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FROM THE MARGINS | BY PATRICK AZADIAN
Los Angeles Times Valley Edition | Glendale News-Press | September 23 2006

Humble in history, short in vision

Next July I'll be on my trip to Venice, Italy, for the International Art Biennale. I can't wait.

Trying to compare Venice to Glendale maybe an impossible task, but I can't help it. As soon as I arrive in the not-so-eternal city I begin the hopeless process.

Venice is a world of the past. Without tourists, international exhibits and universities, it is a ghost city. Underneath its beautiful facade, lies a corpse, which has not been breathing for centuries.

With its wealth of architectural masterpieces, it is difficult to see how any government can preserve all that's there. For the most part, many of the historical monuments are covered in black residue from surrounding industrial factories.

Whenever I leave my Venetian fantasy, and set foot back on American soil, a feeling of newness comes over me. It is unmistakable; America is a nation of today. Despite its relatively short history, it is a breathing, living nation.

Once I make my way from LAX to Glendale, I notice many things that I generally ignore. There is an odd mix of old, modern and temporary-looking structures.

It is always said that compared to the Old World, we don't have too many historical buildings. This is a simplistic statement.

Glendale may lack the richness of historical buildings compared to many of its American or European counterparts, but the question is, what do we do with the ones we can someday call historical?

As I see it, there are probably three categories of buildings that are either historical or someday can be considered historical.

First, there are buildings that have been registered as historical. Glendale's railroad station is an interesting example. I did not know it existed until one of the senior ladies in our building asked me to give her a ride there. OK, it's not St. Mark's Basilica, but it's what we have. It is also well-preserved and is put into good use. I was impressed.

Then there is what's not there any more. Almost everything north of Colorado Street (on Brand Boulevard) that had some chance of being considered historical has vanished (by the way, all this happened before the arrival of the men in black BMWs). In its place, we have the '80s-looking concrete malls with teal window trimmings. We also have the horrid colors of the much-loved burger joint near Broadway. And of course, there is the brown-bricked structure of the Galleria, which looks more like a Roman fortress in Mediolanum than a place for fun.

To add insult to injury, we have the sign of Mervyn's trying to tell all Glendalians in a loud voice: "You do not live in a cool city."

Some of us hope that the Americana at Brand will bring new blood to Glendale. And for the most part, there is no reason it shouldn't. But I can't help but believe that it's also going to bring yet another inconsistent element to Glendale's already confused style.

Last, there are my favorites: the semi-modern, apartment buildings, stores and motels that are often covered with cheap signs, bad paint and neglect.

One of my favorite buildings is (or was) Astro Motel on Colorado. Any such structure on the Westside would have attracted the interests of investors. It would have made a great site for a Glendale version of Avalon Hotel (in Beverly Hills) or The Standard on Sunset Boulevard.

As I was passing by my beloved motel the other evening, I discovered it had changed names. It is now called the Glen Capri Inn. The new signage seems quite out of touch with the structure. The new identity reminds me of the Shell logo, only worse. The signage is now in burgundy and gold. On the positive side, it seems that the new ownership (I am assuming it's new) has given the "inn" a new lease of life.

In a city where historical and semi-historical building are scarce, and we have already destroyed many of the structures that had a chance of becoming points of mild attraction, it is important to have a vision of what to do with what we have. We spend a lot of time telling people in residential areas what type flowers they should have in their front yards, or what kind of outside lighting fixtures they are allowed to use, but when it comes to having a vision for the business district, we don't seem to have a clue.

We are not Venice, not even Pasadena, but recognizing what we have and how to well preserve them could be a nice beginning to having a sense of style and identity for future Glendale.

Copyright 2006 Glendale News Press