Where was our Native-American Village? Members of the Historical Society of the Crescenta Valley recently discussed this question. From historical records we know that there was a Tongva village called “Wiqanga,” and that it was associated with La Tuna Canyon. Wiqanga means “place of the thorns,” referring to the prickly pear cactus that grows […]
Freedom of the Press: A Bipartisan Priority Earlier this month, I joined Republican and Democratic colleagues from the House and Senate to welcome Hatice Cengiz for her first visit to the United States after the brutal murder of her fiancée, Washington Post columnist Jamal Khashoggi. In October 2018, Hatice accompanied Jamal to the Saudi consulate […]
Reminder of Flag Code With Memorial Day observances and gatherings approaching, I would like to offer key points in the U.S. Flag Code, comprising Title 4 of the United States Code. Following U.S. Supreme Court decisions in 1989 and in 1990, enforcement of anti-desecration statutes, including bans on burning the flag as a public protest, […]
Creativity in Solving the Housing Crisis There are few issues in our state as challenging as the housing crisis. Recently, we have seen hundreds of bills on housing introduced in the legislature. Some of the most talked about measures have included broad, sweeping proposals such as increased funding for subsidized housing and adjustments to local […]
Montrose Search and Rescue – Long Search for a Plane Crash In March 1982, a winter storm was blowing in from the north and was predicted to bring rain and snow to the higher elevations. Late on a Tuesday night, a Cessna 340, a small twin-engine plane, taxied for take-off from Van Nuys Airport. […]
Updating Our Community On April 17, Councilmember Aram Ordubegian, Corresponding Secretary Sophal Ear and I were at Glendale High School on the occasion of the 104th Anniversary of the Armenian Genocide. Members of the Armenian Clubs from Crescenta Valley, Clark Magnet, Glendale and Hoover high schools hosted the 18th Annual Armenian Genocide commemoration. On April […]
John Muir and the Woodcutter When we think of the famed naturalist John Muir, we usually think of him in terms of Northern California, locales such as Yosemite. But Muir did spend time in the Los Angeles area and made some treks into the San Gabriel Mountains above us. One of these forays, in […]
Parking Big Issue for MSP On Thursday, May 2, the Montrose Shopping Park board of directors was given a sneak preview by a city employee of the results of [a recent] parking study. The report said that there was adequate parking available for our shoppers. Parking needs have been in conversation for almost 40 years. […]
Early Firefighting in the Crescenta Valley As we head into another fire season (fire season now seems to be year-round!), let’s look back at early methods of firefighting locally. In the 1800s, fires raged for months at a time through the San Gabriel Mountains, and the only firefighting efforts were to keep the fire […]
Parenting By The Seat of Your Pants My three kids are all big people now at 6, 6’4” and 6’7” tall. At 5’11”, I am now the shortest one in the family. Theoretically, I could be wrapping up my parenting job but I don’t think I am done yet. It seems that raising other human […]