The Glendale City Council meets weekly on Tuesdays at 6 p.m. at the Glendale City Hall. By law, its agendas are posted in advance of the meetings, including on the City’s website. The Council hears public comment on agenda items at the beginning of its meetings and general comments at the end.

As usual, at this week’s council meeting, the City Council commended local groups and efforts, announced upcoming events, and debated several key policy issues, including changes proposed to development specifications for Glendale’s downtown area and revisions to the City’s historic preservation rules to deter the illegal demolition of historic buildings.

Recognizing March for Meals month, the Council highlighted the work of the City’s senior nutrition programs for having served two million meals to area seniors since 1979. Similarly designating the month of March as Red Cross Month, the City encourages support for the local Glendale Crescenta Valley Red Cross chapter and for the national organization.

The Council unanimously approved the hiring of a new director for its Dept. of Public Works Yazdan (Yaz) Emrani. Emrani, an engineer with 30 years’ public and private sector experience, comes to Glendale from the City of San Fernando, where he was the Public Works director.

Mayor Zareh Sinanyan stressed the significance of improving the overall condition of the City’s infrastructure. When coming into Glendale from one of the neighboring cities, he noted, “You know when you’re in Glendale.”

Councilmember Ara Najarian invited the new director to the State of the City address set for today, Thursday, to better understand the vision of Glendale.

“I think it is the best city in all of Southern California,” and Councilmember Vartan Gharpetian added, “Glendale is a great city and we want to make it even better.” Councilmember Paula Devine commended the public works staff to the new director, “You also have a tremendous staff that you’ll be working with, a group of men and women that have done their city proud.”

Longtime Glendale resident Margaret Hammond was honored for her 90th birthday, taking to the dais to remind everyone “you don’t have to sit around and watch TV, even when you’re 90.” She described some of her volunteer activities, including her plans to staff the gift shop of the Assistance League the following day as the organization “helps a lot of people.” Joking about her years being called a “gadfly,” she said, “You have to speak up and keep fighting for what you believe in.”

Councilmember Devine reported on three events she attended. Recalling the presentation previously shared by Judith Velasco about a special training program of the Verdugo Jobs Center, Devine announced that she had attended the graduation. A collaboration between the Verdugo Jobs Center, the local workforce development board, Glendale Community College, and the Dept. of Rehabilitation, the graduates are autistic students of the Verdugo Machinist Academy.

“To see these young people with disabilities receive degrees they can use to get jobs and to live a productive life in our city,” said Devine, “was absolutely amazing.”

The Brand Park Tea House was the site of this year’s second annual Cherry Blossom Festival and Devine commended the organizers, Friends of Shoseian and the Japan Foundation, for the “wonderful event” attended by more than 2,000 participants.

Finally, Councilmember Devine mentioned the Montrose Shopping Park Association’s third annual Montrose Shopping Park Spring Wine Walk.

“It’s a great experience in Montrose, and we appreciate the help of the La Crescenta Woman’s Club,” she said. “If you didn’t make it out this year, make sure to get there next year.”

Mayor Sinanyan reported on his recent visit to sister cities in Korea and Japan and he shared thousands of thank you letters the City received, mostly from children, demonstrating their appreciation for the recognition of “the comfort women” of World War II represented by Peace Monument in Central Park.

The Grandview Library will hold a grand re-opening ceremony on Monday, April 1 at 1 p.m. with students from Jefferson Elementary School along with Elephant and Piggie. Assistant Library, Arts, & Culture Dept. director Nikki Winslow reported that the newly renovated library is re-envisioned to focus on children and family services and its new STEAM space. The library is located at 1535 Fifth St., Glendale 91201.

The City will celebrate the life of César Chavez on Saturday, March 30 at its 18th annual community event, starting at 1 p.m. at the Pacific Community Center, 501 S. Pacific Ave., Glendale 91204. The free event includes free tacos (while supplies last), performances, the Glendale Rocks! climbing wall, arts and crafts, and a bounce house.

Local tech startup ServiceTitan https://www.servicetitan.com/industries/hvac-software announced on Monday that it would relocate its headquarters in the building at 800 N. Brand Blvd. left partially vacant when Nestlé left the City last year. Mayor Sinanyan recalled that, at the time, it was seen as a potentially dark time, but that now a prime tech company is moving to fill that void and “we’re very happy these two local young men, raised here, went to Glendale schools – they are the embodiment of the American Dream, a huge success story, and now planning on hiring a thousand new tech engineers, good jobs.”

“I always said good riddance to Nestlé because they were not good corporate citizens,” Councilmember Najarian agreed. “What we see now with ServiceTitan is employing locally.”

“As it’s the last Tuesday of Women’s History Month,” Joanna Linkchorst addressed the Council during public comments, “I thought it important to highlight an important place in women’s history that is not only in the City of Glendale but that is owned by the City of Glendale. These pictures,” Linkchorst said, “are just a few of the countless women who were cared for at Rockhaven. Opened in 1923 by a woman only three years after women got the right to vote, it was operated by women, for women, to give them dignified care, safe care. The Friends of Rockhaven have been fortunate to be able to share their amazing stories. Like Edith Keyser White in the middle there, the first African-American resident at Rockhaven, she had a degree from UCLA and a masters from USC, but the LA school district wouldn’t hire her at the time, so she waited and eventually became a truant officer. Or Tamaye Shigematsu who spent time at [the internment camp at] Manzanar and met her husband there. When she first got to Rockhaven, she walked the fence perimeter for hours trying to understand why she was behind fences again.”

Linkchorst thanked the City Council for being “smart enough to purchase” this remarkable place, and “thank you for continuing to look after it.”

The Glendale Parks & Open Space Foundation announced its annual Dodgers Night event on Friday, May 10 (with fireworks); tickets and info are available at glendaledodgernight.com

The City’s moratorium on development in the downtown area expired in early March and the Council approved a series of significant changes to the specifications for future building that would encourage larger units for families and provide greater benefits for the larger community. City staff presented a detailed analysis warning of the possible perils of the new approach, sharing demographic data showing Glendale’s 25.3% of households with children under 18 to be below the regional averages and positing that developers would work around the strict provisions to build under alternative regulations and laws.

In the end, the Council voted to keep the incentives it had adopted, maintaining the housing mix of 20%, 30% and 40% of units in Tier I, II, & III type developments be two- or three-bedrooms and agreeing to re-evaluate the new rules in a year.

Finally, the Council heard and approved the introduction of changes to the municipal code to “deter the unpermitted demolition of historic resources.” The series of ordinances, which will return to council for final adoption, follow the February 2018 demolition of a Craftsman-style house built in 1908 at 1420 Valley View Road.

Steve Hunt, president of the Glendale Historical Society, spoke in support of the changes.

“Our members are very pleased with these thoughtful revisions to the Historic Preservation Ordinance and we’re so very grateful to the staff for their excellent work and to you for taking decisive action to preserve Glendale’s historic character following the illegal demolition a year ago,” Hunt said. “Many people move to Glendale because of the charm and character of our historic homes and neighborhoods. Our members support preservation but they also welcome clear understanding of city processes regulating historic properties. This ordinance does both.”

Michael Morgan, the president of the Historical Society of the Crescenta Valley President and a Glendale Historic Preservation Commissioner, echoed these comments, noting that the commission had unanimously approved the recommended changes. They are, he said, “thoughtful, tempered, and correct in all aspects.”