THE EAGLE ROCK ASSOCIATION
The Best Investment You Can Make in Your Neighborhood
TERA
e.letter
May 27, 2004
Learn more about us
and how we are changing our community for the better.
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a complimentary subscription to the TERA e.letter.
This week:
President’s message: updates (item #1)
TERA’s letter re: starbucks extended hours (item
#2)
connect with caltrans tonight (item #3)
Table of Contents:
1. PRESIDENT’S MESSAGE
2. TERA’S LETTER RE: WALGREENS/STARBUCKS REQUEST FOR EXTENDED
HOURS OF OPERATION
3. CALTRANS OFFERS OUR FREEWAY RAMP A FACELIFT: FIND OUT MORE TONIGHT — MAY 27
4. OCCIDENTAL COLLEGE RECEIVES $1.5 MILLION GRANT FROM HOWARD
HUGHES MEDICAL INSTITUTE
5. NEW LIFE FOR OLD HOMES: ECHO PARK RESTORATION WORKSHOPS — MAY
29
6. LOW COST SHOTS FOR YOUR PETS — MAY 29
7. TOUR PASADENA’S HISTORIC HIGHLANDS HOMES — MAY 30
8. COUNCILMEMBER VILLARAIGOSA TO HOST SAFETY FORUM — JUNE 5
9. CENTER FOR THE ARTS, EAGLE ROCK PRESENTS THE SECOND ANNUAL BEAUX ARTS
BALL — JUNE 5
10. HOW DOES OUR GARDEN GROW? FIND OUT — JUNE 19
11. WE'VE GOT MAIL
12. THE LAST WORD — STEPHEN SONDHEIM
1. PRESIDENT’S
MESSAGE
Northeast Area Planning Commission Hearing on Walgreens -- Update
Last evening, TERA Board members Michael Tharp (TERA Land Use Committee
Chair), Kathleen Long (TERA Vice President) and Pamela Lansden (TERA Historic
Preservation Chair), went to the Northeast Area Planning Commission to
appear at the hearing regarding Rich Development's request to extend
the hours of operation (at the new Starbucks site on Colorado Boulevard) from
5:00 a.m. to 10:00 p.m. daily for a coffee shop and an enclosed seating area.
When they arrived, they were told that the new hours requested were 5:00 am to
midnight, therefore warranting a new hearing with new notice to the
community. The request will be heard in at least 30 days time. We
will keep you posted as to the new hearing date.
Item #2 below is the text of the letter TERA sent regarding our position on the
hours of operation. Please take the time to read the letter. While
TERA supports the original request for extended hours, our
letter reiterates many of the conditions of approval that still need to be
adhered to for the site. It is definitely worth a good read. Thank
you to Michael Tharp for his well-worded letter!
Walgreens Signs at Design Review Board TONIGHT
6:30 p.m. at the Eagle Rock Library
The Colorado Boulevard Specific Plan Design Review Board (DRB)
will consider Rich Development's requests for signage along
Colorado Boulevard for a second time tonight, in order to ensure compliance
with the Specific Plan. TERA will be there, and will update you as
to the DRB's decision in our next e.letter. This is a public
meeting, so please feel welcome to attend.
Status report on CHP Power Poles connected to the Caltrans
Building.
Thank you to all who have been vigilant on this issue! The new status is
that Doug Hoffner of the California State Department of General Services and
Ed Miller of the Los Angeles Department of Water and Power are connecting
in order to accurately determine whose power is needed for the poles and
whose responsibility it is to pay for undergrounding the power
poles.
As I updated you in our last e.letter, the Department of Water
and Power is doing a study on undergrounding the power for the new poles
and the current poles. I will continue to update you as things
progress.
Thank you to Teresa Acosta of Senator Jack Scott's office, Valerie
Cuevas of Assemblywoman Liu's office and Michael Cathey of Councilmember
Villaraigosa's office for working with us on this
issue. You all clearly understand how important undergrounding the
power is to Eagle Rock, and, once the study is done to determine the costs, we
will be counting on you and your elected representatives to ensure that the
undergrounding occurs.
This issue will also be discussed at tonight's ERNC Land Use Committee meeting
at 7pm at Eagle Rock City Hall. If you are interested, please try and
attend!
