Toluca Lake, CA Experts in Container Rental, Sales & Customization

Nearly five-year-old plans to redevelop a former post office site in Toluca Lake are finally being realized.

Earlier this month, the L.A. Department of Building and Safety issued a construction permit for a corner lot located at 10057-10067 Riverside Drive. The site, owned by an entity linked to Bar Development, is approved for the construction of a new four-story apartment complex featuring 37 studio, one-, and two-bedroom apartments above an approximately 10,000-square-foot Gelson's market on the ground floor.

The apartments, approved using Transit Oriented Communities incentives, will include four extremely low-income affordable units in exchange for bonuses permitting a larger building than zoning rules would normally allow.

OfficeUntitled is designing 10063 Riverside Drive, which is depicted in renderings as a contemporary low-rise structure with setbacks on the upper levels which are used as amenity decks for residents. Proposed finishes include fiber cement panels and wood siding.

The new Gelson's on the ground floor of the building will be a smaller format store, per a representative of the supermarket chain. While the company already operates 27 locations in Southern California, the new store differs due in part to its frontage on a busy commercial corridor within Toluca Lake. Plans call for multiple activation points, including a walk-up window for breakfast order and coffee in the morning, tables and chairs for lunch patrons (with a fully visible kitchen), and indoor-outdoor wine and tapas bar in the late afternoon and early evening.

“We are energized by the possibilities with the Toluca Lake space to create something dynamic for the neighborhood," said Gelson's president and chief executive officer John Bagan in a statement. "We see this small format store as a testing ground to prove out new concepts and to be agile and highly relevant in how we approach the Gelson’s food experience. We have been fortunate to have a great development partner who is creating a mixed use space that will be embraced by the community.”

Four blocks to the east of the new mixed-use project, a similar development featuring 44 homes and ground-floor commercial space is also planned within the City of Burbank.

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Meet Smile — a tiny rescue pup whose name was inspired by the permanent grin on her face.

Smile hasn’t always had the easiest journey. She was born in a hoarding house in Tijuana, Mexico, where she went years without receiving the love and care she needed. The resilient pup was ultimately rescued by No Dog Left Behind (NDLB) and she greeted her new friends at the shelter with a smile that stretched from ear to ear.

“She made the intake team fall madly in love,” Stephanie Easley, NDLB’s operations manager, told The Dodo.

Smile was initially rescued from her home in Tijuana alongside 23 other dogs by At-Choo Foundation in Toluca Lake, California. All the dogs were suffering from a painful skin disease, but luckily, Smile’s case wasn’t as severe. Smile’s story reached the NDLB team in Minnesota, and, as soon as they saw her pictures, they knew she belonged with them.

“We fell in love with the hope we saw in her eyes,” NDLB wrote in a Facebook post. “Smile was destined to join our rescue.”

With the help of Mutt Mutt Engine, NDLB transported Smile from California to Minnesota. At first, the dog was timid and scared, initially biting at her rescuers' hands. But they gently carried her from the van to her new kennel, and she soon warmed up to them.

“Once she was out of the van and not in a position of feeling backed into a corner, she was much better,” Easley said. “She curled up in a ball and laid there, just watching the volunteers work.”

Smile had to be quarantined due to her skin condition, but that didn’t stop the rescue staff from showering her with love. In return, she’d flash them her million-dollar smile.

“I went up to her kennel and she sat up and smiled at me,” Easley said. “It was at that very moment that she captured my heart.”

Easley immediately decided to foster Smile, giving the expressive pup a more comfortable place to recover while she finds a forever home.

Now, Smile is living the best days of her life at home with Easley. The two spend all day together, starting with a loving morning wake-up.

“The moment I open my eyes, she’s already looking at me and, of course, smiling,” Easley said.

Even though Smile’s life started out sad, you’d never know it from the expression on her face. Aside from the permanent smile on her face, Easley can tell that Smile is genuinely happy by the look in her eyes.

“The genuine love in her eyes is what makes her the most special dog I’ve ever met,” Easley said. “They’re expressive … you know exactly what she’s thinking or feeling just by looking at them.”

You can watch Smile smile at her foster mom here:

Easley is loving her time with Smile, but she knows that their time together is only temporary.

“We love her with absolutely everything in us, but we know we’re not the perfect fit for her,” Easley said. “My hope is that she’ll receive a family that is as crazy about her as mine is, [one] that makes her smile and look at them with all the love in her eyes.”

So far, Smile has several adoption applications pending, so her friends at NDLB know she’ll go to the perfect forever home once she’s fully healed.

“We will find her the people that she’s been waiting for her whole life,” Easley said.

For now, the affectionate pup will continue enjoying her days in her incredible foster home, cuddling up with her family and forgetting all about the pain of the past.

“Even with the pain and discomfort, Smile is so incredibly grateful and trusting,” NDLB wrote. “She knows that life will be better from here on out.”

