The next Canyon Country
Advisory Committee meeting will be held
Wednesday, April 16, 2008, from 7PM
to 9PM,
in the
George A. Caravalho Activity Center Banquet Room,
20880 Centre Pointe Parkway,
Santa Clarita.
At this April's meeting we will be discussing:
Remember, Our Job is Not Done Until the Current Burrtec Proposal Has Been Withdrawn!!
Also on a lighter side, COC representatives will be presenting information on the new Canyon Country COC Campus. Time will be provided to ask questions.
Discussion on proposed CCAC recognition for Tim Ben who is leaving the council.
Did you know about the proposal to build a Community Center in Canyon
Country?
We will present some preliminary information and ask for
your opinion about where it will be built.
2008 CCAC Officer Elections. Current nominations for Chair are Alan Ferdman and current nominations for co-Chair are Merle DeMartelaere. Additional nominations can be emailed to me, or, raised at the April 16 meeting.
Last night, after all was said and done, our Mayor Bob Kellar asked the City Manager Ken Pulskamp to set up a meeting with Burrtec and ask them to abandon the proposed Sierra Highway and Golden Valley Road MRF location officially, in writing. Mr. Pulskamp said that he would set up that meeting.
The first April City Council meeting has been canceled due to the election. The next City Council meeting is set for April 22 and the next Canyon Country Advisory Committee meeting will be held on April 16. Hopefully, by that time Mr. Pulskamp will have successfully obtained Berrtec's commitment in writing and we will be able to move on to other pressing issues. We will be periodically requesting status and informing you of the results.
Neither the Signal nor the Daily News published articles that discussed the MRF today. Articles were posted on SCVTALK, the KHITS blog and I Heart SCV. Links to those articles are included below.
I found the KHITS article most informative and the I Heart SCV article most questionable. In the I Heart SCV article I was called the MRF "Gang Leader". Thinking about it today, I came to the realization that if I am indeed a "Gang Leader", I take pride in being Your Gang Leader. Being out in front of a group of community members with the goal of saving and improving our neighborhoods is the place I want to be. Cornel Higgins, an American UN commander, once said "If you are out in front, you will get shot at". It didn't stop him. It won't stop me either.
http://www.hometownstation.com/clarita-materials-recovery-2008-03-25-11-55.html
http://scvtalk.com/2008/03/26/march-26-2008-daily-brief/
http://iheartscv.blogspot.com/
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Burrtec has asked the city to POSTPONE the current MRF process. City staff has confirmed that Burrtec's request has been received and that the EIR contractor has been contacted and directed to STOP WORK FOR NOW.
ATTEND THE MARCH 25 CITY COUNCIL MEETING, SPEAK IN PUBLIC PARTISIPATION AND TELL THE CITY COUNCIL THAT YOU WANT CLEAR COUNCIL DIRECTION TO STAFF THAT SIERRA HIGHWAY IS NOT TO BE CONSIDERED AS A LOCATION FOR THE MRF (DUMP).
WRITE, EMAIL AND CALL BURRTEC AND LET THEM KNOW THAT OUR COMMUNITY IS OPPOSED TO PLACING THE MRF (DUMP) ON SIERRA HIGHWAY.
Help save our community.
THE TIME TO ACT IS NOW!!!
Alan J. Ferdman
Chairman, Canyon County Advisory Committee
661 713-9344
Burrtec Contact Information:
Charles Tobin
Development Director, Burrtec Waste Industries
Mike Arrequin
Vice President, Burrtec Waste Industries
Burrtec Telephone number is 909 429-4200 Fax 909 429-4290
Place City Council and Staff on distribution for your correspondence. Let them know you care about this issue. City council and staff email addresses are:
lweste@santa-clarita.com; mmclean@santa-clarita.com; fferry@santa-clarita.com; bkellar@santa-clarita.com; kpulskamp@santa-clarita.com; dseegmiller@santa-clarita.com;
Remember you can just "copy and paste" these address in to your email CC block.
City Council Meetings are held in the City Council Chambers, 1st floor of City Hall, 23920 Valencia Blvd., Santa Clarita, CA. The next meeting is scheduled for Tuesday March 25. The meetings start at 6PM. For more information, contact the City Clerk's office at (661) 255-4391.
Burrtec Email
From:
Mike Arreguin [mailto:mikea@burrtec.com]
Sent: Monday, March
17, 2008 4:27 PM
To: ferdmana@dslextreme.com
Subject:
March CCAC Meeting
Mr. Ferdman,
On behalf of Burrtec Waste Industries I would like to thank you and the
Canyon Country Advisory Committee for inviting us to speak at your March 19th meeting.
