Dear Editor,
The article on Density and Drought [Letter to the Editor culvercitycrossroads.com/2021/08/27/dear-editor-density-and-drought/] states Apartments and multi-plexes use less irrigation and are just generally more water-efficient than the detached homes that make up the majority of Culver City’s residential zones. The article hypothesizes that water is our most precious resource and therefore we must eliminate R-1 zones.
Our U.S. EPA research tells us hard, dry surfaces in urban areas – such as roofs, sidewalks, roads, buildings, and parking lots – provide less shade and moisture than natural landscapes and therefore contribute to higher temperatures (global warming).
We must look at the big picture. Is water our most precious resource? Is air our most precious resource or our earth, as it deteriorates from global warming our most precious resource? Is the over-all health of our population our most precious resource? Keep in mind that the more we squash people into multi-plexes, we reduce their overall quality of life.
It is not quite as simple as one size fits all. We must have a balanced and informed approach to any changes implemented.
Peter Stern
Sorry. I have lived in multi-family housing my entire adult life. Never have felt “squashed.”