Doggy Drinking Fountain

Monrovia's Library Park has become dog-friendly. The city recently added a doggy drinking fountain at the southeast corner. That and a doggy plastic bag dispenser for, well, uh, canine cleanup.

- Brad Haugaard

Boys Soccer, La Canada 2, Monrovia 1 :-(

Story, http://goo.gl/gHEjt - Slideshow of the game, http://goo.gl/OkteR

 

- Brad Haugaard

Mayor to Testify before State Senate / Rename Olive Ave. Park? / Promotions

In his weekly report, City Manager Scott Ochoa reports that:

 

~ Mayor Mary Ann Lutz is scheduled to testify before the Senate Local Government Committee next Wednesday. He said she'll defend redevelopment, a program that Governor Brown would like to end.

 

~ at the last City Council meeting, "Mayor Pro Tem Adams requested that a study be conducted to change the name of Olive Avenue Park to a name that recognizes the contributions of Monrovia's Latino community over the years."

 

~ Steve Sizemore and Craig Jimenez took over the jobs of Community Development Director and Planning Division Manager, respectively.

 

Source: http://goo.gl/ncm8s

 

- Brad Haugaard

Carden School to Combine with Anita Oaks

On July 1, Monrovia's Carden of the Foothills school and Duarte's Anita Oaks School will combine to become Foothill Oaks Academy, located in Duarte.

Here is further information from the press release:
"The school will provide reasonably priced private school education from preschool through 8th grade, with a focus on individual attention to students, small class sizes, core curriculum, after school care, and many exciting opportunities for enrichment. Foothill Oaks Academy will kick off an engaging summer school program in 2011, which will be followed by a full academic program starting in September 2011.
"Both school boards and administrators came together to create Foothill Oaks Academy based on the best methods and style of education gleaned from both schools, with a continued commitment to core values and quality education that have come to define both schools within the community. The combination of the schools will provide a strong future, as well as improvements in academic programs for Foothill Oaks Academy. Nancy Lopez, the current principal at Anita Oaks School, and Diane Kieffaber, the current principal of Carden of the Foothills School, will co-direct Foothill Oaks Academy under the guidance of a board of trustees comprised of representatives from each school."
The Foothill Oaks Academy website is www.foothilloaksacademy.org. For more information or to schedule an interview, contact Ryan Soule at (626) 485-1688.
- Brad Haugaard

New Monrovia Walking Path / YMCA Run

~ City of Monrovia Management Analyst, Dan Bell, reported today that the city will install signs for a one-mile walking route throughout Old Town this week. The route, suggested by Councilmember Becky Shevlin and her husband, Chris, is being paid for entirely by the Monrovia Kiwanis Club.

 

~ If you'd like to help the Santa Anita Family YMCA and get a bit of exercise as well, the Y is having a 5k run/walk around Recreation Park on Saturday, Feb. 26. Adults $20, kids 14 and under $10. Money raised by the run will benefit the YMCA. Adult run at 8 a.m.; kids at 9:30 a.m. Call 626 359-9244 for details.

 

- Brad Haugaard

Huffington in Charge of Patch / Wrestling / Kirby Profile

~ The Monrovia Patch news website - and its hundreds of sister news sites - will soon have a new editor-in-chief in Arianna Huffington, the left-leaning commentator and founder of The Huffington Post. AOL, the owner of Patch, is purchasing The Huffington Post and putting her in charge of its media group.

From the press release:

"As part of the transaction, Arianna Huffington, The Huffington Post’s co-founder and editor-in-chief, will be named president and editor-in-chief of The Huffington Post Media Group, which will include all Huffington Post and AOL content, including Engadget, TechCrunch, Moviefone, MapQuest, Black Voices, PopEater, AOL Music, AOL Latino, AutoBlog, Patch, StyleList, and more." (Emphasis mine.)

Source: http://goo.gl/4OaY4

UPDATE: It appears Huffington will be somewhat of a hands-on manager. TechCrunch reports that Huffington "feels an affinity with Patch, AOL’s burgeoning local news properties." http://goo.gl/OdttT

UPDATE 2: In a blog post on The Huffington Post, Arianna Huffington writes: "AOL's Patch.com covers 800 towns across America, providing an incredible infrastructure for citizen journalism in time for the 2012 election, and a focus on community and local solutions that have been an integral part of HuffPost's DNA." http://goo.gl/htmDR

Certainly media owners have political viewpoints, though they usually try to at least sound neutral, but it sounds here as if Huffington intends to use Patch as a political tool and bring it into ideological alignment with The Huffington Post. I hope I'm misinterpreting this because I wish Patch all the best and I've enjoyed and admired it, and I don't think politicizing it is the road to success.

