Grand View Cemetery sold!

After nearly a decade of court battles, and trying to find a new owner, Grand View Cemetery has been sold. The Heritage Cemetery Management Inc. purchased the Glendale cemetery in May 2014.

Currently, the cemetery is having some upgrades, with future plans for more improvements. The cemetery first opened in 1890. It ran into serious problems leading to a lawsuit in 2005. Time will tell what the future of the cemetery will be, but at least it is beginning a new start.

Grand View is the final resting place for several films stars, including Edna Purviance.

More from the Glendale Press.

Grand View Cemetery Lawsuit Settled

The Los Angeles County Superior Court has finally settled the Grand View lawsuit. The settlement is for $3.8 million dollars, which the law firm handling the case will receive $1.1 million dollars. The rest will be divided to the 2,500 to 3,000 claimants who filed suit.

"Paul Ayers, one of the plaintiff attorneys representing the families, will oversee the restoration efforts, to include obtaining original cemetery records, identifying and storing cremated remains in the mausoleum and installing an irrigation system for rehabilitated landscaping.

With the settlement complete, the long-awaited restoration efforts should begin soon, Ayers said.

“For most of the families, it’s not the compensation,” Ayers said. “They want to see the cemetery normalized.”" - Burbank Leader, March 10, 2010

As for Edna Purviance, and the fans who voiced here, they wanted Edna out of Grand View, Lita Hill (Edna's grand niece) was trying to remove Edna in the fall of 2007, to take to another cemetery. She was in the process of doing so, when the attorney involved decided against it, on the grounds of Edna being "a celebrity" and "cult" figure.

I will say, Lita was very serious in doing it and followed all the steps in doing so, but was told, afterwards, it could have lead to lawsuits toward her, from people (not related to Edna) not wanting Edna out of Grand View.

So for all the fans, who wanted Edna out of Grand View, Lita did try, she really did. Lita's wish was an memorial for herself, Edna and her father, Morgan (Lita's father). That didn't happen.

Hopefully, Grand View will be on the road to being restored, and a caring buyer will be found. That will be the next step. So this story is not over, just beginning a new chapter.

Grand View Openings

Grand View will be open on Christmas day, as the cemetery plans to be open for 14 dates in the first half of 2009. Plus, all the rain has helped the park a great deal.

"The recent rainstorms turned the dry cemetery grounds into a lush, green park, Der-Parseghian said. “The weather has really helped out,” she said. “It looks better now.”

At a Sept. 18 hearing, Mohr granted several openings for this year, including Christmas Day, and next year, including Jan. 1 and 6.

Volunteers, including Ayers, Der-Parseghian, her family and staff, have manned the visitation hours during the limited openings." - Glendale News, December 22, 2008

More of the article from the Glendale News.

Grand View Openings

Check the Glendale City Hall for the latest listings of dates for openings at Grand View Cemetery. Link to City Hall>

Below from the Glendale City Hall:
The City will be providing updates on this page and on the City's Community Hotline (818) 548-6464.

The cemetery will be open the following dates:
November 9, 23, 27 [Thanksgiving], 2008
December 7, 21, 25 [Christmas], 2008
January 1 [New Years], 6 [Armenian Christmas],2009

GV families mandate for more date openings

Glendale News Press reports Grand View families are wanting more date openings at cemetery. more>

"Attorneys representing the families suing owners of Grand View Memorial Park will ask a judge today to mandate the cemetery’s opening to the public for future dates, including Thanksgiving and Christmas.

Attorneys want Judge Anthony Mohr to grant public openings of the Glendale’s oldest cemetery on Oct. 12 and 26, Nov. 9, 23 and 27, Dec. 21 and 25, and Jan. 1 and 6, according to a court report. If granted, the cemetery hours would be from noon to 4 p.m.

“I don’t think that’s going to be a problem,” said Attorney Paul Ayers, who represents the families.

Ayers hasn’t received opposition from cemetery operator Moshe Goldsman about the request for future openings, he said, adding that Goldsman’s attorney David Baum has volunteered at the openings."

September 19, 2008 - Court orders more dates open for cemetery
"A civil court judge on Thursday ordered an additional nine openings at Grand View Memorial Park to allow visitors access to their loved ones’ graves during the holidays.

Judge Anthony Mohr approved the opening of the cemetery on Oct. 12 and 26, Nov. 9, 23 and 27, Dec. 21 and 25, and Jan. 1 and 6, according to a court report. The cemetery will be open from noon to 4 p.m. on those dates.

