On Dec. 2, I sat through the entire City Council meeting, from
beginning to end, the end being after midnight. It was a most
interesting, informative and eye-opening meeting.
For some time now, readers of the local newspapers and viewers of
Channel 6 have been hearing about "dream houses" and/or "The American
Dream." I must assume the latter refers to owning your own home.
These refrains are used when a builder wants to hang a home on an
extremely steep or narrow hillside that requires an exception and
homeowners object to granting that exception. Many crocodile tears
have been shed describing these dreams to the public and commissions,
yet when the houses are actually ready for occupancy and the tears
are barely dry, they somehow have For Sale signs in front of them,
meaning they were spec houses all along.
First, let's address "The American Dream." To those who refer to
the homeowners who object to their "dream house" as hypocrites,
immigrant bashers and a variety of other unpleasant names, I say
this. Your dream house -- if it's visually inappropriate hanging on
the cliff -- is not the homeowners of Glendale's dream. It's our
nightmare! Sure, we all have dreams, and Americans have a better
chance of attaining their dreams than people in a lot of other
countries. But there are laws, rules, regulations and, yes, hillside
ordinances that might keep one from getting exactly what he or she
wants. Your dream might not coincide with mine.
There was a lot of talk (I said the meeting went until after
midnight) from people who planned to build homes that would be
[affected] if the hillside ordinance is not rewritten according to
their dreams. Hey, that's the way it goes sometimes. People who
bought in Chevy Chase Canyon used to be able to keep horses. But then
the traffic became a problem, more houses were built, and the right
to keep horses was rescinded for the good of all of the canyon
residents, not just the few who objected to the change. The people of
Glendale have the right to change laws, rules, etc., or to close the
loopholes in the current ordinances for the good of the entire city.
I was appalled by the youngsters who were there to protest the
changes to strengthen the hillside ordinance, as they literally
threatened our City Council with dire things, including litigation.
Let us set these kids straight. Most of the lots in question were
purchased after the current hillside ordinance was place. The land
buyers knew, or should have known, it wouldn't be possible to build a
