Rally Against BioGas Plant at Scholl Landfill 11/23 4:30PM

The Glendale City Council will hear Glendale Water & Power’s appeal to the rejection of the BioGas Power Plant that was decided last month on November 30th. We are planning a rally at City Hall on Tuesday 11/23/21 at 4:30pm.

We are hoping to get as many people as we can so that the City Council knows that there are many citizens that are opposed to the building of this power plant in the fire-prone hills near our canyon.

TUESDAY 11/23
4:30pm
Steps of Glendale City Hall
613 East Broadway
Glendale, CA 91206

City Council to Vote on BioGas Plant at Scholl Canyon Landfill 11/30/21

Glendale Water and Power (GWP) has proposed a dirty bioGas Power Plant to be built on Glendale's fire-prone hillsides at Scholl Landfill. The Sustainability and the Planning Commission voted AGAINST this proposed project in October, but GWP has appealed the decision so it will come up for a vote at City Council on Tuesday, 11/30/2021. We must speak up for the environment and our health!

It is crucial that we voice our concerns NOW, or we'll have to bear the burden of an increase in pollution and emissions, increased fire risk in an already VERY High Fire Hazard zone, disturbance of wildlife on over 2.2 acres of land, increased ambient noise levels in quiet canyon neighborhoods, etc. In a time when we should be planning for more green and environmentally friendly options of power generation, GWP has proposed turning an area currently zoned for Special Recreation use into an Industrial area. There is already an existing Power Plant in Glendale in an industrial area, with a fully-functional methane pipeline connecting Scholl Landfill to the existing power plant--and that Power Plant is expected to undergo a major overhaul soon. We don't need a second gas Power Plant in Glendale!

Please use the suggested talking points to draft your own unique letter of opposition to this dirty gas power plant project, and email it to Glendale's Mayor and City Council Members well in advance of 11/30:

Mayor Paula Devine:  pdevine@glendaleca.gov

Dan Brotman:             dbrotman@glendaleca.gov

Vrej Agajanian:           vagajanian@glendaleca.gov

Ardy Kassakhian:        akassakhian@glendaleca.gov 

Ara Najarian:              anajarian@glendaleca.gov

Call and leave a message: (818) 548-4844

Mail:

Management Services - Room 200
613 E. Broadway
Glendale, CA 91206-4391

The City Council Meeting can be viewed on Charter Cable Channel 6 or streamed online at:

https://www.glendaleca.gov/government/departments/management-services/gtv6/live-video-stream

For public comments and questions during the meeting call (818) 937-8100. City staff will be submitting these questions and comments in real time to the appropriate person during the Planning Commission meeting.

Glenoaks Canyon Evacuation Drill - 11/29/21 at 9:00am

[UPDATE] Please click here for a video message from Chief Lanzas of the Glendale Fire Department.

On Monday, November 29th at 9:00 AM, GOCHA and the City of Glendale are holding an emergency evacuation drill. Your participation in this drill will help emergency responders learn how to best assist us in a real emergency.

Glenoaks Canyon presents the challenge that there is only one way in and one way out and emergency teams want to learn how they can help us prevent a bottleneck at the canyon entrance. Please look for the three Evacuation Drill handouts that either have been delivered or will be delivered to your doorstep during the next couple of days or you can download them here.

The Evacuation Drill:  Canyon residents will be notified via text, voice message or email at 9:00 AM on Monday, November 29th. The notification will announce the start of the drill and give us instructions. Once the drill is completed we will be notified that we can return home. 

If you haven’t yet done so, please sign up for emergency notices (such as the practice one we will receive for our drill on Nov. 29th) at https://www.glendaleca.gov/government/departments/fire-department/emergency-preparedness and then click on the Emergency Alerts button and sign up. 

Thank you in advance for your participation in this important drill. 

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GOCHA Annual Meeting (Virtual) Set for September 22 at 6:30pm

The 2021 GOCHA Annual meeting is scheduled for Wednesday, September 22 at 6:30pm. Like last year, this year’s meeting will be held virtually via zoom (link below). With the landfill issues heating up again and fire season upon us, it should be an informative meeting that all are encouraged to attend.

