GLENDALE : Elks to Rebuild 7 Years After Fire

More than seven years after their building was destroyed in an arson blaze, Glendale Elks Lodge members will finally see groundbreaking begin on their vacant, weed-covered property, officials said Tuesday.

“Everybody’s going to be real happy,” said Kenneth L. Steelman, the Elks’ trustee chairman of business matters. “We’re looking forward to this.”

Although city planning officials have yet to clear the Elks’ request for a building permit, Steelman said he believes that construction should start by Oct. 15.

“If everything goes right, we should have our first meeting in our building no later than July 20, 1994,” he said.

Glendale Elks members have been meeting in rented space at the Pasadena Elks Lodge since May, 1990.

Architect Joe Jordan said Tuesday that the property--which has a 5-foot-deep hole from the previous structure--should be graded as early as Friday.

“We’re going to remove the weeds and fill the old hole from the old basement,” Jordan said.

The Elks Lodge’s plan for a rectangular, 9,236-square-foot, one-story structure was approved late July after a seventh city design review board meeting. Review board members had problems with the proposed outdoor design and use of materials but finally agreed on a flat canopy and a flat roof with walls covering air-conditioning units and other outside mechanical equipment. The building’s walls will be covered with marble.

Inside, it will include an assembly area, meeting room, recreation space and kitchen.

Elks officials had first hoped to build a five-story hotel and lodge with underground parking. But an agreement with a local developer fell through in early 1992. No cost for the new project has been determined.