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Residents urge council to protect Burbank Rancho’s equestrian character, raise ADU and trail safety concerns
Summary
Public commenters at the Jan. 13 joint Burbank City Council meeting pressed the city to preserve the Rancho neighborhood’s equestrian character, called for tenant disclosure or protections around accessory dwelling units (ADUs), and urged completion of a proposed bridle trail to improve rider safety.
Veronica Christiansen, a Rancho neighborhood resident, told the Burbank City Council during the meeting’s public comment period that she wants the city to ‘‘maintain the integrity, the uniqueness, and the value of the Rancho area’’ and to preserve its equestrian character for future generations.
Her remarks opened a string of public comments focused on the Rancho Specific Plan and horse‑keeping culture. Christiansen praised previous public outreach, including meetings at the Buena Vista Library, and said the neighborhood’s access to Griffith Park and local riding trails make it ‘‘very special’’ to residents.
Another longtime Rancho resident, Marva Lee Kornblatt, who said she has lived on Valencia Street for 80 years and worked for the city for 40 years, told the council she is most worried about accessory dwelling units (ADUs). Kornblatt said she reviewed frequently asked questions about ADUs and believes state law may limit local restrictions, recounting that she was told ‘‘the state says, yeah. Don’t pay any attention to that. We can do what we wanna do.’’ She asked the council to consider requirements that prospective landlords disclose nearby horse keeping to tenants, saying the prospect of ADUs becoming rentals could create neighbor conflicts over dust, flies and odors and could force removal of backyard barns that have been in place for decades. Kornblatt also said a 1965 ordinance created the final horse‑keeping zone and noted the 400 block of Valencia was left off that zone.
Caller Jay Geisenheimer, calling from Ocala, Florida, urged the city to build a proposed bridle trail included in the Rancho Specific Plan, saying the trail would take horses off Riverside Drive and improve safety at a dangerous crossing at Riverside and Maine where, he said, ‘‘2 horses have been hit.’’ Geisenheimer said he has worked on the bridle trail since 2021, that staff member Nick Schultz has been involved and is searching for funding, and that the proposed trail would protect equestrian access and help preserve the Rancho’s identity.
No council votes or formal actions on the Rancho plan, ADUs, or the bridle trail appear in the provided transcript excerpt. The city attorney had announced earlier in the session that the council would hold a closed session on litigation and real‑property negotiations and then a 5:00–6:00 p.m. study session on the Burbank Rancho Neighborhood Specific Plan Development Process. The public comments recorded here were part of the public comment period before the council convened its closed session.
Speakers’ claims that state law affects local ADU control and that two horses have been struck at Riverside and Maine are reported as assertions made in public comment and were not adjudicated or rebutted in the provided excerpt.
The council then closed public comment and recessed to closed session, with the meeting scheduled to reconvene for a study session at 5:00 p.m. and the regular session at 6:00 p.m.
