Letters to the Editor: Glendale’s homeless count, campaign donation limits and ‘pot shops’ on readers’ minds
During the annual homeless count last week in Glendale, the police officers who accompanied the volunteers were a big help in locating homeless people living on the street.
The homeless we count were treated very well by the police and are only counted if they give their consent. The count is used to gain federal money for services to Glendale’s homeless.
Most of us volunteers are very touched by the fact that the homeless are just normal people who are suffering because of circumstances beyond their control.
Thank you to the volunteers and thank you to Glendale Police Department Sgt. Oscar Rodriguez; Sgt. Patrick Magtoto; Officers Steve Koszis, James Colvin, Minas Tsolakyan and Gonzalo Zendejas; and volunteer John Bales.
Jim Nasella
Glendale
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During the April 2017 election, a campaign mailer was sent to thousands of Glendale/Montrose residents paid for by an independent expenditure of the political action committee Glendale Voters for Good Government. Their mailer stated in part: “Glendale News-Press 3/21/17, Ara Najarian Wants to Halt Downtown Development and Expand Mass Transit.”
Southland Transit Inc. put $25,000 into the PAC that sent out the mailer in support of Najarian’s candidacy. This action may be legal, but it is certainly not in the spirit of the city’s 2017 law that sets a limit of $1,100 on individual campaign donations.
Timmy Mardirossian, the sole donor to the PAC, is the owner of Southland Transit, Inc. and many other transportation companies that go before the MTA for funding. Najarian is a board member of the MTA. At one time, Supervisor Mike Antonovich tried to remove Najarian from the MTA board.
To date, City Council members Agajanian, Devine, Gharpetian, Sinanyan and City Atty. Mike Garcia, have not spoken out or done anything to investigate Najarian’s behavior. Their silence makes them complicit in the violation of the spirit of the city campaign limit law.
Should Najarian get away with breaking the spirit of our individual campaign limit law, what does it mean for future campaign limit laws?
Mike Mohill
Glendale
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At a November City Council meeting pot shops in Glendale were discussed.
Mayor Vartan Gharpetian felt allowing them went against his principles. Councilwoman Paula Devine felt marijuana was a gateway drug. Councilman Vrej Agajanian called for more analysis going into 2018.
Council members Zareh Sinanyan and Ara Najarian were more open to the idea. Najarians’ comments were most interesting: one of which, according to the News-Press, was that “allowing marijuana to be sold in Glendale would help strike a blow against drug dealers and diminish the black market.” Really!
According to a Jan. 27 article in the L.A. Times, Mexico’s pot trade is lessening in lieu of more lucrative crops like avocados. But hold your horses, folks. Cartels now concentrate on heroin, fentanyl and petro fuel for export. This nasty business brings with it far more violence and bloodshed due to higher profit margins. Would local acceptance of “pot shops,” i.e. “the- Genie’s-out-of-the-bottle” mentality make it any different?
Federal law still considers pot a Schedule 1 drug. Glendale is already one of the worst cities in the U.S.A. to drive in. Increased stoned driving can only make this worse.
Yes, medical marijuana is a great help to those suffering from dreaded diseases like cancer or multiple sclerosis, and I fully support this use.
Email or call City Council members and let them know how you feel. After all, they are here to listen and serve those who voted them into office.
Lou Fabbiano
Glendale