To help pups like Smile get the care they need, make a donation to No Dog Left Behind.

Street numbers, days of the weeks and fat fines: here's everything you need to know to survive LA's new water restrictions.

LOS ANGELES, CA — The browning of North Hollywood and Toluca Lake lawns begins in earnest Wednesday as unprecedented water restrictions take effect across Los Angeles, Ventura and San Bernardino counties. Millions of Southlanders will be limited to outdoor watering one to two days per week throughout the summer.

One-third of Southern Californians face new restrictions limiting outdoor watering to reduce water use in the face of the state’s historic drought. The restrictions, apply to about 6 million Southern Californians who depend on water from Northern California via the State Water Project. That includes Los Angeles and dozens of Los Angeles County cities that don't have access to water from the Colorado River or local resources.

In Los Angeles, where outdoor watering is now limited to two days per week, residents will have a short amount of time to get on board with the routine before being hit with a series of escalating fines.

The restrictions, approved by a 13-0 City Council vote after being announced by Mayor Eric Garcetti, are more lenient than the one-day limit ordered earlier by the Metropolitan Water District of Southern California for areas that are dependent on water from the State Water Project.

"We were given two paths ... and we chose path two, to go with a budgeted volumetric limit for the city of Los Angeles. While most other agencies affected by this need to limit their outdoor watering to one day to comply, we believe that in the city of L.A. we can comply with two-day-a-week watering, and that's thanks to our customers' tireless efforts to make conservation a way of life here in Los Angeles," David Pettijohn, director of water resources for the Los Angeles Department of Water and Power, told the City Council last week

The city also urged residents with pools to use pool covers to reduce the risk of evaporation, and called on people to wash their vehicles only at commercial car wash facilities.

The city's water restrictions will be enforced by the Conservation Response Unit, which will focus on areas that are using the most water, according to DWP General Manager and Chief Engineer Marty Adams. He said the department will re-assign employees to ensure coverage in all areas of the city, and might bring on additional personnel during the summer.

"Beyond that, we have the ability to put flow restrictors on people's use if they are recalcitrant and do not comply, and then we also have the ultimate option of terminating service if somebody is really just scofflaw against the ordinance," Pettijohn said.

Adams said the department has given "very few fines in past droughts," adding that people are typically happy to comply with restrictions. In the last four years, the department has issued 552 citations, with only 15 resulting in fines, according to Pettijohn.

Meanwhile, many people outside Los Angeles are restricted to one-day per week watering effective Wednesday, as announced by the MWD on April 26. That restriction will apply to the district's member agencies that are heavily dependent on supplies from the State Water Project, but the agency called on all Southern California residents and businesses to slash water use by 30% to combat drought conditions "unlike anything we've experienced before."

MWD member agencies that fail to enforce the requirement among their customers will face fines of up to $2,000 per acre-foot of water supplied by MWD that exceeds monthly allocation limits.

The State Water Resources Control Board voted last week to ban watering of non-functional turf at commercial, industrial and institutional properties.

The ban -- which does not include turf at residences or turf used for recreation or community purposes -- will be effective once approved by the Office of Administrative Law, which typically takes about 10 days, according to the board. Violations would be punishable by a fine of up to $500.

In recent months, the DWP has urged customers to take advantage of its rebates to make water conservation transitions less expensive, including for people who replace their lawns with sustainable and drought-tolerant landscaping. Residential and commercial customers can get $3 per square foot of turf for up to 5,000 square feet, and public agencies can get $4 per square foot for up to 200,000 square feet of turf. The agency also gives a $6 rebate for rotating sprinkler nozzles.

Residential customers can also receive $500 rebates for high- efficiency clothes-washer purchases and $250 for water-efficient toilet purchases.

According to the DWP, the more efficient appliances can reduce water use by more than 11,000 gallons per year. Rebate-eligible toilets use about 30% less water than standard models.

DWP business customers can receive $300 rebates for low-flush toilets, which used to have a rebate of $250. Bathroom and kitchen faucet aerators and high-efficiency showerheads are available for free.

Multi-family, commercial and industrial building owners who install large-scale water conservation systems can also receive a $2 million incentive, which was increased earlier this year from $250,000. The Technical Assistance Program incentive is available for pre-approved cooling towers, recirculation systems, recycling microfiltration systems and other upgrades that reduce potable water use by a minimum of 50,000 gallons over two years.

More information is available at https://bit.ly/3wjPxo9.

Officials in recent weeks also have tried to highlight the need to protect Los Angeles' trees during the drought and restrictions, noting that they provide extensive benefits to health and qualify of life.

Trees can capture stormwater, improve water quality and reduce flood risk, along with helping air quality and the impact of heat waves.

