Another Look at Sale of Golf Course
In response to the letter to the editor from Marc Stirdivant [“V.O.I.C.E. Responds to Hoberman,” Nov. 24], as a resident of the unincorporated area of La Crescenta and as a student of real estate appraisal, I disagree with the V.O.I.C.E. objection to housing development at the Verdugo Hills Golf Course site.
People need a place to live. Home ownership and the rights of private property are cornerstones of the traditions of liberty and free enterprise in America.
There are abundant homeownership benefits to a community. Homeownership boosts a community’s tax base, paying for infrastructure, police and fire protection. It brings an increase in civic participation, and charitable activity.
According to the National Association of Homebuilders, there are typically 26 services involved in every real estate transaction; movers, painters and contractors called on before and after a home sale closed. It takes typically 22 subcontractors to build the average single-family home. Homeowners frequently bring income to their local economy, business and services.
The one agreement I have with Stirdivant is the need for a current appraisal; however, the developer probably cannot share the cost of an appraisal due to the possibility of there being a conflict of interest. But a current appraisal and an estimate of the costs may give the V.O.I.C.E. a dollar figure of value for the property in question.
Michael Powers
CV-CERT Team 2 Capt.
La Crescenta
The Day Of Reckoning Is Here
On Nov. 15, Glendale City Manager Scott Ochoa presented to council the first quarter financial report: For the past six years, the taxpayers are annually sending checks to CALPERS (California Public Retirement System), on average, $20 million. Starting in five years, our checks to CALPERS will more than double to a whopping $49 million annually. Mr. Ochoa’s body language reflected that we should hope for the best!
First term councilman and businessman Vartan Gharpetian acted bewildered and, to his credit, figured we needed over $600 million for the next 10 years to cover our CALPERS liabilities.
City Manager Ochoa told our council  members over the next five years we would
be receiving about $39 million from the demised Redevelopment Agency. Furthermore, we should set up an irrevocable trust in order to pay our pension liabilities. Additionally, he suggested taking some of our anemic $50 million in our reserve account and putting this also into this new fund.
Many city employees receive pensions of $100K to over $200K annually for life!
Mr. Ochoa looked chagrined when saying we were in a “crappy position” in discussing our pension debt. He continued to mislead us and council when he stated staying with CALPERS would be cheaper than having city employees on a 401K plan and Social Security benefits. The average Social Security payout is about $16,000 yearly and the maximum payout out, even if your name were Bill Gates, is $36,000 a year.
As a recipient of  thousands of dollars in campaign contributions from  our city unions, three-term Councilman Ara Najarian defended staying with CALPERS at any cost because he wants to have “the best employees that money can buy.”
After reading the staff report, Councilman Najarian said the quarterly financial report was “mind boggling.”
Mike Mohill
Glendale