The gauntlet was thrown down especially early this year. In the middle of the afternoon my neighbor (you know who you are) hung a Christmas wreath on her door well before Thanksgiving. I will admit that we did consider buying some Christmas decorations during a recent Costco visit, but we held off thinking we have plenty of time. Perhaps we don't. What cannot be denied is that Thanksgiving is right around the corner with Christmas careening toward us after Turkey Day. .

Thanksgiving is the holiday officially dedicated to giving thanks. We certainly don't wait for an annual reflection of the bad stuff in our life. We acknowledge those unfortunate happenings right away. Shouldn't we then also give thanks every day for the myriad of good things in our life, including the good fortune to live in such a great community?

On the top of my list of what distinguishes Eagle Rock are the residents, property owners and business owners in town. We are blessed by an unusually high number of people who show their love for this place by getting involved, be it by donating their time and/or their treasure, they work in a very tangible way to make this the best place it can be. This support is very visible in the large number of community oriented organizations in town. Our community's track record of often having the highest city-wide rate of voter participation in elections is more evidence that people here care.

Our town is further enriched by diversity found in the population of approximately 27,000 residents. Although Eagle Rock is often referred to as an upper middle income community we have many residents of more modest incomes and more than a few who are millionaires. A blend of diverse career fields is another factor that enriches our environment. It is likely that most of our residents are professionals. But, Eagle Rock is also known as a community that attracts many people in the arts and other creative career fields. And certainly, not the least important are the many residents who work in service industries and other jobs that contribute to the economy and in many cases, make our lives easier. Finally, the presence of Occidental College students brings an important youthful aspect to our town. All of these things and more contribute to what is known and respected as an "Eagle Rocker."

We value and protect the small town qualities that allow us to live only 12 miles from the center of the 2nd largest city in the United States and still bump into neighbors at the local Trader Joe's. Concerts in the Park, the Music Festival, community events through the year at the Center for the Arts and regular opportunities to join a wide array of community and cultural events at Occidental College, and many other events give us plenty of opportunities to be out and about without ever leaving the 'hood. There really is a lot going on here. We are further blessed with a broad array of dining options, many unique boutiques and a few wonderful funky shops. We have an embarrassment of riches in where to shop for staples. The ever-popular Trade Joe's completed a major expansion in the last year. Vons is transitioning their market to one of the top-tier designs and has responded to the community concerns for a better overall shopping center at La Loma and Figueroa. New businesses continue to find Eagle Rock attractive, offering us new choices almost every month. Notice below the new BBQ spot coming to Eagle Rock Boulevard.

A profound and tangible way in which the overall perception of a community is expressed is in the value of homes. As throughout the city, Eagle Rock home prices traveled the roller coaster of devaluation and the gradual upswing. According to Zillow, home values in Eagle Rock have improved 24% over the last year, with an average selling price of $604,000. Even rosier statistics in the LA Times report that in 90041, the largest zip code in Eagle Rock, values rose 37.8% year to year as compared to a county-wide rise of 25.7%. These statistics provide tangible evidence of the desirability of our community. Depending on your situation however, this may be good news or bad. We own our house, so it's totally good news - for which I give great thanks. However, as a recent Eagle Rocker confided to me, "I have loved living in my apartment in Eagle Rock for many years. But now that I am ready to buy I cannot afford to buy in the community I love."

As every community, Eagle Rock is not perfect. Not that long ago our community was overrun with Marijuana Dispensaries. It took longer than anyone wanted but finally the number of dispensaries was reduced to a number that is probably more appropriate for the community. There are too many massage shops that go beyond providing legitimate services. Slowly and gradually LAPD is addressing this challenge. Crime statistics are marginally higher in Eagle Rock than in many of the neighboring communities. That is often attributed to the fact that Eagle Rock Plaza is the largest local shopping center and that draws the criminal element. Perhaps I am a bit pollyana, but I do think the positive way outweighs the negative.

