Water Damage

Starting next month, an arrest in Burbank means more time in the back a police squad car. Any person arrested after April 11 will have to be booked and housed at Glendale’s jail until water damage repairs are completed at Burbank Police and Fire headquarters. The repairs, including the replacement of the entire jail floor, are expected to take at least six months, said Burbank Police Lt. Armen Dermenjian. The damage occurred during construction of the Burbank facility after the contractor failed to take “proper precautions” to prevent water from seeping into the floor, Dermenjian said.

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.

The Glendale City Council has awarded a contract for $1.7 million for improvements at a number of parks, among them Dunsmore and New York parks in the Crescenta Valley. The low bidder for the work was TLD Construction Inc. The funding will come through state grants and the city park improvement program. At Dunsmore Park, the work will include repairing heavy water damage and dry rot in the building, adding a new heating-air conditioning system, plumbing improvements, painting and working to make the restrooms ADA compliant.

Tim Willert NORTHEAST GLENDALE -- The Glendale Unified School District Board of Education today is expected to approve an emergency resolution to pay for $64,000 in water damage to two rooms at Glendale High School. A broken water pipe combined with heavy rains over the Thanksgiving weekend caused significant water damage to the student store and adjacent dance studio room. "It was terrible," Glendale Co-principal Mike Livingston said Monday. "The ceiling had almost collapsed in the student store and there was a lot of standing water on the floor."

Former Councilman John Drayman's unfinished construction permit issues have become a drain on city resources as building officials try to bring his condominium into compliance more than a year after the issues were brought to light. “It's a burden,” Glendale Building Inspector Stuart Tom said in an interview this week. “It's been going on for over a year.” A former political darling who fell from grace after he was indicted for allegedly embezzling $304,000 from a Montrose business association last year, Drayman has been fumbling through permit issues ever since city officials discovered he remodeled his condominium in 2010 without the proper paperwork.

RADAR SIGNS The council approved awarding a $118,000 contract to CSI Electrical Inc. for the installation of permanent radar-activated speed-display signs at 12 spots in the city. WHAT IT MEANS In a report submitted to the council, city staff members suggested the signs be installed at six spots along Chevy Chase Drive, four spots along Glenoaks Boulevard and two spots along Adams Street — to go in both direction on all three roadways. But at Tuesday's meeting, council members brought up concerns about other streets, such as Highland Avenue and Cañada Boulevard.

Gretchen Hoffman NORTHWEST GLENDALE -- Little more than a statue surrounded by the charred remnants of furniture and personal belongings remained in a condominium gutted by fire Friday morning. More than 45 firefighters responded to the blaze in a three-story complex at 470 W. Stocker St. at about 8:45 a.m. Friday, Glendale Fire Capt. Robert Doyle said. A complex building layout forced firefighters to make a snap decision: They would go in through an upper-level condominium rather than negotiate the maze in search of the fire's source.

Former Councilman John Drayman's unfinished construction permit issues have become a drain on city resources as building officials try to bring his condominium into compliance more than a year after the issues were brought to light. “It's a burden,” Glendale Building Inspector Stuart Tom said in an interview this week. “It's been going on for over a year.” A former political darling who fell from grace after he was indicted for allegedly embezzling $304,000 from a Montrose business association last year, Drayman has been fumbling through permit issues ever since city officials discovered he remodeled his condominium in 2010 without the proper paperwork.

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.

Restoration of Pasadena's historic former YWCA building remains viable despite significant damage and decay, according to the most recent architectural assessment of the structure. Designed in 1921 by celebrated Hearst Castle architect Julia Morgan and listed in the National Register of Historic Places, the South Marengo Avenue landmark has remained vacant and become increasingly derelict since its 1996 sale to an investment firm. Sue Mossman, executive director of the preservation group Pasadena Heritage, credits the Morgan building as setting an architectural tone for the Civic Center that influenced development of City Hall, the Central Library and the Civic Auditorium.

Starting next month, an arrest in Burbank means more time in the back a police squad car. Any person arrested after April 11 will have to be booked and housed at Glendale’s jail until water damage repairs are completed at Burbank Police and Fire headquarters. The repairs, including the replacement of the entire jail floor, are expected to take at least six months, said Burbank Police Lt. Armen Dermenjian. The damage occurred during construction of the Burbank facility after the contractor failed to take “proper precautions” to prevent water from seeping into the floor, Dermenjian said.

LA CRESCENTA — The drone of construction at Crescenta Valley High School gave way to crews moving on-site temporary classrooms as work on repairing another water-damaged building began. Construction began on Building 1000 about a month ago, and now workers are on to Building 6000, near the gym that housed the weight room. The repairs are pegged to shoddy construction during a $41-million remodeling project financed by the voter-approved Measure K bond. The original construction was completed in 2002, but heavy rains caused leaks in several buildings.

The Glendale City Council has awarded a contract for $1.7 million for improvements at a number of parks, among them Dunsmore and New York parks in the Crescenta Valley. The low bidder for the work was TLD Construction Inc. The funding will come through state grants and the city park improvement program. At Dunsmore Park, the work will include repairing heavy water damage and dry rot in the building, adding a new heating-air conditioning system, plumbing improvements, painting and working to make the restrooms ADA compliant.

RADAR SIGNS The council approved awarding a $118,000 contract to CSI Electrical Inc. for the installation of permanent radar-activated speed-display signs at 12 spots in the city. WHAT IT MEANS In a report submitted to the council, city staff members suggested the signs be installed at six spots along Chevy Chase Drive, four spots along Glenoaks Boulevard and two spots along Adams Street — to go in both direction on all three roadways. But at Tuesday's meeting, council members brought up concerns about other streets, such as Highland Avenue and Cañada Boulevard.