After an excruciatingly long meeting, the developer for Whole Foods was told by City Council to go back to the drawing board and come up with a plan that addressed the concerns of the Rancho neighborhood. The developer did this in good faith, creating a smaller store and eliminating the need for variances. This was an exercise in futility.
Clearly, Councilmen David Gordon and Dave Golonski never intended to approve the project and Councilwoman Marsha Ramos wasn't going to stick her neck out and be the deciding vote.
Mayor Todd Campbell voted for the project, but also rambled on about his nostalgic memories of growing up in the Rancho area, reassuring the crowd that he will do more to protect those horses. Apparently, horses have more rights in Burbank than taxpaying residents.
The only person who made any sense at all was architect and Councilman Jef Vander Borght.
Obviously frustrated with his colleagues, he urged them to seize this opportunity to bring an upscale and responsible business to Burbank. Currently, a 46,000-square-foot pink eyesore stands on this commercially zoned site. Unfortunately, Vander Borght was outgunned by the "not in my neighborhood" Rancho group.
You simply cannot reason with the unreasonable.
If you missed some of the show at the council meeting, let me fill you in. Even though official studies contradicted fearful speculation about increased traffic, opponents still argued that shoppers desperate for organic produce would run over small children on their way to school, and may even spook a horse.