“It’s been three years that people haven’t been allowed to get out there and visit on the holidays,” said Attorney Mary Der-Parseghian, who represents families suing the cemetery." - Glendale Press

More>

Grand View Openings Aug. & Sept. 2008

According to the City of Glendale, Grand View Cemetery will be open August 10 and 24, 2008 and September 14 and 28, 2008. See GVC information>

The City of Glendale did correct their information to Sunday, the 14th of September.
(Looking at the calendar, the 15th falls on a Monday, so don't know if they mean 15th, or maybe it should be the 14th, instead, since the openings are usually on Sunday.)

Edna's: West Mausoleum at GV will be open

Grand View open July 13 and 27, 2008 - Hours noon to 4PM
Also, Lisa Burks, who reports on all the goings and happenings at Grand View has posted to us the following:

"...Special note to Edna's fans, the West Mausoleum where her niche is located has now been opened for visitation during these special opening hours."

Thanks Lisa! Watch as more dates are being worked on.

Grand View Sunday June 29th Opening

June 29, 2008 - Grand View Sunday Opening - Glendale News - Full article>

"Family and friends visited their loved ones’ graves on Sunday at Grand View Memorial Park, six days after a Los Angeles Superior court ordered the cemetery to be opened. Judge Anthony Mohr signed a court order on June 24 during the hearing at the Central Civil West Courthouse, allowing Glendale’s oldest cemetery be open Sunday, July 13 and July 27." - Glendale News

Grand View Cemetery given three separate days

Wednesday, June 25, 2008 - Glendale News reports:

"Grand View is granted three limited openings. Judge allows the cemetery to open Sunday and two days in July for family visits."- Glendale News

"Judge Anthony Mohr ordered the cemetery be open Sunday, July 13 and July 27, during the hearing at the Central Civil West Courthouse. He also scheduled a court conference for July 29 to determine whether the openings should occur more frequently."- Glendale News

First opening is Sunday, June 29th, 2008. The next openings are July 13th and July 27th. Schedule is like before, noon to 4PM. A court conference is scheduled for July 29th to see about more opens on the future.

This is the information posted on the Glendale City Hall site:
"At a status conference on June 24, the Judge ordered that Grandview be opened to the public on the following dates: June 29, July 13 and July 27. These openings are being handled by the plaintiff attorneys and the attorney for Moshe Goldsman."

You can read the full newspaper article at this link at Glendale News. (Please note, GN articles are usually up for 15 days online for free.)

Grand View tries for June 29, 2008 opening

Grand View Cemetery is looking for a possible one day opening for June 29th, 2008. The hours would be the same as the earlier openings this year (Noon to 4PM on Sunday afternoon). The possible opening awaits a judge approval.

“We are trying to serve the community the best we can during these difficult times,” said attorney David Baum, who represents cemetery operator Moshe Goldsman. “We are doing the best we can to provide as many openings we can.” - Glendale News

This would be the third brief opening this year, if approved. More from the Glendale News>

(Note: Glendale News reports are usually online for 15 days, after release.)

Grand View one day May 25, 2008 opening

Grand View Cemetery in Glendale will be open for four hours (12 noon to 4PM) on Sunday, May 25, 2008. The opening will be very much like the March 30th opening earlier this year. Attorneys are looking for volunteers to help with the event. Because of the very dry conditions, no smoking is allowed on the grounds. More from Glendale News. more>

"The visitation period between noon and 4 p.m. will be similar to the opening on March 30, which saw hundreds of visitors descend on the long-closed cemetery to clear off headstones and mourn loved ones. The cemetery had been closed for seven months before that opening.

“We’re trying to do whatever we can for the local community,” said David Baum, an attorney representing Grand View operator and co-owner Moshe Goldsman." - Glendale News

Grand View news

I am still watching for the latest on Grand View, but this week, a court hearing is planned. The last update mentioned late May as a possible one day opening for Grand View again. This is from the Glendale press:

"The tentative plan to open the park on May 25 could be confirmed at a status conference hearing on May 16 in Los Angeles Superior Court."

(One of our Edna fans has written in saying that on May 25th, Grand View will be open for a few hours. I am watching for a news article on this, or check your local news if you live in the LA area.)

Grand View Cemetery May have another opening

April 2008 - Glendale News reports that the owners of Grand View Cemetery are trying to open the cemetery for another ONE DAY opening in late May. more> (article available for 15 days at GN)

"The tentative plan to open the park on May 25 (2008) could be confirmed at a status conference hearing on May 16 in Los Angeles Superior Court." - Glendale News

LA CBS reported on Grand View's one day opening

Los Angeles local CBS news did run a news report on Grand View this evening, showing the one day opening today at the cemetery in Glendale.

