Commends the City for Commemoration Event

Thank you to the City [of Glendale] for the 25th annual Armenian Genocide Commemoration Event held on Thursday, April 23 at the Alex Theatre. I’ve attended this event for many years and found this year’s particularly good. From the opening remarks through performances by Sonata School students, Lilia Dance Group, the AGBU choir and Jivan Gasparyan Jr.’s moving performance on the duduk, the evening provided a wealth of information and was truly a pleasure. 

Armenia was the first nation to adopt Christianity in 301 AD. Armenians endured centuries of persecution by other nations, oppression in the Ottoman Empire. In the late 19th century as the Ottoman Empire unraveled, an era of vicious pogroms began, culminating in the Genocide from 1915 to 1923. It was the first Genocide of the 20th century. Sadly many countries have failed to recognize it and Turkey continues to deny it. 

Everyone should participate in this annual commemoration because if any people can be subjected to such horrors, absolutely no one is safe. I applaud the City’s fine work in raising awareness of the Genocide and celebrating the resilience, arts and culture of the Armenian people. 

I’ll close by simply saying getseh hayastan!

Susan Wolfson, Candidate for City Clerk
Glendale

Memories of the Early Train

Trent Sanders’ letter brought back some old memories. In the very early 1950s I was in grade school. We lived in the 500 east block of Chestnut Street. The railroad tracks ran right up the middle of Glendale. On some school holidays I went to work with my dad and it was early enough in the morning that I would see the steam engine with the lumber load slowly go up Glendale Avenue with its bell ringing. I am not sure, but I believe the tracks were removed when the storm drains were put in. The lumber yard was replaced by the large shopping area immediately south of the 134 Freeway.

Tom Suter
La Crescenta

Old Bigotries – Alive and Well

One of my first memories of La Crescenta, after buying a house off Briggs Street here in 1984, was witnessing a White teenage girl angrily spewing racial epithets at an older Armenian woman in the parking lot of Ralph’s. At her mother’s encouragement, the girl was screaming for all to hear that the woman was stupid, didn’t belong here, and should go back to where she came from. Not a great first impression for me as a new resident.

Forty plus years later, I like to think our community has moved beyond some of those old hateful bigotries. However, after witnessing the mob scene at [Monday] night’s [May 4] CV Town Council meeting, I am not sure we have. 

La Crescentans, of all ethnic stripes, were there to spew the same kind of accusatory hate, just this time targeted at the foster youth at the center of the Briggs/Foothill development project. 

As for the project itself, the concerns previously raised about it by the community, like the height, number of units, and traffic congestion, were not only heard by the developer (Abode Communities) but responded to. The modified proposal presented reduces the number of units by almost 20%, eliminates one whole floor and has cars exiting now onto Foothill Boulevard instead of Briggs Avenue. But none of that seemed to be enough for folks as the same complaints persisted. This tells me that all the voiced concern over “safety” is really just a guise for folks’ underlying bigotries or biases against the poor or young people, like heard against Armenians in the 1980s.

I personally support the efforts of Abode Communities and the project it has proposed. These new apartments will provide young adults, recently out of the County’s foster care system, an opportunity to live and grow their families in a safe, beautiful neighborhood – just like my family was blessed with. 

If your faith/values encourage you to treat others like you would like them to treat you, please join me and email Supervisor Barger now (Kathryn@bos.lacounty.gov) and ask her to approve this terrific project. 

Thanks!

Frank Colcord
La Crescenta

‘People’s Forum’ Could’ve Been Better Attended – By Candidates

On Monday night, May 4, a large group of Glendale residents gathered for the inaugural “People’s Forum,” a city council candidate event designed to reflect a broad range of community voices. Participating groups each submitted a question rooted in the city’s diverse needs and priorities.

The evening was sponsored by glendaleOUT and GUSD Parents. All candidates were invited, but some declined, citing concerns that prior endorsements by GUSD Parents compromised neutrality. As someone involved with both organizations, that response was disheartening. It reflects a misunderstanding of what forums are meant to do and of the work these groups consistently undertake to expand civic participation.

The forum was created to fill a gap. South Glendale deserves a space where underrepresented questions could be raised. It required meaningful time and financial investment from its sponsors and, like any forum, offered all candidates an opportunity to engage directly with residents, articulate their priorities and make their case. A sponsor’s endorsement does not undermine the openness or fairness of candidates addressing the public.

Of the 11 candidates, six initially committed to attend, but only three – Elen Asatryan, Alek Bartrosouf and Dan Brotman – showed up. The community deserved the chance to hear from everyone seeking to represent them, particularly in a setting designed to center local concerns.

