‘Los Angelizing’ the Burbank Hills
Greg Braxton’s story on growth in Burbank (Feb. 16) was long overdue. The article mentions that the Sherman Whitmore development is one of the sore points Burbank citizens are currently fuming over.
To call this horrible development project controversial is an understatement. The misuse of such a large portion of the Verdugo Mountains is a moral outrage. This project will be one of the worst ecological disasters ever permitted in the state of California.
The Burbank Mountain Reserve is the last of its kind. It is protected by federal and state laws, and because Whitmore threatened lawsuits, the Burbank Council gave in to him. It will affect untold wildlife including a possible endangered species of bird known as the least Bell’s vireo, which uses this riparian habitat for migratory purposes. It will also destroy a rare mountain spring, a valuable debris basin in Cabrini Canyon, which proved its worth during a major fire in the 1970s.
That is only half of it; the project will affect hundreds of families and their neighborhoods, an 850-unit condominium complex, an elementary school, a child-care center, two high schools, a private business college, a church and its parish and a world-famous religious shrine to Mother Frances Cabrini.
In granting Whitmore his “yes vote,” which was not unanimous but a 3-2 victory with Mayor Michael Hastings casting the tie-breaking vote, the City Council defied the majority will of the people of Burbank, who after six public hearings made it crystal clear they did not want the mountains touched. All of this by a majority on the council who were elected on “no growth campaigns.”
There are other issues that are also very mysterious, such as the $3-million grant the state gave Burbank in an emergency session to buy back the land from Whitmore. Whitmore claims the council never made him an offer. They claim they could not negotiate with him. It’s all very strange, and the people of Burbank better wake up before it’s too late. To “Los Angelize” the Burbank Hills is clearly what they intend to do and, unless we do something about it, that is the direction these people are going.
Our elected officials are not serving our interest, and we should remember this when election time rolls around.
JOSEPH DI SANTE
Burbank
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