PUBLIC SERVICE ANNOUNCEMENT FROM THE EAGLE ROCK NEIGHBORHOOD COUNCIL
By Sylvia Denlinger
Have you ever looked around Eagle Rock and thought, “I would really like to do something about the trees that are being cut down,” or, “Why are there so many homeless people? What can we do about it?”
Or perhaps there is another challenge you’ve thought about solving?
For those who want to work on an issue, the ERNC has an answer:
Committees!
No, wait! These committees are great!
At very least, you will meet like-minded people who are working on solutions. Anyone can join.
Committee members work together on projects benefiting their cause. They meet once a month on Zoom. The links to the meetings can be found on the website (ernc.la) and in the newsletter.
There are several committees in Eagle Rock. Let’s look at two of them:
The Sustainability Committee
The Sustainability committee tackles issues arising from the increasing development of Eagle Rock. These include problems related to pollution, drought, recycling, tree loss, over-development, and loss of native habitat.
For example, if one of the beautiful old-growth trees in Eagle Rock has roots breaking through the sidewalk, the City will often repair the sidewalk by removing the tree first.
This is how Eagle Rock is losing the old-growth trees which are so essential to the beauty of the town and the cleanliness of the air.
The Sustainability committee not only advocates for better solutions, but takes action to save the trees. All tree removal can be halted by committee members while solutions that repair the sidewalk while saving the tree are found.
The Sustainability committee is also helping with the ERNC response to the Scholl Canyon landfill expansion. This landfill sits in the hills above Eagle Rock.
The city of Glendale owns the landfill, which was meant to be closed down in 1972. Numerous extensions were allowed, and now Glendale would like to add a biogas power plant. This has the potential to greatly increase pollution in Eagle Rock and Pasadena.
We need to organize a response that Glendale will hear, and you could help do it.
The Land Use and Planning Committee
How about that big orange building on Colorado? How did it get there, and why is it orange?
The committee on Land Use and Planning (LUPC) knows, and you would know too if you were on this committee.
It can be a long and tedious process to get a permit for construction from the city. When permits don’t cover what the builder wants to construct, then they need a variance.
The Land Use committee can give a letter of support to let the City know the neighborhood has no problem granting the variance.
The LUPC can also write a letter voicing opposition to a project.
Developers want that letter of support, and they show up with their best face on. They often start lobbying months in advance.
If you join the committee, you will find out about some developments long before they break ground. You will have a chance to question the developers, and maybe even influence the look and feel of the development.
If there is a development that you love or hate, then attending the LUPC meeting is very important. You don’t have to be a member to attend the meeting.
Speak up, help out, have fun!
Sustainability and Land Use are two of the four standing committees of the ERNC. Anyone can come to the meetings, and any member of the Eagle Rock community can join. The schedules are posted at ernc.la .
The two other committees work on problems of the unhoused and the elderly. They will be discussed in a later article.
Today, all committees are working virtually. All projects are being completed using safe distancing, masks and sanitary precautions.
Attending meetings right now is easier than ever.
You can call in from the safety of your home, using a computer or a phone, and the link that the ERNC posts on ernc.la .
If you have ideas about how to improve our life together in Eagle Rock, please come to a meeting and share them.
If you just want to meet your neighbors and work together with them, come to a meeting.
You are also always welcome to contact us at board@ernc.la.
See you at a (virtual) meeting!
YOUR SUPPORT HELPS MAKE BOULEVARD SENTINEL JOURNALISM POSSIBLE THRU THE PANDEMIC
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