~ Wrestling. Monrovia's league standing. http://goo.gl/xgegn

~ Profile of former Monrovia City Councilman Dan Kirby. http://goo.gl/Ju043

- Brad Haugaard

Bear Poles / Basketball / Cupid / Author Talk / Rockin' Women / Tutoring

~ Along the Ben Overturff road, in Forest Service area above Monrovia Canyon Park, you see a lot of telephone poles (who has a phone up there I've no idea), all of which have scratch marks almost exactly six feet off the ground. Bear scratching posts. As you can see from the thin photo below, those bears could eventually chop down a pole. It got me thinking: When they replace a pole, maybe they ought to cut the old one off about seven feet from the ground instead of three feet. That way the bears would have a nice broken-in phone pole to scratch and maybe the new poles would last a lot longer. (No extra charge for that idea.)

~ Boys basketball; Monrovia 62, San Marino 31 :-) http://goo.gl/iV8qA

~ On Saturday, February 12, from 2 - 3 p.m. Cupid is bringing some favorite stories, songs, crafts and film to the library in honor of love, hearts and Valentines. For ages 4 years through 5th grade. http://goo.gl/O0Vr3

~ Author Daniel McLaurin will talk about his book, "32 Minutes of Greatness," the story of the Hillside High basketball team of Durham, North Carolina, and how it persevered in the face of mid-1960s racism. Wednesday, Feb 16, 6:30-7:30 p.m. http://goo.gl/DSA4I

~ The Monrovia Library will be holding a "Women Who Rock" performance in the lobby on Tuesday March 29, at 6:30. If you are a musically talented woman, contact Youth Services Librarian Rebecca Diaz at rdiaz@ci.monrovia.ca.us. http://goo.gl/W86nT

~ Monrovia's AVID tutoring program. http://goo.gl/YCaPT

- Brad Haugaard

Market Grill Review

This video of The Market Grill - which is kinda hidden away (525 S. Shamrock, across from Recreation Park) - shows the building it's in. I had a very tasty sandwich there. http://goo.gl/YatI5

Antonovich Blasts State Government

Monrovia's representative on the L.A. County Board of Supervisors, Mike Antonovich, testified before the  California State Assembly Subcomittee on the Budget this evening that, basically, the state is a spendthrift  that needs to make real structural reforms and shouldn't be trying to shift its expenses off onto the counties.

Antonovich said the state is "overspending," is driving businesses out of California, has a "bloated bureaucracy," is using a "magician's slight-of-hand trick" in its finances, and so forth. 

You can see his testimony on YouTube: http://goo.gl/xWLJ2

- Brad Haugaard

Mr. Monroe / Boost Monrovia / Water Polo / Upper Room Play

~ I was curious what our founder, Mr. Monroe, looked like, so I took a good look at him, right in Library Park. William N. Monroe seems like a nice guy - kinda stony-faced, but nice. Did you know his middle name was Newton?

~ The Star-News is having a "Readers Choice Awards" contest, so if you'd like to nominate a great Monrovia business or two, pick up a copy of today's Star-News and vote (I didn't see the form online). It is on page A5. I've seen the form before, so maybe the paper will run it again.

~ Girls Water Polo - Monrovia 3, San Marino 8 :-( http://goo.gl/KqmkQ

~ Monrovia Second Baptist is putting on the play, "The Upper Room," as part of Black History Month. http://goo.gl/sxU3O

- Brad Haugaard

Attack with a Drill, Child Abuse, Hit and Run, Robbery, Etc.

[Monrovia Police activities from the Police Department's Neighborhood Watch Report for Jan. 27-Feb. 2. - Brad Haugaard]

 

During the last seven day period, the Police Department handled 454 service events, resulting in 86 investigations.  Following are the last week's highlighted issues and events:

 

Felony Vandalism - Suspect Arrested

January 20 at 12:35 p.m., officers responded to a business in the 1600 block of South Mountain regarding a subject that had thrown rocks at nine parked vehicles, breaking seven windows.  The male suspect was wearing a white t-shirt with a red sweatshirt tied around his waist and he had fled the area.  The suspect was located and detained by officers on Mountain under the freeway.  He was positively identified and arrested for felony vandalism and misdemeanor warrants.

 

Felony Hit and Run Traffic Accident - Suspect Arrested

January 20 at 2:14 p.m., officers responded to the area of Foothill and Mayflower regarding two male subjects fighting as a result of a traffic collision.  The collision involved a motorcycle and a car.  A passenger on the motorcycle sustained injuries.  The driver of the car fled, but was detained by an officer a short distance away.  The driver was positively identified and was arrested. 

 

Robbery

January 21 at 6:05 p.m., police responded to a business in the 500 block of West Huntington that had just been robbed at gunpoint.  The suspect was described as male, 30 years old, possible mustache or goatee, wearing a blue baseball cap, dark hooded sweatshirt, and dark pants.  The suspect was given the money from the register and had exited the business running west toward Mayflower.  An extensive area search was conducted, but the suspect was not located.  Investigation continuing.

 

Grand Theft Auto Recovery - Suspect Arrested

January 21 at 8:37 p.m., an officer on patrol in the 1600 block of South Mayflower located and conducted a traffic stop on a stolen vehicle.  The driver of the vehicle was the listed suspect.  She was arrested and taken into custody.  The vehicle had been stolen from a car rental company. 

