BURBANK : Developer Selected for Senior Housing

The city of Burbank has picked a developer to build 176 senior citizen apartments and retail space on a city-owned plot at 3rd Street and Magnolia Boulevard.

Acting as the Redevelopment Agency, the City Council approved Cusumano Development Industries of Burbank as the developer in a 3-2 vote.

The city must still work out an agreement under which the developer would acquire the land to be used for the project. The cost of the property will be based on a formula that considers the amount of low-income housing the project generates, said Steve Somers, project manager for the Redevelopment Agency.

In other business, the City Council approved basic cable rate charges of $10.16 by Sammons Communications, whose franchise agreement with the city is up for renewal. However, the council objected to the cable company’s hourly charge for service calls of $71.25 and ordered that the charge be cut to $22.35 per hour, which is closer to what the city’s consultants have said is typically charged by cable companies across the country.

Sammons, which has argued that its charges for service calls are fair when compared with what is asked by such service people as electricians and plumbers, has 30 days to appeal the decision to the Federal Communications Commission.