Keep individuality in mind on Foothill

The proposed height limit on Foothill Boulevard is based from the lowest point of the property. Since just about all of the south side of Foothill Boulevard properties have a slope, some quite a bit, that puts the lowest point somewhere below the main street level.

Properties on Foothill also have varying widths. That also should be considered. A lot with a 50-foot width should not be compared with a lot three times the size (“What should the height limit be?” Aug. 4).

Of the three choices to be submitted, the Crescenta Valley Chamber of Commerce had voted on a 42-foot height. If we were to limit all buildings to 35 feet, properties with a large slope could be limited to a frontage height of 25 feet or less. This is not encouraging to new businesses.

Maybe properties should be individually decided. Keeping in mind, design of a building will always play an important role.

It was also mentioned in letters to the editor that the single-story mini mall on the north side of the 3700 block of Foothill Boulevard is mostly leased with busy tenants. That may be true of Starbucks, but most of the original tenants have gone out of business.

The “For Lease” signs along Foothill don’t mean larger buildings will have problems. Perhaps it means single-story buildings in need of remodeling have problems as well. Possibly it has something to do with the economy, or maybe it just means they need more support from the community.

Honolulu Avenue should not be compared to Foothill Boulevard, nor should all Realtors, architects and developers be considered greedy.

The purpose of the Chamber of Commerce is to encourage business; let’s not scare it away.

Jean Maluccio

La Crescenta

Editor’s note: Maluccio is past president of the Crescenta Valley Chamber of Commerce.

Thank goodness for new tennis courts

As someone who was in the thick of the debate over whether the Central Park tennis courts should/could be saved, may I say thank goodness that the displaced “hundreds of (Central Park tennis-playing) children” that Counciman Rafi Maoukian once reportedly referred to will now have a decent, South Glendale place to play (“New courts, anyone?” Aug. 18).

Regarding the Central Park fields near the new Adult Recreation Center, how about a much more affordable, not to mention also much more compact, shaded outdoor fitness center in lieu of a limited-use, now-defunct-anyway soccer field — specifically, a “fitness zone” like the one in the otherwise much-maligned city of Bell’s Ernest Debs Park?

This Tri-Active America equipped fitness jewel is outfitted with state-of-the-art cardio, resistance and strengthening equipment. You have to see it to believe it. I have personally tried many types of such equipment in various parks throughout our common metro area, and I have to emphatically vouchsafe that this center has the best of them all.

It would nicely supplement the overcrowded Adult Recreation Center’s own fitness room, by the way, while being usable by fitness buffs of all ages.

Harvey Pearson

Los Feliz