GAINS & LOSSES
GAINS
BUG-OFF
Officials will be still be holding their collective breath, but the
Burbank Unified School District and the Burbank police and fire
departments are optimistic about a glitch-free transition to the year
2000.
The dreaded “Millennium Bug” -- a host of potential problems caused by
computers with two-digit date codes mistaking the “00” in the year 2000
for a return to 1900 -- is not expected to cause major problems with the
school district and Burbank’s public safety departments because they have
spent the past year working to iron out any problems, officials say.
“We believe everything will function properly,” said Burbank Lt. Larry
Koch. “All the in-house computer systems, including the records computer
and computer-aided dispatch, have been upgraded and tested.”
More concerned about what’s going outside than inside their computers,
police officials plan to staff upward of 25 officers on the streets on
New Year’s Eve, about 50% more than on a normal Friday night shift. The
fire department will have a an additional rescue ambulance, two engines,
a hazardous materials squad and fire prevention personnel on hand for the
big night.
PUTTING A NEW SHINE ON AN OLD BEAUTY
There was the moment of illumination, the singing and the usual words
of seasonal greeting, but the Mayor’s Tree Lighting ceremony took on a
bit of added meaning this year with the dedication of monument
celebrating the four-year restoration of City Hall.
In the midst of a restoration that, when complete, will cost around
$500,000, the old Art Deco jewel is looking better than ever. So far, new
marble floors have been installed, the rotunda has been repainted,
railings and lighting fixtures have been replaced and spruced up and new
concrete has been poured. The distinctive fountain has also been returned
to something near its original splendor -- though the city remains
knotted in a dispute over the cost of that work. Next year, work will
focus on restoring the lovely “Four Freedoms” mural in the City Council
chambers.
The new monument, a four-foot slab of polished stone, notes the
building’s 1943 dedication, its inclusion on the National Register of
Historic Places in 1966 and the current restoration work.
“I think it looks as good as it did 50 years ago,” Councilman Bob
Kramer said. “We like it and people are always happy to come to it.”
WEARING IT WELL
Congratulations are in order for Dawna Gunn and Samantha Mollaun who
were respectively crowned Miss Burbank and Miss Teen Burbank at a recent
gala at The Castaway.
In addition to their regular responsibilities, the two athletically
inclined high school students will be busy throughout 2000 making
appearances at city events such as Burbank on Parade and the Fourth of
July celebration at the Starlight Bowl.
Gunn, 18, attends Village Christian School in North Hollywood where
she plays varsity soccer, is a cheerleader and serves as senior council
secretary. She counts retired basketball star Michael Jordan among her
role models.
Mollaun, 16, is a junior at Jon Burroughs High School. She plays golf
and softball for the Indians. She looks up to softball player Dot
Richardson, a 1996 Olympic gold medalist.
“It’s good to be a representative of the city,” Mollaun said. “We can
be examples.”
In the Miss Burbank pageant, Jacqlene Cacia and Ginny Masterani were
first- and- second runners-up. The first runner-up for Miss Teen Burbank
was Brittnay Middleton and the second runner-up was Emily Crawford.
2000 REASONS TO BE THANKFUL
With much of the hoopla focusing on doomsday scenarios of both the man
and machine variety, a local church has decided to focus on the things we
have to be thankful for at the brink of the millennium.
The Burbank Church of Religious Science has created the “Millennium
Book,” a 22 by 28 inch walnut-paneled tome that will record the positive
reflections of church members and residents throughout the first year of
the new century.
“There’s a lot to be excited about and this is a good way to do it,”
said Jeanne McCafferty, a church member who started the book along with
The Rev. Marlene Morris. “It’s an honor that very few people get to
witness.”
After spending the year 2000 on display at the church, the Millennium
Book will be sealed in a time capsule at midnight on New Year’s Day 2001.
LOSSES
SOLE SURVIVOR
Flanked on both sides by the Parc Pointe Apartment Complex, Carolyn
Carter’s small Hollywood Way home has been a neighborhood curiosity for
the past decade or so. In addition to the odd aesthetics it offers --
squeezed as it is between two wings of expansive complex -- the house has
stood as a symbol of one woman’s determination not to succumb to the
powers that be.
Carter refused to sell out to the developer who built the apartments,
forcing the company to construct the 243-unit complex around her. Carter,
who lived in the home until her death in 1998 at the age of 92, credited
developer Multi-Family Partners with being a good neighbor. They took
care of the gardening an even painted her house, said her nephew, John
Carter.
“She always felt a little guilty for not selling to them.”
For Multi-Family’s good deeds and patience have paid off. Carter is
selling the property to the developer and its plans to build 12 more
units on the site have been approved by the City Council.
HOMELESS FOR THE HOLIDAYS
After Red Cross officials put her up initially in a hotel, Frances
Jansen has found temporary housing in a local retirement home. Still, it
will be a melancholy holiday season for the Burbank senior who was forced
to move out of her Hillside District home when a fire blazed through her
living room.
The fire, which was started by a broken lamp, caused about $45,000
damage to Jansen’s home, fire officials said. It will be at least two
months before the house is repaired and Jansen can move back in.