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e.letter )
The Eagle Rock Association 19 April 2012
In this issue...
  • Not a Member?
  • Membership has Benefits
  • Take Back the Blvd. News
  • Land Use Update
  • Founders Day: FRIDAY!
  • Center for the Arts Benefit
  • Meet the Candidates
  • Gathering of Eagles Gala
  • Oxy-Caltech Symphony
  • Water Main Replacement
  • Kudos to Solheim Home
  • Just for fun I am opening this eLetter with thoughts that aren't of great substance but hopefully I will find a kindred spirit or two who may share similar feelings.

    Would you show up at a dinner party in April wearing a candy cane themed tie or a blouse featuring images of Santa? I suspect not. At many homes the latest holiday is frequently noted by an inflated Easter Bunny on the lawn, red hearts hanging from a tree and in October the ubiquitous scarecrows. Soon after these holidays the decorations return to their place in the attic until their "time in the sun" returns next year. The same cannot be said of those Christmas lights that hang from the gutters. I have seen absolutely beautiful homes, homes with style and class surrounded by impeccable landscaping, loudly proclaiming "pride of ownership". And yet the icicle lights are still hanging from the gutters in the middle of July. I know it's work to put them up and more work to take them down. But how about putting the icicles away till next winter?

    Fortunately, even though we are beyond our annual membership campaign, we continue to have a modest number of new memberships in our mailbox on a regular basis. That support is greatly appreciated. Recently I received an email from a couple of our newest members. They gave me permission to share their wonderful words and enthusiasm for this community. Minor tweaks have been made to respect the privacy of the writer.

    "Hi. I just paid for a TERA membership via the website, and didn't see the area about leaving information about ourselves. My fianc�e and I bought a house in Eagle Rock last summer, and we love it! I am a lawyer, with my own practice, and my fianc�e is a visual artist, a painter. We have a sweet, poodle mix rescue named Roxy. We are getting married in May right here in Eagle Rock, at the Women's 20th Century Club! We would love to help with making the neighborhood more pedestrian-friendly, mainly the Colorado strip, as is already underway with Take Back the Boulevard."

    As a long-term resident of Eagle Rock, there are few things I find more encouraging than young singles and couples, having an appreciation for the many things that make Eagle Rock special, choose to make their home here. These are the people who will become the caretakers of Eagle Rock as long-term and "mature" residents such as I ride off into the sunset. Of course, as the president of TERA, I am especially pleased when they include support for The Eagle Rock Association as part of putting down their roots in Eagle Rock.

    Our next Public Meeting is on April 25 (flyer below). Be sure to attend and meet the candidates who want to represent us in the California Assembly.

    TERA's merchant program continues to grow, adding more value to a TERA membership every day. Please welcome MediaNoche, the "Eagle Rock Boutique with the best men's & women's hats and accessories on the east side!" Show your active TERA membership card and you will receive 10% off all merchandise.

    Finally, I have to say it, if you have not already done so, become a TERA member. On a regular basis, about twice as many people open this eLetter as are found in our membership base. If you are one of those non-member regular readers, and you appreciate what TERA is doing; show your support by becoming a member.

    Bob Gotham, TERA Pres.
    Bob Gotham, President

    Not a Member?


    Join TERA now! Nothing could be easier - just visit http://www.tera90041.org/join-paypal.htm . Memberships begin at only $15.

    Membership has Benefits
    Member Benefits Decal 300






    Discounts are available for TERA Members at the following participating merchants. Look for the TERA Membership Decals at merchant locations. Just show your active membership card. Click on http://www.tera90041.org/benefits.htm to see the member benefits offered by each merchant.





    • Armon's Restaurant and Coffee Shop
    • Auntie Em's Kitchen
    • Bellissimo Cafe
    • Blue Dot Acai & Yogurt Parfait
    • Camilo's California Bistro
    • Coffee Table
    • Colorado Wine Co
    • Curves
    • Danny Reyes CPA
    • The Eagle's Nest
    • Four Caf�
    • Halong Bay
    • La Fuente
    • The Loft Hair Lounge
    • MediaNoche
    • Owl Talk
    • Sir Michael's Party Rentals & Limousine Service
    • Spitz
    • Swork
    • XTC Gym

    If you are a merchant and would like to participate in this program, which includes free advertising in the eLetter, please email [email protected].

