Thanks for supporting carousel petition

I want to thank the Burbank Leader for bringing the danger of

losing the 104-year-old carousel in the Media City Center mall to the

public awareness and for your outstanding coverage of the attempts some

of the Burbank residents and I have made to keep the ride in its current

location.

On Nov. 9, after exactly one month of petitioning, I had expressed my

conviction for the third time and submitted 5,919 supporting signatures

to the City Council that this historic treasure is precisely where it

belongs.

In just the four days prior to that date, 1,046 people signed their

names stating that they no longer plan to shop at the Media City Center

if the Looff Carousel is not included in the renovation of the mall.

Since then, approximately 200 more people have added their names to the

boycott petition.

I am extremely grateful to everyone who signed my petition and for the

appreciation that this community has demonstrated for the carousel that

my great-grandfather created in 1895. Additionally, the people to whom

I’ve spoken, especially the children, share my view that the mall should

be developed around this part of our heritage.

Surrounding such a culturally significant and beautiful

merry-go-round, virtually everyone would love to see prospering,

aesthetic, children’s theme stores instead of the current vacancies on

the mall’s first floor. Today I shared this vision with Mr. Joe Paggi of

Center Trust Company, the current owner of the mall.

I suggested that he could market his mall to prospective tenants by

letting store owners know how much this community cherishes its unique

and special antique ride. To educate the public even more, I encouraged

him to coordinate events such as rallies with the carousel owner.

Since Zelman Development will no longer be buying the mall and

removing the carousel, it seems that the people in this city could be

very influential at this point in time. Mr. Paggi confirmed to me that

over the next couple of weeks, he will be taking a fresh look at planning

the center’s future.

If as many people as possible that I met in Burbank during my campaign

will let their views be known during the upcoming weeks at the customer

relations desk at the mall or perhaps by way of letters to the owners, I

think that the Looff Carousel will serve the best purposes for which it

was built with its permanency secured in an ideal location.

NANCY HUTCHINS

Tujunga