Burrtec is a strong advocate of open communication and cooperation with all the communities we serve. We realize that the Santa Clarita Material Recovery Facility project has raised concerns among local residents who are not in favor of it's development and have expressed a need for clarity and complete information.
Rest assured, Burrtec does not want to operate in an area where we are not welcomed by all concerned.
Our decisions on this project will be based on compliance with State
mandates, local contract compliance and community support.
With this being said and in light of recent community input, we have
decided to postpone the current Santa Clarita MRF Project until viable
options can be discussed with City Staff and the entire community of Santa Clarita. Regrettably, we respectfully decline the opportunity to address the CCAC at this time.
We look forward to re-visiting the Santa Clarita MRF Project in the future
and value your input.
Sincerely,
Michael Arreguin
Vice President
Burrtec Waste Industries, Inc.
Voice: (909) 429-4200
Fax: (909) 429-4290
]]>Regular meetings are back.
Want to know how to battle Graffiti in your area with an on-line video camera?
The March CCAC agenda will include:
1) A presentation on the
Material Recovery Facility and Transfer Station by both City Staff and Burrtec
personnel. Meet Joe Thompson who is
spearheading the fight against the Trash facility being built in Canyon
Country/Newhall.
2) Reintroduction
of Proactive Code Enforcement in Canyon Country.
3) Sign status. What Ron Brown has been doing for us.
4) The Mrs. Kravitz club (or would you like to implement a camera security system?)
So let's listen to Joe and support this effort to keep CANYON COUNTRY/NEWHALL from becoming the TRASH CENTER or the Santa Clarita Valley.
Joe Thompson wrote:
According to Bill
Materials Recovery Facility commonly known as MRF. What is it and why do we need them?
According to State law we MUST recycle a minimum of 50% of
our trash or face a very costly fine up to $10,000 a day. Not meeting the
requirement is just not an option. According to Bob Kellar, at one of our
candidate debates and THE SIGNAL (
It is at this point we need to look at how a MRF works and why over 300 people (that I know of) are really upset over having this facility close to there homes.
The proposed MRF off
First, EVERY
collection vehicle (trash truck) must come to this single location to dump its
load. All due respect to the Burrtec’s of the world but these trucks are
subjected to the most brutal driving conditions there is, stop & go all day
long. The result is they require continuous maintenance just too keep them
barely legal and on the road. It is estimated that currently over 800 of these
truck trips a day 6 days a week will be required. These trucks, because of
there weight, will cause additional vibrations to the homes in the area.
Realtors know that the area east of
Second, like it or not there is an odor that will be
present. At least in part that odor will be ringing a big old dinner bell to
all kinds of vermin and the creatures that eat some of the vermin. Just what
YOU want in YOUR back yard RIGHT? There will also be a large number of at “gross
weight”, (or close to it) trucks hauling the output of the plant down the freeway
and
I can easily understand why folks in Canyon Country are
upset at the prospect of all this suddenly popping up in there back yard and I
don’t know of anyone that would be in a hurry to live close to this kind of a
facility.
I think this facility should be located more remotely and close to a rail line if possible. We could reduce some of the truck traffic if the output were to be shipped by rail and a site close to Cemex might fill that bill. I also believe we should consider having a second MRF facility on the west side. The reasons this would be good is
1. Less cross town traffic from the collection trucks.
2. 50% less truck traffic at the MRF.
3. Expansion in this Valley.
As all the reports
are indicating that the population in this valley will double and surrounding
areas are expanding at almost the same speed we need to plan ahead. If we find
a suitable location on the west side NOW before the area is built up people
will know in advance of the plants existence prior to their moving in.
In my opinion, The City and Burrtec should abandon this
site, save the time and money you would spend on an EIR and put the MRF in a
more appropriate location / locations and win a lot of positive PR in doing so.
Judging from the reaction of the meetings I am aware of, the current site will
generate nothing but very bad feelings at best and bitter law suits and anger
at both the City and Burrtec at worst. Clearly,
the residence DO NOT want this facility at this location and I fear that an
attempt to force this on them could cause severe resentment on MRF’s at large
and make it even more difficult to find suitable locations and that would not be a good thing.
I’m sure, if the City, Burrtec and the community work together we can come up with better locations and improved feelings of cooperation trust and respect.
Bill Arens
Canyon Country
"From the lack of sidewalks and bus benches to the failure to complete the median beautification, for far too long Canyon Country and the eastern part of Santa Clarita have been short changed." I wrote those words in an op-piece a little over a year ago. In addition, I wrote about the need for a "to-do" list instead of a wish list.
Has anything changed since then? In short, yes the city has made strides in certain areas; well others continue to be neglected.
