Environment

The Committee for a Clean & Beautiful Glendale and its community partners have announced a fundraising event for Saturday, Sept. 20. The ?Torch Run for the Environment? will have individual runners carry a torch for a quarter mile on a route from Crescenta Valley Park to the closing ceremony at Cerritos Park in Glendale where an Eco Expo will be held from 9:30 a.m. to noon. Proceeds will fund anti-litter and graffiti prevention educational programs for Glendale, Montrose and La Crescenta youth.

I've read the revised EIR on Oakmont V and must add my voice to those in opposition to this massive development. It is very clearly stated in that document: There is nothing that can mitigate the significant and unavoidable damage to the environment should this project be allowed. The only reasonable alternative is No. 7 -- no project, no development. The slick insert Gregg's Artistic Homes sent out last week with the Glendale News-Press only serves to illustrate their disregard for the environment.

Claudia Peschiutta GLENDALE - The Angeles Chapter of the Sierra Club has recognized state Sen. Adam Schiff (D-Glendale) as a protector of the environment. The chapter, which serves Los Angeles and Orange counties, presented Schiff with the 1999 Public Policy Award earlier this month. Chapter Director Linda Hoyer said the award goes to an elected public official who has contributed to the advancement of environmental causes. She cited Schiff's opposition to Oakmont View V and his work in several areas, including air pollution and coastal concerns, among the reasons for why Schiff was chosen for the recognition by the chapter's awards committee.

About 30 children took part in an ecology lesson on Sunday at Deukmejian Wilderness Park as they listened to a park ranger prepare them for a series of nature activities that involves reptiles, insects, plants and geography. The city’s Parks, Recreation and Community Services Department hosted a Junior Park Ranger Program for children age 9 to 12. Children listened to Park Ranger Russ Hauck speak about the steps they could take to protect the environment from pollutants.

Rima Shah Dunsmore Elementary School students are walking to school today to make planet Earth a better place. "I am interested in the kids getting healthier and the Earth getting better," said Alamelu Arunachalam, a parent who's coordinating the Earth Day event. The school has been organizing the event since the International "Walk to School" day on Oct. 1, Arunachalam said. They have also been holding an informal "Walk to School" event once a month.

Environment run held Saturday The committee for Clean and Beautiful Glendale is hosting “Torch Run for the Environment” at 8:15 a.m. Saturday beginning at La Crescenta Valley Park, where pre-selected participants will run eight to nine miles. Mayor John Drayman will be the first of the selected 30 runners to carry an environmental torch in quarter-mile increments. The rally will end at Cerritos Park where Glendale residents are invited to participate in the 2008 Eco Expo.

Ryan Carter Larry Thomlinson and Edward Murphy were getting tired of what they perceived as a kind of laziness in the funeral home industry. Families of deceased people were coming in to funeral homes to make arrangements, but little effort was being made by funeral home workers to go to the families where they live and work. So, Thomlinson and Murphy decided to specialize solely in making house calls. In August, after several months of preparation, they found a small office suite on North Brand Boulevard and started Transitions Funeral Service, which arranges everything from the kind of casket used to the type of funeral service.

Although I stayed until 11:45 p.m., I wasn't give the opportunity to speak at the Oakmont V hearing because of so many concerned citizens. That is the reason for this letter to the News-Press. It has been my pleasure to live in Glendale for more than 60 years. During that time I have lived in three different homes, all in the hills. The building of each of these homes had some impact on the environment. The proposed Oakmont V development will impact the environment and will be far more sensitive to the environment than any of the three homes I have lived and presently still live in. It is impossible to write an EIR that will satisfy both sides.

The summer blockbuster movie season is starting to heat up, with movies as “X-Men,” “Star Trek” and “Harry Potter” opening soon. What films, currently showing or not, do you recommend for people seeking “alternative” choices? The best movie that I have seen recently is the Disney production of “Earth.” It is beautifully done! James Earl Jones is the narrator and the musical score “soars” with every scene.

