Wanted: Mutual Respect

Last December, Glendale Community College (GCC) made a presentation to Montrose Shopping Park Association members, outlining plans for developing its Honolulu Avenue buildings, collaborating with USC Keck Medicine and Verdugo Hills Hospital.

The former Citibank building will be demolished, a new GCC Montrose Campus building will be built, and the Professional Development Center repurposed to assist a plan that will host clinics for physical and occupational therapy, training GCC students in the process. A surprise to all.

GCC seemed to show little consideration of how immense a change their plan would be for the neighborhood, especially in the long run, with potential pressure to expand. And there has been no consideration of pleas delivered at GCC trustee or VHH meetings – nor any reach out.

Their concept is worthy. But this plan will be felt over years by the broader Montrose – Sparr Heights area. To secure community buy-in for such a project, it is essential to build good faith habits of information sharing, negotiation and accountability between GCC, USC, VHH and those who will feel those changes most readily.

Cultivating an attitude of mutual respect, with interests of all parties on the table, should come first, the desired result being builders are welcome and neighbors feel valued.

Initial concerns:

• Limited space will pressure a need for later expansion into the adjacent neighborhood, as happened at the Garfield campus where 11-plus homes were sold to make room for the school’s growing parking needs.
• City and county ordinances do not apply to community college developments, which are under the jurisdiction of the State of California, leaving the community unable to press concerns or grievances locally.
• Combined, USC, VHH and GCC will have more leverage than Montrose Shopping Park and the greater supporting neighborhood.

Now is the time to pay attention and be heard, not to deserve what Garfield neighbors were told – that they waited too long to speak up.

This project is supported by two bond measures many of us recently voted for – amounting to nearly a billion dollars of taxpayer support – and it belongs to all of us.

Carol Clark
Montrose neighbor 
MontroseMovingForward@gmail.com