Keep Burbank, Glendale in 818 Area Code, County Urges

Siding with unhappy residents in Burbank and Glendale, the Los Angeles County Board of Supervisors voted Tuesday to ask the state Public Utilities Commission to keep those cities in the same area code as the rest of the San Fernando Valley.

Since an area code switch from 818 to 626 was proposed last year, residents and business owners in Burbank and Glendale have complained that changing phone numbers would cut them off from the Valley and force them to change stationery and business cards.

Under the current plan, Burbank would be split between the two codes, with part of the city, along with Glendale, sharing the 626 code with the San Gabriel Valley.

The PUC has the power to finally decide the question. A spokesperson said the agency plans to do so by the end of the year.

Supervisor Mike Antonovich, who introduced the motion, said a single area code makes the Valley more cohesive.

“My concern is that you are breaking up the San Fernando Valley,” he said. “It is divisive and counterproductive. . . . If there’s a problem with a shortage of area codes, then they should develop a separate one for cellular phones.”

The motion said in part:

“If new geographic area codes are necessary, the boundaries should be drawn so that Burbank and Glendale remain part of the fully intact San Fernando Valley. . . . This would not only maintain the integrity of the Valley but would also reduce the disruption and expense to businesses in those cities.”

The motion also asked that a separate area code be assigned for cellular telephones, pagers and computer modems.

But Pacific Bell spokeswoman Linda Bonniksen said that attempting to move the line so that both Burbank and Glendale would remain in the 818 code would probably be unworkable.

“There are no boundary lines that would keep Glendale as an intact city,” she said. “The Board of Supervisors have a wonderful goal here, but if it was done their way, what it will do is not provide enough relief for 818. It would last only about three years.”

The proposed area code boundaries were devised by 25 or 30 telecommunications companies and are based in part on the location of existing wiring, Bonniksen said.

A PUC spokeswoman said the commission usually doesn’t enter into such disputes.

“We pretty much leave them alone unless there is a formal complaint,” said Kyle De Vine a PUC spokeswoman. “We would certainly look at where the boundary lines are being drawn. If the main concern is splitting up communities, then that sounds reasonable.”