Monrovia Police: Rooftop Burglary Attempt; Price Tag Switch; Belligerent on a Bus; Scooter Swiped; Etc.

[Monrovia Police activities from the Police Department's Neighborhood Watch Report for August 6-9. - Brad Haugaard]

Following are the weekend’s highlighted issues and events.

Gang Injunction – Suspect Arrested
August 6 at 11:04 p.m., officers responded to the report of a possible burglary in progress in the 200 block of West Cypress. The caller reported that someone was on the roof of the complex. The complex is three stories high. Officers observed a male subject climbing down the emergency ladder from the roof. The subject is a known gang member and has been placed on the Gang Injunction list. The subject was arrested for violation of the Gang Injunction court order.

Theft – Suspects Arrested
August 7 at 9:19 p.m., loss prevention from a business in the 500 block of West Huntington called police to report three suspects in custody for burglary. The suspects switched the price tags on merchandise, putting clearance tags with a much lower price on the items. Loss prevention observed the suspect removing and replacing the tags. The suspects then paid for the items and were stopped by loss prevention as they exited the checkout. The suspects were arrested for theft and received a citation to appear in court.

Stolen Vehicle
August 8 at 3:13 p.m., a stolen vehicle was reported in the 800 block of West Walnut. The victim parked and locked her car in her driveway at 10:00 a.m. When she returned, the car was gone. No one had permission to take the vehicle. The investigation is continuing.

Warrant – Suspect Arrested
August 9 at 10:19 a.m., dispatch received a call reporting a male subject, possibly passed out, near an elementary school building in the 900 block of East Lemon. Officers responded and located the subject. After contacting him, officers discovered he had several outstanding warrants for his arrest; he was arrested and taken into custody for the warrants.

Disturbance/Wanted Person – Suspect Arrested
August 9 at 12:18 p.m., a local bus line called police to report a patron on a bus in the 200 block of East Huntington that was causing a disturbance and would not exit the bus. Officers responded and located the subject as he was exiting the bus. The officers determined the subject had been drinking and had an outstanding wanted person entry out of the San Bernardino Sheriff’s Department. The subject was arrested and taken into custody. San Bernardino deputies responded and took custody of the suspect.

Warrant – Suspect Arrested
August 9 at 12:39 p.m., officers responded to the 600 block of Montana regarding a suspicious person. The caller reported a male subject in their backyard and gave a description. Officers located a subject matching the description a short distance away. Officers contacted the subject and determined he had a no-bail warrant for his arrest. He was arrested and taken into custody.

Stolen Scooter
August 9 at 3:45 p.m., police dispatch received a call reporting a stolen Vespa scooter from the 100 block of West Foothill. The victim said she was late for work and left the keys in the ignition. She returned to her scooter at 3:00 p.m. and found the scooter was missing. An area check was made, but the scooter was not located. The investigation is continuing.

Stolen Vehicle
August 9 at 4:47 p.m., a vehicle was reported stolen from the 300 block of West Olive. The vehicle was taken sometime between August 7 and 9. All keys are accounted for and the doors were locked. The area was searched, but the vehicle was not located. The investigation is continuing.

Drunk in Public/Medical Assist
August 10 at 1:00 a.m., officers responded to the 100 block of East Olive regarding a female who was lying on the sidewalk, unresponsive. They arrived and were able to revive the subject. She was determined to be heavily intoxicated and unable to care for herself. She was arrested for being drunk in public and taken into custody. Monrovia Fire Department paramedics responded and determined she needed to be taken to a local hospital and she was taken for treatment.

Monrovia Run/Walk Against Hypertension

Monrovia 02 Breathe Walk at Monrovia Library Park on Nov. 7. To raise funds to seek ways to prevent and cure pulmonary hypertension, and to provide support, education, and awareness. One mile run/walk. Details: http://goo.gl/ca7URp

- Brad Haugaard

Grand Reopening of Stan's Old Town Vacuum

Stan's Old Town Vacuum and Sewing Shop, 312 S. Myrtle, is having a grand reopening. Store hours Monday-Friday 9-5, Saturday 9-3. Closed Sunday

- Brad Haugaard

Detail On Planned Starbucks At Foothill and Madison

At its August 12 meeting (agenda: http://goo.gl/C41gUb ) the Monrovia Planning Commission will consider a request to build a 950 square foot drive-through Starbucks at the corner of Foothill and Madison ( http://goo.gl/tBqSmb ), replacing the current Burger Shack. The project has already been approved by the Development Review Committee.

