2009_10_01_Pasadena

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PASADENA

“Conspiring with world leaders to control the weather”

pasadenaindependent.com

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THURSDAY, OCTOBER 1 - OCTOBER 7, 2009 VOLUME 14, NO. 40

Alverno Head Calls Facility Usage Hullabaloo a “Mystery” BY TERRY MILLER

To A nn Gillick, t he head of the private girls’ school at Alverno in Sierra Madre, the substantial fuss and negative publicity over the use of facility and subsequent noise complaints is “a bit of a mystery.” The school has been renting out its Villa Del Sol Del Oro facility to city departments for years at no charge, and the popular

Week Three Winner!

Sierra Madre Friends of the Library annual food and wine event is yet another example of how the school feels it helps out the community. They never charge rent for that event as well as many others throughout the year. What’s more, whenever there has been a problem or complaint from the community, Gillick says it is always been addressed and resolved quickly, such as noise from

the school bell, which Gillick pointed out was a concern some years ago. In fact, Gillick says Alverno has been a good neighbor in Sierra Madre for 50 years, and that’s a fact of which the school has always been quite proud. Ironically, it was after a heated city council meeting last Tuesday evening - during which much of the debate was centered on the noise factor at Alveno - that

the City held its Volunteer Awards Ceremony at Alverno, just two nights later. Calls to the City of Sierra Madre in request for comment regarding their awards dinner were not returned. Some Sierra Madre residents have taken it upon themselves to place signs some all too reminiscent of the marathon Maranatha opposition - outside their homes near the historic Alverno

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Alverno Head of School Ann Gillick stands outside the School’s famous Villa Del Sol Del Oro. Neighbors of the school have begun pressuring the city council to deny plans for new campus facilities. - Photos by Terry Miller

Soliant Lights the Way for Future of Solar Energy

Gov. Appoints Three to New Judges, Kralik is Only Republican L a s t w e e k , G o v. Schwarzenegger appointed three new judges to the county’s highest courts, one of whom is an Altadena Resident. Of John J. Kralik, John C. Lawson II and Elaine W. Mandel, the three appointed to judgeships in the Los Angeles County Superior Court, only Kralik is a Republican. The compensation that each new judge will receive for these positions is $178,789. Kralik, 54, of Altadena,

-Photo By Terry Miller

This week’s winner of the Beacon Media/Priceless Computer Back to School Giveaway was Jacky Kwok, a seventh grader from First Avenue Middle School in Arcadia. Jacky’s essay was one of the most creative - and downright fun to read - that we’ve received since the contest began in early August. You can read Jacky’s essay online at www.arcadiaweekly.com. Jacky’s parents were happy to learn about the pre-installed OpenOffice software suite, saying that their son needed to prepare presentations for school and did not have the right software. Now Jacky is all set.

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Altadena Lawyer Appointed to County Superior Court

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Jay Goldman, Vice President of sales for Soliant, shows how they specializes in energizing commercial rooftops with these solar panels that are activated by unique cells which help move the units according to the direction of the sun. Photo By Terry Miller BY NINA KATHRYN HAUPTMAN

The city of Monrovia appears to be coming into its own as a veritable hot bed of cutting-edge technology. There is AeroVironment, which specializes in the development of energy products and unmanned hovering air vehicles. Then there is Xencor, which develops antibodies for such serious chronic illnesses as Hodgkin lymphoma, and

State-of-the-Art Pilot Facility Opens in Monrovia currently has a licensing deal with Pfizer. And the latest high-tech company to make waves in Monrovia is Soliant Energy, which cut the ribbon on a new, 15,000 square foot solar panel manufacturing facility on August 28th. Both Congressman David Dreier of San Dimas

and Monrovia Mayor Mary Ann Lutz attended the grand opening festivities to show their support for Soliant. Stated Dreier, “Soliant Energy is a great example of a company innovating, helping to meet our energy challenges, and creating good jobs all at once. Our area is

known for innovation, and Soliant is one of the reasons why.” Raved Mayor Lutz, “It’s exciting to see how Soliant Energy is bringing the solar technology we need to address climate change, and the green jobs we need to help rebuild our local economy.” Indeed, Soliant is creating quite the buzz for its innovations in solar paneling. The company has created

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