GAINS
BUG-OFF
Officials will be still be holding their collective breath, but the
Burbank Unified School District and the Burbank police and fire
departments are optimistic about a glitch-free transition to the year
2000.
The dreaded "Millennium Bug" -- a host of potential problems caused by
computers with two-digit date codes mistaking the "00" in the year 2000
for a return to 1900 -- is not expected to cause major problems with the
school district and Burbank's public safety departments because they have
spent the past year working to iron out any problems, officials say.
"We believe everything will function properly," said Burbank Lt. Larry
Koch. "All the in-house computer systems, including the records computer
and computer-aided dispatch, have been upgraded and tested."
More concerned about what's going outside than inside their computers,
police officials plan to staff upward of 25 officers on the streets on
New Year's Eve, about 50% more than on a normal Friday night shift. The
fire department will have a an additional rescue ambulance, two engines,
a hazardous materials squad and fire prevention personnel on hand for the
big night.
PUTTING A NEW SHINE ON AN OLD BEAUTY
There was the moment of illumination, the singing and the usual words
of seasonal greeting, but the Mayor's Tree Lighting ceremony took on a
bit of added meaning this year with the dedication of monument
celebrating the four-year restoration of City Hall.
In the midst of a restoration that, when complete, will cost around
$500,000, the old Art Deco jewel is looking better than ever. So far, new
marble floors have been installed, the rotunda has been repainted,
railings and lighting fixtures have been replaced and spruced up and new
concrete has been poured. The distinctive fountain has also been returned
to something near its original splendor -- though the city remains
knotted in a dispute over the cost of that work. Next year, work will
focus on restoring the lovely "Four Freedoms" mural in the City Council
chambers.
The new monument, a four-foot slab of polished stone, notes the
building's 1943 dedication, its inclusion on the National Register of
Historic Places in 1966 and the current restoration work.
"I think it looks as good as it did 50 years ago," Councilman Bob
Kramer said. "We like it and people are always happy to come to it."
WEARING IT WELL
Congratulations are in order for Dawna Gunn and Samantha Mollaun who
were respectively crowned Miss Burbank and Miss Teen Burbank at a recent