Still, the evening was far from diminished. What unfolded was an engaged and substantive conversation, with three qualified candidates speaking candidly about the city’s challenges and their visions. Freed from rigid formats and predictable talking points, the discussion covered climate and energy policy, rising utility costs, food insecurity, housing pressures affecting renters and landlords, support for LGBTQ+ residents, the future of public schools and protecting immigrant communities from federal overreach.

Brotman emphasized long-term thinking and grounded his comments in data. 

Asatryan drew from personal experience, highlighting her focus on women, families and immigrant communities. Bartrosouf offered a city planner’s perspective, pointing to “low-cost, high-impact” improvements like expanding shade tree coverage.

The event demonstrated what happens when space is made for civic engagement: thoughtful, informed dialogue rooted in real community concerns, with an audience that was attentive, respectful and eager to listen.

Angela Vroom Givant
La Crescenta

Abode Project Not A Good Community Fit

As many residents know, developer Abode Communities has proposed the tallest and

largest building ever built in our town at the corner of Briggs Avenue and Foothill Boulevard. This [66]–plus unit, three-to-five story low income/transitional youth housing project will be located in the highest fire zone.

Briggs Avenue is the sole emergency evacuation route for Briggs residents north of Foothill Boulevard. During evacuations from the Eaton and Station fires the road was gridlocked.

Abode’s proposed giant building will add hundreds of additional residents and a hundred or more vehicles at this crucial intersection, putting both existing residents and new residents of this proposed development at severe risk in case of emergency.

Our town also lacks many of the basic services that proposed low income and

transitional youth residents require. Public transportation is minimal, medical facilities

are not close and jobs are scarce. Most employers are mom-and-pop businesses with

few workers.

Over 300 residents attended a public meeting on May 4 and many concerns

were expressed:

• The proposed project is dangerous because it is located on a blind curve on Briggs
• The project has insufficient parking and will negatively impact nearby businesses.
• The Sheriff’s Station across the street will suffer delayed response times due to
• congestion.
• There will not be 24 hour on-site resources for TAY youth
• Abode has not reached out to the schools to determine if they can support the
• additional kids
• The project does not comply with the La Crescenta Community Standards District nor local zoning codes and is proposed only because it has low-income
• housing
• This proposed project is far out of scale with our community in terms of size, massing and height

This is not a good fit for La Crescenta. Many other cities offer more suitable locations, which will provide a safer and welcoming environment.

I urge every La Crescenta resident to reach out to each LA County supervisor and express their thoughts on this project at https://bos.lacounty.gov/executive-office/about-us/board-contact-information or call (213) 974-1411.

Doug Kilpatrick
La Crescenta

Gridlock and Traffic Jams in CV’s Future?

Reflecting on a newspaper article in the CV Weekly about the gridlock and traffic jams during the Altadena and Palisades fires, I am concerned that the La Crescenta community faces a similar disaster with the proposed high-density housing at Foothill Boulevard and Briggs Avenue.

The 1975 and 2018 fires caused gridlock from Briggs Avenue west to Pennsylvania Avenue, hindering evacuation efforts and fire equipment deployment. Furthermore, Briggs Avenue would serve as a main artery that serves three schools with an estimated 2,546 students and approximately 6,000 single-family properties in the event of emergency evacuation.

In my opinion, it appears that State of California and Los Angeles County elected officials seem to be disregarding history by endorsing high-density housing in a critical fire zone. These disasters have demonstrated the consequences of such actions, and we should learn from them to create safer communities. Let us not put ourselves in a position for another disaster that could have been mitigated.

This project will create chokepoints for emergency equipment, residents, and schools, thereby increasing the risk of loss of life and property in the event of a major fire. If we continue to disregard the lessons learned and approve these chokepoints, we can only blame the lack of government oversight for failing to protect our communities. 

I urge the Board of Supervisors to deny funding for high density housing in a Critical High Fire Zone (file IDs 26-555 and 26-2556) Public Comments Agenda items 1D and 3D to ensure the safety of our community.

Jonas Williams
La Crescenta

Supports Addition of Bike Lanes

As a former cyclist I am pleased to see the city following through on its plan to add bike lanes on La Crescenta Avenue. The bold markings on the roadway will increase motorists’ awareness of cyclists. Critics of this plan have noted, with some validity, the small number of cyclists of this route. However, with the added safety we can expect to see more cyclists on this road. And with the increased popularity of e-bikes the numbers will grow even more. 

Critics also note that should an emergency evacuation be needed it would be hindered by the reduced lanes for automobile traffic. In an evacuation, it is likely the city will have a contingency plan to designate the middle lane as a second lane for the exiting traffic.  

Finally, the “traffic calming” effect of the “road diet” will be much appreciated by many [residents] who live near or travel on this road. 

Joseph Beerer
Glendale