The Sierra Madre Weekly Doesn't Seem To Know Very Much About Sierra Madre

Maybe it's because none of the folks who write for it live here, or possibly it is just a native lack of curiosity on their part. But the Sierra Madre Weekly's grasp of what is going on in the town it is named after seems, well, tenuous at best. But then again, if you were publishing basically the same paper in 6 different towns from an office in Monrovia, and doing little more than just changing mastheads in the process, I guess you'd be a bit hard pressed in the authenticity category as well.

Here is a case in point. In the Grand Marshall selection process leading up to the 4th of July parade, there was a bit of controversy (well, a difference of opinion) on who exactly should be selected for the honor. And there really were two camps with decidedly different viewpoints on the matter. Which is fine. Sierra Madre is a town where folks care about such things. And people here understand that.

But this is how the Sierra Madre Weekly saw it: 

"Despite some Bloggo-blabbermouth's claim to the contrary, there was no 'controversy' over the selection of the July 4th Parade Grand Marshall in Sierra Madre this year. In fact, the 'controversy' was only blog propelled and perceived."

Of course, what the authors of this article (most likely in part Terry Miller, the long time SMW mainstay who apparently outed himself recently as having once been a photographer for the lascivious website The Cumquat) are referring to here is something that appeared on this very blog. Though I can't for the life of me figure out who he is referring to as a "bloggo-blabbermouth." The people who write for The Tattler are highly sophisticated artisans of the written word who deal in great ideas expressed with stunning clarity. If they didn't they'd be writing for The Weekly.

(Personally, I think Terry's umbrage here is due to his being a tad upset that we made fun of noted environmental advocate Joe Mosca and the "Green Thunder V-8 GTO" he rode in our 4th of July parade. Terry does seem to be a dedicated fan of the Councilman, and can become distraught when others don't share his enthusiasm.)

And so, as volunteers dedicated to bringing truth to the fore, we here at the Sierra Madre Tattler are going tell this as it really happened. This is a Sierra Madre story, and one that needs to be told.

At this year's Memorial Day ceremonies at the Pioneer Cemetery, Mayor MaryAnn MacGillivray gave a speech that many who attended agreed was a first class remembrance for the service and sacrifice of the men and women who served. And there was one paragraph in particular that made a lasting impression on those listening.

"In 48 months of World War II there were 1,078,162 casualties, with 407,316 deaths, or about 6,639 Americans dying in combat during each month of the war. These are staggering numbers. And the recriminations even during the war at home from the politicians and the press were as relentless as they are today. But Americans in the field never faltered. Even after 19,000 Americans died in the Battle of the Bulge in December of 1944, and 13,000 died in hand-to-hand combat taking Okinawa, our troops persevered. Their courage and sacrifice knew no bounds. And as we all know, as does the world, without our contribution to the war civilization as we know it would not have survived - aggressive tyrannies would have controlled continents to the East and West. This is what it means to say that the dead shall not have died in vain. And, thank God, not all of our soldiers died - millions who wore a uniform survived, and some of them are here with us today."

And as she said these words the eyes of all present turned to observe the men of our Veterans of Foreign Wars post, some of whom are our last surviving veterans of the war that MaryAnn had just so vividly described. They seized their rifles, stepped up and as they have done throughout long decades now past, fired a salute in honor of the those who died in this greatest of causes.

It was then that some of the people who attended this memorial began to realize that we needed to do something to honor these men. Because if we didn't do it now, when would we ever have that opportunity again?

So a campaign was organized, and people began sending letters and e-mails to the 4th of July Parade Committee, asking them to honor the service of these men though their selection as this year's collective Grand Marshal. And it seemed inevitable to many that this would happen. How could it not?

But then no decision was made, at least for a while, nor was there any recognition from "The Committee" (as they styled themselves) that this idea was in anyway acceptable to them. Some of those advocating the VFW selection began to worry, and asked Mayor MacGillivray if perhaps she might intercede and move things along a little bit. MaryAnn agreed to do this, and initiated an exchange of e-mails with Matt Bosse, the head of The Committee.

Dear Matt,

I would like to nominate the VFW as Grand Marshals for this year's parade. No group could be more deserving to be honored on Independence Day than those who fought for our freedom and independence. Many of the members in Sierra Madre are going into care-giving situations and we may not have the opportunity again.

Sincerely,

MaryAnn MacGillivray

This is the e-mail Mayor MacGillivray received in return from Matt:

Hello,

Thank you for your nomination. I will bring this before the committee for consideration.

Matt

Sensing in the brevity of this reply that perhaps Matt wasn't aware of the importance of this request to many in our community, or the exact meaning such an honor would bring to our parade, MaryAnn made another attempt.

Dear Matt, 

I know that quite a few people have forwarded nominations for the VFW for this year's parade. I have also learned that if they are Grand Marshals, the various branches of the Armed Forces will send a band contingent -- that would be a first, I think, for Sierra Madre. I'm sure that the committee will agree that within our community there is a no group or person more deserving of the recognition than the VFW and so in anticipation I will make the initial contact for the bands. Please let me know who the other members of the committee are so that I can share this information with them. We will not have this opportunity again.

Sincerely,

MaryAnn MacGillivray

Now you would think that the identities of the members of a committee chosen to select a Grand Marshall for a village 4th of July parade would not be a state secret, and it could be shared at least with a Mayor. But apparently this was no run-of-the-mill parade selection committee. It needed to be hidden away. Like Dick Cheney in his bunker.

Hello MaryAnn,

Thank you for your third (sic) email nominating VFW for Grand Marshals; they are a very worthy candidate for the honor of Grand Marshal, as are our 12 nominations so far. As per tradition, I will bring this nomination (along with your emails) to the committee for consideration, as has been done for the past 20+ years ... We have received 13 nominations so far, and the committee has asked me to put the nominations together for them to decide upon at the end of May. Each nominator feels very strongly and passionately about their nominee, so in order to avoid a deluge of phone calls, emails, and lobbying to each member, I am going to ask you to trust me to bring each nomination forward to the committee.

Hope you have a nice Memorial Day Weekend,

Matt

Obviously Matt took this responsibility very seriously. And committee security certainly did hold. Not only did nobody surmise the identities of this secret committee before the parade, as far as I can tell their identities are still a secret. Hopefully they have been able to return to Sierra Madre and resume normal lives here.

As we all know, The Committee, whoever they may be, did not select the VFW to serve as this year's Grand Marshal to the Sierra Madre 4th of July Parade. Instead that honor went to a very distinguished citizen of our town, Midge Morash. Midge, known to many here as Mother Nature, is credited with creating some of the wooded preserves in town, saving them from the developers' bulldozers. Bailey Canyon Park in particular serves as a monument to her caring and dedication. It is a place that I know well as it is about 100 yards from where I'm sitting now. We've hosted many birthday parties for our children there.

So that was the controversy. Some were disappointed, others apparently not. But we all got past it, and had a wonderful parade. As we have for the past 20+ years. And beyond.

The 710 Tunnel Is Feeling Some California Legislative Love

They helped give us SB 375 and a public education system teetering on the edge of collapse. They also gave us 10's of billions in dollars in debt, so large an amount that they have been forced to issue Confederate-style scrip to keep up the lights on. And who knows, the way things are going in Sacramento maybe instead of a tax refund next year they'll just send you a manilla envelope stuffed with California Lottery "Scratchers." You know, where you can win the big jackpots?

But now, just to show you that Napoleon the XIV wasn't the most insane make-believe ruler of all time, they're about to top all of their own already considerable accomplishments. The California State Legislature looks to be in the process of making the 710 Tunnel a reality. People don't want it, we can't afford it, environmentalists shudder, and some engineers think it will shatter with the first decent earthquake to come along, but hey! What's the problem with all that stuff when there's business to be done?

LA Curbed.com has now posted a story reporting that the 710 Tunnel is just sailing along in Sacramento. And the Assembly that just can't spend enough, or bend over far enough to please the construction trades lobbies (among many others), is about to maximize their madness one more time.

"A bill that would ensure any connection made between the 710 and 210 freeways is underground just passed a 10-0 vote in the Assembly's transportation committee - the third unanimous vote by a policy committee according to the office of state senator Gilbert Cedillo. The LA politician is a sponsor of AB 545, which if passed, could resolve a 50-year dispute over how to plug up the hole in the two freeways ..."

Now if we were dealing with a real government here, perhaps the cost - which apparently is staggering - would be at least considered. Particularly in the face of California's ballooning debt. But we are talking about Sacramento, so any consideration of the rational is probably inappropriate. And apparently an unidentified writer over at LA Weekly's LA DAILY blog is suffering from just such an unfortunate addiction to reality:

"An underground passage, which would involve twin, 4.5 mile long tunnels, has increasingly seemed to be a somewhat acceptable workaround to a project that has been suspended but never killed. The problem is that tunneling underground is so expensive that one wonders if the action by the Assembly's Transportation Committee was a serious gesture or, even, a maneuver intended to kill the project by making it too expensive to undertake."