- Brad Haugaard

Ice Cream Shop Open on Myrtle

Got a little chocolate ice cream cup ($4) at the new Paradis ice cream shop on Myrtle, right across from the theater. It was very rich and tasty.

- Brad Haugaard

What New Monrovia Orchard Supply Will Look Like

Here's a picture of what the new Orchard Supply Hardware store will look like. It will occupy the old Office Depot site at Huntington and Monterey. http://goo.gl/U40Gsu

- Brad Haugaard

Monrovia's Marching Band

Did you know Monrovia once had its own marching band? http://goo.gl/6V5hbb

- Brad Haugaard

Installing The Art At Monrovia's Station Square

Photo of Monrovia Station Square artist, Cha-Rie Tang, setting glass blocks in place around a seven-foot-tall rock to simulate water. http://goo.gl/OMPi08

- Brad Haugaard

Dinner at Oto-Oto Izakaya Japonnaise

Dinner last night at  Oto-Oto Izakaya Japonnaise restaurant in the shopping center at Fifth and Huntington. I got the Jidori Chicken Oyakodon Set for $12.95 and a beer for $3.50. Beautiful decor and good food. 

- Brad Haugaard

Why Tribune Is Moving to Monrovia | Water Rules

~ The San Gabriel Valley Tribune explains why it is moving its headquarters to 605 E. Huntington in Monrovia (Two reasons: It's not afraid of its readers anymore, and no need for those big printing presses anymore): http://goo.gl/u54g8O

~ Wondering exactly what the current water rules are for Monrovia. Here are the details: http://goo.gl/Fla2tc

- Brad Haugaard

Monrovia Police: It Wasn't a False Alarm; Armed Gas Station Robbery; Purse Stolen From Unlocked Vehicle

[Monrovia Police activities from the Police Department's Neighborhood Watch Report for August 3-5. - Brad Haugaard]

During the last seven-day period, the Police Department handled 373 service events, During the last seven-day period, the Police Department handled 373 service events, resulting in 61 investigations.

Attempt Commercial Burglary
August 3 at 9:40 a.m., an officer responded to a business in the 800 block of East Huntington regarding an attempt burglary. The owner received a call from his alarm company on August 2 at 12:56 p.m., stating the alarm was going off due to possible glass breakage. The owner told the alarm company he thought it was a false alarm and that they did not need to call the police. When the owner arrived at work the next morning, the framing around the window had been removed. It appeared that the suspect was attempting to remove the front glass window and was scared off by the alarm. The investigation is continuing.

Grand Theft
August 4 at 9:27 a.m., an officer was dispatched to a residence in the 800 block of West Olive regarding the theft of a catalytic converter. The victim parked his vehicle, a Honda Element, on the street in front of his residence. He returned to his vehicle the next morning and discovered the catalytic converter had been stolen. The investigation is continuing.

Vehicle Burglary
August 4 at 11:51 a.m., a vehicle burglary was reported in the 900 block of South Primrose. Unknown suspects took tools from company vehicles that were parked in the business parking lot. The theft occurred sometime during the night when the business was closed and utility work bags containing telephone repair equipment were stolen. The employees reported that the vehicles were locked, but there was no sign of forced entry. The investigation is continuing.

Theft of Mail
August 4 at 2:07 p.m., a theft of mail that had just occurred was reported in the 200 block of West Hillcrest. A package was stolen from the porch of a residence. A tan Chevy Suburban was seen stopping in front of the residence. A juvenile exited the vehicle, wearing athletic clothing, and took a package from the front porch. The suspect got back into the vehicle and fled west on Hillcrest. The driver of the vehicle was described as a female Black. The investigation is continuing.

