San Fernando Valley finally becomes a “place”

Valley cities and communities are now united into a single agency after a vote Tuesday by the Los Angeles County Board of Supervisors established the San Fernando Valley Council of Governments. The joint-power agency was already approved by the cities of Burbank, Glendale, Los Angeles, San Fernando and Santa Clarita, according to a statement released by Mulholland Institute and Valley Economic Alliance. The coalition will be led by existing elected officials, which include council members and supervisors from each jurisdiction, the statement said. “There are great possibilities when we bring the creativity and agility of the smaller cities together with the clout and credibility of the City and County of Los Angeles,” said David Fleming, Chair of the Valley Economic Alliance. The agency’s role is to oversee planning within the recently adopted San Fernando Valley subregion of the Southern California Association of Governments, the statement said. The subregion’s first project, which is already underway, is an initial Interstate-5 Corridor economic development plan. The agency will also focus on intergovernmental cooperation, public-private partnerships and coordination of government planning and programming across jurisdictions, according to the statement. It will also work to make recommendations for issues of common interest for its members.