Hillside

In regard to the Burbank Leader article "Council shuts down plan appeal," of Thursday, I have these comments. The hillside development process of single-family residences is very familiar to me as I have been involved both in government and in private practice as a geotechnical consultant for more that 30 years. I have no problem assessing the suitability, feasibility, safety and the compatibility of hillside residential developments as a professional, hillside property owner and as a homeowner advocate.

Amber Willard HILLSIDE DISTRICT -- Firefighters will soon be searching the city, not for fires, but for areas where fires might start. Officials from Station 16 will cruise city streets looking for hillside homeowners who have not cleared brush from their property. About 1,200 homeowners in the city's hillside area have until Thursday to remove brush, which will help prevent fires in the coming months, officials said. "They need to put a sensible space between the houses and brush," said Fire Capt.

HILLSIDE HOME APPROVED The council gave its approval to a couple seeking a conditional-use permit to build a new home in the Hillside District. WHAT IT MEANS Arsen and Ripsime Retchian sought a conditional-use permit from the city to build a 3,000-square-foot home on La Rambla on the hillside. The Planning Board denied the permit because the home was not compatible with the neighborhood. The council upheld the denial on March 1. But after the couple modified the home's design so as not to block the views of a neighboring home, the council reconsidered its decision and approved the permit.

Ben Godar As fire officials prepare annual notices asking hillside residents to clear brush from their properties, they say rain and warm temperatures have fueled grass growth. Although there is a healthy growth of annual grasses on hillside properties, Burbank Fire Capt. Bob Reinhardt said the brush doesn't currently pose a fire risk. "All the city properties and residences have a good growth of natural vegetation, but it's still green, so we're not too concerned right now," he said.

Karen S. Kim HILLSIDE DISTRICT -- Though Burbank had hoped to purchase a 3.5-acre parcel of land up for auction in the Hillside District, it turns out that another public agency might have beaten Burbank to the bid. The Santa Monica Mountains Conservancy -- which often buys open space to preserve it from development -- has expressed an interest in purchasing the Burbank property, and Burbank city officials are all...

CITY HALL — City officials are hashing out the second phase of an ordinance that is intended to safeguard views from homes in the Hillside District. The first phase, adopted by the City Council in May 2005, set limits on height, setbacks and sizes of physical structures in the Hillside District, along with citywide amendments to single-family residential zoning standards, Assistant Planner Tracey Steinkruger said. After those limits were established, planning staffers held a series of community meetings.

Jackson Bell City Council members Tuesday reconsidered stricter building rules on hillside homeowners to protect their neighbors' views of the Verdugo Mountains and San Fernando Valley. To expedite the process, council members asked city planners to draft a view-protection ordinance focusing on such development standards as tightening the floor-area ratio and limiting building height and setbacks. After those guidelines are hammered out, the council will then tackle more complex standards such as regulating trees and shrubbery, defining what a view is, and determining how much of it hillside residents are entitled.

Josh Goldstein HILLSIDE DISTRICT-- Police have invited members of the hillside area to discuss ways to work together and help cut a recent increase in crime. Residents who live in the 200 and 300 blocks of east Valencia, Elmwood, Cedar, Providencia, Santa Anita and Verdugo avenues are encouraged to share their thoughts during an information-gathering meeting to be hosted by the Burbank Police Department. The meeting will be from 6:30 to 8 p.m. Thursday at Foursquare Church, 269 E. Providencia Ave. In the past six months, police have reported an increase in car burglary, graffiti and vandalism crimes along those streets, Burbank Police Sgt. Bill Taylor said.

Robert Blechl HILLSIDE DISTRICT -- Burbank's Retired Senior Volunteer Program is looking for adults 55 and older to fill positions at Stough Canyon Nature Center. The nature center, scheduled to open in spring, needs people to work the information desk -- answering phones and taking questions from the public -- and for general office work. Cashiers and bookkeepers are needed in the gift shop and docents are needed to lead hikes and workshops.

Irma Lemus HILLSIDE DISTRICT -- Volunteerism and community spirit has paid off for two St. Francis Xavier Catholic School students. Eighth-graders Jennifer Lorraine Farah and Christopher George Khoury were named California Junior Scholarship Federation Outstanding Students in April. Both students received plaques nad $500 savings bonds. "It's rare to have both recipients from the same school. This shows the school's excellence," said Linda Raabe of the federation.