Armed Robbery
August 4 at 11:28 a.m., officers responded to a gas station in the 700 block of West Huntington on an armed robbery that had occurred 40 minutes prior. Although the report was delayed, officers searched the area for the suspects, who were reported to be two male Blacks in their late teens to early 20's. The suspects were wearing all dark clothing with jeans, and they had half their faces covered with bandana type material. They had red shoe laces and red belts. One of the suspects was armed with a black handgun. The suspects entered the gas station store, pointed the gun at the clerk and demanded cash. The clerk opened the register and one of the suspects removed the cash. Both suspects fled in a southwest direction on foot. The investigation is continuing.

Possession of Burglary Tools/Possession of a Controlled Substance/Possession of Drug Paraphernalia – Suspect Arrested
August 5 at 2:50 a.m., an officer was on patrol in the 700 block of East Greystone when he observed a suspicious subject unloading items from a vehicle. Believing a theft was possibly occurring, he contacted the subject. Although the vehicle was determined to belong to the subject, he was found to be in possession of burglary tools, over five grams of methamphetamine, and a methamphetamine pipe. He was arrested for the violations and taken into custody.

Hit and Run Traffic Collision
On August 5 at 4:04 p.m., an officer was dispatched to the 600 block of West Duarte Road regarding a hit and run traffic collision. Three parked vehicles were side-swiped by an unknown vehicle. This investigation is continuing.

Petty Theft
On August 5 at 7:27 p.m., an officer responded to the 100 block of South Encinitas regarding a theft of a purse report. At 7:10 p.m. the victim left her purse inside her unlocked vehicle, which was parked in front of her residence. Upon returning at 7:20 p.m. she discovered that her purse had been stolen. This investigation is continuing.

Construction to Begin on Townhomes Near Monrovia's Station Square

Brandywine Homes will begin demolition this month on Lotus Court, a .74-acre community that will offer 13 townhomes on Duarte Road near Station Square in Monrovia. Brandywine expects to begin sales in February and plans to complete the community by summer 2016.

The company plans to build 13 three- and four-bedroom townhomes ranging in size from 1,555 to 1,705 square feet, all with full side-by-side garages and Spanish inspired architecture, stainless steel appliances and solid-surface counters. The stucco, three-story townhomes with tile roofs will be built around an existing historic landmarked home on the site. Most units will have private rear yards and the development will also include a central recreation area.

Source: Press release

- Brad Haugaard

Monrovia's Xencor Reports Q2 Earnings

Monrovia-based Xencor, a clinical-stage biopharmaceutical company, reported revenues for the second quarter ended June 30, 2015 of $1 million, compared to $0.8 million for the same period of 2014. Revenues for the six months ended June 30, 2015 were $2.5 million, compared to $3.0 million for the same period in 2014. http://goo.gl/mpQ61H

- Brad Haugaard

Monrovia's AeroVironment Partners With Indian Firm

Monrovia's AeroVironment is partnering with Bangalore, India-based Dynamatic Technologies to co-develop a new lightweight drone called the Cheel (Hindi for Eagle). https://goo.gl/XaUUH5

- Brad Haugaard

City Council Gives Friday Night Fair Producer Six Weeks to Improve

The Monrovia City Council decided Tuesday night to give the Friday Night Fair producer, LA PartyWorks, six extra weeks to improve. Councilmember Alex Blackburn proposed giving the six weeks and reworking the fair oversight committee (how it's used and who sits on it), and jointly (city and LA PartyWorks) interview a liason to work between the company and the city. Speakers basically asked to give LA PartyWorks a longer chance while staff and city council members felt that LA PartyWorks had been "disengenuous" (Tom Adams), and had a "huge credibility issue" (Becky Shevlin). Only Mayor Tom Adams voted against the extra time.

- Brad Haugaard

Cooking School to Open in Monrovia

A cooking school called "Saute" is apparently moving in to the building at the southwest corner of Colorado and Ivy, at the location of the former Flamzz Pizza. A poster in the window says there will be classes for children and adults (including baking and pastry classes), private parties and birthday parties.