Far from it for me to be droll, but I would not in any way ever think that a fear of over-spending on the Assembly's part would somehow prevent this tunnel from being built. And the next time the LA Weekly hires a writer to cover Sacramento they really need to consider someone with a stronger background in Science Fiction. 

With Caltrans, SCAG, and the usual development lobbies all lining up behind this project, my guess is passage of a bill that would push this 710 Tunnel to fruition seems assured. The real purpose behind this tunnel is to speed the delivery of products landing at the ports of Long Beach and San Pedro inland to market. And the way things are today is not at all pleasing to trucking companies, big box retailers, and the powerful foreign manufacturing countries that so generously lend this country their money. I mean, you didn't think that our being the greatest debtor nation this world has ever seen wouldn't have at least a few consequences now, did you?

The next time you are in Wal*Mart checking out the many bargains to be found there, think of it this way. If the 710 tunnel was in existence now, most of the stuff there would have traveled through it.

And the consequences of this tunnel's completion will be devastating to the San Gabriel Valley. La Canada's Valley Sun spells this out clearly:

* An increase of 25% or more daily traffic on the 210 Freeway

* An additional 30,000 vehicles per day on the 210

* Some 850 more trucks per hour (8,500 trucks per day) on the 210 than we already see today

* Gridlock on the 210 where it passes through our cities, forcing traffic onto local streets and boulevards.

And where does this information come from?

All of this (and more) is a scenario as seen by Erik Zandvliet, traffic engineer for the city of La Canada Flintridge, after he reviewed the draft "I-710 Missing Link truck Study" presented recently by the Southern California Association of Governments.

Knowing that these figures were prepared by SCAG makes me wonder if perhaps the real consequences (noise levels, air pollution, environmental impacts, traffic congestion) won't be far worse.

In a commentary piece published on the Glendale News Press's website, Bill Weisman had a lot to say about how the State Senate is working this one. I'll cite a passage, but you really should follow the link and read the entire article.

Such legislation has been introduced by State Sen. Gil Cedillo in the form of Senate Bill 1350. Among other comments, the nonpartisan legislative analyst has said "this bill provides little or no opportunity for public or legislative scrutiny prior to the award of what would be a very large, very complex, very innovative contract," and, "Given that this project has been on the books for decades, the committee may wish to consider whether a hasty review of this bill is prudent and necessary." 

With CEQA review having been removed from redevelopment considerations in SB 375, and SB 1350 informing us that as far as the 710 Tunnel goes we can just butt out, it is becoming quite obvious that Sacramento has gotten a little tired of the democracy thing getting in the way of business.

Bill Weisman also goes on to note that this bill is opposed by the Consulting Engineers and Land Surveyors of California (they think it might be unconstitutional), the cities of La Canada Flintridge, and South Pasadena, and the Planning and Conservation League. The only registered supporter? A paid lobbyist named Nat Read and his 710 Freeway Coalition. In case you are blissfully unaware, Nat is a former cop who became known for writing poetry about the rigors of life in law enforcement.

So if just about everyone impacted and involved is against the 710 Tunnel, why is it in the process of being made the law in Sacramento? There is just one answer that I can think of. Only money makes their world go around. Your concerns are of little importance.

The Shmoos of Arcadia

"The Shmoo, as every literate person must know, was one of history's most brilliant Utopian satires." - The Baltimore Sun, 2002

The Shmoo, in case you are not aware, is a cartoon character Al Capp created way back there a ways for his comic strip Lil' Abner. They are the ultimate in selfless creatures, willing to do anything (and I mean anything) to bring happiness to their human masters. Here is a handy description from the always useful Wikipedia: 

"Shmoos are delicious to eat, and are eager to be eaten. If a human looks at one hungrily, it will happily immolate itself, either by jumping into a frying pan, after which they taste like chicken, or into a broiling pan, after which they taste like steak. When roasted they taste like pork, and when baked they taste like catfish. Raw, they taste like oysters on the half-shell ... They also produce eggs (neatly packaged), milk (bottled Grade A), and butter - no churning required."

Speaking of Shmoo-like behavior, we need to talk a little bit about what is going down in Arcadia these days.

There was a highly informative piece from the seemingly agenda-free Alfred Lee in yesterday's Pasadena Star News, a paper I am beginning to like more and more these days. The coverage offered is light years ahead of the crudely slanted rubbish we see in the two street rags that claim to cover events here in Sierra Madre. Here are a couple of paragraphs that will help set up where I'm going with this:

New land-use revisions call for increasing housing density: ARCADIA - Deep into the process of updating the city's General Plan, officials are trying to create land use concepts that meet new statewide density requirements and still preserve Arcadia as a "Community of Homes" ... Officials are making sure that the new land use guidelines meet the requirements of SB 375, the "anti-sprawl" legislation last year that aims to cut down on carbon emissions by requiring local agencies to minimize vehicle travel time through city planning ... "I think the update is just something that needed to be done to reflect the current conditions and goals and how we see ourselves grow, and it kind of dovetailed into SB 375," City Manager Don Penman said. "Cities are going to have to come up with plans to address that, but we're already in that process."

So I wonder what Arcadia will taste like after it has happily cooked itself Shmoo-style for the folks in Sacramento? My guess would be baloney.

One of the truly great things about the Pasadena Star News website is something called Topix. It is where you can go to talk about the article you have just read, and mix it up with other local news fanatics. I have been known to go there myself from time to time. 

Now there was a guy discussing this Arthur Lee article yesterday who just flat out kicked some major booty. He calls himself True Freedom, and he is one well-informed dude. I'm going to let his own words speak for him.

Post #4: Wiseman, you are not so wise. These policies are mandated by Sacramento. Here's how it works:

a) There is a govt group called SCAG (Southern California Association of Governments http://www.scag.ca.gov) that magically comes up with population growth estimates for the region.

b) SCAG then divvies up the growth so that each city has their "fair share," called RHNA (Regional Housing Needs Assessment numbers .. pronounced "reena.")

c) The city must provide in it's General Plan, submitted to Sacramento, a land Use and Housing Element that shows how the city will accommodate all this growth that is being mandated by the state.

d) The city also must provide a plan for an adequate number of Very Low Income and Very Very Low Income (these are official terms: see http://www.hcd.ca.gov for Sacko's stance on affordable housing.

e) If the city does not have a good enough plan to increase density and low income housing, the state will withhold some funds to the city as punishment. 

f) It gets worse with the newly enacted SB 375, which mandates more high density housing around transit hubs (bus stations, trains, etc) and has language that seems to suggest the state can actually sue a city if they don't comply.

Post #6: Arcadia, you must write or call your City Council members immediately to stop this. Your SCAG numbers show Arcadia has to grow from 55,000 residents to 65,000 residents. You will be stuffing 10,000 more people into your tiny city ... many of which will be very very low income as mandated by the state.

Affordable housing advocates and builders are pushing most of this growth. They are well organized powerful lobbies in Sacramento.

Single family residents are a disorganized, unrepresented group and WE ARE GETTING STEAMROLLED by the lobbies.

Arcadia has a great school system. Will it be the same after you add this new group of people?

Will your traffic be worse? Will pollution be worse? Will water usage, electricity usage, waste/trash generation be worse? Will parking be worse?

Post #8: No conspiracy theories here. This is all fact. You may want to visit the State of California's website and educate yourself.

First, try the Housing and Community Development website. They have an entire section on Affordable Housing and counteracting NIMBY (not in my backyard): http://www.hcd.ca.gov/hpd/nimby.htm (Tattler: if you thought the CAR book was bad, look at what our very own tax dollars have bought us here! It is ugly.)

Look at the rest of the State's HCD site: http://www.hcd.ca.gov/hpd/

Look at the SCAG estimate estimate RHNA numbers for yourself to check if my assertion that arcadia will have to grow from 55,000 to 65,000 people is true. http://www.scag.ca.gov

Google "SB375" and read up on what this bill passed last September is FORCING cities to do...

Post #13: Bills like SB 375 are simply a "greenwashing" tactic to build higher density housing in the name of the environment.

Now, in completely undeveloped areas of California, if you have a choice to preserve more open/green space by clumping people in higher density housing ... this bill makes a little sense.

But, this is not our situation in LA. We will not be preserving any green space ... we will only be adding more residents.

Any idiot can see that more people crammed into our cities will increase traffic, increase pollution, increase trash generation, increase water usage, increase daily frustration, increase school crowding, and decrease property values and decrease our quality of life. And hurt the environment.