Here is an updated link of reports, including cbs2 and Fox 11 News Los Angeles video reports of the opening.

• Video - Glendale Cemetery Reopens After 9 Months - CBS LA

• Video - Fox 11 News - Legally Troubled Cemetery in Glendale Ordered to Re-Open
(Fox video has a very short aerial view of the cemetery.)

• LA ABC News: March 31th - report

• Glendale News - Grand View cemetery opens for a few hours
"The goal is to have Grand View open every month for visitation, said Paul Ayers, the attorney who represents the families involved in a pending class-action lawsuit against the cemetery. “Ultimately, we’d like to get it up to at least two times a month,” Ayers said."- Glendale News

• Daily News - Los Angeles - Loved ones get chance to clean graves at Grand View
"Carrying armfuls of fresh flowers to brighten up their loved ones' weathered tombstones, visitors also dragged in rakes, shovels, paper towels and pruning tools to clean up the mess that grew in the nine months since they were last permitted inside."- Sue Doyle, Daily News

• Daily News - Andy Holzman Slide show of Grand View Memorial Park Visitation

Also, I received an email from Lisa Burks this evening, who has been doing detailed reports on Grand View, as well. She reported to me the mausoleum was opened for the first time since 2006. This was not widely known in advance, but a very nice surprise for visitors. Lisa said:

"It looks like there will be more regular visitations in the near future and they plan to have the mausoleum available too. I stopped by Edna and she was still decorated with the red silk rose and photo. I dusted her off and said hello from you and all her fans." - Lisa Burks














Here is a link to Lisa's photo of 'Edna' and her pictures taken today at Grand View.

The photo of Edna was actually left there by Edna fan, Mark McKenzie, in July 2004 (link). Lisa also has more reports here at Grand View Memorial Park Info.

I will post more reports when they come.
(Photo: Lisa Burks, taken Mar. 30, 2008)


Update: April 11, 2008 - Grand View may open again in late May
"Less than two weeks after hundreds of mourners were granted access to Grand View Memorial Park for the first time in 10 months, stakeholders in the troubled cemetery are planning another opening in late May." - Glendale News

Update May 21, 2008 - Grand View will be open for four hours (12-4PM) on Sunday, May 25th. See latest Grand View post.

Update June 10, 2008 - Grand View is trying to have a June 29, 2008 one day opening.

Recent letter about Grand View

"It was great to hear that Grand View Memorial Park will open again — even if for one day. And the 40-or-so community volunteers, including Boy Scouts, who rallied behind the cause and volunteered to staff the park are to be commended for their efforts.

But the cemetery’s operators can’t stop there, and expect that the city, or anyone else, is going to come to the rescue this time to keep it open longer." - Glendale News

Here is a link to the Glendale News of the full letter on Grand View. more>

Grand View will be open for one day on March 30, 2008 between the hours of 12-4PM.

(This article will be up for free 14 days, starting the day it was originally released on the web.)

Grand View plans opening March 30, 2008

After months of being closed, Grand View gates are planned to be unlocked FOR A DAY on Sunday, March 30, 2008.



"Friends and family members of those buried at Grand View Memorial Park will soon have their first chance in more than seven months to visit their loved ones at the troubled cemetery after a Superior Court judge on Monday approved a tentative public access plan.

The plan, which attorneys involved in a series of legal actions against the cemetery signed off on, envisions up to 40 volunteers staffing the park from noon to 4 p.m. on Sunday, March 30." - Glendale News

See full story at this link to Glendale News. (GN article is available for free 14 days from this date.)

Again: Grand View plans to be open Sunday, March 30, 2008 - from noon to 4PM.

"The one-time opening will be treated as a trial run, but if all goes smoothly later this month, it could lead to regular monthly visitations, said attorney David Baum, who represents cemetery operator Moshe Goldsman... Unlike previous openings, visitors are asked to proceed in their vehicles through the cemetery gates instead of stopping to get information. Once parked, volunteers will direct visitors to informational literature or deliver it themselves, Baum said. " - Glendale News

Grand View employee allowed on property

February 6, 2008 - Judge allows a former employee to gather his possessions and a plan to be presented on how to reopen the park.

"A judge on Wednesday ordered attorneys to escort a former Grand View Memorial Park employee onto the cemetery grounds today so he can collect personal belongings that have been locked up at the site for more than a year.

