Monrovia's Birthday Party Saturday

This Saturday, May 18, Monrovia's 127th birthday party. Details ( http://goo.gl/89YFO ). Also, if you want to watch the Fountain to the Falls racers start, they'll be taking off from the fountain in Library Park at 7 a.m. sharp.

- Brad Haugaard

Monrovia High Rubik's Cube Club

I've heard of a lot of different types of clubs on school campuses, but Monrovia High has one I've never encountered: a Rubik's Cube Club (scroll down a ways): http://goo.gl/IFujM

- Brad Haugaard

Keychain Monrovia Library Card

My library card expired and I got a new one today. It comes with a keychain card as well. It has a picture of "Carmegie Library, 1908-1956."

Monrovia Condo Construction Begins | Arts Association Fundraiser

~ Work has begun on 18-unit condo a block east of Myrtle on Olive. http://goo.gl/pIWnQ

~ Monrovia Association of Fine Arts will hold its 13th annual fundraiser - "Acknowledge the Arts" on Friday June 21. http://goo.gl/ovJsR

- Brad Haugaard

Firey Hot | Old Town Leader Steps Down

~ National Weather Service warning for the Monrovia area: Hot and dry; prime fire weather; watch out! ( http://goo.gl/l3eit ). Also, it got up to 100 degrees at 3:05 p.m. today. http://goo.gl/fM7Kt

~ After more than 10 years, Brian Whelan steps down as chairman of the Monrovia Old Town Advisory Board. http://goo.gl/80s56

- Brad Haugaard

Monrovia Police: Watch for the Prepaid Money Card Scam; Kicking Cars; Walking in Burned Area; Etc.

[Monrovia Police activities from the Police Department's Neighborhood Watch Report for May 9-12. - Brad Haugaard]

 

Following are the weekend's highlighted issues and events.  

 

Telephone Scam Targeting the Elderly

The Monrovia Police Department has recently received several calls from elderly Monrovia citizens reporting the following telephone scam: 

 

The elderly victim receives a call stating they owe money for an outstanding debt.  The suspect soon states if they don't pay this debt, a warrant could be issued for their arrest, their bank account will be put on hold, and there is a possibility they will lose their house.  The suspect then tells the victim if they want to resolve the matter, they need to purchase a Greendot prepaid money card with a certain amount, usually not more than $500.00.  Once the victim obtains the card, they are to call back and give the card number so it can be verified.  The suspect then transfers the money from the victim's card to another card and the money is gone.  If the victim falls for the scam, the suspect sometimes calls back and tries to solicit additional money from the victim. 

 

Please be aware of this scam and let others know this is going on so we can prevent this crime.  Please inform your loved ones, especially the elderly, as they are the targets of this particular scam.  Let them know to never give out personal information to anyone over the phone.  A legitimate company would not operate by asking for personal information over the phone; they would have your information already. 

 

Vandalism / Drunk in Public – Suspect Arrested

May 11 at 2:05 a.m., police responded to the report of a disturbing female subject at a business in the 1800 block of Walker that was refusing to leave.  Officers arrived and located the subject.  The female had been drinking and was combative.  She had kicked a male acquaintance's vehicle, causing a dent in the vehicle.  She was determined to be intoxicated and a danger to herself and others; she was arrested for being drunk in public. 

 

Hiker Enters Closed Burn Area – Receives Civil Citation

May 11 at 11:30 a.m., a hiker was observed entering the closed burn area at Highland Place by a park ranger.  Signs are posted prohibiting hikers from entering the area for their own safety.  When the park ranger warned the hiker and told him not to enter the area, the hiker ignored him and told the ranger to call the police, and he said he was going to keep walking.  The police department was called and officers responded to the location.  The suspect stopped for the officers; he was issued a civil Administrative Citation for entering the restricted burn area.

 

Commercial Burglary – Suspect Arrested

May 11 at 11:39 a.m., a suspect entered a business in the 1600 block of South Mountain Avenue, selected an automatic utility pump and put it in a cart.  The suspect walked around the store with the cart for a while and then attempted to exit the store without paying for the merchandise.  He was followed out of the store by loss prevention.  When contacted, the suspect attempted to push the loss prevention officer and a struggle ensued.  He was eventually taken into custody by loss prevention.  Officers responded to the location and the suspect was arrested.

