News of the Arroyo
Title: | Handled with Care |
Subtitle: | |
Date: | 2003-05-07 |
Summary: | May 7, 2003 - A construction project that threatened to clog the Millard Canyon stream, which flows into the Arroyo Seco, was stopped yesterday after residents complained of stream degradation. |
Author: | Becky Oskin, Staff Writer |
Publication: | Pasadena Star News |
Content: | Altadena residents concerned about creek area ALTADENA -- County and state inspectors shut down a construction project in Millard Canyon on Tuesday after residents complained that an oak and sycamore-shaded stream was being threatened. A tractor moves earth near the Millard Canyon Stream in Altadena on Tuesday. The earth was being delivered by the truckload. (Staff photo by Bernardo Alps) Property owners Henry and Aaron Corbett are grading the entrance of their Millard Canyon land off Canyon Crest Road to make room for a trash container. The Corbetts bought the land in June 2002 and said they are clearing junk, abandoned cars and dead brush from the 13-acre site. They plan to build two homes. Beginning about 9:30 Tuesday morning, dump trucks brought in about 15 loads of dirt to help build up the parcel\'s unpaved driveway and create a pad big enough for trucks to load and unload trash containers. The sight of a dirt pile 15 feet from Millard Creek alarmed nearby residents, who called the Altadena Town Council and asked for immediate action. People also sent e-mails with pictures of the grading work to county Supervisor Michael Antonovich\'s office. Antonovich represents the unincorporated area. The result was a stop-work order from county Public Works inspector Miguel Garcia, who said the Corbetts should have filed a grading plan with the county. The dump trucks were unloading next to a large oak tree, which also requires a county permit. \"You shouldn\'t even be within five feet of that (tree) canopy without special permits,\' Garcia told Henry Corbett. Fish and Game warden Marty Smith also visited the site and said the Corbetts needed a streambed alteration permit before continuing with their project. Henry Corbett said he didn\'t realize the grading work required a county permit. \"Most of the dirt is being used to repair the property. We just need a place to put a container,\' Corbett said. Nancy Steele, president of the Altadena Foothills Conservancy, said she was stunned by Corbett\'s actions. \"Having walked through this (area) before the work was done, I was shocked to see it,\' Steele said. Millard Creek is high-quality riparian habitat for the Arroyo toad, slender salamanders and pond turtles, and provides drinking water for Pasadena and Altadena, Steele said. The Santa Monica Mountains Conservancy was outbid by the Corbetts last year for the property in a Pasadena probate court. The final price was $401,500. Henry Corbett said he grew up near Walnut Creek in San Dimas and looked forward to living near wilderness once homes for himself and son Aaron are built. \"The setting here is so beautiful,\' he said. The Corbetts have also cleared a 150-foot-long area adjacent to Millard Creek and north of the entrance, built a small cinder- block wall and installed a chain-link fence. Glendale attorney Paul Ayers, a San Gabriel Mountains trails activist, filed a formal complaint with the county after discovering the clearing during a hike on Friday. Construction of the clearing appeared to involve pushing dirt and boulders close to the streambed, Ayers said. Josh Corbett, Aaron Corbett\'s brother, said the family had moved boulders near the stream to protect it from the dirt being delivered Tuesday. Henry Corbett said he plans to attend a neighborhood association meeting next week and try to resolve the complaints. \"All we\'ve done is try to clean it up and everybody\'s having a fit,\' he said. \"It\'s very easy to become hard nose about this, but that\'s not what we want to do.\' -- Becky Oskin can be reached at (626) 578-6300, Ext. 4451, or by e- mail at becky.oskin@sgvn.com. |
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