- Brad Haugaard

Monrovia History: Incorporated Early in LA History

Did you know Monrovia was the fourth city incorporated in Los Angeles County? http://goo.gl/XNzXIJ

- Brad Haugaard

Proposed Zoning Regulations for Residences; Bike Ride; MFD Helps Northern California; Fountain Working

A few items from City Manager Oliver Chi's weekly update ( http://goo.gl/nnAaHD ):

~ The historic preservation and neighborhood compatibility survey has been completed ( http://goo.gl/J0LNu0 ). Some possible changes:

- Prohibit 2-story in RL zones
 - Limit 2nd story floor area (incentivize single story)
- Increase rear setbacks in RF, RE, RL Zones
- Add 2nd-story setbacks (front and rear)
- Adopt mandatory design guidelines
- Adopt mandatory style guidelines
- Increase review authority over SFRs (DRC or Staff)
- Create separate design review body
- Additional review/requirements for specific design elements (e.g. front porches, garages...)
- Garage placement/orientation

~ On Saturday, August 29, 2015, at 8 a.m., the bicycling group Move Monrovia is hosting its first "Fun Ride." Mayor Tom Adams will be riding, and everyone is invited. Meet at Library Park for a 3-mile ride down to Station Square and then back to Library Park again.

~ Monrovia Fire Engine 101 was sent to help with the Rocky Incident Fire in Lower Lake, CA (near Clear Lake, CA) in Northern California.

~ As of last weekend, the historic drinking fountain at Library Park is working again!

- Brad Haugaard

Letter From City Manager Chi Regarding LA PartyWorks

In his weekly update, City Manager Oliver Chi said an email he sent to staff regarding the recommendation that the city terminate its contract with LA Partyworks was leaked, so he decide to release the email generally. Here it is:

From: Oliver Chi
Sent: Sunday, August 2, 2015 4:25 PM
To: All Employees; Police All
Subject: Friday Night Family Street Fair Issue

Good afternoon everyone, 

I hope that this email finds you doing great!

It was recently brought to my attention that there has been quite a bit of discussion occurring in our community regarding an item the City Council will be considering next Tuesday, August 4, 2015, regarding the potential termination of LA PartyWorks, Inc. (LA PartyWorks) as the operator of the Friday Night Family Street Fair Event.

Given the amount of dialogue that is happening regarding the issue, I thought it would be a good idea to share with our team here at the City some of the background details related to the issues at hand, and to articulate some of the reasons why I am recommending that the City Council move forward in a different direction with regard to the management of the overall Friday Night Family Street Fair (Street Fair).

After nearly 23 years of operating the Street Fair, the City Council on April 28, 2015, formally decided to end its relationship with Family Festival Productions, Inc. (FFPI), and instead, approved an Exclusive Franchise Agreement with LA PartyWorks to operate the Street Fair.

During the 3+ months that we have partnered with LA PartyWorks, I believe that the City has done everything we can to set the new company up for success.  However, during that time, LA PartyWorks has engaged in activities and behaviors that have illustrated an inability to be an effective partner for the City in coordinating the Street Fair. 

Outside of the operational and procedural issues regarding the production of the Street Fair, the more concerning development for staff has been the fact that there are ongoing reliability issues with LA PartyWorks which point to a fundamental values misalignment between how the City operates and how LA PartyWorks operates. 

More specifically, since the contract was approved with LA PartyWorks, the City has had to intervene and mediate multiple conflicts each week that have arisen between LA PartyWorks and our Old Town Merchants / Street Fair vendors.  These continual conflicts between the operator and the Street Fair stakeholders is indicative of the first values misalignment that the City has identified with LA PartyWorks.  While we expect to work collaboratively with our partners in an effort to find solutions, LA PartyWorks employs a different approach that can be characterized as unilateral and one-sided.

