loss victims in their rebuilding — and frankly survival — process. The County of Santa Cruz has not lived up to its promise to expedite and streamline the permitting process and reduce costs. It is also currently failing to live up to an additional promise to allow fire survivors to live in temporary dwellings on the land of their former homes.
The attached article from our local SLV Post highlights the experiences that some of our San Lorenzo Valley residents are facing. I urge you to remove all obstacles in the way of fire survivors returning to their land, including removing requirements for geological surveys for temporary dwellings.
Please listen to fire survivors and do all in your power to meet their needs. A sizable portion of our community may be facing homelessness or be forced to leave the area due to the constraints of our county bureaucratic processes.
Members of the media, I urge you to republish the story, or to contact neighbors to do additional reporting, and to spread the word about how the County of Santa Cruz is failing to support CZU Lightning Complex Fire victims in rebuilding their lives and homes.
Thank you all for your support on this urgent matter. I look forward to hearing from you.
Julia Monahan
Concerned neighbor and constituent
Felton, California
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