Strip Mall

When President George H.W. Bush wanted Chinese food, he did not have to travel far from the White House. His favorite restaurant was only a few miles away in a nondescript strip mall. Most restaurant reviewers in Washington, D.C., agreed that the food was OK but nothing you would consider “presidential.” I know a place in Burbank that would make “41” stop the motorcade. On your first glance, Sun Moon Garden does not seem that inviting. It is on San Fernando Boulevard inside a rather ordinary strip mall and across the street from a car wash.

Not Another Strip Mall! What's with the new strip mall where McDonald's use to be (as if La Crescenta needs ANOTHER strip mall, I have fought that for years!), it looks atrocious! It looks like it should be in another part of the state, or world! Don't the citizens of this town get a say- so as to the architecture that is allowed in our town? These buildings are very modern and stark, it doesn't portray the small town country feel that La Crescenta has always represented.

LA CRESCENTA — Tucked behind oak and palm trees, creeping plants and an ornamental wrought-iron gate on the grounds of the Rockhaven Sanitarium are several Spanish-style buildings rich with history and Hollywood lore. Rockhaven served as a women-only rest home until earlier this month, when its remaining patients were forced to move because its owners shut it down, said representatives of the property's owner, Ararat Homes. Since its closing, rumors about the La Crescenta landmark have swarmed like paparazzi at a red-carpet event.

Concerned about growth in Montrose We are Glendale residents who strongly support responsible oversight of the Montrose Shopping Park's future growth ("Shopping park zoning will remain as it is," June 8). We moved to Montrose a year ago in large part due to its charming small-town character and the unique business offerings of the shopping park. Montrose's character is strongly tied to the eclectic collection of small businesses in the shopping park. While we understand that change is inevitable, we are concerned that decades of well-managed growth could be permanently destroyed by aggressive developers with no vested long-term interest in the Montrose community.

Fire officials estimate damages from the blaze are in the hundreds of thousands of dollars.NORTHWEST GLENDALE -- A major fire at a strip mall early Thursday morning gutted at least one business, closed several others and caused an estimated $750,000 in damages, fire officials said. The fire at the shopping center at 459 W. Broadway Ave. near Pacific Avenue started at about 1 a.m. Thursday, Glendale Fire Capt. Carlos Guerrero said, after officials received a call from someone at the Chevron gas station across the street.

Zankou Chicken restaurants are famous for the tender, roasted chicken and tasty garlic spread they serve, but not so much for the nondescript, cafeteria-like decor. The Southern California chain, owned by the Iskenderian family of Glendale, is planning to break with its reputation for good food but bad ambience by opening a Mediterranean-inspired restaurant with 27,000 square feet in Burbank. The building will include the chain's first patio seating, and a dome will grace its southeast corner.

CITY HALL Winning genocide memorial design revealed The Armenian Genocide Monument Council revealed the winning design for a monument commemorating the Armenian Genocide. The winning design belonged to local designer Sevak Petrosian and features a long strip of cracked concrete, from which 24 obelisk columns rise, representing the date of the anniversary -- April 24. The monument will be placed at Glendale Civic Auditorium, but no date has been set. The City Council approved transferring a surplus $150,000 from the Libraries Division to its book fund.

Jackson Bell A Glendale man found severely burnt outside a blazing strip mall last year has been accused of setting the fire to collect on insurance, police said Monday. Tony Yarijanian, 37, faces charges of arson to structures, arson to a car that also caught fire and making fraudulent insurance claims, said Det. Miguel E. Porras of the Glendale Police Arson Unit. A warrant was issued for Yarijanian's arrest April 15, and Los Angeles police arrested him Friday at Los Angeles International Airport as he was returning to the country, Porras said.

Jackson Bell A 30-year-old woman smashed her SUV through the Red Ribbon BakeShop Monday afternoon, pinning one of the customers against the counter, police and witnesses said. At about 3 p.m., a motorist, whose name was not released, drove her gray Toyota 4Runner over the sidewalk and into the Filipino bakery on East Colorado Street, Glendale Police Sgt. Tom Lorenz said. The driver of the SUV told police and patrons that she hit the accelerator instead of the brake by mistake as she pulled into the parking lot, Lorenz said.

A transient man suffered life-threatening head wounds after he appeared to have fallen Tuesday at a strip mall, Glendale Police said. A delivery driver apparently found the man, in his 50s, at about 7 a.m. on the sidewalk in front of Ron's Photo, 625 E. Colorado St., and called 911, Det. Jeff Newton said. Another transient man was with him but was allegedly passed out when officers arrived and too intoxicated to provide information, Newton said. Police reviewed a surveil- lance tape and determined it was an accidental fall, he said.