Community Award Winners

As we enter the New Year, the chamber is working hard to honor those who made 2014 a great year. Here are three more award winners the MVCOC is celebrating at our Annual Installation and Community Recognition Awards banquet on Jan. 22:

Our Beautification Award winner is Arbitrage Realty and Esquire Law Firm. This award is given to “a business or person who has made an extraordinary improvement to the appearance of the community.” This building is located at 3500 N. Verdugo Road on the east side of the street just above Andy’s Transfer and Storage. You might remember it as the old red building with white trim that housed various businesses throughout the years but has sat largely unused for the past 10 years. Thanks to owners Albert and Victor Hairapetian, the building underwent extensive renovation and remodeling and has become a beautiful gateway to this area. Coming up Verdugo Road from Glendale this building is a crowning achievement to the style of architecture that made up the community of Montrose in the 1940s and we thank the Hairapetians for their investment in the community and restoring their building to its former glory.

Our Community Enhancement Award winner is the City of Glendale. This award is given to “an individual, business or organization that has proven an asset to the community by improving the image and stature of the area.” In the past year the City of Glendale has repaved Verdugo Road, the Sparr Heights community and Honolulu Avenue and revamped the intersection of Honolulu and Verdugo. It even made sure that the crosswalks of Montrose kept their vintage red brick look! The city also paved the far north area of our community between Pennsylvania and Lowell avenues and restriped the streets around every school to make sure they followed the “safe route to school” plan. Future plans include power washing the sidewalks of Montrose on a regular basis and helping with the trash issues in Montrose.

Our Community Endearment Award winner is Jane Kane, aka the “Queen of the Foothills!” This award is given to “a special individual who has shown great care for the community through service and dedication.” Jane definitely is a special individual who has given a lot to the Montrose community. Jane has lived in this “neighborhood” since 1963 and is a real estate agent with Podley Properties. She has specialized in residential real estate in all of the foothill areas for the past 18 years. She raised her children here and is known as “The Sparr Heights Specialist.” She has also been an active member for over 10 years with the Montrose-Verdugo City Chamber of Commerce and is a past president as well. She has helped decorate the street light poles of Sparr Heights to look like candy canes, has been an active committee member of the annual Oktoberfest celebration and is an announcer for the annual Montrose Christmas Parade. Thank you, Jane, for your care and commitment to our community.

Don’t forget to sign up for our free social media class with Tom Lorenz, the director of Communications & Community Relations for the City of Glendale. You will have a hands-on tutorial complete with a computer workstation at the PDC in Montrose where you will learn how to take advantage of the social media world. The class will be held on Thursday, Jan. 29 from 8:30 a.m. to 10 a.m. For reservations, contact the Montrose chamber office.

Upcoming events

Installation & Community Recognition Awards dinner on Thursday, Jan. 22 at Oakmont Country Club, 3100 Country Club Dr., Glendale.

Free social media class on Thursday, Jan. 29 at PDC, 2340 Honolulu Ave., Montrose. Call chamber office to reserve your spot.

February “Valentine” business mixer on Wednesday, Feb. 4 at ETC… Gourmet Kitchen, 3600 Ocean View Blvd., Montrose.

  melinda clarke