In addition, during the assessment process prior to awarding LA PartyWorks with the contract to manage the Street Fair, representatives from LA PartyWorks shared that their business plan for making money to operate the event involved the following three primary revenue streams:

1.       Fees paid by the Street Fair vendors

2.      Tickets sold for the Kids Play Area

3.    Outside sponsorships (LA PartyWorks specifically mentioned Vans, Miller Brewing Company, and Coca-Cola as event sponsors)

However, almost immediately after the contract was awarded to LA PartyWorks, representatives from the company informed staff on several separate occasions that the actual business model that they were employing to make money off of running the Street Fair involved the following four separate revenue streams:

 1.     Fees paid by the Street Fair vendors

2.     Tickets sold for the Kids Play Area

3.     Becoming the exclusive vendor to sell kettle corn at the Street Fair

4.    Becoming the exclusive vendor selling water / soda at the Street Fair

This particular issue highlights several additional values misalignments between the City and LA PartyWorks.  First of all, and perhaps most importantly, the City strives to be as transparent as possible in our intentions and actions.  LA PartyWorks has shown that a willingness to provide inaccurate and conflicting representations regarding their intentions and actions. 

In addition, the fact that LA PartyWorks would willingly engage in direct competition with our Old Town Merchants by trying to make themselves the exclusive vendor of kettle corn and drinks at the Street Fair – in direct violation of their contract with the City – demonstrates a complete and total disregard for the not only the rules and regulations that we all agreed to operate under, but also for the City. 

Finally, with the City prohibiting LA PartyWorks from selling kettle corn and drinks at the Street Fair, we have legitimate concerns regarding the ongoing financial viability for LA PartyWorks to continue producing the event.  Given the way that the company has operated to this point in time, it would be logical for the City to think that LA PartyWorks has developed some other mechanism through which to make the venture financially viable that they have yet to share with us.

One additional reliability issue that we have experienced with LA PartyWorks relates to the private discussions and interactions that City staff has had with company representatives.  On multiple occasions, LA PartyWorks has told the City that unless we allow them to engage in activities that are in violation of their contract, they would be unwilling to continue as the operator of the Street Fair.  While the firm has not carried through on their statements to not coordinate the Street Fair event, these types of interactions have elicited a genuine concern about the commitment that LA PartyWorks has to the Street Fair.  

Given these overall issues that the City has identified with LA PartyWorks as a partner, we are recommending that if the City Council does terminate the contract with LA PartyWorks, that we enter into an interim agreement with a company known as Green Leaf Events, Inc. (GLEI), to produce the Street Fair.  GLEI is a company that was recently formed by an individual named Jerry Diaz. 

Mr. Diaz has significant experience managing street festivals, special events, and car shows, and in fact, was the event manager for Monrovia’s Street Fair for a number of years when the event was managed by FFPI.  Currently, GLEI has been engaged to produce the Rosemead Farmer’s Market and will also be coordinating the Monrovia Kiwanis’ Taste of Monrovia event this year.  Additional information regarding GLEI can be found on the internet at www.greenleafevents.net. 

It is also important to note that Mr. Diaz did work for the former operator of the Street Fair (Dave Gaymen, owner of FFPI), and furthermore, the City has confirmed that GLEI has no ongoing connections to FFPI. 

I have included as an attachment to this email a copy of the staff report and attachments that was prepared for the City Council’s consideration about this particular matter.  The issue will be addressed next Tuesday, August 4, 2015, and if you should have any questions, please feel free to let me know!

I hope you have a terrific rest of the weekend, and do look forward to seeing everyone next week!

Best regards,

Oliver

Free Health Screening at Monrovia ChapCare Office

On August 8, From 10am - 2pm, ChapCare medical professionals will provide free health screenings at ChapCare's new Monrovia facility (513 E. Lime Ave., Suite 101). Screenings include body mass index, blood sugar, blood pressure, dental, vision, and health insurance. ChapCare provides low- or no-cost health services (Medi-Cal, Medicare, and My Health LA) and accepts many Covered California and private insurance plans. For more information, call 398-6300 or visit www.chapcare.org.

Source: Press release

- Brad Haugaard