San Fernando Valley

Armed with flashlights and clipboards, dozens of volunteers fanned out before dawn Monday to find the most vulnerable people living on the streets of North Hollywood and Sun Valley. The effort organized by the San Fernando Valley Homeless Coalition, a network of service providers, aims to help at least 75 people into stable housing and find them the services they need to stay off the streets. North Hollywood and Sun Valley are among more than 90 communities nationwide to join the 100,000 Homes campaign , an effort to house 100,000 homeless people by 2013.  L.A. NOW

Raymond Marks contacted me to find out what days Verdugo Views was published in December 2003. Marks said he has the entire collection of this history column since it began in June 2001, and wants to purchase the December papers to keep his collection intact. Marks, who has lived in Burbank for 40 years, is very interested in local history. He is researching two towns that once existed where Sun Valley is now: Roscoe and Dundee. "These towns struck my fancy when I read a book on the San Fernando Valley written by Jackson Mayers," Marks said.

Buck Wargo CITY HALL -- A study that should determine whether a proposed transit authority for the San Fernando Valley is feasible will be completed in four months. Russ Chisholm, a consultant, told members of the San Fernando Valley Transportation Zone interim authority that it will be a challenging to meet guidelines of the Metropolitan Transportation Authority to take over operation of some of its bus lines. San Fernando Valley officials -- including council members from Glendale, Burbank, La Canada Flintridge and L.A. -- contend they can operate 27 bus routes at a cheaper cost than the MTA, and plow the savings back into more and better service.

Crescenta Valley High School Class of 1991 will have its 20th reunion on July 23 at Angeles National Golf Course, 9401 Foothill Blvd., San Fernando Valley. The early-bird cost is $65 per person until April 1. For more information, contact Sosi at (818) 621-1980 after 5 p.m. or e-mail cvhs1991reunion@yahoo.com. The class is also on Facebook at CV Falcons — Class of 1991. GLENDALE HIGH SCHOOL Glendale High School Class of 1981 will have its 30th reunion on July 23 at the Hilton Hotel, 100 W. Glenoaks Blvd.

The San Fernando Valley ? the nation?s largest geographic non-municipal entity ? has grown more educated and diverse in recent years as it expanded to include 1.74 million people, according to a report released this week by the U.S. Census Bureau. The report was based on the American Community Survey of 2008 and shows that the region, made up of portions of Glendale, Burbank, San Fernando, Calabasas and Los Angeles, as well as some unincorporated areas of Los Angeles County, has developed into a multicultural region, a trend that could be further amplified in the 2010 Census, experts said.

Buck Wargo CITY HALL -- Three months after being named mayor by the Glendale City Council, Dave Weaver has been upstaged by his colleagues. Council members, acting as the Glendale Redevelopment Agency on Tuesday, rejected Weaver's bid to serve on the board of the Economic Alliance of the San Fernando Valley. Several weeks ago, Weaver named himself to the alliance board, replacing Councilman Sheldon Baker. Council members learned Tuesday that Weaver lacked the authority to make the appointment because Baker was appointed by the Redevelopment Agency in May 1999 to a term that expires in November 2002.

Fifteen-year-old Girl Scout Emily Menart, of Sunland Troop 1481, was awarded the Girl Scout Medal of Honor on March 22 for helping to save her father's life. Last November, Emily's father, Boris Menart, had a heart attack while they were driving, and Emily's quick action helped Boris receive crucial medical attention immediately. "Emily took decisive action on behalf of her father on Nov. 11, 2005. While her father was suffering crushing chest pain, she helped him navigate their way to the emergency room and calmly assisted him through the triage process, and then single-handedly completed all of the necessary insurance and medical paperwork required.

Buck Wargo CITY HALL -- Residents and businesses in the western San Fernando Valley know what area code they will have in the future. The question is when. The 747 area code would cover western section of the San Fernando Valley that includes Van Nuys, Canoga Park and Calabasas. In October, Glendale and Burbank helped fight off any changes to the 818 area code that includes those communities and La Canada Flintridge. The state Public Utilities Commissionadopted a plan calling for telephone numbers to be conserved to reduce the need for new area codes.

Singer Justin Bieber was in an auto accident Tuesday in the San Fernando Valley, according to the Los Angeles Police Department. Officials said the crash occurred when a Honda Civic collided with Bieber's black Ferrari. The exact location and time of the accident were not immediately released. "No one was injured and there was no damage to either vehicle," the department said in a press release. The LAPD arrived and found the "paparazzi was at scene. " The extent of the damage to either car was not known.

Gretchen Hoffman The arguments in favor of Hollywood and the San Fernando Valley seceding from Los Angeles aren't strong enough in the eyes of the Armenian National Committee, causing the group's local leadership to come out strongly against secession. "We have worked very hard as a community to integrate ourselves into Los Angeles," said Ardashes Kassakhian, director of government relations for the Glendale-based Armenian National Committee Western Region.

