WEEKLY
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THURSDAY, MARCH 19 - MARCH 25, 2009 VOLUME 14, NO. 23
STATE SCHOOLS CHIEF SPEAKS IN PASADENA
Laments Record Number of Teacher and Staff Layoff Notices •By Terry Miller•
State Superintendent of Public Instruction Jack O’Connell joined local education officials Saturday in Pasadena at a news conference to highlight the record number of teacher and school staff layoff notices being issued this year as a result of the state budget crisis. March 15 was the statutory
deadline to issue “pink slips” or potential layoff notices to teachers before the upcoming school year. Also joining O’Connell at the event was Pasadena Unified School District Superintendent Edwin Diaz and Pasadena Unified PTA Council President Audrey Durden. Friday, March 13, the
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MONROVIA 3 OLD FICUS TREES SLATED FOR EXECUTION IN SIERRA MADRE LIBRARY CLOSING
FOR TWO MONTHS
The city of Pasadena recently garnered a lot of grief over the removal of trees along Colorado Boulevard in the Theatre District. The trees were taken down in the middle of the night and a veritable public outcry couldn’t stop the destruction of the trees. The reason, albeit thinly veiled, was litigation over unsafe sidewalks. Sadly it had become the thing to do, slip and fall down, sue a city! Fall over a slightly cracked pavement, sue the city. Creative financing or, perhaps a unique stimulus package, if you will. Several years ago, residents in the city of Sierra Madre were in a collective uproar over a number of trees being “removed” from the business district in Sierra Madre. Accusations flew, and many in the city wondered why the dept. of Public Works would destroy perfectly healthy and beautiful trees that not only provide much needed shade but also oxygen. The reason is often potential litigation and/ or dangerous sidewalks due
to the roots destroying the pavement above and below ground. It was during Wistaria Festival, ironically a festival based on living, carbon dioxide eating, oxygen giving
- Photo by Terry Miller
plant, when we noticed 3 trees have been slated for “removal” by public works just off N. Baldwin. On each tree there is a notice advising those with questions to call Suzi McConnell of the Tree Commission.
Evidently the city Tree Commission has followed all the rules and regulations and posted the appropriate notices. Though it seemed no one paid any attention to this latest round of tree exterminations and certainly no one filed an appeal. An order to remove the trees was issued. We’re not pointing fingers. Maybe we’re pointing out that more trees have to die as a result of a more litigious society in which we live. I like trees; I grew up in them. In fact, I had my senior portrait taken in a majestic old Oak Tree in New York…way back circa the 1970’s. Trees give us inspiration and hope, not to mention shade and much needed oxygen. To add insult to injury, Sierra Madre has the distinct honor of being a Tree City, whatever that means. These three trees’ fate unfortunately is now set and awaits the bids from contractors to offer to city council for the work of removing these glorious trees.
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Wistaria Festival Goers Obamamania Adds Cigars to Growing List Saturate Sierra Madre of Products Showing Up Around Town
the vine was the amount of time people spent taking snapshots and talking with docents about the vine’s history. As Bach was being played by a solo guitarist, one could hear various anecdotes of forefathers visiting the vine a hundred plus years ago and urban folk tales of how the house nearly collapsed under the excessive weight of the thick vines. Nell Solt, owner of the home on Hermosa on which the festival is based takes everything in her stride and doesn’t seem to mind that
A s t he newly elect ed U.S. President Barack Obama tries to kick an old cigarette smoking habit, and cities worldwide are enacting tough, anti-smoking laws, along comes a Nicaraguan company that has produced the latest in a sea of merchandise trying to cash in on his popularity with “Obama - Series 44” cigars. Granada Cigars, a small outfit based in Nicaragua’s tobacco-growing north, is using local and Cuban leaves to hand-roll cigars wrapped with a gold band that says “Obama 44,” commemorating the 44th U.S. president. The name of the cigar company pays homage to the oldest city in Central America, Granada which was founded in 1524. Before the Cuban embargo, the world’s highest quality cigar tobacco came from the Vuelta Abajo district in Cuba. Master cigar producers finally found a goldmine
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Record Crowds Hit Sierra Madre Despite Cooler Weather This Year’s Wistaria Festival saw longer lines than ever for the buses as they headed up Baldwin to the World Famous vine. The average wait, 1 - 2 hours according to those with whom we spoke, was more than worth it according to Kim Salinas who came from Northern California’s Big Sir to see the annual blooming. Kim along with countless numbers of Red Hat society members descended upon the Vine first thing Sunday morning hoping to beat the crowds. One reason there was a delay in getting people up to
•By Susan Motander•
The Monrovia Public Library will close on Thursday, May 12 and will not reopen until May 16. The Library has been in a temporary location at the Mary Wilcox Center for over a year as the new library was being constructed on the location of the old library. In addition to the new Library Building, all of Library Park is being updated and remodeled. During the closure of the Library, its staff will be relocating all the books, materials, equipment and records from their temporary location to the new library. The new facility is a 28,000 square-foot building which was constructed with funds from Measure L. The new building came in not only on schedule, but under budget. The stacks and services will not be available during the move from Friday, March 13 through Friday May 15. During this time books should be returned to the outside drop located outside the Wilcox Center at 843 E. Olive Avenue until May 9. After that day, returns should be returned to the outside book drop on Lime Avenue between Myrtle and
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School District Draws Strong Candidates for Superintendent Position
•By Terry Miller•
Larger than average crowds hit the streets on Sierra Madre on Sunday for the Annual Wistaria Festival - Photos by Terry Miller
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More trees to be removed soon
Janice Vargas, who spent four years at Jefferson just received her pink slip, spoke at a news conference Saturday while Jack O’Connell listens. - Photo by Terry Miller
THURSDAY EDITION
Nicaraguan Tobacco Growers Hope to Cash in on ObamaÊs Popularity From left: Anto Kamavan, owner of Cigars by Chivas, Tanya Davis, Stafford Barker and Thomas Turner -Photo by Terry Miller
After completing an exemplary career as an educator and Superintendent of Monrovia Unified School District, Dr. Louise Taylor will be retiring at the end of the current school year. As she begins her well-deserved retirement, the Monrovia Schools face the challenge of filling the vacancy. The Board of Trustees of the Monrovia Unified School District announced earlier today that the application period for candidates interested in the superintendent position ended last Friday, February 13th. Thus, the board members are currently reviewing the applications submitted by the 33 candidates for the position to determine which candidates’ experience and backgrounds best match the specific needs of the Monro-
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