The three candidates for Half Moon Bay City Council in the June 4 special election were asked for their reaction to Friday's fire at The Conservatory and about reports of people cheering as the hotel burned.
"I think the people I've been in touch with have been going through the process to stop Phase II. . . . It's a very difficult thing to say, `Were they right or wrong for cheering?' I'm not the one to judge whether it's good or bad. It's just a reflection of the project."
"It should be condemned, not cheered," Maness said, adding that if it turns out to be arson, there is no justification, "none whatsoever" for burning it. "Firefighters' lives were at risk."
"I couldn't believe it. I heard clapping and cheering and applauding when the third story fell in on itself. It makes me sick to my stomach that people would actually think somebody's tragedy was something to applaud. . . .Imagewise, the whole Coastside has been hurt."