January 6, 2009 - Daily Brief
Written by Jeff on January 6th, 2009
So you're a red tailed hawk, huh? How's that working out for you? Nice plume you've got there! Thank you for your hard work in controlling Newhall vermin! Say hi to your mother for me, okay? (shot outside my window recently)
- Sheraton coming to Valencia, Greens to be a thing of the past: Tammy Marashlian at The Signal has some good news if you’d like to see “downtown” Valencia develop into something a little more urban: Sheraton Hotels is planning a seven story, 200 room hotel on the corner of McBean & Valencia, where The Greens is at currently. If all goes well, the hotel -complete with a 7,500 sq. ft. banquet room, restaurant, and bar- could be built by fall 2010. That would make the Sheraton the second major hotel in Valencia (Hyatt at Town Center & McBean was built almost 10 years ago). Sheraton says that despite the economy, occupancy rates show there’s still demand for hotels in the SCV. Related- Jeff Lambert, former City planning chief and consultant/lobbyist for Henry Mayo, has apparently picked up a new gig; The Signal says he’s Sheraton’s “Planning Consultant.” Related #2 - Why has the City’s Lobbyist Public Records page been emptied of all records?
- Time Warner : No Public, Education, Governmental programming for you! As of January 1, Time Warner cable no longer has to provide so-called PEG channels to the communities it has franchise agreements with. Santa Clarita has already dealt with the matter by creating a Joint Powers Authority and investing some taxpayer money into continuing the operation of our Channel 20 station, but the LA Times says the new law that allowed Time Warner to abandon PEG stations is having a huge impact all across Southern California as communities scramble to find alternatives to shutting the stations down. Can anyone confirm what’s on Channel 20 these days? I’m a satellite TV subscriber.
- Auto sales continue to tank in SFV, what’s the situation in SCV? The Daily News has an interesting report today on auto dealers in the San Fernando Valley and how they’re weathering the financial and economic storm these days. One Toyota dealership said sales in December 08 were down 40 percent and the article says that nationwide, Chrysler’s sales were down 53 percent. Not mentioned in the article but important nonetheless is the sales tax generated by car sales that goes to local communities; Santa Clarita received some $6 million in revenue from Santa Clarita car dealers, according to the ShopValenciaAutoCenter.com website (those figures are probably from 2007 btw).
- LA Conservancy says Santa Clarita has made “great improvements” in historic preservation: The Conservancy released a report yesterday “grading historic preservation policies” in cities throughout Los Angeles County and says Santa Clarita is among the cities “who have made the greatest improvements.” Wait, you’re thinking, “Santa Clarita is so new, what do we have that we can preserve anyway?” Well, quite a bit actually, and no doubt last year’s somewhat-controversial historic preservation ordinance played a part in Santa Clarita getting selected (The ordinance limited what a property owner could do to a property deemed historic). Pasadena Independent report, LA Conservancy report
- I’m a fan of COC’s Farmer’s Market, are you? I neglected to post The Signal’s great article yesterday on the COC Farmer’s Market, which occurs in the north parking lot every Sunday morning. I completely echo everything stated in the article - you have to arrive early to get the best stuff, and it’s wonderful getting to know the producers of all the foods - and recommend it highly. I particularly like Ha’s Apples, grown just a hop skip and a jump away in Ojai. Lip-smacking good!
- More discussion of elected Mayor position: Over at the Citizens for Elected Mayor SCV blog are posted some comments from Carl Goldman on why it may be a bad idea to have an elected, rather than rotating, mayor. I’m not sure I follow his logic- apparently there’s this thought that if we have an elected mayor, we’d have to hold our elections in November rather than April. That, Goldman says, would lead to a lot of uninformed voters selecting a Mayor they know nothing about. Better to let the 17 or 18% who actually vote in City Council elections decide rather than the great, unwashed masses. Also, apparently Bob Kellar discussed the idea on KHTS; CFEMSCV has a link if you’re interested. Link
- McKeon outlines DOA Agenda: With just two weeks until the Inauguration and as Democrats enjoy wide gains in both the Senate and the House, our Republican Representative has released an agenda he says “redoubles our commitment to freedom, security and innovation.” What follows is a list of buzz words on the economy, financial aid for students, teacher quality and more. There is mention made of the now-infamous Card Check issue, which McKeon has latched onto in past press releases and which seems to be the #1 thing House Republicans will fight against once the 111th Congress is in session. KHTS
- With this economy, how is Magic Mountain going to fare? Remember about 12-14 months ago when the SCV collectively gasped at the idea of a shuttered Magic Mountain theme park being redeveloped into yet more bland stucco homes? Thankfully, the XTREEEM PARK dodged a bullet that time, but they can’t be doing well in this economy right now, can they? A Blogger at the San Jose Examiner says she went to the park recently and remarks that “it seems Magic Mountain has fallen on hard times. There is a general air of financial hardship that is evidenced in advertisements by brand such as Cornuts and Lunchables plastered all over the park. The crowds of guests that I’m used to seeing on any given day at Magic Mountain are missing.” The good news is that no one would dream of building houses there right now, can you imagine? Mmmm Cornnuts
- Bossert: West Side feasibility study will be completed in first half of 2009: In a post deriding one-time WRB blogger Tim Myers and his Sunday Signal column, West Ranch Town Council president Dave Bossert says the two studies meant to determine whether the West Side communities of Stevenson Ranch, West Ridge, Sunset Pointe and parts of Castaic have the economic might to form their own cities will be completed in the first half of 2009. “This information will allow those residents to decide, through an advisory vote, what their preference is and will give guidance to the community leadership as to whether or not a change is needed in the current unincorporated status,” Bossert writes. Recall that the two studies, one called the Initial Feasibility Analysis, the other named the Options Comparison Report, were due in mid-2008, but were delayed for a variety of reasons, including claims by Los Angeles County that it was simply too busy to complete it on time. WRB
- SCV a desert for quality radio: Rosemarie Walrath writes The Signal asking why her favorite KCSN 88.5 FM radio station can no longer be heard in the fair Santa Clarita Valley. KCSN, which played (plays?) classical, jazz, and some modern music out of CSUN, used to come in quite good in Santa Clarita, but Walrath says now all she gets is “static.” Amen to that, I hate our lack of good radio coverage here. Almost two years ago, I bitched that my favorite station, KCRW, was getting interference from a bible station in, of all places, Kettelman City! No resolution on that one, but I don’t have a car anymore and get all my programming via podcasts. At least we have KHTS. Signal LTE
For those who don’t get the reference in the photo caption, click here.