Reminder to attend TONIGHT's ERNC Land Use Committee meeting, 7pm,
Eagle Rock City Hall
In our last e.letter, TERA carried the notice by ERNC Land Use Chair
Jessica Wethington McLean for tonight's ERNC Land Use Committee (It is
Item #3 in today's e.letter as well). Tonight's agenda will be:
If you can, please attend. The agenda is full of crucial issues for Eagle
Rock and the City of Los Angeles. Michael Tharp and I sit on the ERNC
Land Use Committee, so we will be present and report the outcome of the meeting
in the next TERA e.letter for those who cannot attend.
New parking structures in Eagle Rock
The Eagle Rock Community Preservation and Revitalization (ERCPR) board,
Michael Cathey, and Teresa Acosta met with Mott Smith and Jim
Favaro of Civic Enterprise Associates to engage them in an assessment of
potential parking structures and development opportunities, to help
strengthen our boulevards. We had a very productive meeting, that
will ideally result in a few targeted community meetings on potential
locations of and funding mechanisms for additional parking in Eagle
Rock. Stay tuned!
Have a happy and safe Memorial Day Weekend!
-- Hilary Norton Orozco, TERA President
2. TERA’S LETTER RE: STARBUCKS REQUEST FOR EXTENDED HOURS OF
OPERATION
May 26, 2004
East Area Planning Commission
Mr. Greg A. Wesley, President
Ms. Mary George, Vice President
Ms. Yolanda Chavez, Commissioner
Mr. Michael Fleming, Commissioner
Mr. Alexis Moreno, Commissioner
200 North Spring Street, Rm. 532
Los Angeles, CA 90012
Re: Case No. APCE 2004-1439-MSC / 2216 and
2228 Colorado Boulevard
Dear Commissioners:
The Eagle Rock Association (TERA) is writing in support of conditional
approval of the applicant’s request to extend the hours of operation from 5:00
a.m. to 10:00 p.m. daily for a coffee shop and an enclosed seating area at the
above referenced address.
TERA believes that the limited hours of operation imposed by the Colorado
Boulevard Specific Plan are, in many cases, impractical and actually serve as a
detriment to creating the kind of pedestrian friendly and active environment
envisioned by other sections of the Colorado Boulevard Specific Plan.
However, TERA also feels that it is necessary to insure this project’s
compliance with other aspects of the Colorado Boulevard Specific Plan, in
accord with Case No. DIR 2001-3476-DRB-SPP-MOD2. TERA is therefore
requesting that the East Area Planning Commission reiterate the conditions of
approval of the project under that previous case, which is also the subject of
this request, so that there can be no confusion by any party on what these
conditions require.
The full conditions are attached to this letter for your review. In
summary, they are:
1. The use and development of the property shall be in substantial conformance
with the revised site plan dated January 17, 2003 and revised elevation, dated
January 16, 2003.
a. Street walls shall be roof-covered, enclosed
structures containing retail tenant spaces, having a minimum 10-foot depth
along the Eagle Rock Boulevard frontage and a minimum 20-foot depth along the
Colorado Boulevard frontage.
b. Street walls shall be architecturally
detailed with brick veneer, landscaped/hardscaped on both sides and incorporate
open archway features enclosed by transparent glass.
c. At least 60% of each street wall shall
consist of transparent windows, doors or openings affording views into retail,
office or lobby space.
2. Tandem parking shall be supervised by an attendant during all times
the buildings for which the tandem parking being provided is in active
operation.
3. Landscape Plan.
4. All roof structures, mechanical equipment, and appurtenances shall not
exceed the proposed building height by more than 5 feet and shall be integrated
into the design of the proposed structures, painted to match, and/or property
screened from public view.
5. If used, security gates, shutters, or screening shall be placed on the
interior of the building and hidden from view when not in use.
6. Masonry walls along the western perimeter of the site shall
be smooth stucco finish or painted to match the color and/or finish of the
proposed buildings.
7. A minimum of one 24 inch box tree shall be planted for every 4
new surface parking paces.
8. All non-transparent wall surfaces shall be screened by the
planting of shrubs or vines, which at maturity will cover the non-Transparent
wall surface to a height of 9 feet.
9. The following signs are expressly prohibited by the Specific
Plan: off-site signs; roof signs; animated signs, including
flashing neon signs; and mural signs.
