By Ruth SOWBY

At the Glendale City Council on Tuesday Mayor Ardy Kassakhian gave a brief bio of the recently deceased Donald Empey. Dr. Empey was a longtime deputy superintendent of the Glendale Unified School District. He was also a past president of the Glendale Coordinating Council and served on several boards of directors. Dr. Empey passed away on June 23. Mayor Kassakhian announced that Tuesday’s meeting adjournment would be in Dr. Empey’s memory.

Councilmember Paula Devine gave thanks to the homeowner associations, neighbors, and police and fire departments for their part in the recent National Night Out (NNO). Devine announced that at one of the NNOs, she gave away 50 pails for recycling home organics into compost. For information on the program, contact Glendalerecycles.com. Mayor Kassakhian also thanked his colleagues who visited several NNO sites. 

Among Council action items was the possibility of lifting the temporary cap (due to the pandemic) on fees charged by third-party food delivery applications for Glendale restaurants. The Council decided unanimously to reach out to the delivery companies and restaurants to learn their concerns. The City staff will also look into the possible results if caps are lifted.

The Council also voted in favor of the Glendale Police Department’s request for the city to accept grant funding of $1,454,709 from the U.S. Dept. of Homeland Security for flight simulator equipment. Glendale Police Chief Carl Povilaitis came before the Council to make the request. 

Michael Belzer also came before the Council to announce several activities at the Shoseian Tea House in Brand Park: Aug. 21 – Yoga event; Oct. 16 – Korean Culture Day; Dec. 18 – Holiday Tea & Japanese Culture Day.

The public is invited to these events.