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More discussion of elected Mayor position:
Board of Directors for the Chamber of Commerce http://www.scvchamber.com/board/ . You will note that Goldman is Vice Chair of Government Affairs. The Chamber of Commerce is very happy with the way things are at City Hall as they have unfettered access to the city manager and the city council.
With an elected mayor the access and influence they currently have might change. The good ole boy network would be at risk.
Why would anyone trust the radio guy, remember he was one of the 5 guys in the room that screwed up the hospital agreement with; David G.
The local political machine is already at work trying to maintain the status quo! There is the skunk again!
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Gee, I guess Mr.Goldman thinks the people of Santa Clarita are too Stupid to figure out when to vote. Oh Puhleez!
I also am a big fan of Farmer’s Markets, the Thursday one is okay if I need things for the weekend.
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Car dealers having trouble, what a shame. Perhaps this will give them time to think about past sales tactics and those that they ripped off! ” I don’t think may manager will accept your offer, but let me have a chance to earn your business, I will do my best to work for you on this deal. I will be right back.”
“Sorry, but she would not accept the offer. How much can you really afford to pay and have you considered purchasing the extended warranty?” I know you are looking at a 40k vehicle, but I think the extended warranty is worth your consideration.”
I have no sympathy for the car dealers!
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Lovely photo! However, it’s a Red-shouldered Hawk (Buteo lineatus), a smaller cousing of the Red-tailed Hawk (Buteo jamaicensis).
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cousing = cousin; I was distracted by your Mark Wahlberg talks to animals impression
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Here-Here Cash! Not an ounce of sympathy for the dealers! They reap what they sow.
And, no sympathy for M. Mt’n. either. I do, however feel bad for all the gangbangers and thugs who frequent the park. I mean where will they go now? Maybe that new
Sheraton on the corner?
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great picture of the bird! great reference too.
I love them as well, but Ha’s Apple Farm is in Tehachapi. Excellent article. People always get it wrong when discussing the market, but I didn’t catch a single error. You can really tell she spent some time digging around. When the herb guy isn’t around it makes me sad as well. Two weeks ago I needed some fresh bay leaves.
I just had a friend who was about to buy a van elsewhere for $1000 less than what Valencia was offering and they played the local taxes card. It would have been a mere $130 in taxes and the guy also said that it goes to local schools, which is nonsense. Here’s an idea for a new campaign: save thousands by buying outside of the valley and just send City Hall a check for 1% of the purchase price. You’re certain to come out on top.
Nice straw man by Goldman, btw.
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Channel 20 is currently doing the public community news-scrawl thing, with a pretty picture in the background accompanied by execrable folk music. I assume this is the usual programming, which shows no evidence of being yanked just yet.
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Great photo of the hawk, Jeff. What a beautiful bird. We have a couple of red-tails in our neighborhood as well as Coopers and they are wonderful to watch.
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Why did you shoot the hawk from your window (shot outside my window recently)?
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I had a baby hawk crach intro my sliding door in Seco Canyon years ago. I watched it, and it saw me, as it spent about 15 minutes recovering frmo its daze. It apparently learned I was not a threat, because for the next few years it came back to the yard, perched on a fence, and watched me in the yard. As long as I didn’t pay attention to it, it just watched me calmly.
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Reference the lack of radio coverage in the SCV. I have to go outside to get KHTS in my car radio - can not get any reception in my house - does anyone have any ideas how to get any radio stations inside?
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What kind of AM radio do you have?You might be able to run an AM antenna from tree to tree, or if you are daring, from light pole to light pole, then wire it to your radio inside. Just a long, insulated, horizontal wire, and add a ground wire, too.
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Radio in LA is the worst. Not just SCV
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KUSC is the best classical station in L.A. and I get great reception of it in Valencia.