Monrovia City Council Invocations
I just noticed this curious item in the City Council agenda ( http://goo.gl/DuAud ). It gives instructions for religious leaders giving the invocation: "To comply with recent court decisions, the City of Monrovia has advised persons giving the invocation not to recite sectarian references or prayer." How you give an invocation without referring to elements of your faith or without praying? I thought "invoking" - in the religious sense - was praying for assistance. I know Monrovia has to obey the law, but does an invocation that doesn't invoke God - or anything else - make any sense?I have no problem with invocations, but if they're just going to be play-acting, maybe the city should drop them and instead, perhaps churches, etc., should invite council-members to their meetings and have real invocations for them there.Aah, what do I know ...- Brad Haugaard
Monrovia Council Drops Gold Line Property-Sale from Agenda
The possible sale of property to the Gold Line for a maintenance yard - a topic that touched off a testy exchange between Monrovia City Councilman Tom Adams and Mayor Mary Ann Lutz, and a topic which prompted a special meeting of the Council, which was then continued until the council's April 5 meeting, and a topic about which Mayor Lutz and City Manager Scott Ochoa said was time-sensitive because of possible confiscatory actions by the state ... has been dropped.
The agenda for the City Council's April 5 meeting says:
"CANCELLED - Continued from April 5, 2011; Purchase and Sale Agreement between the Monrovia Redevelopment Agency and the Metro Gold Line Foothill Extension Construction Authority for the Total Consideration of $39,627,818; Resolution Nos. 5-2011 and 2011-13
"Recommendation: This item has been withdrawn and requires no further action by the City Council and the Agency Board at this time."
Source: http://goo.gl/DuAud
- Brad Haugaard
Monrovia High Day at the Races / Choir Wants Singers
~ Monrovia High Alumni Day at the Races, Sunday, April 3.
Gates Open at 10:30 am races begin at 12:30 p.m. Enter Gate 6 off Colorado Blvd. Proceeds to benefit the MHS Music Department & their trip to Carnegie Hall in 2012. Details: http://goo.gl/mJEP5
~ Monrovia's First Presbyterian Church Concert Choir is looking for singers for its annual Good Friday Concert and Meditation. http://goo.gl/u23MW
- Brad Haugaard
Formative Years Project, Robbery Arrest, DUIs
[Monrovia Police activities from the Police Department's Neighborhood Watch Report for March 24-30. - Brad Haugaard]
During the last seven day period, the Police Department handled 438 service events, resulting in 79 investigations. Following are the last week's highlighted issues and events:
Formative Years Project
The Monrovia Police Department's classes for the Formative Years Project are scheduled to begin May 5, 2011. The Formative Years Project is a program aimed at parents and their children, grades 1st through 3rd, which introduces important life values and skills to children at an early age. Providing this training when children are young begins the process of building healthy and safe practices that can set the stage for a lifetime of success and healthy living. Please see the flyer attached at the end of this report for more information on how to register for classes.
Robbery Suspect Arrested
On March 26, an officer went to a residence in the 700 block of Monterey Court in an attempt to locate a wanted robbery suspect, but no one answered the door. Approximately one hour later, the suspect came into the police department lobby. The officer contacted the female suspect, who admitted to committing two robberies in San Dimas. The suspect was arrested and a detective contacted the Los Angeles Sheriff's Department and arrangements were made for a deputy to take custody of the suspect.
Driving Under the Influence / Failure to Obey a Lawful Order - Suspects Arrested
March 27 at 1:42 a.m., officers were at a business in the 300 block of South Myrtle at the request of security to provide assistance while a rowdy group of subjects were being cleared from the premises. One of the officers was trying to stop a vehicle for speeding that was approaching him. The vehicle momentarily stopped as it reached the intersection of Myrtle and Lime, the driver rolled down his window, but then sped away traveling wrong way on a one way street at a high rate of speed. An area search was conducted and the vehicle was located and stopped at Fifth and Chestnut. The driver was determined to be driving under the influence and was arrested. The three passengers were arrested for being drunk in public.
Driving Under the Influence - Suspect Arrested
March 27 at 1:56 a.m., an officer was following a vehicle westbound in the 300 block of East Huntington that was intermittently lane straddling all the way to Magnolia, where the vehicle was stopped. The driver was determined to be driving under the influence. The driver was arrested. He was found to be on felony probation for burglary and had a felony, $250,000 warrant out for his arrest.