    

 *   *     *     *         *            *                    *                            *

Man, I tell you, I got to get this guy over here and writing for The Tattler. Dude has definitely got the Holy Spirit. He is wrong about one thing, though. I am not sure that "any idiot can see" all of this. I mean, there are those two Shmoos on our City Council that I don't think will ever get it.  

Is One Crater An Out Of Date Business Model?

$800,000 hillside lots in a major forest fire area might seem excessive to some, but it wasn't all that long ago when such prices wouldn't have turned anyone's head. But fashions have changed along with the economy, and now all most people can do is look up and wonder what it was these people were thinking about when they dreamed up One Crater.

The American Institute of Architects have issued a study that backs up what quite a few people have been thinking as of late. This from an article in the Wall Street Journal:

"A new study out Monday by the American Institute of Architects shows that Americans have fallen out of love with McMansions. The 500 residential architects surveyed said that only 4% of their clients wanted more square footage in their homes this year, compared to 16% last year ... This desire isn't surprising, given both the recession and the fact that the most recent U.S. Census shows that there are 77 million people in the 'empty nester' phase of life, from ages 45 to 64, and 61 million in the first time buyer category, from 20 to 34."

Of course, somebody may wish to build a 1,700 square foot home on a lot costing the better part of a million dollars, but that probably isn't likely. No, One Crater literally screams out "McMansion!" And judging by the way those babies are moving these days, it would appear that nobody is listening. Who knows, maybe the place really is cursed.

Living Near A Freeway Isn't Good For You

Friends of ours have been staying at The Stuart, the often lampooned "Transit Village" that appears to lean against the parking structure attached to the Sierra Madre Vista Metro Station. They're only staying there for 8 or so weeks while their home is refurbished, but it has been quite an education for them. Needless to say, they can't wait to escape.

One of the truly awful aspects of the place is the noise. In true transit village style, The Stuart is located right next to our local manifestation of "light rail," the Gold Line. And since the masters of our somewhat diminished destiny have deemed that things like the 210 Trolly more often than not need to be located near busy roadways, the mighty 210 is part of that ambiance. Which for those living the less than fabulous transit village lifestyle means the endless roar of speeding vehicular traffic. But apparently there is an even more terrifying aspect to living in such places. This from Discovery.com:

"As famous for its traffic jams as it is for Hollywood star power, the Los Angeles, Calif. area has another dirty secret; Air pollution is sickening pregnant women who live near roadways, more than doubling their risk of premature birth, according to a new study."

I wonder if it has ever occurred to the urban planning community that the reason people flock to neighborhoods now referred to as "urban sprawl" do so because they know that living there is healthier? And that any efforts to move people back into the befouled urban core ala SB 375 will be resisted at least in part for that very reason?

Good News For Redevelopers! Sonia Sotomayor Is An Eminent Domain Fan

Apparently Barack Obama's very first nominee to the U.S. Supreme Court is a property snatcher. This from reasononline:

"Property rights were probably the last thing on President Barack Obama's mind when he selected Judge Sonia Sotomayor to replace retiring Supreme Court Justice David Souter.But that hasn't stopped Sotomayor's nomination from reigniting the long-simmering national debate over the use and abuse of eminent domain ... The controversy centers on Sotomayor's voye in a 2006 eminent domain case, Didden v. Village of Port Chester. New York entrepreneur  Bart Didden says Port Chester condemned his land after he refused to pay $800,000 (or grant a 50 percent stake in his business) to a developer hired by the village. One day after Didden refused to pay those bribes, Port Chester began eminent domain proceedings against him ... As University of Chicago law professor Richard Epstein put it, 'The case involved about as naked an abuse of government power as could be imagined.' But that didn't stop Judge Sotomayor and two of her colleagues on the 2nd Circuit Court of Appeals from upholding the district court decision that ruled in favor of the village."

Welcome to the brave new world.

4th of July Parade Update: Joe Mosca's Green Car

Parade Update: As you may recall, there was some controversy over the choice of Midge Morash as the 4th of July Grand Marshal. Many in town thought it would be better to select our World War II Veterans, and judging by the response they got from the crowd today that would have been a very good choice. 

However, Matt Bosse's 4th of July Committee wanted someone with Green Credentials to serve in this honorary position, and Midge was chosen. Which is fine, she certainly has made some great contributions to the community and deserves to have been honored.

So after all that, what do Joe Mosca and Matt Bosse show up in for the parade? A full blown V8 Pontiac GTO "Judge." A fine automobile to be sure (dig the spoiler!), but about as far from Green as you can get without walking into the radioactive core of a nuclear power plant. 

But if the car was Green Inappropriate, at least the license plate got it right. And honestly, I couldn't have picked a better one if I'd had a week to think about it. "U Guilty." If that doesn't suit this guy perfectly, what does?

---------------------- --------  ----     --    -

I remember thinking as a kid that my favorite holiday of all was the 4th of July. Christmas was great with presents and the tree and all. Easter meant having to wear uncomfortable clothes, though I did enjoy the chocolate rabbits. Of course, birthdays are a big occasion for kids. Any event where you get that much stuff just for making it though another year is a pretty good deal.

But the 4th of July was different. It was ... relaxed. The parental units acted like us kids, as if the great weight of adulthood had been lifted from them for a moment or two. There was nothing too formal about the day, either. And for kids formal always meant trouble. Like having to sit with your hands folded in your laps listening as your elders spoke to you about the most uninteresting topics imaginable. 

But the 4th of July! Now THAT was a whole different ballgame. There was a military parade, there was the village get-together, and then there was fireworks! And ALL the family would show up. It wasn't just the individual clans parked in their houses awaiting seasonal homage, nothing like that. This was about bar-b-que, aunts and uncles, baseball games, and a million kids running amuck, screaming at the tops of their lungs. And having a world of fun because of it. Fire crackers, water pistols, watermelons, and anything else that seemed like a good idea at the time. For kids it really was all about freedom.

The 4th of July was just always so much more fun. See you at the parade!

----------------------- -------------  ---------    ---   -       -

One other thing. In the 4th of July special issue of the Loony Views News (distributed downtown just this morning so that all can appreciative its jovial and sincere brand of journalism), Susan Henderson has this heartwarming anecdote to add the the festivities:

"A year or two ago, an elderly woman (85+) with whom I became acquainted, as editor of this newspaper, angrily confronted me in the most violent and hateful manner, yelling and screaming at the top of her lungs because she did not agree with something I wrote or said ... It was frightening to hear this woman, of Jewish descent I must add ..."

Sad to think that our city's adjudicated newspaper is going down that route. 

Anyway, Happy 4th of July!

Oh, and in case you can't make it to the fireworks this year, click here. 

One Carter: Sierra Madre's Luxury Death Trap?

That One Carter remains on the wild frontier of development here in the San Gabriel Valley is a matter of little doubt to those of us who have lived in Sierra Madre for a while. We've seen the floods, and the fires, and know what the potential is for earthquake damage when one of those inevitably shows up as well. And all of these things will happen again, and much sooner than any of us might wish.

But now because of the failed nature of the development projects there, a concerted effort seems to be in the process to move the 29 so-called "luxury lots" to unsuspecting out of town customers. One reason for this being the prices are so absurdly high and we know the real value of these things. But also because the potential for natural disaster up on the hillside seems so obvious to those who have witnessed and understand the dangers. 

So in the spirit of making sure that all are aware of what the potential hazards are here, plus taking into account all the usual legal requirements the developers need to fulfill, here is the draft of a letter being prepared for the benefit of the party now in the process of attempting to sell the lots at One Carter Luxury Estates.

To: (*** involved parties ***)

Fr: Concerned Sierra Madre Residents

Re: 1 Carter Ave. lot sales / California State Disclosure Statements

 

Mr./Ms. xxxxx,

Regarding the lots that you have listed for sale, you will be required to make the following disclosures:

1 - This property has been designated by FEMA a Special Flooding Hazard Area.

2 - This property has been designated, Pursuant to Sections 51178/51179 Govt. Code: Very High Fire Hazard Severity Zone.

3 - This property is designated,Pursuant to Section 4125 - Public Resources Code - Section 4291: A Wildland Area That May Contain Substantial Forest Fire Risks and Hazards. 

4 - This property is designated, Pursuant to section 2622 of the Public Resources Code as An Earthquake Fault Zone.

5 - This property is designated, Pursuant to section 2696 of the Public Resources Code as a Seismic Hazard Zone.

6 - Et cetera: 

A) there was a murder on this property with the victim having been shot multiple times and left for dead on the site. 

