Lifeguard towers can be painted colorfully, tastefully This idea is a response to the recent story on lifeguard towers with ads. The beaches in Los Angeles have created a wonderful program called Portraits of Hope, where deserving children are involved in painting lifeguard towers. There are corporate sponsors and their name is shown on a very small portion of the tower (see the Izod example here). Having ads for soft drinks, bars, restaurants and other products is not a good vibe for our beaches! When you compare our beaches to LA, we have the free parking, the better air, and overall, we have the coast with the most. Lets find a way to raise the money we need with colorful results. Our local artists could also have their work on display through a new program. —Marc Menkin Pacific Beach Beach ads would cheapen beautiful scenery Beware unintended consequences: Should the San Diego City Council approve advertising at the city’s beaches, then in addition to blight, small enterprises such as ours may need to rethink their positions. In addition, the ongoing beach cleanup efforts of various nonprofits — I Love A Clean San Diego, CoastKeeper, Surfrider, San Diego River Foundation, etc. — may be undermined. Dog Beach Dog Wash (in Ocean Beach), open over 17 years, has sponsored more than 200 beach cleanups. We have paid for and stocked more than 3 million cleanup bags at a cost of more than $50,000. We have never sought recognition for our community activism. However, we will not participate if a corporate sponsor appears to take credit for our efforts and the efforts of city beach-maintenance crews and the thousands of volunteers who contribute to the cleanliness, health and safety of our beaches. A corporate “sponsor” would need to provide service and product (bags and trash disposal) on an ongoing basis.  It is not enough to write a one-time check for $500,000. We hope the City Council will rethink this short-sighted “solution” for the current deficits. —Mindy Pellissier Ocean Beach Visiting seal lover irked by human intimidation I have visited La Jolla many times in the past 20 years. Today I returned with my kids and my brother who visited from Europe, promising them to see hundreds of seals in the “Children’s Pool.” My kids’ eyes were glowing with excitement and anticipation. But when we arrived, all we saw was a beach filled with people and a few scared seals in the water that didn’t dare to gather on “their” beach anymore. When we got closer, we saw activists with petitions and signs that read, “This is your beach. Use it. Don’t let those animal lovers bully you away. Make use of your right to use the beach.” Needless to say, we will not return to La Jolla to see seals anymore. I don’t know of another beach in this area that the seals can use. While I will take my kids now to Laguna Beach to swim, I wonder where the seals will go to breed. We hope that San Diego wakes up before my favorite attraction has disappeared. —Toby Gad Studio City, Calif.