HomeMy WebLinkAbout04/28/1964e.
COMMUNITY CENTER BUILDING
5050 NO IRWINDALE AVENUE
IRWINDALE, CALIFORNIA
113
TUESDAY
APRIL 28, 1964
7 30 O'CLOCK P M
Upon instructions of Mayor Diaz, the Deputy City Clerk adjourned
the meeting until such time as a quorum of the Council was present
At 7 40 O'clock P M , the City Council of the City of Irwindale
met in Special Meeting at the above place Pursuant to Section 54956 of the 3
Government Code, the Deputy City Clerk presented Affidavit of Notice of
Special Meeting sent to all Councilmembers, all interested property owners,
San Gabriel Valley Tribune, and posting in three places in the City
Following the Pledge of Allegiance to the Flag of our Country, the
meeting was opened with an invocation by Mr Edwin T Powell
ROLL CALL Present Councilmen Breceda,
Miranda, Martinez, & Mayor Diaz
Absent Councilmen Sulzer
Also present City Manager Edwin T Powell, Deputy City Clerk
Margaret S Barbosa, and Attorney Barry Floyd Also absent City Clerk
Lee B Young and City Attorney Robert R Stevens
PUBLIC HEARING
ZONE EXCEPTION CASE Before Mayor Diaz declared public X91
NO 16 -DRAG STRIP hearing open he requested that all
proponents and opponents that wished
to speak to limit their time and avoid repetition since there were many present
who might wish to speak
Councilman -Mayor Diaz declared the public hearing open and
stated that the purpose of the public hearing was to voice the opinions pro
or con as a result of an appeal made requesting reconsideration of the decision
,of the Planning Commission granting a special use permit for a drag strip to
the Soland Corporation He stated that several letters and petitions were
received in protest
All persons wishing to speak stood up and were sworn in by the
City Attorney
PROPONENTS
Jack Minnock, 1258 South Butterfield Road, West Covina, representative
of Soland Corporation
Mr Minnock stated that a petition signed by over 1, 400 persons had
been transmitted to the Council in favor of the drag strip (A copy of said
petition has not been received or filed in the City Clerk's Office )
Mr Minnock stated that the main complaint was traffic and
excessive noise and he felt that both of these could be controlled A plan had
been worked out with former Chief of Police of Irwindale to the satisfaction of
both the City of Arcadia and E1 Monte to divert traffic east to Lower Azusa
Road and Rivergrade Road and have officers direct traffic The property
where the proposed drag strip would be located was surrounded on the north,
west and south by quarry and on the east by the Flood Control Channel The
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nearest resident was located about 1, 717 feet from the acceleration point
Norman Dalbec, 2839 10th Avenue, Arcadia
Mr Dalbec stated that one of the main objections from the opponents
was noise and it was his belief that the question was whether the noise would
be intolerable or would it not be He admitted that there would be some noise
from the drag strip, but that it would be for only a few hours each week and the
noise would not be continuous There were a number of factors which had
some bearing on the noise, one being that the prevailing winds blow from west
to east away from the complainant's property He felt that this proposed
drag strip would be an asset to the San Gabriel Valley
Mr Steve Gibbs, 3447 Ahern Drive, Baldwin Park
Mr Gibbs stated that he felt that a drag strip was needed in the
San Gabriel Valley area for all young people since the closest drag strips
right now were at Long Beach and Pomona
Jim Blake, 2947 Stanton Street, Pomona, California
Mr Blake presented a number of pictures of homes in relation
to their location to the Pomona Drag Strip He stated that there were 3 churches
and the Genesha Hills homes which were located about 700' from the drag
strip and didn't feel that the land had depreciated in value He also stated
that the Drag Strip was beneficial to the whole area due to the fact that
young people as well as adults participated and felt that the benefits outweighed
the disadvantages
Mel Reck, Hacienda Heights, announcer at the Pomona Drag Strip
stated that the Pomona Drag Strip was sponsored by the Lions' Club - backed
by them and the Pomona Police Department He stated that there was a need
for a Drag Strip
Jack Tice, representative of the Soland Corporation, stated that
they were requesting this Special Use Permit because the Edison Company
