Dial-A-Ride to Get New Vans

The Glendale City Council voted Tuesday to apply for federal funding to replace the six-van fleet used in the city Dial-A-Ride program in Glendale, La Cañada Flintridge and La Crescenta.

The program provides transportation on a reservation basis for residents 60-years-old and older. The program is operated by Southland Transit.

The existing vans will be replaced with the new, city-owned vehicles, to be purchased with a $284,000 grant from the Federal Transportation Agency. The city will contribute $56,000 in matching funds through the Proposition A and C sales tax fund.

The council also gave final approval to the exchange of grant deeds with developer Sal Gangi. The city will trade Gangi a parcel of land on Pennsylvania Avenue for 18 acres of open space in the Deerpass area of La Crescenta.

In other action, the council approved the proposed spending program for the public benefit funds to be collected by the water and power department in the next two years. The funds amount to about $3.5 million a year and are generated by a transfer of 2.85 percent of rates paid by residents.

The city will fund 25 programs, includingsenior discount, home energy and water saving rebates, business energy upgrades and a small business solar energy programs, among others.

Also approved was a contract with TDM Architects for $99,355 to conduct an Americans with Disabilities Act survey of city-owned buildings, to ensure compliance with federal regulations.

Council members voted to approve a resolution urging the United States and the United Nations to exert best efforts to end the genocide in Darfur. Mayor Dave Weaver, who in the past has opposed the council taking stands on non-Glendale issues, this time abstained without comment.

Councilman Bob Yousefian took the occasion of Tuesday's meeting to salute Councilman Rafi Manoukian for an upcoming award. Manoukian received notification he has been selected by the board of directors and the selection committee of the National Ethnic Coalition of Organizations as a recipient of the 2006 Ellis Island Medal of Honor. Manoukian is one of 100 recipients who will be presented with this award on Ellis Island on Saturday, May 13. The medal honors Americans of diverse origins who have made great contributions to the nation.