Miyachi Unitek Expands in Monrovia | Little League Moms

~ Miyachi Unitek Corporation, a manufacturer of welding equipment and systems, is expanding its Monrovia national headquarters and manufacturing facility with the acquisition of the South Myrtle Business Center from Burbank, CA-based Shamrock Holdings, Inc. Miyachi Unitek has purchased two currently leased buildings and an additional building on the site, expanding from 70,000 to 85,000 square feet of space. The company also acquired a 230-car parking lot. http://goo.gl/6ZllS

~ LA Times features Monrovia Little League moms for Mothers Day. http://goo.gl/4W8gK

- Brad Haugaard

Civiltec to Manage Monrovia's Station Square Project | Number 2 in Baseball

~ Civiltec will design and manage construction of Monrovia's Gold Line Station Square project. http://goo.gl/x9Uwv

~ Monrovia finishes second in baseball league. http://goo.gl/9zaVk

- Brad Haugaard

Monrovia Mayor's Green-Car Buying Experience Will Be on Local Cable

According to Star-News Columnist Steve Scauzillo, Monrovia Mayor Mary Ann Lutz' green car-buying experience "will be the subject of a documentary on Monrovia cable access TV." http://goo.gl/iNq8V

- Brad Haugaard

Isla Vista Night at First Presbyterian Church | Monrovia High Dress Code | Pancakes Tomorrow!

~ A night of music and worship at First Presbyterian Church of Monrovia, with "Isla Vista Worship" from Isla Vista Church, Isla Vista, California, and Worship Leader Mac Montgomery.

~ Ever wonder what Monrovia High's dress code was 50 years ago? Yeah, me neather, but here it is: "Skirts could not be any higher than mid-thigh and shirts always had to be tucked in." And, a humorous word for today's boys: "We know why your pants have been sagging so much. We realize it is not your fault, it is the belt manufacturers. So, if you have a defective belt, come to my office and I will give you, free of charge, a brand new set of suspenders to keep your pants up. Wow, what a fashion statement you will make." http://goo.gl/AFzQI

~ Monrovia firefighter's pancake breakfast tomorrow (Saturday) from 7-11 a.m. at the Lemon Ave. station. http://goo.gl/xsSRo

- Brad Haugaard

New Horizons Exhibit at Segil Fine Art

Lone Cypress, Monterey - by Scott Dienhart

A new exhibition, "Chasing New Horizons," featuring oil paintings by Scott Dienhart, May 11 through June 8 at Segil Fine Art, 110 West Lime.

- Brad Haugaard

Home Depot to Add a Cafe In Front

The city has approved a request to add a permanent cafe kiosk in front of Home Depot.  http://goo.gl/Rjl6j

- Brad Haugaard

Lunch at Mayan Bar and Grill

The Mayan Bar and Grill, in the Aztec Hotel, is not open to the public yet, but I got to have a special preview lunch there today. I had chicken wings with mole and chipotle sauce for appetizer, pork marinated in achiolte and Carne de Res (fajitas). Portions were small since this was for tasting. Restaurant should be open mid-June to early July. Very good. I particularly liked the pork, shown here. 

- Brad Haugaard 

Monrovia Congresswoman Speech on Mental Health Awareness

Video: Talk for National Children's Mental Health Awareness Day by Rep. Grace F. Napolitano, who represents Monrovia, for Members of Congress and their staff. http://goo.gl/X2MHQ

- Brad Haugaard

Monrovia-Made Drone: Keeping an Eye on the Greater Sage Grouse

U.S. Geological Survey uses Raven drone, made by Monrovia's AeroVironment, to survey the greater sage grouse. http://goo.gl/pmfbg

- Brad Haugaard

Monrovia Police: Store Isn't Faked-Out Second Time; He Reeealy Didn't Want to Chat; Not Your Standard Preacher; Etc.

[Monrovia Police activities from the Police Department's Neighborhood Watch Report for May 6-8. - Brad Haugaard]

 

During the last seven-day period, the Police Department handled 469 service events, resulting in 77 investigations.