10. In order to assure occupancy of Retail Buildings “B” and “C”, no
temporary or permanent Certificate of Occupancy shall be issued for Building
“A” (i.e., the proposed Walgreens building) until the construction of Retail
Buildings “B” and “C” is completed to the satisfaction of Building and Safety.
TERA requests that the Commission conditionally approve the requested hours of
operation for Building “C”, incorporating by reference all conditions imposed
by Case No. DIR 2001-3476-DRB-SPP-MOD2, as approved by the City Council on
January 24, 2003, on the proposed development.
Thank you for your consideration in this matter.
Hilary Norton Orozco, TERA President
3. CALTRANS OFFERS OUR FREEWAY RAMP A FACELIFT: FIND OUT MORE TONIGHT — MAY 27
Here’s an important announcement from the Eagle Rock Neighborhood Council’s
Land Use Planning co-chairperson, Jessica Wethington McLean, about tonight’s
land use committee meeting, which includes an appearance from a Caltrans
representative:
CalTrans Unveils Plans for a 134 Freeway Entrance Redesign
It is with great pleasure that I invite you to attend tonight’s meeting of the Eagle
Rock Neighborhood Council’s Land Use & Planning Committee, where the
State of California Department of Transportation, Caltrans, will unveil plans
for Eagle Rock in 2005, which include a major redesign and landscaping
improvement to the concrete freeway entrance/exit to the 134 from
Colorado Boulevard in the heart of Eagle Rock, as well as landscaping to the
elevated area on the north side of Eagle Rock Park, (near the new child care
center.)
The Eagle Rock Neighborhood Council and Collaborative: Eagle Rock Beautiful are
partnering to provide median and parkway design and improvement throughout
Eagle Rock in the coming years. And, though rather out of our reach
alone, improving these areas was on the top of a beautification wish list,
which makes the plans being proposed by CalTrans -- and the news that the projects
are already funded and committed for 2005 completion -- quite welcome indeed.
I saw a sneak peak of the plans at an informal meeting a couple of weeks back,
and I think you will be pleased with what you see when CalTrans officially
introduces them next week. If you have any questions, please contact me.
And, please, feel free to help us spread the word about this important
meeting. I hope to see you there.
-- Jessica Wethington McLean, Co-Chair, Land Use & Planning
Committee, Eagle Rock Neighborhood Council
4. OCCIDENTAL COLLEGE RECEIVES $1.5 MILLION GRANT FROM HOWARD
HUGHES MEDICAL INSTITUTE
From our friends at Oxy comes this bit of good news:
A new $1.5 million, four-year grant from the Howard Hughes Medical Institute
will fund the expansion of Occidental College's acclaimed undergraduate
research program, its science outreach programs to high school and community
college students and faculty, and the creation of a new scientific literacy
curriculum.
“The challenge is to enable more students to participate in research at greater
length - or at an earlier stage - in their undergraduate career, and to provide
more opportunities for interdisciplinary scientific study and research that
will lead to greater scientific literacy for all our students," said
chemistry Professor Chris Craney, associate dean at Occidental and
director of the Undergraduate Research Center.
"HHMI support will play a vital role in making it possible for Occidental
to continue its efforts to create new interdisciplinary collaborations, to
improve scientific literacy, and encourage women and minority students to
pursue careers in science," said Occidental President Theodore R.
Mitchell.
A portion of the grant will fund a new science literacy program that includes
objectives and various strategies for developing new graduation requirements.
New courses or interdisciplinary course modules will be developed that
integrate science literacy objectives with broader college objectives involving
critical thinking, analytical writing and cultural literacy.
Occidental was one of 42 institutions - from the 170 that submitted proposals -
to receive a grant from a $49.7 million fund. The award amounts ranged from
$500,000 to $1.6 million. In their review of proposals, HHMI's review panel
noted initiatives that reflected recommendations of the National Academy of
Sciences publication "BIO 2010: Transforming Undergraduate Education for
Future Research Biologists."
Occidental science students have a longstanding record of academic excellence,
as they regularly publish research results in professional journals and present
their work at scientific conferences. At the Southern California Conference
on Undergraduate Research, Occidental students have presented more papers
and posters than students from any other college or research university in the
region over the past seven years.
