Valley Talk

Valley Talk/Cw1st/dt2nd Pick Me, Pick Me DreamWorks SKG fever seems to have hit all parts of the San Fernando Valley, with cities from Burbank to L.A. falling all over themselves to woo the entertainment company following its decision to pull out of the proposed Playa Vista development. Along with the usual suspects offering to accommodate DreamWorks (North Hollywood, Burbank, Glendale) came some offers from areas a little more out of the way. The cities of Lancaster and Palmdale each offered land for a new studio, even though it would be 45 miles away from Hollywood. That shot in the dark prompted the city of San Fernando to jump in with an offer of land as well. “We figure if Palmdale and Lancaster are bidding for it, why not San Fernando?” said City Administrator John Ornelas. “We know it’s a long shot.” City officials in San Fernando, a mostly built-out city of just 2.4 square miles, are still debating whether to offer DreamWorks smaller-sized parcels for off-site production, or a grander site for a full-blown studio. Who Cares? Business and community leaders in West L.A. raised a huge fuss when the state attempted to launch an overlay telephone area code in the 310 area, but talk of a similar overlay in the Valley has resulted in a collective yawn. The issue so far has stirred little public opposition. In fact, the Valley Industry and Commerce Association, one of the Valley’s highest-profile business groups, has been out campaigning for an overlay. Ellen Fitzmaurice, who is working on the 818 issue for VICA, explained the group would rather see an overlay code because existing businesses could keep their old area code, saving the expense of changing their stationery. “Most businesses don’t care about dialing 10 digits,” she said. “It’s not the world’s biggest deal. But you talk to some rabid homeowners about it, and it’s like Armageddon.” Home Shopping The Glendale Association of Realtors is in the market for a new home after the city of Glendale launched eminent domain proceedings to take its headquarters. The city wants the property for the site of a new police facility, and made an offer in December. But the association wants more money and is in the midst of getting an independent appraisal. Though it’s trying to buy time, the association seems resigned to the thought of moving. “Yes, the relocators are relocating themselves,” said Daniel Lanning, executive officer of the association. “In some respects, change is good. Maybe it’s time for a change. We’re growing and a new home will promote that.” Wine Country Could Los Angeles be the next Napa Valley? Let’s just say the county got a step closer to that distinction last week when the Board of Supervisors voted unanimously to allow residents who grow grapes in agricultural zones to establish small, boutique wineries on site. Under the motion co-sponsored by Supervisors Zev Yaroslavsky and Michael Antonovich, local growers would be able to develop grape-crushing operations, bottling facilities and wine-tasting and sales rooms on their property. “There were initially some concerns about encouraging the alcohol industry,” said Joel Bellman, a spokesman for Yaroslavsky. “But we’re not talking about Gallo wine here, it’s a cottage industry.” Prehistoric Problem The dinosaurs in the Jurassic Park ride at Universal Studios had a bad day last week when the computer that controls the attraction was plagued by glitches. The ride was eventually closed for nearly an hour, but not before several boatloads of visitors got to see the problems firsthand. They were disappointed when an animatronic dinosaur broke down while munching on a boatload of mannequins. And they screamed in disbelief as the head of a tyrannosaurus rex swung back and forth like a pendulum near the end of the ride. Despite a slew of complaints, park attendants kept their sense of humor. “There’s a kid in there causing a problem with a BB gun,” one joked. Marching to Success You may remember Sean Astin as “Mikey,” the hero in the 1985 adventure film “The Goonies.” These days, Astin, now 28, has a new role representing L.A. as a volunteer civilian aide to Secretary of the Army Louis Caldera. As such, his duty is keeping Caldera informed about civilian concerns involving everything from the war in Kosovo to the way the military delivers aid after natural disasters. Astin is also taking a lesson from the Army about running his fledgling production company, Lava Entertainment. “In terms of our company, I want to bring the attitude that the soldiers in the Army have a commitment to something greater than yourself,” Astin said.