 

Residential Burglary

May 6 at 12:40 p.m., officers responded to an alarm activation at a residence in the 200 block of Bradoaks.  When they arrived, they discovered a back window open and the house had been burglarized.  A resident in the area saw two, male Black suspects fleeing the home in a silver Toyota Camry.  Arcadia Police Department received notification of the robbery and advised of an incident in Arcadia involving a silver Toyota that occurred approximately an hour earlier.  An Arcadia resident had a male and female Black who were driving a silver Toyota Camry knock on the door.  When the resident answered, the subjects appeared surprised someone was home and quickly came up with a request for directions to the 134 Freeway.  The resident reported the suspicious incident to police, who responded, but the vehicle was not located.  The investigation is continuing.

 

Fraud / Commercial Burglary – Suspect Arrested

May 6 at 3:45 p.m., a female subject entered a business in the 500 block of West Huntington with her 3-year-old daughter.  She attempted to make a purchase using fraudulent credit cards she had in her possession, but was detained by store loss prevention personnel.  She had been in the store 3 days prior and used the same cards to purchase $720 of merchandise.  Officers responded, confirmed the cards in her possession were fraudulent, along with a fraudulent social security card and multiple fake identification cards.  She also had a no-bail warrant for her arrest out of San Bernardino for burglary.  She was arrested and the Department of Children and Family Services was called to take custody of her daughter.

 

Commercial Burglary – Suspect Arrested

May 6 at 8:24 p.m., an officer was dispatched on the report of a burglary at a business in the 700 block of East Huntington.  An adult female with her 4-year-old child went into the business.  The suspect took a bag and removed the tag, then went throughout the store putting store merchandise inside the bag.  She exited the store without paying and was detained.  Officers spoke with the suspect and found this was not her first arrest for theft.  She was arrested and the Department of Children and Family Services was contacted and responded to take custody of the four-year-old child.

 

Domestic Violence – Suspect Arrested

May 6 at 11:42 p.m., a male subject who is on house arrest was at home with his girlfriend.  His girlfriend wanted to talk to him, but he wanted to be left alone.  She continued to talk to him and he became angry.  He then grabbed her, shook her, and head butted her.  She ran into the other room and called police.  He saw she was using her phone and grabbed the phone and broke it.  The police dispatcher was still on the line and heard the male subject yell at the female and the phone went dead. Officers arrived and the subject was arrested.

 

Missing Child / Runaway Juvenile - Located

On May 7 at 6:06 p.m., a 10-year-old male subject was reported missing to police by his family members.  The boy was last seen at a relative's home in the 200 block of West Walnut in the City of Monrovia.  He has run away several times before and had run away from his family the day before in Pasadena.  An extensive search was conducted by the Monrovia Police Department and neighboring agencies were notified, but the boy was not located.    

 

The boy was actually located at approximately 4:00 a.m. that next morning by the Los Angeles County Sheriff's Department and was taken into custody by the Department of Children and Family Services.  Sheriff's deputies contacted him on Rosemead Blvd. in the City of Rosemead and detained him.  The boy had taken his grandmother's cell phone and debit card, and had withdrawn money with the card.  Due to the fact that the boy was not truthful about his identity with the Sheriff's Department, he was not determined to be the missing child from Monrovia until later in the day, when his true identity was discovered.

 

Under the Influence of a Controlled Substance / Vandalism / Mentally Disturbed Subject

May 8 at 6:39 a.m., police received a call reporting a male subject knocking on doors and claiming to be a preacher.  He was reportedly acting very odd.  Officers arrived and located the subject, who is a known drug user with a long history of contacts with the police department.  The subject was determined to be under the influence of a controlled substance, and he was also charged with vandalism of a window he had damaged at the trailer park where he was located.  He was arrested and later released on citation. 

 

Later that day, at 4:11 p.m., a resident in the 400 block of Bradbury called stating a male subject knocked on his door and was acting strange.  Officers responded and found the same subject who had been arrested earlier, walking in the street in the 1100 block of Lemon; he was making wildly unrealistic statements.  He was detained and was taken to a hospital, where he was held for 72-hour mental evaluation.

 

Commercial Burglary – Suspect Arrested

May 8 at 3:04 p.m., an officer was dispatched to a business in the 1600 block of South Mountain on the report of a burglary.  Store loss prevention had detained a subject who had attempted to take merchandise by hiding it in his waistband.  The subject is currently on probation for burglary.  He was arrested and taken into to custody.

 

Grand Theft – Suspect Arrested

May 8 at 9:57 p.m., a female employee of a business in the 1600 block of South Mountain was believed to have been taking money from her cash register over a long period of time.  Employees from the business had been watching her remove money from the register drawer and put it in her pocket.  She was removed from duty at the register and interviewed.  She admitted to the long-term thefts and was arrested by police.

