Americana

It's that time of year again, and no, we're not talking about Halloween. A more than 100-foot-tall white fir Christmas tree rolled into the Americana at Brand early Tuesday morning -- crane at the ready to hoist it into place a day before even Halloween has had its moment on the calendar. The tree, which hails from Mt. Shasta, will be decorated in the coming weeks with 10,000 lights and 15,000 ornaments, according to Caruso Affiliated, which owns the Americana. The company's other big L.A. mall, The Grove, got its similarly-sized Christmas tree last week.

Paul Sussman died on August 28th, 2012 while snorkeling in Hilo, Hawaii. It was a glorious day as he swam among the colorful fish, manta ray, and coral. His guide said he was like a little child, full of wonder. Paul was born in the Bronx, New York on March 27, 1950, and moved to Los Angeles in 1975. Paul was a graduate of the School of Visual Arts in New York City and the Southern California Institute of Architecture. He practiced his profession all over southern California and his award winning projects contribute to her landscape.

Glendale was set to make about $5.6 million in tax revenues from the Americana at Brand this year, but with its Redevelopment Agency gone, the city can expect to see that figure drop by roughly half in the years to come, officials reported. Rather than getting 80% of property tax revenue from the high-end outdoor mall, Glendale stands to get about 17% of property tax revenue in the future, with Los Angeles County and the Glendale Unified School District gaining 57% and 21%, respectively, according to a city report presented at City Hall on Tuesday.

Two companies controlled by billionaire developer Rick Caruso were found liable by a jury this week for water damage to a restaurant formerly at the Americana at Brand and ordered to pay $125,000 in compensation. In May 2009, staff at Caffe Primo noticed the hardwood floor in the restaurant was buckling and shortly thereafter - without any contact from Caffe Primo - Caruso's representatives began sending weekly letters to restaurant owner Tony Riviera demanding the floor be repaired, according to court documents.

Dozens of expectant mothers and families gathered Wednesday at the Americana at Brand to celebrate the opening of the first-ever Disney Baby store. A cast of popular characters from the famed Burbank studio joined actress and television host Alison Sweeney and Disney Consumer Products President Bob Chapek to unveil the new store. “Disney is all about life's magical moments,” Chapek said, “and maybe there's no more greater magical moment than the birth of a child.” The company teamed up with Operation Shower, a nonprofit organization that supports military families with members who are deployed, to throw a baby shower for military moms-to-be, complete with games, prizes and live music.

Regarding the approved plans for a new Bloomingdale's [“Plan for Bloomingdale's gets the nod,” Sept. 1] Councilman Ara Najarian should be embarrassed by his own biased comments toward consumers who spend their money in our city. He says that the types of customers In-N-Out attracts “aren't what that part of the city needs” and that the “demographic is completely opposite” to what he thinks should be next to the Galleria and the Americana. All he needed to say next was that an In-N-Out belongs only in East L.A. Did he not learn his lesson from sticking his foot in his mouth then?

Two 16-year-old boys were arrested Friday after allegedly stealing a Starbucks tip jar containing $16.16, police said. One of the boys -- whose names weren't released because they are minors -- had been banned earlier that day from the Americana at Brand after he tried to steal a woman's purse at Granville Café. At the Starbucks in the 100 block of South Brand Boulevard, the boys entered about 4:34 p.m. and asked for water, police said. When the manager turned around, the boys the tip jar and ran out. The manager ran after the boys, who left the money behind when she confronted them, according to police.

I'm ecstatic about the proposed design for Glendale's float entry in the 2013 Tournament or Roses parade. Seriously. I am. I know, I'm the guy who called for our city to stop putting floats in the parade. And I've been critical of those who support the concept of a float as a marketing tool, mostly because my 20-plus years in marketing and advertising has me believing that anyone who spends more than $100,000 for less than 15 seconds of air time without a focused message is foolish.

A 55-year-old transient was arrested Saturday after he allegedly swung nunchakus at a group of passersby at the Americana at Brand, police said. The transient, Norman Gendron, was sitting on the curb about 10:36 p.m. at Central Avenue and Americana Way when he began shouting at a man and two women who had just walked by. He then whipped out his 14-inch nunchucks and started swinging them at the group, according to Glendale police reports. The nunchucks narrowly missed the group, striking a bus stop pole instead.

Marine life artist Robert Wyland - best known for painting life-sized whales and other seascapes on buildings - helped celebrate the 40th anniversary of the federal Clean Water Act by painting a mural Friday at the Americana at Brand. He had help from a number of officials who used the occasion to launch the National Mayor's Challenge for Water Conservation, a friendly competition among cities across the U.S. to see who can conserve the most water from March 30 to April 30. The mural is slated for display inside the Anthropologie store, organizers said.