 

Child Abuse - Suspect Arrested

January 21 at 5:36 p.m., an officer was dispatched for a welfare check at a residence attached to a business in the 2100 block of South Myrtle.  The investigation resulted in the arrest of the father at the location. Two children were interviewed and stated their father chokes, kicks and pulls their ears.  The 4 year old male child had visible injury to his neck.  He told the investigating officer his father grabs his neck and chokes him.  The Department of Child and Family Services assigned custody of the children to the mother with the requirement that they be kept away from the father until his hearing.  In the early morning, the mother came to the police station with the children to bail out the father.  The Department of Child and Family Services was notified and responded.  They felt the children could not be protected under the current circumstances and took temporary custody of the children.

 

Fight in Progress / Public Intoxication - Subjects Arrested

January 23 at 1:44 a.m., officers responded to a night club in the 300 block of South Myrtle regarding a fight in progress.  Upon arrival, several patrons were gathered to the front of the business and to the rear parking lot.  No fight was observed and no victims came forward; however, two male subjects were obviously intoxicated and were arrested and taken into custody. 

 

Vandalism / Destruction of City Property

January 24 at 8:30 a.m., officers went to the 400 block of East Duarte regarding the vandalism and destruction of city property.  The officer found the lock to the location had been cut off. The property was checked, but no suspects were found.

 

Assault with a Deadly Weapon

January 24 at 9:15 a.m., a resident in the 400 block of East Duarte saw a male and female subject on his neighbor's property.  He closed the gate to secure the couple inside the fenced in area.  The male suspect became combative and forced the gate open.  During the confrontation, the victim was struck on the head with a cordless drill.  The suspects fled the location.  A search of the area was conducted for the suspects, but they were not located.  The victim did not require medical attention.  The investigation is continuing.

Portantino on Film Commission / Boys Soccer

Assemblyman Anthony Portantino, who represents part of Monrovia, has been named to the state film commission. http://goo.gl/ZSvj5

 

Boys Soccer: Monrovia 3, Temple City 3 :-| http://goo.gl/fBFXk

 

- Brad Haugaard

Cutting California's Budget - A Lesson from Monrovia

I've been following Monrovia City Manager Scott Ochoa's colorful - and, I think, mostly correct - fulminations against the California state government, but I sympathize with Governor Brown's predicament: how to balance the state budget. Therefore, I would like to make a little proposal - based on an experience right here in Monrovia - to make a small cut in the state's expenses.
 
My proposal: Tell the Division of the State Architect to stop overseeing school construction. The DSA's task, according to its home page ( http://goo.gl/IGf4R ), is to "provide design and construction oversight for K–12 schools and community colleges throughout the State of California." But to the best I can determine, the main result of its oversight is to waste school districts' time and money.
 
This oversight requirement is insulting and wasteful:

- It is insulting: The point of the DSA's oversight appears to be to ensure that new construction will be in compliance with Title 24 ( http://goo.gl/q41yB ), some state energy-saving rules ( http://goo.gl/LjQd1 ). But requiring Sacramento to review schools' construction plans is like spitting in the faces of the cities' and counties' planning departments. It is saying they are either a bunch of stupid hicks who can't understand and enforce Title 24, or that they can't be trusted to enforce the law.

- It is wasteful. A few years ago a community group headed by Ed Gililland, now president of the Monrovia Board of Education, wanted to build a snack bar at Monrovia High School. This little building had to be approved by the Division of the State Architect. A snack bar! If I remember correctly, it got stuck in the state bureaucracy for years, while all the time the cost of construction was rising, while all the time the students were deprived of the use of a new snack bar.

Solution: Do away with the oversight part of the DSA and turn it over to local planning departments, where it belonged in the first place. Eliminating pointless enforcement will save the state money and will save local school districts unnecessary and expensive delays in new construction.

Just a gripe I've wanted to air for years.

- Brad Haugaard

Not So Fast on Monrovia Logo / Waste Roundup / Black History / AeroVironment / Green Dot

~ Oops! New Monrovia city logo was never approved by City Council. http://goo.gl/hfWfW

 

~ Hazardous waste roundup scheduled for Saturday, March 5 at  the park and ride Lot, Myrtle at Pomona Avenues. Details: http://goo.gl/3Fgin

 

~ Black History Month will feature photos at Monrovia Historical Museum. http://goo.gl/yUb8Y 

~ Milbank Manufacturing Co. of Kansas City, Missouri, has selected Monrovia's AeroVironment electric vehicle (EV) charging stations for its customers. http://goo.gl/oQx6K

 

~ Monrovia's Green Dot Corporation, a leading prepaid financial services company,  has won four 2011 PayBefore Awards: Best Prepaid Program Media Advertising, Best Web Sales Channel, Best Consumer Value in Prepaid, and Best Third Party Prepaid Product Retailer. http://goo.gl/F9741

 

- Brad Haugaard

Friends of Monrovia Library Cheap Books

Selected adult books and media half-price in February at the Friends of Monrovia Library book store (right in the front door and to the left at the library). Look for items with red dots on the spine. MonroviaOpoly game also on sale - $25. http://goo.gl/JX0Fq