Serving Bixby Knolls, California Heights, Los Cerritos, Wrigley and Signal Hill with 30,000 issues every Friday
VOL. XLI NO. 35
Your Weekly Community Newspaper
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In this issue
LB Council requests economicimpact study of port automation
NEWS
First four appointments to new Ethics Commission approved during council meeting.
Fire Station 9 closes in Los Cerritos
The closure may increase emergency response times, officials say Page 3
Cory Bilicko Staff Writer Sebastian Echeverry | Signal Tribune
Authorities arrested Rodolfo Montoya, 37, on Aug. 20 on suspicion of carrying out a “mass-casualty” shooting at the Marriott Hotel located at 4700 Airport Plaza Dr. Long Beach police said they recovered numerous weapons, various munitions, tactical gear and two small cameras from Montoya’s residence. The evidence was displayed during a press conference on Aug. 21.
Police arrest suspect who planned to shoot up Long Beach hotel, authorities say Sebastian Echeverry Managing Editor
Farm Lot 59 vandalized once again, owner says Page 8
COMMUNITY
August 23, 2019
The Long Beach Police Department announced during a press conference Wednesday that a potential mass shooting at a local hotel near the Long Beach airport was thwarted. Authorities arrested Rodolfo Montoya, 37, on Aug. 20 on suspicion of threatening to carry out a “mass-casualty” shooting at the Marriott Hotel located at 4700 Airport Plaza Dr.
Police said they recovered numerous weapons, various munitions, tactical gear and two small cameras from Montoya’s residence. The evidence was displayed during the press conference. On Aug. 19, authorities received a call from a concerned hotel employee telling them that a coworker had made violent threats toward the hotel staff and guests, police said. Police acted quickly and be-
gan an investigation to locate the suspect. Montoya was located in Huntington Beach and was arrested on Aug. 20, Long Beach Chief of Police Robert Luna said. Montoya is being held at $500,000 bail at the Long Beach City Jail. “Suspect Montoya had clear plans, intent and the means to carry out an act of violence that may have resulted in a mass-casualty incident,” Luna said see THREAT page 15
During its Aug. 20 meeting, the Long Beach City Council approved charter and non-charter commission appointments, discussed an app that could provide updated information on homeless services in the city, approved a study of automation at the Port of Long Beach and agreed to the purchase of Sunnyside Cemetery. Non-charter commissions The council approved several appointments to non-charter commissions, such as the board for the Health and Human Services Commission, the Economic Development Commission, the Human Relations Commission, the Citizens' see LB COUNCIL page 14
Sunnyside Cemetery rescued from ruin Anita W. Harris
Signal Hill nonprofit to showcase quilted art exhibt Page 11
OPINION Thoughts from the Publisher return Page 4
Staff Writer
After two months of assessing, the City of Long Beach agreed to take over the 113-year-old Sunnyside Cemetery with a unanimous 7-0 approval vote during the city council’s Aug. 20 meeting. The 13-acre cemetery at 1095 E. Willow Street opened in 1906 and has over 16,000 interred, including pioneering city officials, Civil War soldiers and Japanese Americans interned during World War II.
“This is one of the most historic sites in the city,” Economic Development Manager John Keisler said during the meeting. “Over the past few years, as the cemetery filled up, the space to sell new burial plots decreased. That put a lot of pressure on the cemetery to operate and continue to maintain its aging infrastructure.” Keisler told the council that the cemetery’s board approached the city in June saying that it could no longer operate and maintain see RENT page 10
Anita W. Harris | Signal Tribune
The Long Beach City Council voted on Aug. 20 to adopt the Sunnyside Cemetery (pictured) as city property.