B) The One Carter area is also believed by some to be an ancient burial ground of the Tongva/Gabrielino Indian Tribe. Representatives of the Tribe attended the One Carter hearings to protest development of this site. 

C) Also the upper reaches of the west and east ridge of the central canyon west of the barn/cottage were burned over in the April 2008 wildfire.

One other thing: Lest we forget, it was this City Council (see link) that enabled what would eventually become the One Carter we see today. That they did not take into account that those eventually buying properties up there would find themselves in harm's way seems both inconceivable and highly irresponsible to many living in Sierra Madre today.

It's our duty to make sure everybody knows all there is to know about the One Carter Estates properties. After all, we are The Tattler!

The Sierra Madre Tattler Endorses Betty Chu For Congress

We here at the Sierra Madre Tattler are proud today to give our endorsement to Betty Chu for the United States Congress. Betty is a graduate of USC Law School, was a founder of the East West Savings Bank, and has served as both a Councilmember and Mayor of the City of Monterey Park. This is a special election, and it takes place in less than two weeks.

Of course, as Betty Chu is running in the 32nd Congressional District, none of us living in Sierra Madre can vote for her. Which is unfortunate, because in some ways she is fighting for the same things that we are fighting for here. The rights of cities to defend themselves against the unchecked depredations of runaway redevelopment and its enablers in Sacramento and Washington DC being very much at the top of her list. This is now the sleeping giant of California politics, and Betty Chu knows that. If she can pull off an upset and win this race, it will be a tremendous victory for all of us.

Yesterday Betty held a press conference because she needed to draw a very careful distinction between herself and her opponent. This is how the Pasadena Star News reported it:

"Thirty-second Congressional District candidate Betty Chu at a press conference on Wednesday attempted to distance herself from an opponent who shares the last name ... Betty Chu sought to reassure voters she is not the same Chu who took money from a developer who was arrested on embezzlement charges ... Board of Equalization member Judy Chu accepted $1,000 from developers Jean Lang and John Leung, who were arrested two weeks ago on allegations that they embezzled $1 million from private investors."

Now where this PSN report lets us down is that it limits the Judy Chu/John Leung /Titan connection to that mere $1,000. Because, and as Betty pointed out to me in a phone call after the event, there is a whole lot more to it than that. Follow along.

Judy Chu is a former member of the California Assembly. And while she was a member there she sponsored two bills that had a direct bearing on the financing of the El Monte Transit Village project that has quickly become the reigning metaphor here for tainted redevelopment.

The first document we will examine comes from the San Gabriel Valley Economic Partnership. An organization that, as you will see if you follow the link, lists Bart Doyle as a member of its Board of Directors. The bill discussed here is AB 1167, which was sponsored by Judy Chu. This is how the SGVEP document summarizes it:

AB 1167 - Redevelopment: El Monte SUPPORT - "AB 1167 amends a portion of California redevelopment Law to enable the financing and development of the El Monte Transit Village, a very progressive transit-oriented mixed commercial and residential development project in the Downtown El Monte Area ... This bill would eliminate the July 2007 debt incurrence (sic) deadline, and allow flexibility for the City to carefully plan the project, and flexibility to issue and pay off debt as needed with a specific debt ceiling within the transit Village site, without altering existing pass-through obligations in the rest of the Downtown El Monte Project Area."

This blatant call for special privileges in the area of bond financing for an individual project was wisely shot down in Sacramento. But this didn't stop Judy Chu from taking a second run at seeing to John Leung's needs in this sensitive matter. A second bill, AB 2157, came to the attention of the State Assembly in February of 2006:

Summary: Allows the El Monte Redevelopment Agency to amend its redevelopment plan for the purposes of a transit oriented redevelopment project without making a finding of blight and without complying with any existing law provisions (except public notice requirements) with respect to amendments and time extensions. Specifically, this bill ... allows the City of El Monte Redevelopment Agency (RA), for the purposes of transit oriented redevelopment, to amend its redevelopment plan according to the following:

a) Without a finding of blight;

b) Extend the life of the project area indefinitely;

c) Remove the time limit on incurring debt.

d) Increase from $44 million to $65 million the amount of allowable bonded indebtedness for one or more transit oriented redevelopment projects.

e) Increases to $150 million the amount of tax increment allocated to the RA.

And this project specific funding boondoggle was shot down as well. And Judy Chu, after carrying an awful lot of water for John Leung and Titan's "Transit Village," then left the State Assembly and went on to her current position on the Board of Equalization. But that is not where this surreal story ends.

Another FOJL (Friend of John Leung) took Judy's place in the Assembly. His name is Mike Eng. Or, if you are among the better acquainted with the affairs of that side of the Valley, Judy Chu's husband. This from an article that appeared in The Mercury News:

"Though no charges have been filed against Leung and Lang, Board of Equalization Vice Chairwoman Judy Chu and Assemblyman Mike Eng - D - El Monte, are trying to keep their distance by returning campaign donations ... 'We do intend to give all of the funds back,' Eng said of his campaign committee."

Of course, it wasn't that long ago that Mike Eng, along with Judy Chu, were proud to call John Leung their very special friend. So special that Mike Eng, after he took his over wife's position in the California Assembly, reintroduced almost the exact same bill. The one that had already been shot down twice! This time it was called AB 20, and Eng boasts about it on his own website. Why? Because this time it passed.

Transit Oriented Development: This bill allows redevelopment agencies to amend a redevelopment plan to extend redevelopment financing time limits and debt limits to support infrastructure improvements of a transit oriented development in a redevelopment area.

(On edit: Apparently the information on Eng's site is dated, or he just doesn't give a damn. The redevelopment language was stripped from AB 20 at a later date, and it morphed into something called AB 1221, sponsored by Assemblyman Ma. And while it did pass, it was later vetoed by Arnold Schwartzenegger. So Titan never did get their pound of flesh.)

So why did this version make it through the Assembly and Senate? Eng - later Ma - took out the specific reference to the El Monte Transit Village and made this fast and loose method of redevelopment boondoggle financing available to all. And if it wasn't for Governor Schwartzenegger, it would actually have become law.

It would be great if the good citizens of Congressional District 32 were to recognize this for what it really is, unmistakable cronyism and the twisting of state law to suit the needs of a privileged special interest. And the very best way to do that would be to send Betty Chu to represent them in Washington DC. It would be an electoral upset that would galvanize this entire state and put venal politicians everywhere on notice that the voters will no longer stand for this kind of blatant disregard for the true wishes and needs of the taxpayers. And as bad as things are in California, we the people could really use a victory right now.

A victory for Betty Chu would be a victory for all of us living in the San Gabriel Valley. We need to do whatever we can to make this happen. It's our fight, too.

UPDATE: "Race for 32nd District not over yet" ... PSN article now up on their site. Judy Chu is hearing footsteps.

Add-ons vs. Scrape-offs

Came across a nice article tonight courtesy of the Planetizen Newswire. This is a news service that gathers together articles of interest to people concerned about ecological issues. But not the phony greenwash you hear from the minority faction of our City Council. No, we're talking about carefully conceived and thought-out presentations that are so much more than what the factotums of Sacramento lobby-think have to offer. Lobby-think that always seems to somehow end up with big development as the solution, no matter what the problem.

Now you might remember a few weeks back some of the controversy over Granny Houses, two words that had thrown the Downtown Investors Club into a dangerous fit of St. Vitus Syndrome. These humble buildings were being put forward by some of the more thoughtful persons in town as a solution to the low income housing problem our friends at SCAG had so thoughtfully hung around our necks. With Sacramento enforced RHNA numbers to make the gift just that much sweeter and endearing.

Now, of course, those who had planned to use our RHNA predicament as a way of squeezing high-density development into our quaint little burgh were aghast at the suggestion. And, with their hired cutout Karen Warner leading the way, proclaimed that Granny Houses would never be acceptable to the uber diktatoren in Sacramento, and therefore we must bow to their will and obey lest they send in the tanks.

But would you believe that Granny Housing is fast becoming a solution to similar problems all over the country? And as people wake up to the notion that high-density multi-unit SCAG monstrosities are just not the way to go in more traditional villages such as ours, they are turning more and more to, you got it, Granny Housing. And if you go to Google and type in those two little words, you'll see pages and pages of articles on just how great a solution they are to some of the problems people and cities are now facing.

In other words, Granny Houses have now become cool.

The article the Planetizin Newswire pointed me to (which led me to all those other articles on Google) is entitled "Add-ons vs. Scrapeoffs." And since it spells out the case so nicely, I thought I'd post a few paragraphs for you to check out. Please note that "carriage houses" and "granny houses" are meant to be taken as being the same thing.