GOCHA Annual Meeting
6:30PM
Wednesday, September 22, 2021
via Zoom

Please use the Zoom link below at 6:30pm on Wednesday to join the meeting.

https://us06web.zoom.us/j/5218163884?pwd=WFk1ZXVvbGdZV2hvZDJpTjFtd3lDUT09

Meeting ID: 521 816 3884, Passcode: 7Z4Hjg

If you would like to log in via telephone, below are the dial-in numbers (you will need to enter the Meeting ID and Passcode below when prompted.

Dial by your location

        +1 669 900 6833 US (San Jose)

        +1 253 215 8782 US (Tacoma)

        +1 346 248 7799 US (Houston)

        +1 929 205 6099 US (New York)

        +1 301 715 8592 US (Washington DC)

        +1 312 626 6799 US (Chicago)

Meeting ID: 521 816 3884

Passcode: 435864

Find your local number: https://us06web.zoom.us/u/kdqsM9eE2w

Fall 2021 Echo now available

In case you missed it in your mailbox or just want to take another look, the Fall Echo is now available online. You can read the entire Echo here.

This issue will cover:

• National Night Out

• Scholl Landfill Power Plant Update

• Fire Preparation Plan

• GOCHA Board Election Procedures

2021 Fall Echo

Informational Meeting Regarding Scholl Canyon Landfill Power Plant

The City of Glendale is proposing to build a Power Plant at Scholl Canyon Landfill with an exposed 3,500 foot long natural gas pipeline, increasing pollutants and contaminants, noise, the risk of fire in an already designated Very High Fire Zone as well as being in close proximity to an active earthquake fault. The landfill area is currently NOT zoned for industrial use--but zoning will have to change to accomodate this proposed project. The 40 ft stack height of the proposed Power Plant and its accompanying water tank will be visible, affecting views and the aesthetic of our beautiful hillsides. We are opposed to such a project in an area that includes residential neighborhoods (Glendale, Eagle Rock, Pasadena) as well as eleven schools within a 2 mile radius of the proposed project. We expect the City of Glendale to consider the health and well-being of its residents over profits. We request that the City continue concrete plans for closure of the landfill, which is expected to reach capacity in the next few years--and begin developing plans to convert the area into recreational use, as per the terms of the original agreement.

Goal:

We are asking the city to commit to closing the landfill by 2028 and not pursue a Power Plant project at Scholl Landfill. We recognize that the City must manage the methane produced from the landfill, and ask that they do a more rigorous study of alternatives--as it is now, information about alternatives is not clearly stated or presented in the EIR.

Zoom Meeting:

A group of residents working to respond to the proposed Power Plant project at Scholl Landfill will hold an informational Zoom meeting on Monday, August 23 at 7:30pm to educate the public of the dangers associated with this project, discuss an action plan and answer questions.

Monday, 8/23/2021 at 7:30pm

Join Zoom Meeting

https://us02web.zoom.us/j/83183581966...

Meeting ID: 831 8358 1966

Passcode: 7420

National Night Out - August 3, 2021

We’ve all been cooped up long enough! So come join your neighbors for a fun evening at the park. After a year hiatus, National Night Out is back for 2021. Sponsored by the Glendale Fire and Police Departments, this year, the event will take place on:

Tuesday, August 3rd, 2021
5:00PM to 7:30PM
Glenoaks Park

There will be tacos, ice cream, popsicles, fire fighters, police officers and city council members. What do you have going on that night that’s better than that?

Hope to see you there!

Click here to see the flyer.

2021 Annual Membership Drive Going On Now

Happy New Year everyone. Let’s all hope that 2021 is an improvement over last year. One thing you can do to kick off the new year right is to renew your membership to GOCHA for 2021. With landfill issues still looming, year round fire dangers, and a global pandemic, GOCHA continues to work towards keeping our canyon an island of calm and peace in a very stressful world. And we can’t do that without your help.

Simply click on the link below to take you to our Membership/Donation page. You can pay via credit card directly on the site or print out a form and mail in along with a check. Either way, now is the time to re-up your membership and consider donating separately to the Disaster Preparedness Fund and the Landfill Legal Fund. And, if you really feel inspired, consider becoming a Lifetime Member.

You can do any and all of these things right here: Join/Donate for 2021.

Winter Echo Now Available

In case you missed it in your mailbox, the Winter 2021 Echo is here. In this issue you will find:

• GOCHA President’s, Rick Marquis, Annual Letter to the Canyon

• 2021 Calendar of Events

• Landfill/Biogas Project Update

• Landfill Closure Update

Please enjoy this digital version of the Echo.