First of all, I want to publicly thank the following city employees: Dave Peterson, Curtis Williams and Ron Brown - they all deserve a raise! They have been pro-active in the removal of advertisement signs posted all over Canyon Country. They have regularly attended the Canyon Country Advisor Committee ("CCAC") meetings, at which they provide updates of the work they do, answer questions and speak with the attendees.
I have seen Dave Peterson in the parking lot at 10:00 pm listing to issues raised by members of community, while taking down notes and providng re-assurance that those issues raised will be addressed by city staff. The city has done a tremendous job in getting the various shopping centers along Soledad Canyon to come into compliance with the sign ordinance.
The power line poles have been removed and placed underground along Soledad Canyon between Rainbow Glen and Whites Canyon.
At the July CCAC meeting, city staff presented plans for the removal of the port-a-potties and the installation of restrooms at the Via Princessa Metrolink station. The city is expected to start construction this Fall with completion scheduled for Spring 2008.
Canyon Country still lacks bus benches. For example, I pointed out last year, that the bus stop located on Sierra Highway and the entrance to Cordova Estates has no shade covering or a bus bench. On numerous occasions, I have seen mothers holding their child in one arm, while holding a stroller in the other. Surely, the city has had ample time to install a bus bench.
Although the city cannot require a Hospital to be built in the Eastern part of the city, it can be an advocate for one, it could meet with potential suitors and lobby. The city already does this with businesses, why not with medical providers such as Providence, Henry Mayo or Kaiser, to just name a few. The city can take certain steps and be pro-active. At the very least it could zone an area for a future hospital in the Canyon Country area.
The city needs to establish a long term plan for the building out of Canyon Country. Our community is going to continue to grow and we need a plan that will balance housing, with business and park and open space, while avoiding the pitfalls of bad planning.
College of the Canyons had the foresight to construct an eastern campus, which opened August 27, 2007. Why? Because President Dianne Van Hook and the board of trustees determined that 35% of the students who attend COC commute from the eastside of Santa Clarita, this number will continue to grow as the eastern part of Santa Clarita does. The city needs to follow their leadership and create a constituent center and a sheriff’s station. This would allow for residents to conduct city business without the need of having to commute across the valley.
The city needs to complete the beautification of medians along Sierra Highway and Whites Canyon. I don’t want hear about a lack of money. Given that the city allocated $850,000 dollars to determine the feasibility of spending 32 million dollars to construct a sports complex center for a private company to manage and maintain.
There is a group of concerned citizens, led by community leader Al Ferdman, who strive to make Canyon Country the community that it can be. Over the last year the group has done a wonderful job of identifying issues and concerns and getting the city to respond to them. I like to tip my proverbial "hat" to the city for agreeing to meet with the CCAC and engage in a constructive dialogue. Within the last year, Mayor Marsha McLean, City Manager Ken Pulskamp and Sheriff’s Captain Anthony LaBerge have addressed our group and answered questions.
I want to publicly thank Al Ferdman for his leadership and passion. I would like to encourage all of you to attend the CCAC meetings, which happen every third Wednesday of the month at the George Carvallaho Sports Complex Center. For more information, you can visit canyoncountryadvisor.com.
Michael Cruz
Santa Clarita
The only Billboard, I am aware of, that has ever been taken down was accomplished to make room for the Cross Valley Connecter Soledad Canyon Bridge. The second Billboard removal targeted is a part of the Newhall Redevelopment plan. So, let us do the math. By this weeks report Santa Clarita has approximately 100 Billboards standing. The city has been in existence for 20 years and if we give the city credit for removing both of the above Billboards, the removal rate is 1 removal every 10 years. At that rate, we will complete the Billboard removal project in 1,000 years. Sound absurd to you, well it certainly does to me. Not only absurd, but after the many times I have herd this same canned response it has become intellectually insulting.
Now I fully realize that every Billboard in Santa Clarita does not have to come down tomorrow or perhaps ever. Some are in industrial areas and may be appropriate while others are not. If I were to pick the city’s most atrocious Billboard, the award would go to the spectacle on the north-east corner of Soledad and Sierra Highway. No one is going to pump a lot of money into that corner as long as that monster is standing.
So why doesn’t City Staff come up with a workable plan instead of singing the same old song? It has been 20 years. In that time, we certainly should have been able to prioritize which Billboards need to be removed, develop a strategy, funding plan and schedule. Yesterday has passed us by, the city needs to get started on a realistic plan today!
Alan J. Ferdman
Chair, Canyon Country Advisory Committee
This letter was sent to the Daily News for publication. What are your thoughts on Billboard removal.
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