needed to build a sub -station to serve additional customers in this area on the
property where they were formerly located He stated that it had been very
difficult to find property anywhere in this area Mr Tice stated that traffic
would not be a problem and the hours and days that they would be in operation
would be very limited At least 2, S00 participants, under supervision,
would take part in the races every Saturday night
During the three years that they were in operation at the former
drag strip they only received three calls protesting the noise and that was
when the jet was there
The City Attorney swore in additional opponents wishing to speak
that were standing outside
OPPONENTS
Lewis Meadows, 432 Hearst Avenue, Los Angeles, State President
of Equestrian Trails Incorporated, member of Sheriff's Mounted Posse
Mr Meadows stated that they were not opposed to drag strips,
but were opposing it because the drag strip would be running parallel to the
Equestrian Trail He stated that in his experience a horse will react to noise
On behalf of hundreds of men, women and children who ride the Equestrian Trail
in this area, they urged that the drag strip be located elsewhere
The Mayor directed a question to Mr Meadows concerning the
numbers of horse riders actually using the Equestrian Trail, and also if any
deaths had occurred during the operation of the old drag strip to any one using
the Equestrian Trail
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Mr Meadows replied in the negative
Adair Allen, 12154 Cherrylee Drive, E1 Monte
Mr Allen stated that he was mostly opposing the location of the
drag strip He quoted statements from several magazines concerning the
noise created as a result of stock cars with modified motors running 3 and 4
abreast Mr Allen stated that excessive noise would create a mental problem
and continued to elaborate on the effects of noise on people
Loland Briggs, 12160 Cherrylee Drive, E1 Monte
Mr Briggs stated that he was opposed to the drag strip because
the proposed drag strip was practically located in his back yard and he went
along with what Mr Allen had stated
Mrs Margaret Allen, 12154 Cherrylee Drive, E1 Monte
Mrs Allen spoke at length concerning the effects of noise on people's
mind and quoted several statements from publications
Edith Adams, 12135 Hallwood Drive, El Monte
Mrs Adams felt that drag strip should be located away from
residents
Art Salcedo, 11708 Cherrylee Drive, E1 Monte
Mr Salcedo stated that he was a member of the Equestrian Trails
for 5 years and was opposed to the drag strip because the noise from the cars
would scare the horses
He thanked the Council for the opportunity given him to speak
Evelyn Nichelson, 12039 Conference Street, E1 Monte
Mrs Nichelson pointed out that all people speaking in behalf of
the drag strip were not living in Irwindale and were living away from the
drag strip area
Lulu Daves, 12031 Conference Street, E1 Monte
Mrs Daves stated that she was mainly opposed to the noise
R H Ashenshade, 11910 The Wye, E1 Monte
Mr Ashenshade was opposed with the noise and traffic involved
with running a drag strip
REBUTTAL FROM PROPONENTS
Mr Jack Tice stated that the main concern of the people opposing
the drag strip was the noise, traffic and the opposition from the Equestrian
Trails He felt that these problems could be remedied
Auggie Torres, Claremont, California
Mr Torres stated that he worked in Recreation and felt that there
was a great need for more recreation for the young people and that is why he was
for the drag strip
Edgar Romig, 916 North Avenue 54, Los Angeles 42
Mr Romig stated that he had experience in working with Y M C A
groups and was a car enthusiast himself He stated that the Ventura Freeway
has Equestrian Trails along side and that Diesels ride the freeway 24 hours a
day and had never seen a horse drop anybody yet
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Norman Dalbec stated that many statements from the opponents
were misleading
Mel Reck stated that at the Pomona drag strip, horse stables were
located nearby and it didn't seem to bother the horses
Don Richards, Baldwin Park
Mr Richards stated that he lived in the Americana Homes located
near the proposed drag strip and in his experience property located near drag
strips did not depreciate in value
Mr Alber, Baldwin Park, stated that it was necessary to sacrifice
for the American Youth
Steve Gibbs stated that if drag strips are situated in outlying
