Mailbag: Residents sound off on Glendale’s proposed cap park
Thoughts on the cap park, free of charge
The Glendale City Council must stop squandering city resources and our money on harebrained ideas such as capping the 134 Freeway with a park.
Members of the Council traveling to Texas, at our expense, and then voting to spend $300,000 on consultants for feasibility studies of this scheme is unacceptable.
Assuming we went ahead with this project, has anyone considered:
- the monumental disruption in our lives during the long construction phase?
- the pollution the potential park users will be exposed to while in the park?
- the safety problems of the traffic in the tunnel under the park?
- the increased hazard of horrible Glendale drivers moving inside the tunnel?
The City Council must stop allowing “developers” to destroy our city with monstrous apartment buildings. It will be a more realistic (and cheaper) approach to remove some buildings and acquire land for parks, rather than capping the 134.
If we have so much surplus that we can contemplate spending money on the 134 capping idea, I strongly recommend that it be used for traffic law enforcement, which is sorely needed in our formerly wonderful and presently miserable city.
I also suggest that the City Council slow down in the hiring of so many expensive consultants on everything under the sun (proposed “public art consultant” comes to mind).
Theodore Polychronis
Glendale
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Cap park idea elicits student exuberance
I was just looking at the News-Press article regarding plans for a cap park over Glendale’s part of the Ventura Freeway. I wanted to say I liked the article, and I think its a good idea for Glendale to have another park and to just have something new added here! I grew up in Glendale so I would love to see this become an actual place.
I prefer concept B because I would like to see more green areas around the freeway. I would be interested to hear what responses you might be getting from others in Glendale. While I currently live near Glendale High School, from which I will be graduating this year, I spent most of my life growing up not far from the area that is being discussed for the project. I think creating a space for people and families above existing space sounds like an interesting concept.
If the city moves forward with the idea and they continue the project, I’d love to see more articles about it and I hope you can fulfill this! Thank you!
Nicholas Gamboa
Glendale
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Seek other areas for trimming the fat
It is interesting that the article mentions a $25,000 pamphlet that outlines cuts the city “may” have to make to make up for the $17.5 million loss. If that document is the piece titled “The state of our city” that came in the mail, there doesn’t seem to be any clarity as to the “may” part.
That document indicates that there are but nine choices, ranging from eliminating 53 police officers to cuts at most libraries. What is missing is a list of all of the areas where city spending takes place and the amounts therein.
Certainly an easy approach would be to properly calculate the percentage on the total city revenue which comes from the UUT and apply it across the board. A more business-like approach would be to do a zero-based budget approach and make the cuts where there would be little to lose. Perhaps a good place to start would be to eliminate the group that published this flier, as they are clearly attempting to mislead citizens.
Donald Cameron
Glendale
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Empty spaces upset a chain aficionado
Regarding the comments of Calvin Chock, president of the Crescenta Valley Chamber of Commerce, who said that there are not many empty buildings/businesses on Foothill Boulevard — where does he live? Including, all along Foothill Boulevard from Sunland/Tujunga to La Cañada we have lost three Kentucky Fried Chicken outlets, a Sizzler, a Pizza Hut, Fresh & Easy, Rubio’s and Burger King. It is a disgrace.
Now I’ve heard there will be another Starbucks. How may Starbucks do we need, really? Shakey’s was lost and turned into a banquet hall that went out of business, then there was a Straw Hat that went out of business. Oh, and the corner of Boston Avenue and Foothill has not been able to maintain any business for any amount of time. The old mini-golf place near the McDonald’s on Foothill is closed down and the building is empty. I seriously could go on and on about all the empty businesses on Foothill.
I have lived here for 17 years and I would love some chain restaurants like Souplantation, Mimi’s Café, Claim Jumper, Olive Garden or any other chain restaurant. Please stop the feeling that chain restaurants are bad for the community.
Therese Manocchio
Glendale
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A friend and fan of Andrew Blumenfeld
I first met Andrew Blumenfeld as my rival during the 2011 La Cañada school board campaign. I was immediately struck by his fluency in education policy and strategies as well as his obvious passion for student interests. It was evident that his words and actions were motivated by a consistent philosophy — what is best for students.
When we began serving as colleagues on the school board, his commitment to student achievement remained resolute. Together with our outstanding superintendent, and the rest of the board, he challenged the status quo and was often the leader in crafting innovative solutions that drew on the strengths of our community and the talents of our administration and staff. Between meetings, Andrew continued to outreach to all stakeholders and stayed on top of activities at the local, state and federal levels that affected education policies and practices.
Andrew’s decision to run for the state Assembly comes as no surprise and is a welcome next step for this extremely talented educator. As a former board president as well as an ongoing parent, I understand that the decisions made in our legislature affect our children’s educational experience profoundly. Both in session and behind the scenes, it is imperative that our representative support and empower school boards to promote student well being and achievement. I am confident that Andrew will employ his passion and leadership to build consensus among a disparate body with often competing interests.
I am grateful to my friend, Andrew, for his service to our community and for his legacy of a passionate commitment to student achievement. I am very proud of the progress we made together and am excited for his decision to bring his talents to Sacramento. He will work relentlessly every day to insure that education remains a state priority and that local districts have the tools and support we need to insure the success of our students. I encourage you to join me in my support of Andrew for the 43rd Assembly District.
Ellen Multari
La Cañada Flintridge