5. NEW LIFE FOR OLD HOMES: ECHO PARK RESTORATION WORKSHOPS — MAY 29
The Echo Park Historical Society will launch its 2004 Restoration
Workshop series with a lesson on how to repair and maintain your home’s
wood windows. Other upcoming workshops include advice on shopping for
salvage and the repair and care of old home hardware.
There’s more information at the “Preservation” link at
http://www.HistoricEchoPark.org. Check the site for a complete schedule.
The workshops are free to members of the historical society and $5.00 for
nonmembers.
Please RSVP by email to ephs@HistoricEchoPark.org for workshop locations.
6. LOW COST SHOTS FOR YOUR PETS — MAY 29
El Sereno Recreation Center
The City of Los Angeles' Department of Animal Services and Department
of Recreation & Parks, in partnership with Southern California
Veterinary Medical Association, are pleased to offer dog and cat
anti-rabies vaccinations for $5.00, as well as other vaccinations that guard
against various canine and feline diseases for $9.00 - $12.00 dollars per
animal.
The Department of Animal Services also sponsors a Spay Mobile that
provides free spaying and neutering services for the pets of qualified
low income, disabled or senior citizen owners. The Spay Mobile will be at
the Super A Foods Store at 425 S. Soto Street in Boyle Heights at 7:30
a.m. tomorrow, May 28th. For more information, contact LA Animal Services
at (888) 452-7381.
7. TOUR PASADENA’S HISTORIC HIGHLANDS HOMES — MAY 30
Six character homes in a wide range of architectural styles - many of them
never before open to the public -- will be open for viewing during Pasadena
Historic Highland's Tenth Annual Home Tour on Sunday, May 30, from noon to
4 p.m.
Advance tickets may be purchased for $12.50 online at http://www.historichighlands.com, or by sending a
check payable to "Historic Highlands Neighborhood Association," along
with a stamped, self-addressed envelope, to HHNA, c/o Rex Barry, 1436 N.
Michigan Ave., Pasadena CA 91104. Tickets also are available at Motif,
1389 East Washington Blvd., Pasadena, or they may be purchased for $15.00 on
the day of the tour at the corner of Topeka and North Michigan avenues.
For more information, call (626) 797-1910.
Located on the Pasadena/Altadena border, just five minutes north of the 210
Foothill Freeway, Historic Highlands is bounded by Washington Boulevard on the
south, New York Drive on the north, Lake Avenue on the west and Hill Avenue on
the east. The neighborhood includes the land holdings of David McPherson,
designer and engineer of the Mt. Lowe railroad, and Ezra Dane, an orchardist
who settled in Pasadena in 1883.
Tour proceeds benefit neighborhood street beautification and improvement funds
for Longfellow Elementary School, the local public school whose original
building (still extant) was designed in 1911 by famed architects Greene and
Greene.
8. COUNCILMEMBER VILLARAIGOSA TO HOST SAFETY FORUM — JUNE 5
From Eagle Rock’s City Council Field Deputy Michael Cathey comes this
invitation to Councilmember Villaraigosa’s Public Safety Forum on June 5:
Councilmember Villaraigosa presents
The focus of this forum will be crime prevention and neighborhood
watch organizing. The guest speaker will be Professor George Tita,
the author of "Operation Ceasefire," a gang violence prevention plan
based on the successful Boston model. Neighborhood watch groups and
other informational groups will be present to share stories and ideas about how
to better our crime prevention efforts, and there will be a breakout session
with LAPD officers from both the Northeast and Hollenbeck divisions.
For those folks who do not want to drive or are unable to do so, free bus
service to and from the event will be available. The bus pick folks
up at Toland Way Elementary (4545 Toland Way) at 8:50 a.m. and will
leave for the site at 9:15 a.m. sharp. The bus will return to Toland Way
Elementary at approximately 12:30 p.m. If you’d like to take advantage of
the bus service, please RSVP our office at (323) 254-5295 by May 28. Thanks and
I look forward to seeing you!
-- Michael Cathey, District 14 Office of Councilmember Antonio Villaraigosa
9. CENTER FOR THE ARTS, EAGLE ROCK PRESENTS THE SECOND ANNUAL BEAUX ARTS
BALL — JUNE 5
On June 5th, 2004, The Center for the Arts, Eagle Rock, will present “The
Big Red Ball: the Second Annual Beaux Arts Ball.”
