Glendale, Pasadena stand up to California

Nine cities, including Glendale and Pasadena, filed a lawsuit this week in an effort to force the state to make good on millions of dollars for local officials to pay down debt and other obligations left over by the dissolution of local redevelopment agencies.

Gatto gets a new district director

Assemblyman Mike Gatto (D-Silver Lake) has a new district director — Jason Insalaco, a licensed attorney and real estate broker.

Gatto's bill to reduce violence at sporting events now lacks bite

A bill designed to reduce violence at sporting events is moving forward in the state Assembly, but it doesn’t have the same teeth it once had.

Pacific Park set to get fake grass

After strengthening a ban on artificial turf in residential front yards last year, the Glendale City Council this week approved spending roughly $99,000 for a consultant to prepare plans to install the fake stuff at Pacific Park.

John Drayman: Testimony reveals two perceptions of 'Mr. Montrose'

The first time Alyce Russell thought she'd been duped by her longtime friend John Drayman was at the former councilman's reelection-night party last April.

Officials were investigating Steiger's expense reports before GWP departure

The day before Glendale Water & Power General Manager Glenn Steiger resigned on Wednesday, city officials were investigating a case of possible double-billing based on expense receipts he submitted to another public agency, according to records and interviews.

John Drayman: Former councilman allegedly sought developers' aid to remodel condo

Struggling to pay contractors for a disputed $213,000 worth of construction on his condominium, former City Councilman John Drayman asked two prominent development figures for a $100,000 loan in late 2010, a debt he felt could be detrimental to his reelection campaign, according to recently unsealed...

Glendale Water & Power leader resigns

The general manager of Glendale Water & Power resigned Wednesday, citing personal reasons.

John Drayman: Pony rides offered a clue

For all the sophisticated computer forensic evidence and what was described as a 3-foot-high stack of bank records, Glendale police detectives said that during their yearlong embezzlement investigation into John Drayman, it was discrepancies in the reporting of pony ride proceeds at the Montrose...

Academics consider Armenian diaspora, preservation of culture

Fewer Armenian Americans are speaking the language of their native country, eroding the ability of the diaspora to preserve its culture, according to an expert at UCLA who addressed a conference organized at the Central Library on Saturday.

Portantino, Liu receive honors

Assemblyman Anthony Portantino (D-La Cañada Flintridge) and Sen. Carol Liu (D-La Cañada Flintridge) received honors recently.

Metro officials meet with skepticism on 710 gap

County transportation officials came to La Cañada Flintridge Saturday to unveil the options they are exploring to fill the 710 gap, meeting with 75 mostly skeptical people at La Cañada High School.

Glendale settles with ex-employee who says he was fired for union stance

A Glendale employee who claims he was wrongfully fired for promoting a new union has settled with the city for $29,000.

Water pollutant found in Glendale test

Glendale's water was well within statelimits for contaminants in 2011, but recent tests turned up a pollutant not detected in 2010, according to the city's water quality report released this week.

Line forms for early retirement

At least 100 Glendale employees are interested in taking advantage of an early-retirement option aimed at closing a $15.4-million budget shortfall, city officials and union representatives said Wednesday.

Glendale's $385M-investment portfolio feels tinge of foreign debt crisis

The city’s investment portfolio continues to get pinched amid slow economic recovery, officials reported this week, ending $11 million down compared to the previous fiscal quarter.

California bullet train chief seeks environmental exemptions

The chief of the state bullet train authority said Tuesday that he hopes to obtain some type of relief from environmental laws that would eliminate a risk that the 130-mile initial construction project could be stopped by an injunction, a potentially growing prospect as agriculture interests in...

New Glendale courthouse is in question

Plans for a new $123.9-million courthouse in Glendale could be eliminated by Gov. Jerry Brown's latest budget proposal.

City to ask for early employee retirements to minimize layoffs

Glendale needs about 150 employees to retire by Sept. 1 in order to minimize the number of layoffs that would be needed to close a $15.4-million budget gap for next fiscal year, officials said this week.

Brown's budget proposal could sideline Glendale courthouse project

Plans for a new for a new $123.9-million courthouse in Glendale could get iced by Gov. Jerry Brown's latest budget proposal.

Let the counting begin

Four people pitched their canvass chairs on a recent day above the Foothill (210) Freeway, their gaze focused unwaveringly on the roadway below.

High-speed spending: Bullet train may need $3.5 million a day

If California starts building a 130-mile segment of high-speed rail late this year as planned, it will enter into a risky race against a deadline set up under federal law.

Tight funding causes second thoughts on city projects

With pressure mounting on city resources in the wake of redevelopment’s demise, several Glendale City Council members this week expressed second thoughts about several major downtown area projects that were approved more than a year ago.

Krikorian pledges 'to be the voice of American Armenians'

Glendale school board member Greg Krikorian, who is challenging Mike Gatto for the 43rd Assembly District seat in November, ramped up his campaign at a recent anti-genocide rally by appealing to the Armenian American vote with a fiery speech that has since been posted online.