"A group of Denver residents believe the city's new zoning code should allow for the building of so-called carriage houses. Following implementation of the old code 53 years ago, city officials did away with residents' ability to build what are known as accessory dwelling units. The structures carry several different names, including carriage houses and granny flats, named so because many families build them to house their aging relatives ... But as city officials are preparing to finalize the new zoning code - a draft was released at the beginning of June - a group called Friends of Granny are pushing for the right to once again build carriage houses ... Bob Sperling, leader of the Friends of Granny group, says the issue is about choice. As he watches duplexes built around him in Platt Park, he wonders if accessory dwelling units are a way to preserve single-family houses, either connected or detached from their homes, he says ... 'I believe in preserving Denver's single-family housing,' said Sperling.'One of the ways of doing that, and to cut down on slash and burn by outside speculators buying up property, bulldozing it and putting up duplexes, is to build accessory dwelling units.' ... The group acknowledges that there is some resistance from homeowners in the community who might not like the side effect of carriage houses: the possibility of an influx of renters in their neighborhoods as carriage-house owners rent out the accessory units ... But after more than three years of pushing city officials and being out in the public eye, Sperling says only a handful of opponents have raised the caution flag. He also points out that there are already at least 3,000 carriage houses in the city, grandfathered in following implementation of the old code."

The article goes on to discuss more specifics, and I recommend you punch the link and check it all out. But you see? We are not the only community that is pushing the concept, and try as they might to shoot this down, it is really the D.I.C. and their greenhouse gas emitting big ugly box building preferences that have fallen behind the times.

At the end of this article they reprinted some of the comments that had been left on the web version. One in particular, written by someone calling herself Granny, warmed my heart.

"Charlie Busch of the West Wash Park Neighborhood Association has been the only outspoken critic of carriage houses. In the June INC newsletter, she writes, 'It is hard to dispute that individuals enjoying their college years and young adulthood frequently have lifestyles that can be out of synch with those valued by many in our predominantly single-family areas.' That sounds like Ms. Busch would like to somehow prevent the renting of homes to young people in her neighborhood. Granny, however, believes that age and cultural diversity are qualities that help make neighborhoods great, and finds Ms. Busch's views offensive."

Granny? You can write for The Tattler any time you like.

As Goes El Monte, So Goes El Monte Transit Village?

Update: El Monte Avoids Bankruptcy (PSN 7/01/09) "El Monte averted bankruptcy Tuesday night after all four of its employee unions, including the Police Officers' Association, agreed to cuts in benefits to help the city's budget deficit." Does this mean that the money being saved will go towards saving El Monte Transit Village? If some of that money is used for that purpose, how will the unions react?

------------ ------- -- - - -

While the rest of the world sits transfixed and stares into their television sets at the endless coverage of the passing of Michael Jackson, many here at The Tattler choose to look to other things. Myself included. As a f'rinstance, I was pumping some gas into my fuel efficient Saturn Ion at a filling station in Pasadena yesterday, and a portly fellow walked up to me wanting to know if I might be interested in purchasing one of the obviously bootlegged Michael Jackson commemorative t-shirts he was proudly holding in his hand. "Who?" I asked. "Michael Jackson, man. The King of Pop." "Pop?" I replied. "I'm sorry, but I have no idea what you're talking about." The gentlemen stopped, looked at me closely for a second, and then walked quickly away. Who knows, maybe he thought I was dangerous.

Now if he had tried to sell me a "John Leung's L.A. County Weekend Getaway" t-shirt, or one that said, "My City Councilman Belongs To SCAG, And All I Got Was This Cheesy Condo," I'd have bought the whole damned bunch. Because when it comes to media sensations that I can get into, that is where it's really at. Obviously that t-shirt bootlegger is a guy who just doesn't understand the real interests of his potential customers.

Sometimes when I get really bored at work I go to the Pasadena Star News website and look for stuff. Most of the time the search for items of interest is a futile one, and I am forced to return to earning a living. But then sometimes I strike pay dirt, and then get to share what I've found with you. And that is what happened around 3 o'clock yesterday afternoon.

For those of you not familiar with the PSN site, one of the features there is a Top 10 "Most Viewed" list. These are the stories getting the most hits at whatever particular hour you might happen to be visiting. And at 3 PM yesterday there were two El Monte stories that had made this roll of honor, and they were listed numbers 4 and 5.

Story #4 - Officials: El Monte transit project in spotlight, but still viable (06/28/2009 8:46 PM) "While questions linger over the future of the development, city officials believe it remains on track ... 'This project has tremendous merit and potential,' said El Monte City Manager Jim Mussenden. 'We have been making great progress on this and that momentum will continue.' ... The Metropolitan Transportation Authority is confident the transit center/bus depot portion of the project will be completed at the end of 2010, according to Tim Lindholm, MTA Director of capital projects ... 'We have been working hand in hand, but if they have problems, it's not going to slow our project,' Lindholm said ... Meanwhile, El Monte is still in the process of obtaining more money for the Transit Village, Mussenden said."

Now what is significant here is that while the MTA is getting its bus station done, the Transit Village portion is still much in need of investment, especially with the Titan Group in Dutch. With El Monte, despite its much noted lack of folding money, having to make up the difference. Which takes us to article ...

Story #5 - El Monte considers bankruptcy (06/29/2009 01:28 AM) "The city council will consider Tuesday whether to initiate Chapter 9 bankruptcy proceedings for El Monte if council members cannot immediately find a way to completely fix the city's $12 million budget deficit ... 'If I don't have a balanced budget by the end of the evening, we have to initiate Chapter 9 bankruptcy proceedings,' said City Manager Jim Mussenden."

Perhaps there are circumstances that I am not cognizant of here, but how can the City of El Monte possibly be raising (or, should we say, borrowing?) money to build a "Transit Village" while at the same time going into bankruptcy because they can't pay their cops?

Now what this sequence of articles could be telling us is that the City of El Monte and its Transit Village might very well have reached the breaking point. With John Leung and Bart Doyle's Titan Group in seeming disarray, the State of California about to issue Confederate-style scrip, and El Monte's own financial situation parlous to the point of bankruptcy, what we could very well have read here is a report on the demise of the entire project.

There was one other new article up on the PSN site yesterday, "Leftovers from City Hall: Leung's Colleagues shocked." In it was contained this passage: "Leung and his colleague, Jean Lang, were arrested by El Monte police on allegations they bilked two private investors out of $1 million ... They were released from jail on Tuesday, and no charges have been filed. Police expect to bring their case back to the District Attorney's office this week."

As always, The Tattler is standing by.

SB 375 Also Pushes Through The Building Of The 710 Tunnel

Laurie Barlow over at The Greensward Civitas blog has been digging into the consequences of SB 375, and she completes a picture that draws together all of the consequences. Consequences which, if brought to fruition, would be devastating to not only to the ecological integrity of the San Gabriel Valley, but the entire L.A. basin as well. The so-called "Global Warming Bill" continues to be exposed as being anything but Earth friendly.

Here is how Laurie breaks it down:

"SB 375 essentially establishes unofficial growth boundaries, but in exchange it strips local governments of the protections under CEQA (California Environmental Quality Act) for projects that have transportation or housing elements within urban boundaries, and enforces the imposed housing numbers developed by SCAG. Devil's bargain, just like Prop 13 has turned out to be. Major proposed regional transit projects (which are actually cargo transit networks), such as the 710 Connector in South Pasadena, would no longer be stoppable by small communities using CEQA, it strips cities of local control. It pits anticipated regional growth against the integrity of the local communities."

Boiled down into Tattler-speak what is being said here is that SB 375 is a law passed by Sacramento that will put a stop to small communities such as Sierra Madre, South Pasadena, Glendale, La Canada Flintridge, or Crescenta Valley, bringing up environmental considerations when faced with forced high-density development or, God forbid, something as destructive as the proposed 710 tunnel. A hole that will funnel huge amounts of new traffic onto the 210, further fouling our air and causing traffic nightmares.

Laurie continues:

"This agenda by SCAG is to increase the shipping and cargo infrastructure from the Port in San Pedro, a major contributor to carbon emissions and the underlying cause of massive amounts of energy use, pollution and waste generation, as well as the significant water consumption created by construction projects. SCAG is simply chasing the regional profits at the expense of the residents - the usual model of privatize profit, push the consequences to the public sector."

The Port of Long Beach is one of the major entranceways to the American market for the cheaply made Asian goods that now dominate the shelves of stores coast to coast. And once off loaded from cargo ships these goods must be placed on trucks that will take them on their way. And the one problem with this situation is the 710. The fact that it doesn't directly connect to anything creates a lot of headaches for the "transportation sector." And you know when SB 375 was being considered in Sacramento they made their displeasure known.

