Valley Glen

Re “Valley Glen Neighbors Celebrate a New Name,” July 20.

What’s wrong with the following sentence from the story about Valley Glen? “Those who turned out . . . counted at least 16 different ethnic groups including Armenians, Japanese, Mexicans, Jews, Italians and Irish from the predominantly middle-class Valley Glen neighborhood.”

I’m happy about the ethnic diversity in my old neighborhood of Valley Glen, but may I point out that Judaism is a religion and is the only religion you listed. According to your classification, my husband, an Italian Jew, belongs to two separate ethnic groups.

JODY LISS-MONTELEONE

Santa Clarita

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As a 10-year resident of the area now known as Valley Glen, I have to express my disgust with both our committee and our [Councilman] Michael Feuer. The petition I signed last year clearly set the boundaries of what would become Valley Glen at Coldwater Canyon Avenue to Woodman Avenue, Burbank Boulevard to Victory Boulevard. In our committee’s zeal to grovel at Feuer’s feet, they went along like lambs to the slaughter with his attempt to pack the neighborhood with extra voters. What was supposed to be a small, clean local neighborhood now includes some of the worst parts of Van Nuys and North Hollywood. I for one will continue to use the name Van Nuys on my return address, since the name Valley Glen will soon come to symbolize what we wanted to avoid: gangs, graffiti and crime. Perhaps Feuer would have left the boundaries at their original points if he had to actually live in the neighborhood he has so cleverly doomed to failure.

TED PERLMAN

Van Nuys