    Take Back the Blvd. News
    TBTB Logo 300

    This initiative took a huge step forward when, at a recent committee meeting, Bill Roschen, President of the Los Angeles Planning Commission characterized Take Back the Boulevard as one of the most exciting streetscape initiatives for the City of Los Angeles. In fact, Bill was so enthusiastic regarding our initiative that he agreed to make it the next targeted streetscape project for the Planning Commission and the Streetsf4People citywide initiative. Bill felt that the well-established broad based community approach and the inherent potential of Colorado Boulevard for improvement are compelling reasons to support Take Back the Boulevard. Bill's support is invaluable.

    Bill's support gives credibility to the aspirations of this project. His approval of our project does not solve the funding issues. However, as we compete for grants and other sources of funding, his validation that our initiative has strong merit will prove to be invaluable.

    Continuing the community outreach, we are in the process of making update presentations to various community groups over the next month. Presentations are planned to representatives of the following organizations: Collaborative Eagle Rock Beautiful, the Eagle Rock Chamber of Commerce, the Eagle Rock Community Preservation and Revitalization Corporation, the Eagle Rock Neighborhood Council, the Eagle Rock Valley Historical Society, Occidental College, The Eagle Rock Association, and the Twentieth Century Women's' Club of Eagle Rock. The entire community will be invited to attend a similar update on June 5.

    For more information regarding this initiative go to http://www.takebacktheblvd.org.

    The initiative also will be found on facebook: http://www.facebook.com/takebacktheboulevard

    Land Use Update

    Chase Bank: As detailed in the last eLetter, there are aspects of the original plan for the new branch bank on the corner of Eagle Rock and Colorado Boulevards that do not comply with TERA's or the Design Review Board's understanding of the Colorado Boulevard Specific Plan.

    I am happy to report that Chase Bank has promised to furnish the areas seen from Colorado Boulevard in a manner that is more compliant with the following excerpt from the Colorado Boulevard Specific Plan:

    "Transparency of Street Walls. At least 60 percent of the area of the first story Street Wall of any Project in Subarea II adjacent to Colorado Boulevard or Eagle Rock Boulevard shall consist of Transparent windows, doors, or openings affording views into retail, office or lobby space."

    I informed Chase Bank that TERA was reluctantly prepared to file an Appeal which would have minimally delayed the Chase project if we could not reach some level of compliance with the Specific Plan. The solution is not perfect. By furnishing one of the front visible areas as a modest meeting room, at this point in the development process, it represents a reasonable effort by Chase to hear the voice of the community and respond. TERA wishes Chase Bank all good fortune in their new location and greatly appreciates the improved appearance of the structure.

    Where is the Real Problem? As Chase Bank correctly indicated, they had received a Letter of Determination from the LA City Planning Department. That letter of approval to proceed, cited the transparency requirement (see above), simply indicating that the Chase Plan did meet the requirement. According to the original Chase Plan, the only thing that would be visible through the Colorado-facing windows would be large changing signage, advertising, etc. That does not equate to "retail, office or lobby space." Further, the Specific Plan language does not say "openings affording views such as retail, office or lobby space."

    In order to better understand how the Planning Department found the Chase Plan to be compliant with the Specific Plan, I attended a recent DRB (Design Review Board) meeting. When questioned as to how Chase's plan was found to be compliant, Ms. Ondrea Tye, who is the Planning Department's staff person for the DRB, and wrote the Letter of Determination, said that since the transparency requirement was mentioned in the Letter of Determination, by definition - Chase complied. When further pressed she indicated that the Specific Plan language was not meant to be as literally and specifically interpreted as the DRB and TERA feel it should be. Neither the DRB nor I agreed with that premise.

    The prime issue that created the Chase problem is not of the Bank's making. The lack of a consistent interpretation of the Specific Plan by the DRB and the Planning Department created the problem. The DRB requested that Ms. Tye coordinate a meeting with the City Attorney's office to further discuss how language requiring views of retail, office, or lobby space and the transparency aspect of the Specific Plan should be understood. I hope that the discussion will be broad enough to establish a universal understanding of how all aspects of the Specific Plan should be interpreted and enforced. There is no way the Design Review Board can fill their important role unless everyone is on the same page.

    It's OK if your eyes glazed over as you were confronted with more detail concerning the Specific Plan than you ever wanted to know. The key thing to understand is that Eagle Rock would be a different community today if it were not for the protections the Colorado Boulevard Specific Plan has provided since its adoption on August 9, 1992. TERA has a long tradition of being vigilant, demanding compliance with the Specific Plan. Let's hope that the attention that has been given to unfortunate disconnect between the Planning Department and our Design Review Board will be resolved soon, minimizing the potential for a repeat of the Chase Bank development project issues.

