Glendora : Development Study Group

In response to a burgeoning slow-growth movement, the City Council voted Tuesday night to establish a study group to examine the city’s development policies.

The group will include representatives of the City Council, the Planning Commission and Glendora Pride, a citizens group that is calling for stricter controls on development.

The group will review the city’s zoning laws, particularly its rural hillside residential ordinance, which was adopted in 1973 to establish rigid standards for grading and construction in the foothills.

Slow-growth advocates have complained that the ordinance is not being adequately enforced and that the council and Planning Commission have been too quick to grant variances to developers. At a meeting Monday night, council members disputed this charge and said residents must become more involved in city government if they want a greater say in development decisions.

Members of Glendora Pride said they will participate in the study group but also plan to continue seeking a moratorium on development while the study group conducts its research.

“We could have all of our hillsides destroyed by the time the study group reaches any conclusions,” said Darlene Avina, a member of Glendora Pride who wants to stop a project in the South Hills area of the city. Avina said the group will try to place a growth-moratorium initiative on the ballot.