Burbank resident Richard Beaudoin had been storing a collection of personal items at the site, including his 1963 Chevrolet Corvair convertible, when former cemetery owner Marsha Lee Howard died in November 2006. An evidence-preservation order related to lawsuits now targeting the cemetery has since barred Beaudoin from retrieving his belongings, which he said also include his general equivalency diploma, tools and pictures of his children.

Los Angeles Superior Court Judge Anthony Mohr ordered attorneys for Howard’s brother Thomas Trimble, who is the administrator of her estate, to escort Beaudoin onto the premises today to collect his possessions.

“Now we’re getting somewhere,” Beaudoin said...

Baum is scheduled to present a plan for how Goldsman could reopen the park for monthly public visitations in court on March 10." - Glendale News

The full article is available for free at the Glendale News site 14 days from February 6, 2008.

More Work Needed at Grand View

February 1, 2008 - Glendale News - "NORTHWEST GLENDALE — City fire and legal officials who toured Grand View Memorial Park on Thursday to inspect fire safety conditions said more maintenance work needs to be done before the city can drop a pending lawsuit against the cemetery.

Cemetery co-owner and operator Moshe Goldsman has been busy implementing a $105,400 makeover of the troubled park since late December, installing an aboveground irrigation system, pruning or removing brittle trees and shaving the site’s broad, overgrown grass lawns.

Most of the work is completed, but after the inspection Thursday, the cemetery has a few more items on its maintenance to-do list, Goldsman’s attorney David Baum said.

“At this point, we’re satisfied with the project’s improvement, but we’re not there yet,” said Vasken Demirjian, the Glendale Fire Department environmental management coordinator. “There’s a lot of pending issues and problems. Most of the dead trees and branches have been cut, but there’s still a few trees that need to be pruned or cut.”

At least four abandoned vehicles, including an old, weathered hearse that’s parked outside a dilapidated chapel, are considered fire or safety hazards and need to be removed from the site, Demirjian said. "You know, it's a work on progress," he said.

Recent heavy rains delayed the cleanup work, which was previously expected to be completed this week, Baum said.

“We also have to secure the buildings on the premises so that they can’t be accessed without authorization, and then we’re going to probably go back and mow one more time and do final cleanup and be done,” Baum said. “In three or four weeks, all of this stuff should be handled.”

Baum is expected to give a status report Wednesday on the cleanup work at a court hearing." - Glendale News

See full article at Glendale News. Page available to see for free 14 days from the date Feb. 1st - more>

Remembering Grand View

Glendale News: January 31, 2008 - by Katherine Yamada
Verdugo Views - Remembering Grand View

"When Grand View Cemetery was established in the mid-1880s, it was one of the few burial grounds in the area. (Forest Lawn opened in 1906.) However, there aren’t too many tombstones dating back to those early years. Its heyday began in the 1920s, when Len C. Davis purchased it and set the tiny country graveyard on an expansion course.

Davis renamed it Grand View Memorial Park and added a 40-foot entrance arch, complete with electric lights, which spanned the entrance on what is now Glenwood Road. Made of stucco, the arch was painted in the same rose colors that decorated the interior of the new office building. Davis also took out plans for a residence and a chapel.

But his most impressive accomplishment was the landscaping. Most of the evergreen cypress trees that had originally been planted were taken out, and the bare land was formed into an amphitheater where 1,000-plus plots were laid out. More than 800 camphor and 200 bottle trees were planted to shade the graves.

Shortly before Memorial Day 1921, a Glendale Evening News article predicted that the holiday would bring many visitors to the cemetery. The expected visitors included relatives and friends of victims of World War I and those who still remembered the many Grand Army men buried there. (The Grand Army of the Republic, founded in 1866, was an organization of veterans of the United States Army, Navy and Marine Corps who served in the Civil War.)

In 1922, A. Budwig, former pilot for L.C. Brand and by then with the Rogers Airport at the La Brea oil fields, took several photos of the maturing plantings from the company airplane. One was published in the Glendale Daily Press in September 1922.

Davis took out permits in 1924 to build a huge mausoleum, said to be the largest in the world at the time, and estimated to cost $400,000." - Glendale News

Full article available for 14 days from January 31, 2008 - more>

Latest Post Listings

• Grand View Money Problems more>
• Latest Thierry G. Mathieu's Chaplin at Keystone magazine
• Cult Prints: Limited edition museum-quality print of Charlie Chaplin
• Dominique's collection: Chaplin et Les Memmes, by Nadia Meflah
• Also check out The Festival of Lost Films at The Bioscope
• Jan. 20th: Actress Suzanne Pleshette has died. She was 70.
Also, I am still thinking about Lita's special page. Just will take sometime to create, but it is the hardest page I ever had to create.