The Party of the Year will begin at 8:30 p.m., and a memorable evening
of revelry will ensue. The evening will feature the fabulous chanteuse Morganne
and the rocking rhythms of the John Brown Band. There will also be
a silent auction, raffle and midnight buffet. Costumes and festive attire
are encouraged, but not required. Admission is $20.00, and proceeds will
support the Center for the Arts, Eagle Rock.
The Center is pleased to be working with local artists to transform this
Carnegie library into a vision in red. The décor will feature multiple
special effects and designer lighting. The Center will glitter and glow,
adding steam to this red-hot night. Morganne, a globetrotting
artist, most recently gave a dazzling inaugural gala performance at L.A.’s
landmark Walt Disney Concert Hall. The chanteuse has also been heard at
the House of Blues, Montreal Jazz Festival, and opened for megastar Barbra
Streisand at the Kodak Theater, as well as for The Los Angeles Philharmonic at
the Hollywood Bowl.
Following Morganne’s concert will be the John Brown Band. The John Brown
Band has been performing in and around Los Angeles, the Valley and the South
Bay for over 20 years, and has played just about every venue in the area.
Joining lead singer, John Brown are Korey Mall, Bob Gross, Bobby Mostol,
and John Thomas. Their lively concert covers an impressive array of rock
and roll classics, plus a sprinkling of standards, and will have the crowd
rocking the night away.
Finally, a scrumptious “midnight” buffet will be served, hosted by The
Coffee Table. This magnificent spread will feature pastas and salads
galore plus a dessert of red devil cake. This event is sponsored by Adelphia
Communications, Capital Group Companies, Bank of America, Pagnone Realty and
Bob Taylor Properties. Come join us for this celebration of the
arts! As an added bonus you will be helping keep our Center open to serve
the northeast communities of Los Angeles.
The ERCCA is a non-profit organization, supported solely by grants and
donations, providing low-cost art, music, dance and computer classes to
children and adults of surrounding areas and communities. The ERCCA also
hosts two free festivals yearly and numerous concerts and exhibitions.
For more information, call the Center at (323) 226-1617. For
Ball reservations, call (323) 226-1230. The Center is located near the
corner of Eagle Rock Boulevard and Colorado Boulevard at 2225 Colorado Blvd.
10. HOW DOES OUR GARDEN GROW? FIND OUT — JUNE 19
TERA Board member and community garden guru Mary Tokita just checked in
with the latest news on Eagle Rock’s soon-to-be community garden.
As reported in our May 13 e.letter, Mary’s proposal for the Eagle
Rockdale Community Garden has already received a $10,000 matching grant from
the LA Department of Public Works. We’ll keep you posted on further
developments as the ER Community Garden moves closer to reality. For now,
here’s Mary with news of the upcoming first meeting and workday at the garden
site:
We will have the first meeting of the Garden and a workday on the site on Saturday,
June 19. We will adopt our Garden Rules and elect officers, and then
proceed to start work on the Garden itself.
In the meantime, here is a summary of the garden and its goals:
Eagle Rockdale Community Garden & Art Park
Location:
The approximate street address is 1003 to 1100 Rockdale Ave., located on
the west side of Rockdale Avenue, stretching from just south of Shelby Lanark
Park to 1101 Rockdale (apt. building). It’s just east of Figueroa,
about a block south of J.J.'s Car Wash. To get there, get on La Loma
going east from Eagle Rock, cross Figueroa and take the first major right hand
turn, past the car wash, onto Lanark Street. Proceed south on Lanark
(noting our public xeriscape garden, planted by my neighbors and me,) to the
first cross street, which is Shelby Place. Take a left onto Shelby, then
an immediate right onto Rockdale Avenue. Shelby Lanark Park begins just
south of that intersection and continues on the right side of Rockdale.
The park ends at a gate where the proposed garden property begins, and
continues south along Rockdale Avenue until 1101 Rockdale, the apartment
building that faces Figueroa St.
This long, narrow tract of land was a former LA trolley right-of-way and is
flanked by private homes along its western border, an apartment building to the
south, and abuts Shelby Lanark Park to the north. Unoccupied for decades, the
land is owned by the City of Los Angeles, under its General Services Dept.,
Asset Management Division.
