The SUV skidded to a halt on the property after crashing through a second window and nearly rumbling off an elevated outdoor seating area facing Glenoaks Boulevard.
Assortments of pastries and Armenian breads sat amid shards of glass in broken refrigerated displays that cost about $10,000 each. Displays had fallen from shelves along the back wall of the shop, Nazarian said.
The 2004 crash had cost about $30,000 to repair, but Tuesday’s damage, combined with lost profits from days that Nazarian will have to close for repairs and health inspector visits will likely triple that total, he said.
He expected insurance to pick up the tab.
Glendale and Burbank firefighters used a rotary saw to clear a railing, allowing them to move the 4Runner off the elevated seating area and onto a flatbed tow truck. Employees at the 1755 W. Glenoaks Blvd. store said they feared for their lives upon hearing the SUV plow through the front of the shop.
No charges have been filed against the driver, Heranosh Baghomian, because the accident occurred on private property, Ballesteros said.
CITY HALL
The City Council on Tuesday paved the way for lease negotiations with the Museum of Neon Art, voting unanimously to move forward with talks on moving the Los Angeles-based nonprofit into a city-owned building on South Brand Boulevard.
The vacant building at 216 S. Brand Blvd., which once housed a Salvation Army branch and a Rite Aid, would give the museum a new permanent location to showcase its large collection of vintage neon signs and contemporary neon art after using a temporary spot in downtown Los Angeles for about two years.
The museum’s temporary space is able to accommodate only 20 of the signs in its collection, said Kim Koga, the museum’s executive director. The Glendale space would allow the museum to bring 40 more signs — including the historical Grauman’s Chinese Theatre dragon and the iconic Brown Derby sign — out of storage.
