Tim Cantwell

The Los Angeles County Board of Supervisors Thursday unanimously approved the hotly contested La Vina project, a plan to build 272 homes on 220 rural acres north of Altadena. Proposed nearly four years ago by developer Tim Cantwell, the project initially faced strong opposition from some area residents, many of whom cited environmental concerns.

The Los Angeles County Board of Supervisors Thursday unanimously approved the hotly contested La Vina project, a plan to build 272 homes on 220 rural acres north of Altadena. Proposed nearly four years ago by developer Tim Cantwell, the project initially faced strong opposition from some area residents, many of whom cited environmental concerns.

In this time of awakening to the fact that rampant growth is not always the best growth, I was shocked to see the plans for the hills above Altadena proposed by Tim Cantwell. He wants to build 350 housing units in an area now rich in sycamores, great horned owls, meadows for deer, and mountain ridges--some of which would be destroyed. The area that once served as a sanitarium would become the hub of the development. This was the perfect setting for a sanitarium for those with respiratory illnesses because of the quiet, clean air and vegetation.

In this time of awakening to the fact that rampant growth is not always the best growth, I was shocked to see the plans for the hills above Altadena proposed by Tim Cantwell. He wants to build 350 housing units in an area now rich in sycamores, great horned owls, meadows for deer, and mountain ridges--some of which would be destroyed. The area that once served as a sanitarium would become the hub of the development. This was the perfect setting for a sanitarium for those with respiratory illnesses because of the quiet, clean air and vegetation.

In an attempt to stop a 272-unit housing development on 220 acres in the San Gabriel Mountain foothills, the Friends of La Vina, an Altadena group opposed to the project, filed a lawsuit Friday against Los Angeles County. The suit, filed in Los Angeles Superior Court, asks the court to overturn the county supervisors' approval of the project.

A multimillion-dollar project that would have brought a major supermarket and shopping center to the area has been altered by developers who now hope to build a "technological park," the Town Council learned Tuesday. Tim Cantwell of the Cantwell-Anderson Development Co. told the council that the supermarket is not economically feasible and that market research calls for office buildings. He expects the offices to attract consultants to the nearby Jet Propulsion Laboratory.

A $60-million business development project for West Altadena has been approved in concept by the county Community Development Commission. Property owners in a 25-acre area along Lincoln Boulevard between West Figueroa Drive and West Woodbury Road will have 30 days to respond to the proposal by Tim Cantwell of Cantwell-Anderson Inc. before the county decides whether to allow him to proceed. Cantwell's project includes construction of West Altadena Technology Center, north of Crosby Street.

There was a letter in your Aug. 25 edition from Owen Menard stating that Tim Cantwell had the right to build a housing project on land he owns (in Altadena) that was once occupied by La Vina Hospital. Menard wondered whether the sanitarium had to close because of noise, pollution and escalating taxes. As a former physician at La Vina, I wish to correct some of these misconceptions. Menard was thinking of old tuberculosis hospitals that were usually located in isolated areas because rest and fresh air were important elements in treatment.

Developers Tim Cantwell and Southwest Diversified Inc. are negotiating a land swap with two county agencies to widen Lincoln Avenue and build an extra access road to their property in northwest Altadena. The developers, who plan to build 272 homes on the 220-acre La Vina property north of Lincoln, have offered to trade some of their land for a strip of Loma Alta Park on Lincoln and flood control district acreage northeast of the park. Scott Woodward, senior vice president of Southwest Diversified of Irvine, said the county Department of Public Works informally agreed to a swap a year ago. The department, which manages the flood control district, wanted two acres in La Vina northeast of the park in exchange for two acres east of the park for the developers to build a secondary road.

Construction has begun on the 34-unit San Pasqual Townhomes at 512 Garfield Ave., directly across the street from South Pasadena's oldest surviving adobe, the Adobe Flores, built between 1843 and 1846, and reportedly the last headquarters of the Mexican army. The town houses' developer, Cantwell/Anderson, and architect, McClellan Cruz Gaylord & Associates, are building the project to take advantage of what Tim Cantwell calls the uniqueness of the site.

Officials broke ground Saturday on a new residence hall that will provide 196 units of affordable housing near Los Angeles International Airport for low-income veterans. With airplanes thundering overhead at close range — sometimes as often as one minute apart — U.S. Rep. Maxine Waters (D-Los Angeles), Democratic Sen. Barbara Boxer of California, Victoria Reggie Kennedy (wife of the late Sen. Ted Kennedy) and veterans from each branch of the Armed Services celebrated the $34.9-million project, which is expected to open in the fall of 2011.

Rep. Edward R. Roybal, concerned about the environmental impact of a residential development proposed for a 220-acre site in the foothills of Altadena, will seek to get the federal government to buy the property. "To begin with, I can't support private developers. My opinion, right or wrong, is that the land should be developed for a public use," said Roybal (D-Los Angeles) in a telephone interview Thursday.