One of the most widespread groundwater contaminants in the nation is more dangerous to humans than earlier thought, a federal agency has determined, in a decision that could raise the cost of cleanups nationwide, including large areas of the San Fernando and San Gabriel valleys. The final risk assessment for trichloroethylene by the Environmental Protection Agency found that the widely used industrial solvent causes kidney and liver cancer , lymphoma and other health problems.

Singer Justin Bieber was in an auto accident Tuesday in the San Fernando Valley, according to the Los Angeles Police Department. Officials said the crash occurred when a Honda Civic collided with Bieber's black Ferrari. The exact location and time of the accident were not immediately released. "No one was injured and there was no damage to either vehicle," the department said in a press release. The LAPD arrived and found the "paparazzi was at scene. " The extent of the damage to either car was not known.

Armed with flashlights and clipboards, dozens of volunteers fanned out before dawn Monday to find the most vulnerable people living on the streets of North Hollywood and Sun Valley. The effort organized by the San Fernando Valley Homeless Coalition, a network of service providers, aims to help at least 75 people into stable housing and find them the services they need to stay off the streets. North Hollywood and Sun Valley are among more than 90 communities nationwide to join the 100,000 Homes campaign , an effort to house 100,000 homeless people by 2013.  L.A. NOW

Los Angeles police are investigating a hate crime at a West Hills synagogue where suspects spray-painted two swastikas and "Go Home" on the congregation's property, officials said Monday. The graffiti, which also included the numbers "666" within the swastikas, was discovered about 6:30 a.m. Monday spray painted on the corner of temporary offices at the Temple Judea satellite campus in the 6600 block of Valley Circle Boulevard, according to LAPD officials. There was no immediate description of a suspect or suspects, police said.

Glendale City Councilman Ara Najarian has been elected to lead the San Fernando Valley Council of Governments as the nascent coalition sets out to implement its agenda. Najarian -- who also serves on the board of directors for Metrolink and the Los Angeles County Metropolitan Transportation Authority -- takes over the post held by L.A. County Supervisor Zev Yaroslavsky [ Update : An earlier version incorrectly stated Yaroslavsky was an L.A. councilman]. The council was established to give cities in the San Fernando Valley region a unified voice in lobbying for state and federal entitlements, and to coordinate regional infrastructure projects.

Crescenta Valley High School Class of 1991 will have its 20th reunion on July 23 at Angeles National Golf Course, 9401 Foothill Blvd., San Fernando Valley. The early-bird cost is $65 per person until April 1. For more information, contact Sosi at (818) 621-1980 after 5 p.m. or e-mail cvhs1991reunion@yahoo.com. The class is also on Facebook at CV Falcons — Class of 1991. GLENDALE HIGH SCHOOL Glendale High School Class of 1981 will have its 30th reunion on July 23 at the Hilton Hotel, 100 W. Glenoaks Blvd.

High-speed-rail representatives are strongly considering a stop near Bob Hope Airport as the sole San Fernando Valley station for the planned 800-mile system, local officials said. Rail representatives early this year expressed a preference for station options in Burbank along the San Fernando Road corridor, either in the city's downtown area or near Glendale, on Alameda Avenue. But after hearing public concerns about connectivity to the airport, the authority is now instead considering a stop near Bob Hope, at Hollywood Way, said David Kriske, Burbank's principal transportation planner.

Los Angeles County election officials on Tuesday acknowledged sending vote-by-mail guides to as many as 1,100 Democrats that erroneously listed candidates for the 43rd Assembly District in the same space as votes for or against a controversial parcel tax. The misprinted guides, sent to voters in the San Fernando Valley, indicate that choices for candidates in the June 8 runoff election for the vacant Assembly seat should be marked in positions already...

The economic recovery continues in the San Fernando Valley, economists and business leaders said Thursday, but at a slow pace. The discussion came at the 2010 Valley Economic Summit at the Sheraton Universal Hotel, where representatives from Cal State Northridge?s San Fernando Valley Economic Research Center presented their annual report on the region. ?It?s here,? said William Roberts, director of the center. ?It?s happening. It?s slow ? it?s not something you write home to your mother about every day ?

Nearly 150 athletes with disabilities competed for medals Saturday at the second annual Crescenta Valley Committed to Athletic Needs’ Special Olympics. Athletes from Glendale, La Crescenta, Burbank and the Santa Clarita Valley descended on Crescenta Valley High School’s Susan Osborne field to show off their skills in Bocce ball, running, jumping and walking. “Let the games begin,” announced Laura Mayo, the Tri-Valley Special Olympics organization’s regional director.