Burbank City Council Meeting Wrap-up

The city engineer, Sean Corrigan, provided the council with a report on the status of proposed improvements for athletic fields and facilities at Burbank High School, John Burroughs High School and Jordan Middle School. The plans were initially proposed on Jan. 31, 2007, by the Board of Education and were approved for funding on April 17, 2007. The city agreed to provide $11.65 million toward the joint project. The council provided direction to the district to ways they could remedy funding such as allocation of Youth Development Funds. The council directed staff to organize a joint meeting with the school board to discuss options to complete the projects.

WHAT IT MEANS

The council and school board will meet in mid-July to discuss options for funding such as the Youth Development Funds, scaling the size of the project back, or providing more city or district funds. Construction remains as scheduled for the projects, with Burbank High School beginning in September and John Burroughs High School and Jordan Middle School following in 2009.

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The council approved an agreement that would limit the size of a food specialty store to be built in the Rancho District to be 10,000 square feet or less. The vote marked a nearly two-year battle by Rancho District residents to restrict the stores’ size after a developer proposed a 60,000-square-foot Whole Foods at Alameda Avenue and Main Street.

WHAT IT MEANS

The agreement allows for the construction of a food specialty store or food market in the Rancho District but developers must comply with the 10,000-square-feet limitation.

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The council authorized an $800,800 Caltrans grant to allow Burbank to improve and enhance safety routes for nine Burbank schools along Magnolia Boulevard and Olive Avenue. The planned improvements will include pedestrian countdown signal heads at 20 locations.

WHAT IT MEANS

Preliminary engineering will begin on the project this year, but construction will not begin immediately because of other safety route projects.

When the project is ready to proceed, the staff will ask the council to award construction and necessary funds.