On behalf of the TERA Board I would like to extend the best wishes to you all for Thanksgiving. A special thanks is extended to all who support our organization through their memberships. As you gather with your friends and family, please include living in this great community as one of the gifts for which we should all be thankful.

Wisdom from Erma Bombeck:

"Thanksgiving dinners take eighteen hours to prepare. They are consumed in twelve minutes. Half-times take twelve minutes. This is not coincidence."

TERA Membership: TERA relies on the financial support of our members to work for our community. If you are not a TERA member, we need your support. Memberships start at only $15. Become a member now!  - www.tera90041.org 

Merton & Eagle Rock Boulevard - Cross at Less Peril: 

The June TERA eLetter included the following comments. "Eagle Rock & Merton is a crosswalk that desperately needs an improved pedestrian crossing signal. For both pedestrians and drivers, the much used crosswalk at this intersection, running between Ruby's Bakery (Yummy strawberry cakes) and Cold Stone Creamery on the west side of Eagle Rock Boulevard, is a challenge just waiting for a pedestrian to be injured or worse."

Cold Stone Creamery may be gone but the challenge of crossing at this popular intersection remains. Prior to the eLetter publication TERA had discussed the danger of this crossing to the Council Office and asked for their help in finding a solution to make this a safer crossing for all. The good news, as was recently published in the Council Office weekly newsletter is as follows:    

Monuments that say "Welcome to Eagle Rock"

• Colorado Boulevard in the vicinity of where Broadway and Colorado Boulevards intersect.    
• Eagle Rock Boulevard, in the vicinity of El Paso Drive and York Boulevard.    
• Figueroa Boulevard in the vicinity of Crestwood Terrace   
• 134 Freeway East exit to Figueroa - a monument or alternate "Welcome to Eagle Rock" signage is being considered for this location.    

• Our appeal would indeed be denied. Since California Senate Bill 1818 was passed in 2004, the L.A. Planning Department, and indeed the City of L.A., has no legal authority to mandate compliance with the Specific Plan if the project provides a critical level of affordable housing. Instead, the developer can elect the Director's Determination process.    
• The Planning Department had already incorporated into the Director's Determination document much of the applicable language from the Colorado Boulevard Specific Plan.   
• Despite the APC legally having to deny the appeal, TERA could suggest to the Area Planning Commission additional language specific to this project. Because the APC would be under no obligation to accept the language, we would have to carefully hone our request..

As a result of this meeting with the L.A. Planning Department, the Council Office arranged a meeting between the developer (Kurken Alyanakian) and TERA to attempt to negotiate some items that would provide a community benefit.  As a result of that meeting Mr. Alyanakian has agreed to the following deliverables:  

• Community Meeting Space:  Community groups are invited to use community room space for meetings at Colorado Terrace.  The meeting room is large, bright and very pleasant.  Guidelines for use of the space are being developed at this time.  For more information the primary contact is Kurken Alyanakian at 323.256.6060 and the secondary contact is Debby Garcia   323.256.6060.     
• Activate the Streetscape:  The dark windows of the vacant commercial space facing Colorado Boulevard do not provide the vibrant aesthetic that could energize the Boulevard.  In order to "activate" the windows, until the space is leased, they will be made available to local businesses, community groups, artists, etc. to establish colorful displays in the windows.  Lighting will be provided by Colorado Terrace.  This will apply to both the existing and new building.  TERA will coordinate the installation of displays.  For more information send an email - president@TERA90041.org.     
• A smaller pumpkin:  The large scale of the current building is further emphasized by the orange stucco chosen years ago.  The unfortunate color choice, which is acknowledged by Mr. Alyanakian, will not be repeated in the new building.  The new building, which is smaller than the existing building, will be located directly east of the current structure.  It will be painted in a palette of more subtle colors that are typical for larger Spanish style structures.  At the time stucco is being applied to the new building, stucco on selected portions of the existing building will be replaced with one of the more neutral colors from the new building.  This will reduce the perception of scale for the existing building.