Driving Under the Influence - Suspect Arrested
March 27 at 3:10 a.m., an officer observed a vehicle heading north on Myrtle under the 210 Freeway. The vehicle swerved, almost striking the curb, and then went through a red light at Central and Myrtle. The officer stopped the driver and through investigation, determined the driver to be under the influence. The driver was arrested.
Construction on E Huntington
Monrovia's Trader Joe's Pulls Pizza - Mislabeled
Trader Joe's, based in Monrovia, removed 131,000 pounds of pizza from its shelves. because the labels forgot to say they contained wheat. Oops. http://goo.gl/vk4e9 - Brad Haugaard
The Story of Monrovia's Green Dot Company
The story of Monrovia's Green Dot prepaid "credit" card company. Now banks want a piece of its action. http://goo.gl/NTO52
- Brad Haugaard
Save or Improve Your Marriage / Food Truck Lawsuit
~ Monrovia's First Presbyterian Church will sponsor an on-campus marriage retreat this Friday and Saturday, April 1 and 2, with Dr. Sharon Hart May, Author of "How To Argue So Your Spouse Will Listen." Call the church office at (626) 358-3297 to sign up. http://goo.gl/8aFa5
~ A food truck association is suing Monrovia because of the city's ban on the trucks in Old Town. http://goo.gl/lM953 - Brad HaugaardMonrovia Disaster Preparation & Japan Radiation
Monrovia Fire Chief Chris Donovan writes that the city council will discuss disaster preparedness at the April 5 meeting. Also, he points to some LA County fact sheets on nuclear radiation from Japan. http://goo.gl/3AGA8
I like the unambiguous clarity of the first word of the answers to these questions:- Does damage to the Japanese nuclear power plants pose a health risk to LA County?No.- Should you take Potassium Iodide (KI)?No.- Will radiation from Japan affect LA County’s beaches?No. - Brad HaugaardNew Monrovia Seafood / Monrovia Over TC in Baseball
~ New seafood restaurant, BigShrimps Fish Grill, at 123 E. Colorado, set to open April 17. http://goo.gl/gNP5A ~ Baseball - Monrovia over Temple City in 11 innings. http://goo.gl/4B4AP - Brad Haugaard
Spy Plane from Monrovia Ends up on eBay
A man in Florida has been charged with attempting to sell a Raven robo-spy plane, made by Monrovia's AeroVironment, on eBay. Not too smart. http://goo.gl/QUdff - Brad Haugaard
Watch Out for Fake Monrovia Employees
As reported earlier, a man claiming to be a Monrovia City Water Department employee stole cash and a checkbook from a resident.
The city is now recommending that if someone shows up at your door claiming to be a city employee, it is helpful to know that employees "wear either a light blue work shirt with their name and the Monrovia City logo sewn on the front, or an orange work shirt with their name and the Monrovia City logo sewn on the front. All Monrovia City employees will have City of Monrovia identification cards with them."
Also, if you are unsure, call the Monrovia Police Department at (626) 256-8000 and a uniformed Monrovia police officer will respond to verify the person's identity and reason for being at your home. Source: http://goo.gl/05i0D - Brad HaugaardIceland in Monrovia / Which Y? / Softball / Santa Fe
~ A pilot of the Fox network show, Iceland, filming on the Monrovia Library lawn. http://goo.gl/8hOCE ~ Help the Santa Anita Family YMCA to decide what color logo to use on its vans. http://goo.gl/xp8qM ~ Softball: Monrovia 7-4 over La Canada-Flintridge. http://goo.gl/oIbAi ~ In its March issue, the Monrovia Schools Foundation features Santa Fe Middle School. http://goo.gl/2BcYs - Brad Haugaard
Price Slips on Monrovia's Upton Sinclair House / Candidate Forum / MHS over La Canada :-)
~ The Upton Sinclair House, which had been priced at $1.5 million, has slipped to $1.3 million. http://goo.gl/j3D73
~ Another Monrovia City Council candidate forum. http://goo.gl/vf6Ay
~ Monrovia baseball over La Canada, 7-4. http://goo.gl/w93kB
- Brad Haugaard
Will Lawsuit in Monrovia Hinder Gold Line? / Water Challenge / Resurfacing / Curves Helps Unity Center
~ The Gold Line Construction Authority is concerned a lawsuit related to land intended for a rail-maintenance yard in Monrovia could hinder construction of the line. http://goo.gl/ZfD6G
~ Beginning April 1 (no joke) you can participate in the Mayors Challenge for Water Conservation, "a friendly online competition between cities to see which can be the most water-wise." If Monrovia wins, residents would be eligible to win tickets to an Angels game, to Disneyland and half-price admission to the Aquarium of the Pacific for the entire community. There is nothing you can do now, but on April 1 you can sign up here ( http://goo.gl/hWLwp ) to support Monrovia.
