Dog Park

BANNER DRUM BEATING The Town Council will hear a status report on plans to install at least 10 banners along Foothill Boulevard honoring local military service men and women. The committee in charge of the project is expected to announce a slate of sponsors that will help fund the installation. At nearly $150 each for materials and installation, the flag banners are a steep expense for the council, which is funded through county Supervisor Michael Antonovich’s discretionary budget.

The Crescenta Valley dog park - officially opened to the public on Friday - cost $645,000 in voter-approved Proposition A money. But it's hard to put a price tag on the community activism and grass-roots lobbying that really made it a reality. The prize? La Crescenta got the first off-leash dog park owned and operated by Los Angeles County. On Friday, dogs off all sizes got to share in the benefits of the dogged perseverance of Crescenta Valley community leaders over the course of more than five years to bring the facility to fruition.

Regarding the June 15 story “Dog park back on track for 2012” by Bill Kisliuk, I would like to clarify that the dog park will be funded by County of Los Angeles 5th District Proposition A funds with a $645,000 grant awarded to the L.A. Conservation Corps. The L.A. Conservation Corps will be performing construction of the dog park. Construction will begin in August of this year and will be completed in March 2012. Los Angeles County Supervisor Mike Antonovich has been supportive of the project from its inception and the county Department of Parks and Recreation has been working diligently with the community to move this project forward.

LA CRESCENTA — Voters in the Crescenta Valley Town Council election returned an unprecedented number of marked absentee ballots Friday, which organizers hope means higher turnout at the polls today as well. Residents of unincorporated La Crescenta and Montrose are invited to vote for three of nine council candidates between 9 a.m. and 5 p.m. today in the career room at Crescenta Valley High School, the only council election polling place. Last year, 95 of the area’s approximately 11,000 registered voters requested absentee ballots to weigh in on who should represent the community on the council, which serves as an advisory board to Los Angeles County Supervisor Michael Antonovich.

CRUSOE Crusoe is a 2-year-old Rottweiler/chow mix. He has the black and brown coloring of a Rottweiler. Crusoe is easy to walk and loves to put his nose out the window when he rides in the car. He gets along well with other dogs, so the Dog Park would be a fun place to take him. Crusoe has not had any training, but he is intelligent and would do very well in an obedience class. Please come meet our Crusoe at the Orange County Humane Society, 21632 Newland St., Huntington Beach.

Efforts to stop school noise are wrong At the Aug. 14 joint school board and City Council meeting, the Moyse Field neighbors complained of increased noise, traffic, trash, vandalism and drugs, which occurred during games and events held at Moyse Field (“High school neighbors voice gripes to joint dais,” Aug. 15). They claim that these issues were their main concern and not the after-school sports programs or the well-being of students. Their reassurances that they actually support football and soccer games and the marching band practices at Moyse Field ring insincere.

The Glendale City Council Tuesday added a mini-park on Manhattan Avenue in La Crescenta to the list of park projects under consideration for city funding. The property, formerly owned by the Bonetto family, has been the center of a community dispute over possible demolition of an old stone cottage. Three parcels are involved, with a total value of about $2.5 million, reported City Manager Jim Starbird. The value is based on the most recent purchase price. Starbird said the estimated cost of converting the property into a park would be $1.5 million, based on previous city experience.

I am writing to you as I have just been told that my daughter and her education have fallen short, next to dogs and skateboards. Don't get me wrong, I love dogs, but I would like to think that civic leaders would care more about future taxpayers and voters. My 4-year-old daughter attends the Tiny Tot program at a Crescenta Valley Park. Tiny Tots is an enrichment program that helps prepare children (ages 3-5) for kindergarten. The parents of this program were recently informed that this full-time childcare program was being cut down to 12 hours per week at both the Crescenta Valley and the Loma Alta locations.