So why would SCAG be working to enable the funneling of cheaply made Asian goods to a job depressed American market? As we've said before, it always comes down to money. Small cities such as ours have now been stripped of rights that have been ours for decades, all because we've been deemed inconvenient to those who might wish to change us in ways we don't want to be changed. With the only real consideration here being the cash to be made. And don't be deceived by all the Greenwash being applied. Believe me, as far as these kinds of folks are concerned, that's just marketing.

So who would be doing this to cities such as ours? How did this happen? Now immediate suspicions would be cast on the usual suspects in Sacramento. The lobbyists of the BIA and CAR were involved, of course. SB 375, if it is enacted in full, would mean billions of dollars in new business for the people these organizations represent. And then there are the many corrupt politicians who've made a good living for years giving lobbyists such as these what they want.

But we shouldn't overlook the role local politicians play as well. SCAG, of course, plays a big part here. As do SCAG's junior partners such as the San Gabriel Valley Council of Governments. And who chairs the SGVCOG committee in charge of enforcing SB 375 here in the San Gabriel Valley? Would you believe our own Joe Mosca?

Joe Mosca chairs the Energy, Environment, and Natural Resources Committee Energy Working Group for SGVCOG. And among this committee's duties is working on getting SB 375 done right here in the SGV. This from the minutes from this committees May 20th meeting which was held right here in Sierra Madre:

SB 375 Update - Staff reviewed the most recent developments regarding SB 375 including the issues of sub-delegation and regional targets. An SB 375 briefing is scheduled ... It is very important the elected officials, city managers, and planning staff attend this meeting as the San Gabriel Valley considers its strategy for implementation."

Pretty chilling. After reading these committee minutes it becomes obvious that there is no doubt among these people that SB 375 will become a part of our lives. Whether we want it or not. And why? Because people like Joe Mosca apparently believe that persons such as us no longer have any say in these matters. And all they have to do is use the club handed to them by Sacramento and the building trades lobbies that organizations like SGVCOG really work for. 

So when the effects of SB 375 start to be felt here, be it the 710 tunnel or an entire new Sierra Madre DSP that we can no longer stop, at least we won't have to go far to find a guilty party. He's right down there at City Hall telling his tall tales every other Tuesday night.

The Most Clueless Headline Ever?

We just don't seem to have much luck with our weekly news journalists in this town. One because their associations always seem to be with the usual small town real estate hustlers that we all hold in such high regard. But also because they're kind of lazy and just never seem to put in the effort necessary to understand what is really going on.

And every once in a while they lay an egg of such magnitude that the effects rumble through town like an aftershock, causing The Tattler news room phone lines to light up for hours. Which is a good thing. Besides, who else are people going to call? Susan Henderson?

So one of the calls I got Thursday was from our hard working City Manager Elaine Aguilar. And usually when I get a call from Elaine it can only mean that word has gotten to her that somebody has misquoted City budget numbers again, and that she needs to put that wandering genii back in its bottle. Which, given the high quality of news reporting in this town, has become something of a full time job for her. And I am always available to assist in damage control.

As an aside, it has been my contention for awhile that Elaine needs to start using press releases as a way of getting information out to our esteemed local news weeklies. With the data spelled out in ways that are clear, unmistakable, and simple. Maybe she could include a set of wood blocks with each of these press releases? It couldn't hurt.

So anyway, I asked Elaine about her appearance on the front page of The Sierra Made Weekly beneath the headline, "City Manager: Sierra Madre Has No Surplus." She replied in a way that confirmed my belief that she wasn't very pleased. And why should she be? It is obviously something that is as far from the truth as you can possibly get without going to Monrovia. And since this Weekly article covered the very City Council meeting where surpluses were actually discussed, well, you get the idea. Too much sunshine, as they say.

So here's the real picture. In the Fiscal Year 09-10, the City of Sierra Madre will have a surplus of $86,000. And in Fiscal Year 10-11 that surplus will grow to a very handsome $541,000. This comes from a document called the General Fund Summary, and can be obtained from City Hall for the cost of a phone call.

Now we here at The Tattler did reprint that fateful day some passages from a Pasadena Star News article entitled, "Sierra Madre in better financial shape than its neighbors." And this article spoke of surpluses of $800,000 and $1.1 million, far larger than what City Hall is putting out. And while it is unfortunate that those numbers are not accurate, at least the PSN is aware that we do have surpluses. 

There is one other unfortunate and mistaken notion in this Sierra Madre Weekly article that requires some maintenance from their friends at The Tattler. Here is the paragraph in doubt:

"In response to the controversy, City officials are making the rounds telling citizens that they should be grateful for the UUT, even if it seems like an unnecessary burden at the moment. It's saving the City's budget and ll those popular services - like the Police and Fire departments - that it funds."

The patronizing air of the quoted passage aside, this really is a remarkably poorly informed statement. Not just from the misrepresentation that our City employees are out campaigning to keep the Utility User Tax hike, which they most decidedly are not. But to suggest that people working for the City of Sierra Madre have taken it upon themselves to promote tax policy is just, well, civics challenged. 

Here in Sierra Madre, as in most other places where democratic rule is the accepted form of governance, policy matters are something handled by elected officials. Our City employees do not go out and campaign for things, especially those as politically charged as the UUT. 

I mean, who do these people think we are? Sacramento?

Rob Stockly Fights To Save Something That Isn't Exactly Under Attack

I have often pondered some of the seemingly delusional aspects inherent in the appeals of the political opposition. But seeing how they really can't discuss the true motives driving their agendas, what choice do they have than to engage in fantasy? So for them enabling the construction of high density building developments is called "a green strategy" or "fighting global warming." Spending what is really a lot of money is praised as "a good use of our valuable financial resources." And "Preserving Sierra Madre" ends up becoming something that looks like One Carter, a jagged muddy scar up the side of a mountain that used to be home to some of the most pristine wilderness found anywhere in the San Gabriel Valley. There really is very little connection between their words and actions, with the purpose being more to deceive than inform.

But then there are times when what we see from these folks even loses that tenuous grasp on the more popular versions of reality, and soars off into deep space on wings that only they can see.

And recently something appeared in my e-mail box that I think is truly a fine example of the latter phenomenon.

"Dear Friends - We all are painfully aware of the widespread effect of the current recession. This is particularly true of the impact on highly prized community values such as education and basic municipal services. It is a time for heightened vigilance and involvement to solve the challenges that face us, so I am encouraging you to make a very affirmative statement that the Sierra Madre Library epitomizes the sense of place that defines our town. On Independence Day, I believe we should honor the ideal of democracy and memory of the Founding Fathers by making signs to hold up during Sierra Madre's annual parade that convey our determination that the Library must be a priority for the City Council and that libraries be supported by our federal and state officials as well. I suggest something simple like 'We Support Our Library' or more imaginative like 'I cannot live without books - T. Jefferson.' Make it fun, but the message must be positive. Wouldn't it be amazing if such signs and show of support randomly but pervasively appeared up and down the parade route? What if people held up their library cards as the City Council members drove by? My call to action is simple, but only the first step to developing community advocates for the Library and expressing this sentiment to our elected officials and other residents. We are citizens first, not merely taxpayers, and we must therefore get busy advocating for what makes Sierra Madre a special place or we will fade into the suburban landscape and be left to wonder what happened. Your fellow library-loving patriot, Rob Stockly .. P.S. While the element of surprise appeals to my baser instincts, and appearances of serendipity will disappear if this notion actually takes flight and more than 10 folks have signs. Besides, the goal is too (sic) show overwhelming support for our library. So feel free to judiciously (i.e. try to avoid the nattering nabobs of negativism* that dwell among us) share this idea with others."

Have I missed something? Has there been an outbreak of book burning here in Sierra Madre? Demonstrations against the debilitating effects of reading? Boycott Dr. Seuss petitioners in Kersting Court? Threats to take a bulldozer to the nice little brick building that houses our City Library? I'm really at a bit of a loss here. Is there somebody in town that doesn't profess to love our Library? To the point where they want to do it harm? And if so, who is this malcontent? Because I got to tell you, anybody who doesn't like libraries or books is walking on the fighting side of me! And I have a house (and garage) full of the things to prove it.

But you know, I suspect there is an agenda at work here. Isn't there always? Because there is no movement in this City to do away with our Library. And the hundreds of thousands of dollars in tax dollars we spend every year to sustain it is proof of our devotion. Besides, what politician representing the interests of the Downtown Investors Club would get all that worked up about a library? This just doesn't strike me as being authentic outrage here. The enthusiasm for money being far more their style.

No, the poorly kept secret is Rob Stockly, along with John Buchanan, is not really interested in preserving our present library. What they're actually getting at here is knocking down our existing library and building a very large new one. (See link here.) Buchanan has been talking endlessly about a new library for quite some time, and sees this as the opportunity to leave behind something resembling a legacy. A fitting monument to his years of service and sacrifice. And I'm sure that if somebody wanted to call it the John Buchanan Memorial Library, well, he wouldn't mind one little bit.