"Trees provide so many benefits for the quality of life and our environment," Board of Public Works President Aura Garcia said last week. "But as we go through this period to reduce water usage through various ways, we want to share this important information for residents to help maintain and preserve trees in their yards, while conserving water."

The Department of Public Works urged people to add mulch to their trees and to slow soak their mature trees once a month, especially between June and September. People should also keep a close eye on the trees that were accustomed to receiving water three times per week.

People should also avoid pruning and fertilizing their trees during hot, dry months, the department said.

By MARGARET SHUTTLEWORTH, City News Service and Patch Staffer Paige Austin conrtibuted to this report.

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LOS ANGELES, CA — Some Angelinos will be eligible for a cool $225 incentive for installing energy-efficient air conditioners.

Low-income customers can receive between $75 to $225 rebates from the Los Angeles Department of Water and Power for making the switch as part of the "Cool LA" initiative introduced Friday. The program comes as the region recovers from a record-setting heat wave that threatened to overwhelm the state's power grid. Millions of Californians blasted their air conditioners at the same time, creating record electricity demand.

About 237,000 Angelinos may be eligible for the program, which covers nearly 300 different efficient window, room or portable air conditioning units.

In addition to the energy savings, officials also introduced a new program that will allow customers to evenly spread out their utility payments over the 12 months of the year. The goal is to make it easier for residents to balance their budgets — especially during the months of the year when excessive heat can turn deadly for vulnerable residents.

"LADWP is very proud of what we've been able to accomplish through Cool LA so far," said Martin L. Adams, LADWP general manager and chief engineer. "Through Cool LA, LADWP is committed to providing the relief from extreme heat that our communities need AND deserve, no matter their income, ZIP code, age or health."

Mayor Eric Garcetti joined LADWP officials in Panorama City on Friday to announce the initiative.

"The impacts of the climate emergency are on our doorstep, and as we continue our work to make Los Angeles a carbon-neutral city, we can't wait to bring solutions to people on the front lines of this crisis today," Garcetti said.

"Cool LA will bring needed relief from the heat to over a quarter- million of our most vulnerable Angelenos -- and is the latest step in our work to ensure communities bearing the brunt of climate change get immediate support."

Cynthia McClain-Hill, president of the LADWP board, said officials are acting to give the most vulnerable residents an option to stay cool, especially during the summer months.

"Countless Angelenos often put their own health and safety at risk by keeping their AC units off during dangerous heat conditions, because of the fear they won't be able to pay their electric bills if they run their AC," McClain-Hill said. "What's even more shameful is that some of the most at-risk members of our city can't even afford to own air conditioners."

City News Service and Patch Staffer Paige Austin contributed to this report.

The Branch will be anchored by Commercial Real Estate icon, Cindy Hill

LOS ANGELES, Sept. 12, 2022 /PRNewswire/ -- Today, Equity Union's CEO, Harma Hartouni, announced the addition of its seventh branch, to be located at 4404 Riverside Drive in Toluca Lake.

The Toluca Lake branch will cater to an upscale clientele, providing advanced technology and multiple private offices. The interior design of the office will serve all types of agents, those who want to come in, and those who prefer to work remotely, providing their clients with high-quality service.

Several industry veterans with over 30 years of real estate experience have already signed on to join the branch, and have patiently waited with the desire to work at this location. This includes one of Los Angeles' most successful commercial real estate agents, Cindy Hill. "Cindy is an icon in Los Angeles and the Commercial Real Estate industry specializing in multi-family sales. She has personally represented clients in over $1 Billion in sales volume and is a household name in Burbank and beyond" said Harma Hartouni, CEO, Equity Union. This branch will be a central location servicing not only Toluca Lake and Burbank, but the surrounding east valley area.

The branch will be led by Tom Barseghian, who has an exceptional reputation in real estate. Tom's knowledge, experience and passion to help others further elevates Equity Union as it continues its expansion with top tier new locations.

Equity Union currently has offices in Sherman Oaks, Encino, Woodland Hills, Brentwood, Palm Springs and Palm Desert, as well as plans to announce a Santa Clarita location in the coming days. With these additional locations, Equity Union will operate 8 branches by the end of 2022.

About Equity Union: Founded by Harma Hartouni, groundbreaking REALTOR® and inspiring author of the memoir Getting Back Up, Equity Union was created to be a completely unique real estate company. With an unparalleled commitment to service, integrity and excellence, we're ready to both inspire your vision and help you bring it to life.

About Harma Hartouni: Harma Hartouni is a self-made entrepreneur and developer, owns a real estate company employing hundreds of residential and commercial real estate agents in Southern California. Among awards and recognition received, The National Association of REALTORS® named Harma one of their top "30 Under 30" brokers in the country, and the Los Angeles Business Journal has recognized him as one of their "40 Under 40" Most Influential Business Owners.

Media Contact:Dan Stueve, +13105955875, dan@equityunion.com

SOURCE Equity Union