San Fernando Valley : Churches Exempted From Preservation Law

Glendale City Council members voted Tuesday to exempt an Armenian Orthodox church and two other congregations from a historic preservation ordinance.

In a lengthy hearing Tuesday night, more than 150 church supporters and preservation advocates packed City Hall to debate the merits of preserving older buildings intact as opposed to modifying them to serve current needs.

The council voted 4 to 0, with Councilman Sheldon Baker abstaining, to create an ordinance exempting all churches in the city from historic regulations. The new law would remove St. Mary’s Armenian Apostolic Church, Holy Family Catholic Church and First Baptist Church of Glendale--all of whom have argued that special building restrictions should not apply to religious buildings--from a list of 34 protected historic sites.