And while it might be nice to have a new library, there is this one little problem. It would cost an awful lot of money. And Rob and John would have to build up a tidal wave of popular support to make an expense like that appealing to the tax payers. Which I guess in their minds makes even politicizing something as beloved as our heretofore non-partisan 4th of July Parade justifiable.

Now here is something else that we need to consider. How many high ticket items have our friends been pushing in the last month or so? Here is my list. Feel free to add your own!

1) The $300,000 General Plan Consultant. This is justified by the Sultans of Spend as being necessary because City staff is too busy to do that sort of thing themselves. And to not do it would be mean. Besides, if you're going to sneak a new DSP in there somewhere, wouldn't you need the services of highly paid professionals that can keep the secret? We wouldn't want Joe getting distraught again.

2) $2.5 Million (est.) so we can lend residents money to buy Solar Energy Systems. What good is municipal solvency when you can save the world the Edison way? And who knows? At $20 to $5oK a pop, we could be talking about a whole lot more!

3) New Fire and Paramedic Trucks. Let's see ... $400K for a new E1 Engine, $210K for a Water Tender, $30K for a new vehicle for our Fire Chief, $16K for something called a Pool Car, and $133K for new Paramedic ambulances. Cha-ching! $789,000! And heaven forfend should anyone dare suggest we buy used!

4) Finally, and still in the early stages of message development mind you, $5,000,000 for our new John Buchanan Memorial Library. Because after all, wouldn't "T. Jefferson" want it that way?

Can it be after years of spending us into near fiscal insolvency, the habit is so deeply ingrained in that element of our political community they've been driven to madness by our current budgetary surplus? And they can't help but want to spend like there is no tomorrow? Which is where we will be if they get their way here.

But there is something else. You do know that there is a sunset clause to that darned old Utility User Tax, right? And that if you don't get your dibs in now the opportunity to build your special dream on the taxpayers' backs might never come this way again? Another contributing factor, I'm sure.

One more thing. Since Sierra Madre is a General Law City we are governed by our ordinances. We could no more get rid of the library than we could legally run a City without public schools. By ordinance we have to have a free Library. This from City code:

2.16.010 Established: Pursuant to the provisions of an Act of the State of California, entitled "An Act to provide for the Establishment and Maintenance of Public Libraries within Municipalities," approved March 23, 1901, and of all acts supplementary thereto or amendatory thereof, there shall be, and there is established in and for the city, a free public library for the use and benefit of the city.

There is no way this town could legally do away with our Library even if it wanted to. Stockly's claims are absurd.

-------------------------- --------- -------- ------ - -

(*Actually the correct version of the term Rob Stockly slaughters above is "nattering nabobs of negativity." It was originally spoken by an elected government official later forced from office for taking kickbacks named Spiro Agnew. So while most politicians cite the likes of Teddy Roosevelt or Abe Lincoln, Rob has chosen a different kind of visionary to quote. But did you know that if you rearrange the letters of this phrase you'll come up with the anagram "fat annoying bitter voting base?" Maybe that is what Rob is getting at here. Because it certainly does describe the D.I.C.)

And Now, For Some Good News ...

"(Measure V) is poorly written and has the potential to put the city at risk for numerous expensive lawsuits that we cannot afford ... It has the potential to be an unaffordable financial drain on the city." - Glenn Lambdin quoted from a 2007 interview @ Sierramadrenews.net

I'm sure that you can recall during the Measure V campaign the wild claims made by some that should 2-30-13 become the law, the City of Sierra Madre would be thrown into a state of economic collapse that it would never recover from. Massive debt at City Hall, empty stores, low income housing all over the hillsides, "one story big box national retail" popping up all over downtown, and whatever else those folks were making up at that time.

So can you image the looks of horror that would have passed across the faces of the naysayers had they been able to look into the future and see a headline like the one in today's Pasadena Star News?

Sierra Madre in better financial shape than many of its neighbors by Alfred Lee

SIERRA MADRE - City leaders have passed a $19.8 million budget for next year that includes modest spending cuts and fee hikes nearly across the board ... The 2-year plan adopted Monday night for fiscal years 2009-11 manages to avoid some of the more drastic cuts that other neighboring cities have had to make during the recession, officials said ... "A lot of cities are facing sales tax drops, but Sierra Madre doesn't have a sales tax base," city spokeswoman Elisa Weaver said. "We're not feeling the effects as much because we've never relied on it for our budget." ... The city projects $7.2 million in general fund revenues and $6.4 million in general fund expenditures in the 2009-2010 fiscal year starting July 1, followed by $7.9 million in general fund revenues and $6.8 million in expenditures in 2010 - 2011.

Ahh, what a difference having strong leadership makes, eh? And with an $800,000 General Fund surplus in 2009-2010, and a $1.1 million surplus the following year, maybe we can even get a little UUT tax relief going on? I know, everyone likes to have a little extra money in the bank, but why should City Hall be enjoying such a thing when many of the people paying the taxes around here do not? Just a thought. These are difficult times, you know.

But no matter, in a time when many cities are in terrible financial shape, Sierra Madre looks to be coming through strong. And we can all take a lot of pride in that.

Anyway, and strictly for laughs, let's go back to that 2007 Sierramadrenews.net interview with our favorite prophet of doom, Glenn "Darth" Lambdin, and get his take on what things would be looking like right around now...

SGVW: What do you feel are the three most critical long-term issues currently facing the city?

Glenn Lambdin: Money, money, money. Our general fund reserves are half of what they were seven years ago. What people need to remember is that those reserves are not a result of wise saving and planning, but rather are a result of refinanced bonds in 1998. It's like refinancing one's home and taking out some equity cash. We really don't have any mechanisms to replenish those funds. We are getting closer and closer to financial crisis.

Poor Glenn. How hard it must be to go through life and never be right.

SB 375 Strips City Governments Of Much Of Their Control Over Local Development

We discussed some of the problems inherent in Senate Bill 375 the other day. Our conclusion was that the justification behind this bill was based on the faulty scientific conclusion that motor vehicles, rather than buildings, are the preeminent contributor of the greenhouse gases responsible for global warming. And we quoted from various articles that supported our assertion. Yet it would appear that SB 375 will paradoxically enable a massive new building boom in California, and all in the name of reducing greenhouse gases! And done in a way that guarantees none of us will have much say in the matter. Very odd, and very wrong.

And as a kind of review, we'll reprise a couple of these previous cites, and then compare them to statements from SB 375 itself. The first is from an article entitled Buildings Major Source Of Greenhouse Gases, Expert Says." Discussed here is the work of an architect named Connie Wallace. We'll quote a passage: The biggest source of greenhouse gas emissions and energy consumption in this nation and around the world is the buildings in which we live and work - not gas guzzling SUVs and other widely recognized energy consumers that we hear so much about - an internationally recognized architect and authority on preventing global warming said here this weekend.

The Washington Post, in an article entitled "To Reduce Greenhouse Gases Start by Shrinking Buildings," carried the argument a step further: New Mexico architect Edward Mazria has a proposal to reduce the greenhouse gas emissions that contribute to global warming. His target: buildings ... Most people do not connect the two, but in the United States, buildings are the largest source of greenhouse gases. And half of these buildings are houses.

A site called Good discussed an article in Mother Jones Magazine on this topic: But the plain fact, as Mother Jones points out, is that buildings, in the electricity they use to run and the materials they require to build, are responsible for nearly half of our nation's carbon footprint. Transportation? Twenty-seven percent.

And finally, a Green blog called Climate Feedback had this to say: "Buildings account for up to half of all energy consumption, and are the biggest single contributor to greenhouse gas emissions."

But in the "Legislative Counsel's Digest" for Senate Bill No. 375, building structures aren't even mentioned. Rather the blame for greenhouse gas and global warming falls entirely upon cars and trucks. 

Section 1 (a): The transportation sector contributes over 40 percent of the greenhouse gas emissions in the State of California; automobiles and light trucks alone contribute almost 30 percent. The transportation sector is the single largest contributor of greenhouse gases of any sector.

Section 1 (d): In addition, automobiles and light trucks account for 50 percent of air pollution in California and 70 percent of its consumption of petroleum. 

So how do you account for the discrepancy between what you can read almost everywhere else, and what the politicians in Sacramento stated as a justification for passing this bill? Is their need to please the realty and building trades lobbies so strong that they would embrace junk science? In the process triggering massive change in the way our local communities are structured and maintained? And all in the name of allowing these privileged lobbies free reign to build pretty much whatever it is they want. Despite the wishes of the people who live and pay taxes in the communities affected, of course.