areas people will not attend and felt this was a good location fyr a drag strip
Richard Macias, 10564 Marcen Street, E1 Monte
Mr Macias directed a question concerning traffic to Sgt Breceda
of the Irwindale Police Department who was present
Will Tice, part owner of the Soland Corporation stated that
noise and traffic would be no problem
Jim Blake made a statement in favor of the drag strip
REBUTTAL FROM OPPONENTS
Mr & Mrs Allen made a statement in relation to traffic and
noise
Councilman Martinez moved seconded by Councilman Breceda
that public hearing be closed Carried by the following vote of the Council
Ayes Councilmen Breceda, Miranda, Martinez and Diaz
Noes None
Absent Sulzer
RECESS Meeting was recessed at 9 55
O'Clock P M
Meeting reconvened at 10 07 O'Clock P M with the following
councilmembers present Breceda, Miranda, Martinez and Mayor Diaz
Absent Sulzer
SPECIAL USE PERMIT REQUEST - Councilman -Mayor Diaz stated that
SAN GABRIEL VALLEY DRAG STRIP now was the time for the Council
to make a decision concerning the
request to operate a drag strip and to take into consideration any letters,
petitions for and against this request
Mayor Diaz stated that the Council could either affirm or
reaffirm the decision of the Planning Commission by a majority vote or
place any further restrictions or conditions that they wish to
Councilman Martinez stated that it was a very hard decision to
make, therefore he moved that this matter be tabled until Monday, at the
next regular meeting to be held May 4, 1964, for further study, seconded
by Councilman Breceda
Councilman Breceda stated that merely as a matter of courtesy,
the Council should wait to render a decision until such time that the City of
Arcadia does, but that he was ready to make a decision tonight
Councilman -Mayor Diaz urged the Council to make a decision
since all the proponents and opponents were present to answer any questions
that the Council might have Councilman -Mayor Diaz stated that the Council
had letters from the Equestrian Trails, the opposition, a petition signed
by 1, 435 people in favor of the San Gabriel Valley Drag Strip which should be
read into the record He stated that both he and Councilman Martinez had
attended the Planning Commission meetings at which this was discussed and
had heard all testimony for and against
After some discussion, Councilman Martinez withdrew his motion
to table this matter and councilman Breceda withdrew his second
Councilman -Mayor Diaz stated that he was not too concerned
with the traffic problem because it could be handled well by the Police
i" Department, but he was more concerned with the noise problem because
it affected many people
Councilman -Mayor Diaz directed a question to Mr Minnock
as to what they had in mind insofar as noise abatement, if any He wished
to have the members of the Soland Corporation to go on record publicly
that they intend to do something about the noise
Mr Minnock stated that they knew nothing about noise abatement,
but that they were willing to do anything that might help He stated that maybe
they might consider placing sheets of celotex to act as a buffer strip
Councilman -Mayor Diaz stated that the Council should consider
placing some kind of a condition in the resolution that after a year's time,
if there is no progress made on some kind of noise abatement, that the
City Manager be instructed to contact the Soland Corporation, and if in his
estimation, reasons for no progress toward noise abatement are not valid,
that he bring the matter before the City Council for action and possible
removal of the drag strip Mayor Diaz asked Mr Minnock if this met
with his Approval and Mr Minnock stated that they would be willing to go
along with this
The City Attorney was instructed to include a stipulation of this
nature in the resolution
Councilman -Mayor Diaz stated that the proponents had proven
to him that there is a great need for a drag strip in this area
Counalman Martinez moved that the City Council honor the
decision of the Planning Commission and that the City Attorney include in
the resolution the condition of noise abatement, seconded by Councilman
Breceda
Councilman Martinez amended his motion to include that the City
Attorney present the resolution at the next regular meeting of April 20, 1964,
for approval of the Council, Councilman Breceda so amended his second
Carried by the following vote of the Council Ayes Councilmen Breceda,
Miranda, Martinez, and Mayor Diaz Noes None Absent Sulzer
May 18, 1964