Letters to the Editor: Proposed changes to school district logo, city parking concern readers
In a recent article titled “Burbank Unified board member asks staff to look at logo change,” a Burbank Unified school board member said he wants to change the current Burbank Unified logo, which has the words “Burbank Unified School District” in an arch hovering over three figures. Below the trio is the phrase “Equity and Excellence.”
This school board member assumed that the three figures represented a family. However, nowhere on the logo is the word “family.” I see three human figures representing students and teachers, since that is what you would see in a school district. I look at the logo and see adults and children joining together equally to learn.
The current logo, while simple, does makes sense. I see no need for change. The depiction of humans on the logo is just fine.
Steven Edward
Burbank
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I always said that if anyone ever brought up the subject of paid parking in Burbank, I would speak up in opposition, re: “Financial forecast appears positive” Burbank Leader, April 24, 2019, and “Officials look to improve parking” Burbank Leader, May 29, 2019.
Let’s address the April 24 article first. Thanks to Burbank voters, the city was bailed out of its budget shortfall in 2018-19 by a 0.75% sales-tax increase, which, as the writer of the article stated, was “arguably the most significant factor that has helped boost Burbank’s General Fund.”
Rather than thanking the citizens of Burbank, Cindy Giraldo, the city’s director financial services, in her report to the City Council, proposed the idea of parking fees as one way to maintain future budget surpluses.
Fast forward to the May 29 article in the Leader. Mind you, this is a report during the very next council meeting, where David Kriske, the city’s assistant community development director for transportation, presented a well-written, well-thought-out plan about how we can improve traffic flow in Burbank by a variety of methods including parking meters and fees, not to mention permitted parking in neighborhoods.
The parking meters’ purpose would not be for the sake of revenue, Kriske stated, but to help improve traffic flow and parking-space turnover.
“It’s not setting a price for a revenue goal.” Kriske said, “It’s not setting a price arbitrarily, but it’s really to find out how you do want that parking to operate….”
OK … whatever you say… sounds like parking meters dressed in sheep’s clothing to me.
Which is it, city administrators? We have the financial services director saying parking meters would help maintain our budget surplus, and a month later, the transportation department has a different story.
And worst of all, we have the City Council unanimously voting in favor of moving forward with a plan to charge parking fees, after very little discussion or debate or advocacy for the citizens of Burbank.
Cindy Niver
Burbank