A couple of years ago, early on Sunday morning, a woman knocked at our door in Tarzana. She introduced herself as Helen Baker, a neighbor. Her reason for coming by, she explained was that a land-mark statuary store on the corner of Vanalden and Ventura Boulevard had been sold, and there were plans to convert the site into a self-storage facility. Such a facility would massively alter our residential neighborhood. Helen said that a community center would be a far better use of the land. My wife and I agreed and gave her a check for a hundred dollars, and wished her luck.
That was before we knew Helen. And, that Helen makes luck happen!
Today the Tarzana Community Center stands as a tribute to the vision and very hard work of Helen Baker and many others. It benefits not only Tarzana, but also the entire San Fernando Valley. The Center is the home of the Tarzana Historical Society, which maintains a terrific little museum (with lots of great Edgar Rice Burroughs memorabilia.) Some Saturday morning when you meet a friend for breakfast at the Little Café, or have lunch at California Pizza Kitchen, walk down the block and visit the center. Or, preview the Center at its website:
www.mytarzana.org
The Tarzana Community Center's Mission Statement
The Tarzana Community and Cultural Center will be an environment conducive to community activities, the resource for cultural experiences and local historical information, and treasured for its sensitive response to Tarzana’s residents’ and businesses’ shared desire for a place in which to come together, dream, create and grow.
Glad Tarzana Community Center shares our Valley - Jerry Fecht
3 comments:
I'm trying to find information on the fate of a house that was designed by Gregory Ain in 1943 for the Domelas (Jan and Jocelyn). I have photos of the original house, which was on the top of a hill overlooking the SF Valley, but I don't know if it even exists anymore. Can anyone help me?
Johanna Domela Movassat, Ph.D.
San Jose State University
movassat@email.sjsu.edu
Sorry, forget to say that it was located in Tarzana.
JDMovassat
Im also interested in finding that particular residence do you have an address? or perhaps you could email a photo or 2? I've been researching notable architecture in the San Fernando Valley and that Ain designed home seems elusive for some reason. I could easily drive by the address and perhaps do a bit of property research to let you know if it is still standing. Thank you. Ian Dennelly dennellyian@gmail.com
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