While more than 700 La Cañada Flintridge Educational Foundation supporters were enjoying themselves Saturday evening at a gala in Downtown L.A., City Councilman Greg Brown was patrolling the streets of LCF.
He spent almost six hours on a ride-along with a Crescenta Valley Sheriff’s deputy, an experience that spurred several ideas. Brown shared several at Tuesday’s City Council meeting, hoping his suggestions might be put up for official discussion on a future agenda.
“All these items are just things we should be considering as input,” Brown told his colleagues, all of whom attended the Public Safety Town Hall on Monday at Lanterman Auditorium. “But it is input from someone who’s out there every day in our community.”
Brown said he learned of a specific location in the Flintridge area that seems to attract “undesirables,” an issue that could be addressed relatively easily, he said.
“With a fairly simple parking restriction we can give the deputies a tool to clear that area out,” Brown said.
He also mentioned installing “roll-over” curbs where roadwork is being planned on Gould Avenue because that would allow deputies to make an immediate turn. And, he said, he thinks the city should investigate a key that would permit members of the sheriff’s department access to large gated properties.
“[The deputy] mentioned he has previously worked in Santa Clarita and the sheriff’s department there has a key that opens gates on large properties and apartments, so that’s something we need to look into,” Brown said. “All the deputies who patrol would carry that key [because] they’ve had calls out on larger properties, a burglar alarm goes off and they can’t get into the property, they’re just sitting outside.”
Brown said the deputy he accompanied also suggested that more businesses invest in video surveillance equipment.
“He said there have been a number of instances, burglaries and vandalism, where there’s not a log of video coverage,” Brown said. “So that’s something we want to encourage.”
NO OUTDOOR WATERING
Daniel Drugan, a technician for the Foothill Municipal Water District, told council members that LCF residents should avoid outdoor watering between March 18-27, when about 13,000 feet of pipeline will be inspected.
Residents and businesses served by Valley Water Co., La Cañada Irrigation District and Mesa Crest Water Co. will be affected, he said.
Outdoor use includes watering lawns and landscaping, and accounts for about 70% of local water usage, he said.
“We try to plan these inspections in periods of wet and cool weather, but it might get a little warmer and dryer, so we want residents to think twice before reaching for that garden hose,” Drugan said. “It’s only out of an abundance of caution, so we don’t have to go for more expensive supplies or other means of providing water service.”
Otherwise, Drugan said, the water district and its member agencies have sufficient stored water to cover the inspection.
Engineer Ken Herman told council members that the pipeline system was built in the 1950s and modified in the 1970s and that the inspection is purely proactive.
“In general, we have no expectation that the inspection is going to find any huge problem,” he said. “This is more ‘catch it before it’s a problem.’ They hired me to develop a program where we could start addressing our issues ahead of time, and this system is in the 60-year range, and it’s starting to want to retire as many of us are wanting to retire, so we’re wanting to make sure it’ll go another life span.”
SECOND STORY APPROVED
Without support from Brown and Councilman Jonathan Curtis, the City Council’s other three members — Mayor Michael Davitt, Mayor Pro Tem Terry Walker and Len Pieroni — voted to adopt the resolution denying the appeal that sought to stop a second floor addition and hillside development on Normanton Drive in the Paradise Valley neighborhood.
Neighbors packed City Hall last month to protest the Planning Commission’s approval of the project, but after much discussion, the City Council gave its approval as well, in a split decision.