But what is even more disturbing is how Senate Bill 375 seems to strip away some of the basic controls Cities have had over zoning and redevelopment, something that has been a part of the social contract here in California since the state's inception. I will quote from several passages that highlight this point.

Existing law requires the housing element, among other things, to contain a program which sets forth a 5-year schedule of actions of the local government to implement the goals and objectives of the housing element. Existing law requires the program to identify actions that will be undertaken to make sites available to accommodate various housing needs, including, in certain cases, the rezoning of sites to accommodate 100% of the need for housing for very low and low-income housing.

A process we are all too familiar with. But apparently things are different now that SB 375 has been enacted. Now if a City fails to comply with all of the above it doesn't just lose a grant or two, rather it can be taken to task by a Court which will, for all intents and purposes, assume control over development within that City.

"This bill would instead require the program to set forth a schedule of actions during the planning period, as defined, and require each action to have a timetable for implementation. The bill would generally require rezoning of certain sites to accommodate certain housing needs within specified times ... and would require the local government to hold a noticed public hearing with 30 days after the deadline for compliance expires. The bill would ... prohibit a local government that fails to complete a required rezoning within the timeframe required from disapproving a housing development project, as defined, or from taking various other actions that would render the project infeasible, and would allow the project applicant or any interested person to bring action to enforce these provisions. 

(Just what Sierra Madre needs. A Sacramento created inducement to sue the City every time building plans don't get approved to someone's liking. Like we don't have enough of that already. But here is where it really gets truly ugly ...)

The bill would also allow a court to compel a local government to complete the rezoning within specified times and to impose sanctions on the local government if the court order or judgement is not carried out, and would provide that in certain cases the local government shall bear the burden of proof relative to actions brought to compel compliance with specified deadlines and requirements.

Correct me if I'm wrong, but doesn't this basically strip Cities of their right to control their own destinies, and put those powers into the hands of the courts and greedy litigants, including developers? And doesn't this basically reduce City governments to rubber stamp operations compelled to perform whatever functions the local regional planning organizations deem necessary?

And then it gets worse. In what is probably one of the great acts of unintended irony ever, Sacramento, through SB 375, has now suspended the right Cities have traditionally enjoyed to an environmental review of many construction projects within their borders. All in the name of saving the world from greenhouse gases, global warming, and a degraded ecology. Here is how SB 375 rolls it out:

The California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA) requires a lead agency to prepare, or cause to be prepared, and certify the completion of, an environmental impact report (EIR) on a project that it proposes to carry out or approve that may have a significant effect on the environment ... 

Which is how things have been for a while. Local governments having the right to bring a halt to those projects that would harm the environment, thus assuring the continued health and well-being of the people living there. But SB 375, a bill that is supposed to help fix the environment, doesn't seem to care about that. Instead it strips this valuable tool from the hands of local government in any case that involves the issues covered in this bill.

This bill would exempt from CEQA a transit priority project, as defined, that meets certain requirements and that is declared by the legislative body of a local jurisdiction to be a sustainable communities project. The transit priority project would need to be consistent with a metropolitan planning organization's (SCAG) sustainable communities strategy or an alternative planning strategy that has been determined by the State Air Resources Board to achieve the greenhouse gas emission reductions target. The bill would provide for limited CEQA review of various other transit priority projects.

In other words, your friendly local SCAG representatives (or those like them), will now have the right to decide whether your City has any say about which projects are healthy for you and your kids, or not. And should your piddling concerns get in the way of building, let's say, a Titan-style transit village? Well, there are Courts empowered to deal with the likes of you.

In one of the more memorable comments left on this board, Dr. Staccato said the following: "I have read two alarming facts that California is truly going off the rails. 1) the notion that you can build your way to lower greenhouse emissions and 2) that there's been a successful move by the BIA/CAR industrial complex to remove environmental review of transit development from CEQA. Personally, I am outraged by the whole thing. Sierra Madre ought to get out of SCAG but it won't change the voodoo that's going on in Sacramento."

SB 375 has left California a far less free place. Under the New SB 375 Order the State will inform the "regional governments" (SCAG) what it expects, and they in turn will command now powerless City Councils what it is they must do. All to be rigidly enforced by the Courts. Totalitarianism with a smiley button for a face. One that strips municipalities of the right to control their own affairs and opens them up to plundering for little more than profit.

No wonder people are fleeing the state in droves. And once the ramifications of SB 375 really start to sink in, that rush to the border could very well become a tsunami.

Second Person Arrested In Leung Affair - Transit Village Project Could Be In Jeopardy

Fourth Update: Pasadena Star News (6/24 - 9:29 PM) "Lawmakers Distance Themselves From El Monte Transit Center Developers .." Looks like the elected enablers are scurrying from the USS Titan. And another Titan/El Monte project - The Pacific Place Expansion - is being scrutinized by the beset city.

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Third Update: Pasadena Star News (6/24 - 10:01 AM) "State Board of Equalization member Judy Chu, the Democratic nominee for the open 32nd congressional district seat, will return donations from two development company executives arrested on suspicion of embezzlement and forgery, according to her staff ..."

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Second Update: LA Times (6/23 - 11:13 PM) "A search warrant was served on Titan Group's offices, police said." Looks like this happened late today as part of the DA's request for more information.

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Update: (From the Pasadena Star News (6/23 - 1:15 PM) "The District Attorney's office sent back a case that accused developer James Leung and his business associate Jean Lang of fraud, embezzlement and forgery ... Leung, President and chief executive officer of Titan Group, and Titan executive Lang will be released from prison today, Distrct Attorney Spokeswoman Jane Robison said ... 'We've asked for further information on each suspect, and no charges will be filed today,' Robison said."
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"Developer John Leung, president of the Titan Group, said building dense housing is another key to accommodating growing populations and offering affordable housing. 'Growth is imminent,' he said. 'So we have to be looking at how we can grow better.' For example, Leung pointed out that the entire population of the United States could live in Texas if it were built to the same density as Paris, France. 'I don't think anybody could tell me Paris doesn't look good,' he said." - From the 2006 SGVTribune article, "Experts Examine Housing Crisis."

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It now appears that a second individual has been arrested in the unfolding El Monte fraud case involving the president of The Titan Group, John Leung. This from today's Pasadena Star News:

"Police arrested a second person alleged to be part of a 'major fraud case' involving loan documents submitted by elected water director and developer John Leung, authorities said Monday ... Jean Lang, 51, an El Monte resident and business associate of Leung's, is being held in lieu of $ million bail at the Century Regional Detention Facility in Lynnwood ... Lang and Leung, 53, the president and chief executive officer of The Titan Group, each face felony counts of embezzlement, grand theft, burglary, and fraud, police said."

The possible denouement of the SCAG ballyhooed El Monte Transit Village project seems linked to $70 million in grant money. Here's how the PSN explains it:

"While authorities said the city is not a victim, officials nonetheless fear the impact the arrests will have on a long-planned $1 billion transit project in the city ... Titan Group is in exclusive talks with the city to build the El Monte Transit Village - a 65 acre residential and commercial complex planned for Santa Anita Avenue of the 10 freeway ... On Monday, uncertainty loomed over what will happen with $70 million worth of grant money that has been awarded to the project, and who in Titan - if anyone - will replace Leung should charges stick ... Portions of the grant money awarded to the city, its redevelopment agaency, and Titan will be revoked if it can't complete planning of the project by 2010."

The article goes on to say that Leung has been the key figure at Titan on the project, and that his trip to the pokey does present some serious challenges to both El Monte and the survival of the Transit Village. Having its dominant figure in the can would have the potential to crimp Titan's ability to move and groove in a meaningful developer kind of way. And even Sacramento wouldn't fork over any more cash to someone with a prison address. Or at least we'd hope.

Then our man Bart makes his print debut in this affair, stepping up with this statement:

"Bart Doyle, chief operating officer of the Titan Group, would not comment on how Leung's arrest will affect the Transit Village Project. 'Titan is not being sued, and Ms. Lang and Mr. Leung have retained their own criminal council,' Doyle said."

Of course, pointing out that Titan not being sued is important. A statement designed to limit speculation and protect the franchise, I suppose. Then again, the night is young. It will be interesting to see if Mr. Doyle can hold this shipwreck together and keep credit lines open.

A question that should be asked is this: If some of the $70 million in grant money ends up being forfeited because obligations are not met in time, will the impoverished El Monte be left holding the bag? This is a City currently facing an $8 million deficit, and was recently forced to lay off 17 cops, firing over 100 other employees as well.

Needless to say, The Tattler will continue to follow the developments in this case. Expect further updates as more information becomes available.