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Duarte Vows to Fight Vulcan BY RUTH LONGORIA KINGSLAND Duarte City Council voted unanimously Tuesday to continue the fight to save nearby hillside and community quality of health from the impending Vulcan Materials Co. mining expansion previously approved by neighboring Azusa. This decision, after the second of Tuesday’s two closed-door executive committee meetings, and after much pleading and persistent persuasion from the public at its regularly scheduled council meeting. Tuesday’s announcement was met with a burst of cheers, handshakes, highfives and applause from the about 50 residents who waited to hear the council’s late night decision. “We have no choice, except to try and fight,” said Mayor Pro-tem Lois Gaston. “We will do what we have to do to protect the children that are here now and those that are coming up. It’s a personal thing for me,” she said, explaining that two of her friends recently faced surgeries in their battles with cancer. The city of Duarte lost its lawsuit against the project in May, when a Los Angeles Superior Court Judge ruled against the city’s claim that the environmental impact report was inadequate and that the city of Azusa violated open meeting laws in approving the plan. Duarte has until Aug. 8 to file an appeal to that decision, said City Attorney Dan Slater. The city already spent about $700,000 in legal fees to fight the proposed mining at Azusa’s limestone rock quarry, since Azusa agreed last year to allow Vulcan to mine 80 acres on the north side of Duarte. The property borders Duarte, but is within the city of Azusa. Vulcan, which is the nation’s leading producer of
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Temple Tribune CITY
Monday edition of the
Monrovia Weekly ArcAdiA Weekly MONDAY, JUNE 20 - JUNE 26, 2011 VOLUME XXI, NO. XIX
READERS CHOICE 2011
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San Gabriel Educational Foundation Receives South El $10,000 Grant from the Pasadena Tournament Monte High of Roses Foundation Students Participate in MESA Day BY ANNE DONOFRIO -HOLTER Students from South El Monte High School’s Mathematics, Engineering, Science Achievement program (MESA) participated in Cal State Los Angeles’ regional MESA Day competition and had their best showing yet, dominating in several events. In mathematics, Meng Lin placed first with Kevin Alvillar coming in third. In algebra II, Tony Hua came in first. In the glider competition, the team of Khoa Ho and Victor Loera placed first
Please see page 3 Pasadena Tournament of Roses Foundation President Wellington Chen (left) and Vice President Jacqueline Howard (far right) present SEF President Pat Freeman and SEF Executive Director Sheryl MacPhee with a $10,000 grant to purchase new musical instruments for Jefferson Middle School in the San Gabriel Unified School District. -Courtesy photo
The San Gabriel Educational Foundation (SEF), the primary fundraising partner of the San Gabriel Unified School District (SGUSD), has received a $10,000 grant from the Pasadena Tournament of Roses Foundation. The monies will be used to purchase new instruments for the Jefferson Middle School (JMS) band and orchestra for the 2011-12 school year. SEF is a first time grant recipient from the Tournament Foundation, which distributed grants to 25 differ-
ent non-profit organizations who shared $98,000. SEF was one of two non-profits that received a $10,000 grant, the largest grant given by the Foundation. The grant will contribute to SEF’s “Music Plus” Campaign, with a goal of raising $100,000 by the end of the 2010-11 school year. Both the Jefferson Middle School band and orchestra are award winning programs that have received top honors and accolades, including numerous Gold and Superior ratings at music festi-
vals. At 2010’s Forum Music Festival in Orange County, the JMS Advanced Orchestra as well as the 6th Grade Intermediate Orchestra received a prestigious Gold Rating for their achievements. What’s more, the JMS Advanced Band has regularly received Superior and Excellent Ratings at the Southern California School Band & Orchestra Association and Forum Music Festivals. The band and orchestra program are very popular with JMS students, with over 350 students partici-
pants this year, including 6th, 7th, and 8th graders. “We are thrilled that the Pasadena Tournament of Roses Foundation has selected SEF as one its 2011 grantees,” stated SEF President Pat Freeman. “The grant will allow SEF to purchase many more instruments for our middle school band and orchestra, and enable our students to excel as they practice, perfect and perform their music.”
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Duarte Library Re-Opens after 10 Week Hiatus BY RUTH LONGORIA KINGSLAND
Community Library Manager Eileen Penson shows off Duarte Library’s new self-check out system, as Cynthia Merina, acting regional administrator for the East County Region works on a computer in the background.
Citizens Redistricting Commission 1st Draft District Maps Released – Could Spell Trouble for Republicans like David Dreier
With much the anticipation of a Hollywood film premiere, a small line of eager patrons formed outside Duarte County Library Tuesday morning. Many, the same folks who made several return visits the day before, when the library was scheduled to reopen after its 10-week hiatus. The library closed in
With four 14-0 votes, the California Citizens Redistricting Commission has released its first round of draft maps for Congressional, State Assembly, State Senate and Board of Equalization districts. The Commission is now soliciting public comment on the draft districts. Testimony can be submitted online to votersfirstact@
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