By Nicole MOORE

At the May 4 meeting of the Montrose Shopping Park Association, President Andre Ordubegian invited local business owners and community members to attend future MSPA meetings and to participate in discussions for the betterment of Montrose.

“We are doing a lot events and activities. We invite everyone to see what’s happening in Montrose and your input is greatly appreciated,” said Ordubegian.

Jackie Bartlow from the City of Glendale’s Economic Development Dept. updated the board on the three vacant businesses along Honolulu Avenue, particularly the former Rocky Cola Café property that has been closed since 2013. These vacant storefronts have garnered complaints from neighboring business owners and community members.

“[The City of Glendale’s] senior inspector [visited] the old Rocky Cola site and everything on the outside seemed fine,” said Bartlow. “There were no rats or deterioration.”

Members of the Montrose Shopping Park Association responded, saying that although the façade, provided by the MSPA in 2013, of the Rocky Cola property looks presentable, in previous months the interior of the building has been infested with birds. The owner of the Rocky Cola property has been contacted over the concerns but has yet to comment.

The closing of the Montrose Bakery in November 2016 has also drawn complaints from those wanting an accommodating breakfast spot in the Montrose Shopping Village. However, a restaurant called The Pink Pig should be opening in its place during the next few months.

The issue of where teenagers should socialize in the shopping park came up a few times during this month’s MSPA meeting. Members of the MSPA expressed a desire to create a modern day “malt shop” environment where local youth can spend time together.

Jennifer McLain, the principal Economic Development officer for the City of Glendale, presented a tech study to the MSPA committee members. The study revealed that North Glendale has a tech heavy population due to its close proximity to DreamWorks studio, Disney studio, JPL, Caltech and USC Verdugo Hills Hospital.

“We are looking into opportunities where we can continue to try to bring more [tech] firms [into Glendale] … We ended up asking firms what are the strengths and weaknesses for attracting these future firms,” said McLain.

Additionally, McLain expressed interest in providing access to STEM-related educational resources, such as coding classes, to students in the Glendale area. From Oct. 9 to Oct. 13, the City of Glendale’s Economic Development Division will be hosting a tech week to promote careers in the STEM field. For more information on the event, visit https://www.glendaletechweek.com.

On June 3-4, the annual Montrose Arts and Crafts festival will be held on the 2200, 2300 and 2400 blocks of Honolulu. Three quarters of the booths for the festival are already assigned and available booths for jewelry makers have been closed.

Steve Pierce, the MSPA’s communication administrator, reported that due to an increase of police patrolling in the Montrose Shopping Park, there has been less vandalization in the area. Additionally, the HBO miniseries “Sharp Objects” starring Amy Adams has been filming in the MSP since May 3.

The next MSPA meeting will be on June 1 at 8 am. The open meeting will take place at Glendale Community College PDC.

  Nicole MOORE