    Founders Day: FRIDAY!
    Founders Day Sched


    Center for the Arts Benefit
    Art Auction 2012


    Meet the Candidates
    Meet Candidates Flyer 2012


    Gathering of Eagles Gala

    The Eagle Rock Alumni Association invites one and all to the Gathering of Eagles - Honoring the 2012 Soaring Eagles Jim Albers W'46, Dana Wyatt W'64 and Lani and LaDell Stapp

    Saturday, April 28 at 5:30
    Women's Twentieth Century Club
    5105 Hermosa Ave. at the corner of Colorado Blvd

    Tickets are $30, no host bar. Early reservations are greatly appreciated! Deadline for ticket sales is April 23. For more information contact Mary Costa Denardo 323.256.1943.

    Oxy-Caltech Symphony

    The Occidental-Caltech Symphony Orchestra, under the musical direction of conductor Allen Robert Gross, continues its 2011-2012 season on April 21st and 22nd featuring violin soloist Danielle Bel�n, who will be performing Sarasate's "Carmen Fantasy".

    Winner of the 2008 Sphinx Competition and a Naxos recording artist, violinist Danielle Bel�n has soloed with symphonies across the U.S. including the Pittsburgh, Atlanta, Nashville and San Francisco Symphonies, the Boston Pops, and the Florida and Cleveland Orchestras. A graduate of the USC Thornton School of Music and the Colburn Conservatory in Los Angeles, Ms. Belen is now on faculty at the Colburn School. Ms. Belen plays on a 1709 Allessandro Gagliano violin from the Mandell Collection of Southern California. For more on Ms. Bel�n, please go to her web site: http://www.elenviolin.com

    Here is the program for the upcoming concerts:
    • Tchaikovsky - "Theme and Variations" from Suite No. 3
    • Sarasate - "Carmen Fantasy", featuring violin soloist Danielle Bel�n
    • Mendelssohn - Symphony No. 5 (The "Reformation" Symphony)
    • Supp� - "Morning, Noon and Night in Vienna"

    Saturday April 21st at 7:30 pm at Occidental's Thorne Hall. 1600 Campus Road, Eagle Rock. (323) 259-2785. The program is repeated on Sunday April 22nd at 3:30 pm at Caltech's Ramo Auditorium. 1200 East California Boulevard, Pasadena. (626) 395-3295

    Concerts are free. Reception after each concert is free and open to the public.

    Water Main Replacement

    Beginning April 23, 2012, the Los Angeles Department of Water and Power (DWP) will be upgrading its infrastructure on Eagle Rock Blvd, between York Blvd and Avenue 43. We will replace the existing 20-inch water valve with a new 20-inch valve.

    The project will consist of three phases: (1) Setting up traffic control signs, restriping the traffic lanes, install barricades and K-rails. (2) Excavate, install new 20-inch valve, backfill and pave street. (3) Pick up traffic signs, barricades, K-rails, and restriping the street to original form.

    Construction Hours will be Monday through Friday, between 7:00 a.m. and 4:00 pm. on Eagle Rock Bl. between York Bl and Ave. 43. We estimate the project will take approximately eight weeks to complete. However, adverse weather conditions or unforeseen problems in the field may impact the completion date or work schedule. "No Parking" signs will be posted and enforced. DWP will try to minimize the project's impact and accommodate specific requests when possible.

    NOTICE: For safety reasons, please ask to see a valid identification badge if a DWP employee comes to your door. Access to the construction area will be restricted, and children must be kept away from the construction area.

    If you have any questions or concerns regarding this project, please contact the project supervisor, Damon Davis at (213) 367-6785, Daniel Lopez at (213) 367-6793 or the field superintendent, Craig Cuneo at (213) 367-6779.

    Kudos to Solheim Home

    From the Solheim Lutheran Home eNewsletter:

    "The Center for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) has declared Solheim Lutheran Home a five-star facility!

    "We know we're good! We always strive for the best care for our residents, approaching daily care with an eye towards health with love, dignity and security. But it always feels great to have someone else toot our horn.

    "The Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) provides an ongoing rating for nursing homes in the United States. Our overall rating of 5 out of 5 stars focuses on three areas of service: Quality Measures, Staffing, and Health Inspections. We are proud to share that our staff-to-resident ratios, cleanliness and comfort of our environment, and our quality rehabilitation services make Solheim one of the top retirement communities in California!"

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    phone: 323-799-1190