March 14, 2008

The Battle At Pelanconi Park

A long history of losing NIMBY battles have only bolstered the residents of Glendale’s Pelanconi neighborhood, who once again find themselves throwing down the gauntlet– not against scantily clad Spartans, but a 300-unit apartment complex in push for development on Grandview Avenue. This project would be seated next to Pelanconi Park and be marketed as a “potential haven for employees at the nearby DreamWorks and Walt Disney Co. studios” reports the latest by Glendale News-Press. From their previous article chronicling the story:

Pelanconi residents fought for years to get the city to expand a multimillion-dollar landscaping project along San Fernando Road to more closely resemble what was originally promised more than 10 years ago. Many area residents also still resent the approval of an at-grade rail crossing for Flower Street that they opposed, an issue they say exemplifies a consistent push from the city to accept whatever comes their way despite neighborhood consensus.

“Down here, you don’t even count anymore,” said (resident) Terry Larson….

Though the Tuscan-style luxury apts. would likely, to some extent, ‘beautify’ the existing site, displacing Glendale Career College and a Toxic Substances Administration center, one resident counters that the current buildings are “part of the neighborhood and it complements the area.” Not exactly the most convincing defense; all things considered, you would think most would lean preference toward neighboring a new apartment building as opposed to anything labeled “toxic”.

On the other hand you certainly have to sympathize with a neighborhood leery of encroaching densification and the lovely traffic traffic that comes with. It’s not an uncommon situation for many Southern Californian cities struggling with the challenge of new housing. It will be interesting to see what sort of compromise, if any, will be reached. A community meeting this coming Monday will allow for public input on the project.