By Brian CHERNICK

After eight years of delays, deliberation and proposals, the fate of Rockhaven Sanitarium was finally decided during Tuesday night’s Glendale City Council meeting.

The council voted 4-0 to approve the bid put forth by Gangi Design LED Build to develop within the Rockhaven property on 2713 Honolulu Ave., transforming the property into the Rockhaven Historical Park.

The vote was met with exasperations and celebration from the audience after nearly two hours of presentations and community comments.

The winning proposal aims to transform and preserve the location, turning it into a place to “study and learn from elements of the past in order to create a more sustainable future” through educational seminars on food, demonstration gardens and what it calls an “activated park” that will allow for public access to the grounds and shops that provide food and drink from independently run businesses.

The proposal was accompanied by endorsements and requests for partnerships from various historic preservation organizations such as the Historical Society of Crescenta Valley and the Theodore Payne Foundation as well as businesses including Urban Press Winery and the Crescenta Valley Weekly.

The Gangi Design proposal estimates $50,000 will be generated each year for the city through approximately
$5 million annual taxable sales.

Friends of Rockhaven, a non-profit organization that had become one of the more vocal groups in advocating for Rockhaven’s preservation, served as an advisory group for Gangi Design.

Friends of Rockhaven President Joanna Linkchorst met with Matthew Gangi in the past and shared an identical vision for the site.

“We want the historical integrity retained,” Linkchorst said. “If this were private property it would be different, but it’s publicly owned property and we wanted something greater.”

Linkchorst, along with other members of the community, expressed concerns with other proposals that could irreversibly change the landscape and history of the site. Linkchorst and Gangi both saw a future for Rockhaven that required the least amount of modifications and the most amount of inclusion of the community.

Before motioning for a vote, council member Ara Najarian shared that the Glendale Historical Society had expressed strong support for the bid made by the Avalon Investment Company which proposed a 45-room hotel and public amenities. Deciding not to “rock the boat,” Najarian voted along with his fellow council members in support of Gangi Design.

The City of Glendale purchased the 3.5-arce property in 2008 from Ararat Home of Los Angeles, Inc., for $8.25 million to prevent its demolition. Due to the economic downturn the property sat for nearly six years without any funds or immediate plans for rehabilitation.

The city put out a Request for Proposals (RFP) back in March where seven companies and firms submitted for consideration.

Three of the proposals included plans to rehabilitate Rockhaven to its former incarnation as a medical or mental health facility and two others suggested a boutique-lifestyle commercial center.

Metro Investment, along with Gangi, suggested a park element to the commercial center design. Metro’s proposal included an ask of a $3.25 million loan from the city to build 36 homes for first-time buyers. The money generated from those sales would have been used to rehabilitate 12 other buildings on the property for use as retail spaces.

The next steps in the process will include negotiations for how the property will be handed over to Gangi Design and whether it will be bought outright or through a lease from the city.

  Brian CHERNICK