~ A little change in the Huntington Drive resurfacing project: Instead of first doing Huntington from Magnolia to Fifth, the city will first do East Huntington Drive (Shamrock to the east City limit). Everything should still be done by June 30. Details: http://goo.gl/RPQCS
~ During the first two weeks of April, local Curves will collect non-perishable food and cash to benefit Foothill Unity Center, in Monrovia, and other local food banks. Curves members who donate $30 or an equivalent amount of food will get a reusable grocery bag. From April 4-17, Curves will waive the membership fee for new members who make the same donation.
- Brad Haugaard
Fire Protection: Watch Your Windows!
The Monrovia Fire Department recommends making your house more fire-resistant by maintaining your window frames and sills. In a wildfire, embers can land on the frame or sill and catch your house on fire. So, remove debris and replace decayed wood, which catches fire at a lower temperature than sound wood.
More details here: http://goo.gl/cTeMT
Source: http://goo.gl/RPQCS
- Brad Haugaard
Monrovia House Fire
On March 22 at approximately 2 a.m. Monrovia firefighters, with the assistance of Arcadia Fire Department responded to a reported structure fire in the 100 block of N. Magnolia. Initial arriving companies found heavy fire and smoke issuing from a rear house and garage. The first-in engine company initiated fire attack, while additional lines were pulled to protect the front house from fire spread. Several rooms of the house and garage were heavily damaged due to fire, heat and smoke. Fortunately the residents escaped unharmed and no firefighter injuries were reported. A preliminary estimate on structure and content loss is $105,000. The cause of the fire is still under investigation.
Source: http://goo.gl/RPQCS
- Brad Haugaard
Monrovia City Manager: Redevelopment Compromise?
Sacramento is still trying to eliminate redevelopment agencies, Monrovia City Manager Scott Ochoa says, but he seems to think there may be a possibility of compromise.
He writes that "the conventional wisdom is that the Democrats will opt to eliminate the RDAs [redevelopment agencies] on a simple majority vote as part of the budget or in an extraordinary session."
He said a simple majority would need no Republican votes, but it would also mean that the change in the law could not take place until mid-July or January, which would give cities more time to "reinforce the positions." And there would still be lawsuits. Also, cities have been busily shielding their redevelopment money, he said, so there might not be much for the state to grab.
The longer it drags on, he said, the more chance of finding "a middle ground."
Source: http://goo.gl/RPQCS
- Brad Haugaard
Monrovia City Manager: Council Disagreements? Nothing New
I've written already about the dueling letters between Monrovia City Councilman Tom Adams and Mayor Mary Ann Lutz, but in his weekly report City Manager Scott Ochoa recommends not being concerned about it. He writes:
"I think it is important to keep things in perspective and not read too much into this episode. Obviously, there are disagreements and fissures between members of the Council; but this is nothing new. What has historically set Monrovia apart from other communities has been that our Councils have always found ways to do the people's business effectively and not let personalities block community progress. Like the Showtime Lakers, these folks are professionals who understand the advantages and the limitations of team chemistry."
Source: http://goo.gl/RPQCS
- Brad Haugaard
Monrovia Neighborhood Survey / Mentalist on Myrtle / History
~ Phase Four of Monrovia's Thriving Neighborhood Survey is available, and online until April 15. Click the link to rate your neighborhood and let the City know its strengths and needs. http://goo.gl/dFd8Q ~ There was apparently a filming of the show, The Mentalist, on Myrtle a few days ago. http://goo.gl/cvcN2 ~ Chinese in Monrovia History. http://goo.gl/iT2YN - Brad Haugaard
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