Ford Selects AeroVironment | Will Monrovia Win a Top Softball Spot? | Book Sale

~ Ford Motor Company has selected Monrovia's AeroVironment as its "preferred installation partner and authorized charging station supplier for the Ford Focus Electric, C-MAX Energi and Fusion Energi plug-in electric vehicles." http://goo.gl/ZpykQ

~ Monrovia in the race for a top spot in softball. http://goo.gl/jrmL4

~ Monrovia Friends of the Library book sale, Friday and Saturday, May 17-18 from noon to 5 p.m. $2 a bag sale will be Saturday from 4-5 p.m. No scanners, cell phones and other electronic devices at the sale. http://goo.gl/sRleY

- Brad Haugaard

Twelve Positions Available on Monrovia City Commissions

Are you an aspiring civic leader? Do you have a passion for historic preservation, parks or urban planning? Are you looking for a way to share your knowledge for the betterment of your community?

  

If you answered “yes!” to any of these, then here’s your chance.

The City of Monrovia is seeking 12 Monrovians to serve on one of five commissions and boards. Applications are now being accepted.  The deadline to apply is 6 p.m. on May 22. Positions available are on the:

  

Planning Commission (2 positions available). 

Description: The seven members of the Planning Commission are the decision-making body on zone variances, conditional use permits, design reviews and parcel maps.

Historic Preservation Commission (2 positions available). 

Description: The seven members of the Monrovia Historic Preservation Commission protect and preserve Monrovia’s historic landmarks. 

Community Services Commission – (3 positions available). 

Description: The seven members of the Community Services Commission assess the social service, leisure, park and street tree needs of the community to evaluate and make recommendations on how those needs are or should be met. 

Library Board (3 positions available). 

Description: The five members of the Library Board are governed by the California State Education Code, and are responsible for enforcing all the rules, regulations, and bylaws necessary for the administration, governance and protection of the library and its property.

Monrovia Old Town Advisory Board (MOTAB) (2 positions available).

Description: The five member Board is comprised of Old Town merchants and is responsible for making recommendations to the City Council on programs and projects to advance the downtown area through marketing, promotion and overall improvement of the Business Improvement District. 

Please visit http://cityofmonrovia.org/city-government/boards-a-commissions for a link to the application and additional information about each commission.

For applicants who are interested, there is an informational meeting scheduled for 6:30 p.m. on Thursday, May 16, at 6:30 p.m. in the Council Chambers, 415 S. Ivy Avenue.  

If you have not attended one of these meetings before, it is strongly encouraged that potential applicants take the opportunity to learn more about the scope of each of the boards and commissions and take a moment to speak to the Department Directors who work directly with the Boardmembers and commissioners. Each candidate must submit an application and go through an interview process. If selected, the term begins July 1, 2013.

If you plan on attending or have questions, please contact City Clerk Alice Atkins at (626) 932-5505 or by email at aatkins@ci.monrovia.ca.us. 

Source: City of Monrovia press release

- Brad Haugaard

Monrovia Bakery Reopens

Monrovia Bakery, in Old Town, reopens after change of ownership. http://goo.gl/uBlFZ

- Brad Haugaard

FOUND: Missing Monrovia Child - Mykai Gaddis

UPDATE: Mykai was located by members of the Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department in the City of Rosemead. He was transferred to the custody of the Department of Children and Family Services, where he was then reunited with family members. Mykai is determined to be a frequent runaway and efforts are being made to provide appropriate custodial care. No foul play or neglect by a guardian is suspected.

Last Name: Gaddis First Name: Mykai Nickname: Big Mac Age: 10 Gender: Male Height: 5'0" Weight: 92 lbs Eyes: Brown Hair: Black Complexion: Medium Race: Black

Mykai was last seen at a relative’s home in the 200 block of W. Walnut in the City of Monrovia at 6:00 p.m. on May 7, 2013. He has run away several times before and had run away from his family the day before in Pasadena.

Mykai was last seen wearing a black button down long sleeved shirt with a white wavy line design, blue jeans and black dress shoes. His hair is cut short.

Any information on Mykai should be reported to the Monrovia Police Department immediately: (626) 256-8000.

Source: Monrovia Police press release

- Brad Haugaard