By Mary O’KEEFE

The City of Glendale has been notifying neighbors of the proposed development of the Twelve Oaks Assisted Living property at 2820 Sycamore Ave. Readers worry that the 3.5 story building – and all buildings on the Twelve Oaks property – will be demolished. 

In the continuing effort to follow the development of this story, CVW reached out to get another update on the proposed construction. 

Jay Blatter, architect for the project, and James Rothrock, president/CEO of Episcopal Communities and Services (ECS), sat down for an interview with CVW to go over the project and provide input on the future of Twelve Oaks.

First some background: The well-known senior living facility is a unique oasis in the community, surrounded by trees and pathways. There was an area with individual rooms and throughout the property small cabin-type residential buildings. 

In the 1970s the National Charity League (NCL) of Glendale managed the facility through the Verdugo Hills Sunshine Society, whose name was later changed to Twelve Oaks Foundation (TOF). The charity league helped manage the facility until the late 1990s when Southern California Presbyterian Homes/be.group was brought in to manage it for NCL.

In 2013 residents and families at Twelve Oaks got a gut punch of a notice that the facility was for sale and residents had to leave. This sent not only residents but also neighbors into a tailspin as they attempted to find out what would be done with the property. Twelve Oaks, at that time, had been operated by the be.group, formerly Southern California Presbyterian Homes. Rumors quickly spread about the facility being closed and developers coming in to build homes.

The be.group was apparently planning to sell the property to developers that would not keep the property as an assisted living facility but as a housing development. However, it was discovered that the be.group only managed the property and were not its owners. It was, in fact, managing the property for the National Charity League (NCL) of Glendale/TOF.  The be.group had quickly evicted the elderly residents of Twelve Oaks, giving them little more than a letter that told them to leave … and everything was happening quickly. 

The neighbors and community became involved with the be.group plan and in 2015 the NCL took be.group to court. It won the decision to transfer the management and control back to NCL. 

Then in 2020, TOF entered into an affiliation with the ECS and after evaluating the property ECS found that it would have to close the assisted living facility and that all of the buildings would need to be knocked down and a new facility built from the ground up.

“We did investigate to see if we could preserve any of the building and reuse them, but safety is paramount when we’re servicing seniors,” Rothrock said. He added ECS had engineers and other professionals come to the property and were told the buildings were not safe. If they wanted to try to update them to make them safe it would cost a lot more than building a new facility. 

“The first thing we looked at was [that we] were in a neighborhood. It’s a beautiful neighborhood with trees and residential streets around,” he said. 

The area is encircled with trees, many of them oaks. Rothrock said they worked with the architect to make certain they built around the trees and kept the green space that made this facility so special. 

In their design they were thoughtful of the neighbors. Rothrock said they have met with neighbors to discuss plans. 

“So we asked, ‘Could we build from the center out so that we preserve as much of the green space and distance from the neighbors?’” Rothrock said. 

Rothrock and Blatter both wanted to clarify the height of the building, which is technically two to three and a half stories. 

“Actually, part of that is below grade,” Blatter said. One of the buildings that was on the property in the past was two stories with most of that first story below the main ground level.

“We’ve been really sensitive to our neighbors and we’re trying to create a very residential setting,” Blatter said. 

He added that three and a half stories is not really an accurate representation. 

The plans show the face of the first floor of the three-story building is about four feet below grade and, from eye level, it looks more like two and a half stories.

The building will also be set back about 60 feet from Sycamore Avenue. 

There will be a Memory Care facility with its own courtyard and kitchen. Rothrock said studies have found that the smell of food being prepared helps improve the appetite of those with memory issues, such as dementia.

The design is Craftsman in nature to blend in with the surroundings of the neighborhood and wooded area.

“We want the [residents of Twelve Oaks] to feel like they’re still in the neighborhood,” Blatter said. 

In addition, ECS will be paying about $1 million to place all the utility wires underground, a move that would not only benefit Twelve Oaks but the entire neighborhood. 

Blatter said they have also taken seriously the concern for wildfires.

“This building, while it shows nice materials on the outside, is going to be what we call a Type 1 or Type 2 construction,” Blatter said. 

Type 1 is a high-rise, fire-resistant type of concrete and steel designed to prevent collapse and the spread of fire. Type 2 construction is described as “non-combustible” but less fire-resistant and is often used in schools. 

Landscaping will be six feet from the building to allow defensible space for firefighters. 

There is no doubt the plans are for a larger facility than the Twelve Oaks of the past. The new facility would have 104 units: 16 studio apartments/units and eight one bedroom units for the Memory Care. In the assisted living area there will be one studio unit, 66 one-bedroom units and 13 two-bedroom units. Most of the parking will be underground with a total of 94 spaces provided. The total square footage of the entire facility is 118,793. The previous square footage was 34,823.75. 

A meeting is planned for May 20 when residents and community members can comment on the proposed plans for the Twelve Oaks Assisted Living facility. The meeting will be at 5 p.m. in the Municipal Services Building located at the corner of Glendale Avenue and Broadway in Room 105.

More information and plans are available at https://tinyurl.com/4fdpt52d

“A Draft Mitigated Negative Declaration (MND) was circulated for 21 days April 20, to May 11. The Draft MND included analysis referencing a Geotechnical Report (dated June 3, 2024). The incorrect version of the Geotechnical Report was posted onto the City’s website and now has been corrected. As a result, the comment period is revised from April 20 to May 19,” according to the City of Glendale.