Condos would not be good for community I am extremely against this proposed development of this land ("Residents pool their opposition to project," Sept. 26). We do not need more condos. We do not need an Armenian high school. Anyone who has ever been down there will tell you that the area is beautiful and should be left alone. We have enough ugly condos going up everywhere. This community is crowded enough. We have to stop this. TIM FOWLER La Crescenta Environment is a concern in grill battle After reading the Mailbag letter "Fight over outdoor barbecue grills is silly" (Monday)

At the Lego store in the Glendale Galleria, everyone knows this name: Wyatt Workman. The 9-year-old Glendale resident is known there for his love of Legos. His most recent masterpiece - a three-story haunted house with glow-in-the-dark ghosts and a secret unfolding staircase. He needed no help from his parents to build it; he stopped asking for adult help when he was 7. “I started liking Legos when I was 4 and I had to have my dad help me,” he said. But Wyatt's name is gaining familiarity far beyond Glendale.

SOUTH GLENDALE — One week before city officials are due to give an update on a delayed project for New Horizons Family Center, revelations of financial troubles at the nonprofit suggest problems run deeper than mere construction setbacks. When the acting director of New Horizons Family Center resigned suddenly last week, she warned the Board of Directors about late employee paychecks and other financial woes. "I am also very concerned about the lack of monies being received and the unhealthy work environment," Angie Gonzalez said in an e-mail to board members and employees.

For two local Girl Scout troops, reducing their carbon footprints and learning about what it takes to run a successful business began with a trip to the market. Troop 4321 out of La Crescenta and Burbank’s Troop 19 spent a rainy morning Saturday at Chez Cherie, a culinary wonderland in La Cañada Flintridge, learning how to prepare their own crumble topping to put over fresh, locally procured and in-season fruits. The lesson included a cooking demonstration with ingredients selected by both troops from the farmers market.

GLENDALE — Officials are struggling to attract more businesses to fill climbing percentages of empty office space in Glendale and Burbank, hoping their messages will beat out those of other cities in an increasingly competitive battle to bring tenants to town. Mayor Frank Quintero heard some collegial boos from officials of other cities Thursday at a Valley Industry and Commerce Assn. luncheon when he spoke about Glendale’s friendly business environment. He touted Glendale’s continued commitment to not imposing taxes and fees on businesses and pitched the city as a destination with all the amenities that companies want and need, he said.

The summer blockbuster movie season is starting to heat up, with movies as “X-Men,” “Star Trek” and “Harry Potter” opening soon. What films, currently showing or not, do you recommend for people seeking “alternative” choices? The best movie that I have seen recently is the Disney production of “Earth.” It is beautifully done! James Earl Jones is the narrator and the musical score “soars” with every scene.

Crescenta Valley Clean and Green co-founder Paul Rabinov has a new way to promote the importance of protecting and preserving the environment. Rabinov was elected last month by the Crescenta Valley Town Council to represent Crescenta Valley and Altadena on the Santa Monica Mountains Conservancy. Rabinov was elected to the position in a vote of 6 to 2, over Councilman Charles Beatty. Beatty previously held the two-year conservancy position; however, every other term an Altadena designee holds the position.

With an economy in the doldrums and a recently enacted ban on smoking taking shape in Glendale, Tom Williams realizes that the Brand Cigar Club faces significant challenges as it navigates the region’s choppy waters. But Williams, the retail manager of the shop that reopened Nov. 1 after a nine-month hiatus, is poised to capture a significant portion of the disaffected smoking population who are now precluded from lighting up in most public places around the city. “We have the biggest population of Armenians in this country, and they smoke,” Williams said.

GLENDALE — Pamela Gordon set her alarm for the wee hours of the morning Saturday, just to help out the environment. Gordon was one of 30 runners who signed up for Glendale Clean and The Beautiful/Neighborhood Services Torch Run for the Environment. Runners ran quarter-mile installments from Crescenta Valley Park to Los Cerritos Park and passed a ceremonial torch along the way. “At first when I woke up this morning, I thought ‘Why am I getting up?’ but then you get here and you can feel the energy,” said Gordon, who recently completed the San Francisco Marathon.

Environment run held Saturday The committee for Clean and Beautiful Glendale is hosting “Torch Run for the Environment” at 8:15 a.m. Saturday beginning at La Crescenta Valley Park, where pre-selected participants will run eight to nine miles. Mayor John Drayman will be the first of the selected 30 runners to carry an environmental torch in quarter-mile increments. The rally will end at Cerritos Park where Glendale residents are invited to participate in the 2008 Eco Expo.