Goals:
1. To create plots for personal use by community members, including
neighbors, apartment dwellers, schools, youth groups, and senior citizens.
First priority for individual garden plots on the site should go to people
without access to land, then to those who wish to produce food for personal,
community or (possible) commercial use. To organize and operate the gardens,
this garden will create its own bylaws and managing organization. The Garden
will also benefit from a close association with the LA Community Gardens
Council, Fresh Food Access, the LA Master Gardener Program, and other
resources.
The placement of individual garden plots will be sited for optimal water access
and adequate sunlight for growing vegetables, fresh herbs and flowers. Each
plot will be planted, maintained and harvested by the individual or group
assigned to the plot.
2. To establish a worksite for multi-disciplinary landscaping and art installations
across the community. Each project will be developed under the guidance and
direction of professional artists, master gardeners, landscape architects and
other professionals seeking to enhance Eagle Rock’s public spaces. Initial art
projects at this site will be developed as funding becomes available.
All art project proposals should undergo a structured review and selection
process by a designated committee, appointed by the garden membership. The
committee would then make recommendations to the membership, based on aesthetic
appeal, feasibility (economic and pragmatic) requirements, and their potential
to improve the community and stakeholders’ quality of life.
3. To produce fruit, herbs, flowers and vegetables for the community in
communal areas. Each member of the Rockdale Community Garden would commit
a certain amount of hours to servicing the common areas of the Garden, which
would include communal gardens where crops would be grown for the benefit of
all members and the community at large. Distribution would be determined by the
Garden members by vote.
4. To operate a community nursery for the benefit of the Northeast
community. This nursery would take donated plant material and would also
propagate plants to plant in public spaces in Eagle Rock and surrounding
communities. The plants may also be provided to businesses and residential
properties at a nominal charge.
-- Mary Tokita, TERA Board member, Director, Eagle Rockdale Community
Gardens & Art Park
11. WE'VE GOT MAIL
“When I first saw the initial stages of the tower to the West of the Cal Trans
Building near the 2 Freeway, I thought it was some sort of scaffold.
However, it now looks like it is going to be a permanent communications tower,
complete with red light on the top. Did the community (Glendale and Eagle
Rock) have any input into this addition to the project? Could not the
tower have been incorporated into the building (or still be done)? I
expected some antennas on the roof, but not the current edifice.
“When first built, the Eiffel Tower got bad reviews from the locals, but they
grew to love it. However, I do not think that my family's opinion of the
radio tower is going to improve over time.
-- Bob Fairman. Eagle Rock
“Today while driving from Glendale to ER, I noticed a tower on the CalTrans
Building which I had not noticed before. It looks about 2x the
height of the building, and I have not heard anyone make any comments about it
before. Did I miss something and just not see it before? It has
scaffolding around it, and it is not as noticeable from the east.”
-- Barbara Aran, Eagle Rock
Thanks for sharing your impressions of the latest addition to Eagle Rock’s
landscape. We passed your thoughts along to a few longtime TERA members,
including Scott Bogue and Joanne Turner, who have watched the progress of this
project from the start. Here’s what they had to say:
“[The towers on the Caltrans building may actually end
up being even] worse than you think! When the plans were being shown to
TERA a few years ago, there was an unadorned version of [the recently
constructed] tower on the architect’s renderings. What the architect
wouldn't show us, however, but only described, was another collection of
antennas that would be constructed on the tower. There were to be several
set aside for use by the California Highway Patrol and Caltrans. In
addition, there were plans to sell space on the tower for use by commercial
carriers, for microwave repeaters, cell phone antennas, and so on. So, if
you don't think the Caltrans building and tower is an eyesore yet...just wait.”
-- Scott Bogue, TERA Board Member
[After our initial discussions with Caltrans, they] promised to come back to
the Eagle Rock community with their final plans, which they never did.
They are just doing what they’d initially planned to do, with no regard
for the feelings of our community. This is another clear case of
government running roughshod over the people it was mandated to serve.
When will justice prevail?”
-- Joanne Turner, President Emeritus, The Eagle Rock Association (TERA)
That’s an excellent question, Joanne. One practical first step people
can take is to attend tonight’s meeting of the Eagle Rock Neighborhood
Council’s Land Use committee, which includes a presentation by representatives
of Caltrans. (The full details on this meeting are included in item
#2 above.) Please consider attending the meeting and contributing
your voice to this vital topic.
