PLACENTIA
NEWS-TIMES
AN EDITION OF
THURSDAY, MAY 23, 20 1 3
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There’s the cool factor. You get to stab someone with a sword and not get arrested for it.” ERIC HOLMGREN C O A C H AT GRYPHON FENCING
OCREGISTER.COM/PLACENTIA
POINTED
PASSION The Gryphon Fencing club brings the sport of kings to the masses. BY KENNY CONNOLLY ORANGE COUNTY REGISTER
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hen he was a senior at UC Irvine in 1987, Eric Holmgren was in search of a new endeavor. Strolling through campus one afternoon, he came across a flier promoting the school’s fencing club. Although he had no background or experience with the sport, Holmgren was intrigued. “It was something that I always wanted to try,” he said. “But there wasn’t really an opportunity to do it anywhere. So I went to the practice, tried it out and fell in love with it.” More than 25 years later, Holmgren still wonders how his life would be different had he not gone to that first fencing practice. The sport remains a passion of his, and he is set on sharing it with others, too. In an attempt to popularize fencing locally, Holmgren and three other coaches have opened the Gryphon Fencing club in Placentia, which holds classes six days a week for ages 5 and older. “We’re trying to get it out to the broader community,” Holmgren said. “The whole philosophy is to come and try it out. We want to expose people to the proS E E F E N C I N G ● PA G E 3
Students at Gryphon Fencing suit up in their gear before beginning class. At left, a mesh mask is used to protect the face of a competing fencer.
PHOTOS: KEVIN LARA, ORANGE COUNTY REGISTER
City approves 33-unit project near Imperial
Map area
Site of proposed development
Bastanchury Road
N. Rose Drive The Register
BY REBECCA KHEEL ORANGE COUNTY REGISTER
Five people came to the Placentia Library History Room’s first Donation Day, and organizers are considering that a success based on what was donated and what they learned about the history of the city. “That was a good number for our first annual Donation Day,” said librarian Wendy Townsend.
Scrapbooks, photos and other items were donated throughout the Saturday afternoon event that was meant to build up the History Room’s collection. Among the most interesting donations, Townsend cited a scrapbook from a Bluebird youth group troop and a Little League
program from the 1970s that listed every player and coach. “That’s not something that people might think we want at the library, but it is important,” Townsend said, referring to the Little League program. “Now if someone wants to come in and do research on Little League, it’s there.” S E E L I B R A RY ● PA G E 2
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Olson also has agreed to allow the city to create a Community Facilities District. A special tax of up to $500 per year, per house – though not expected to be that much – will be imposed on the district to pay for continuing public safety and public works for the development. Construction is expected to begin next month.
Donated items bolster library’s history room
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After about a year of working with city staffers, developers have the goahead to bring a 33-unit housing development to Golden Avenue. The City Council this week approved a development agreement with Olson Urban Housing. Eleven single-family homes and 22 duplexes are planned for a 2.68-acre site near Imperial Highway. “The project … will assist in the upgrade in the area and will put an underutilized parcel to productive use,” reads a staff report. Concerns about an increase in traffic were raised
as plans moved through the Planning Commission and the council. The complex is expected to bring up to 223 vehicles per day to Golden Avenue, which averages 3,711 vehicles per day. Golden Avenue, designed as a two-lane highway, can accommodate 5,000 to 10,000 vehicles per day. Olson has agreed to widen Golden Avenue to four lanes with parking on each side. The agreement calls for Olson to help pay for public improvements needed to ensure the area is ready for the complex. Olson will contribute $125,000 to improve the Golden Avenue Bridge and $102,816 for a public safety mitigation fee.
Valencia Ave.
BY REBECCA KHEEL ORANGE COUNTY REGISTER
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