* * *
“I am writing
to alert Eagle Rock to a new menace in our midst: identity theft and mail
fraud, which have been hitting us hard lately.
“While going to work this morning, I
discovered mail spread on the ground around the U.S. Post Office drop box
on Montaflora at the top of Glen Iris and Highland View. Upon
further investigation, I discovered various pieces of junk mail and some empty
envelopes, including one that looked like the type that the IRS uses to send
tax refund checks. Crooks have a way of taking checks and money orders
that are made out to utility companies, etc., and washing them so they make
them over and cash them. This is serious. I no longer feel safe
using the mail boxes on our streets. The mail box itself did not appear
to be tampered with, so I believe the crooks must have had a key or some kind
of tool. We have reported this to our local postal police. I am the
block captain on Highland View Avenue and we also had a car stolen on our block
this week.
“While I think it's important to keep Eagle Rock attractive, it is more
important to keep it safe. I urge you to get involved with
"neighborhood watch" and keep your eyes and ears open.
Also, take mail to the post office whenever possible.”
-- Terri Munday, Eagle Rock
Thanks for filling us in on that incident, Terri. This might be
as good a time as any to remind our readers that Eagle Rock has a very active
Neighborhood Watch association that meets about once a month. All
meetings take place from 6:00 to 7:00 p.m. at the Eagle Rock City Hall
building, on the northeast corner of Colorado Blvd. and North Maywood
Ave. Officer Joe Galindo, Senior Lead LAPD Officer for Eagle Rock,
conducts all meetings, which are open to all. Mark your calendar
for the organization’s remaining meeting dates for 2004:
JUNE 17, JULY 15, AUGUST 3rd (National Night Out!),
SEPTEMBER 16, OCTOBER 21, NOVEMBER 18 (NO
MEETING IN DECEMBER.)
For more information, or to be connected with your local Neighborhood Watch
leader, call the City Council District 14 Field Office at (323) 254-5295.
* * *
We ran
across the following notice about a new online discussion group for people with
an interest in preserving old houses in LA, which, for obvious reasons, we
thought might be of interest to e.letter subscribers.
“I own and am constantly working on a 1926 duplex. For years now, I've
tried to find a local group to discuss houses (particularly, though not
necessarily exclusively, old houses), house projects, contractor
searches, craftsperson searches and vendors/outlets for certain kinds of
fixtures or supplies, but I've never been able to find one.
“I do belong to one very active old house discussion group, but it's national
and doesn't help much when I want to talk about LA neighborhoods, services or
suppliers. So I've gone ahead and created a Yahoo Group - the Los
Angeles House Network - for anyone interested in discussing:
“To subscribe, go to http://www.yahoogroups.com/subscribe/lahousenet or
send a blank e-mail to lahousenet-subscribe@yahoogroups.com
“Also, please feel free to pass this on to all your friends, acquaintances and
neighbors who own old houses, live in old houses, love old houses or just want
to talk about houses.”
-- Elizabeth Fuller, lahousenet-subscribe@yahoogroups.com
* * *
That’s it for this week’s
e.letter. See ya’ in seven!
We welcome your comments,
complaints and/or compliments on the e.letter or any other topic of interest to
greater Eagle Rock. Please address your message to e.letter@TERA90041.org, and include your full
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12. THE LAST WORD —
STEPHEN SONDHEIM
I remember sky
It was blue as ink
Or at least I think
I remember sky.
I remember days,
Or at least I try.
But as years go by
They're sort of haze,
And the bluest ink
Isn't really sky
And at times I think
I would gladly die
For a day of sky.
-- Stephen Sondheim (b. 1930)
Excerpt from“I Remember” © 1966, Stephen Sondheim, All
Rights Reserved
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TERA -- The Eagle Rock Association -- YOUR COMMUNITY IN ACTION -- http://www.TERA90041.org --
P. O. Box 41453, Eagle Rock, CA 90041 -- (323) 259-TERA -- a 501(c)(3)
nonprofit public benefit corporation
The TERA
e.letter
A publication of
The Eagle Rock Association (TERA)
Vince Waldron, editor
e.letter@TERA90041.org