SEE PAGE 4 for 5th annual get healthy pasadena
Pasadena Press pasadenapress.com
MONDAY, JANUARY 26, 2015 - FEBRUARY 1, 2015
A Mayoral Legacy for Pasadena Bogaard Focuses on the Positive Despite Embezzlement Scandal By NICK KIPLEY “The Pasadena Playhouse is truly a gem. I can’t imagine a Pasadena without it,” opened Vice Mayor Jacque Robinson at last Thursday night’s “State of the City Speech” event. This speech concluded the record sixteen years of Pasadena Mayor Bill Bogaard’s authority. Following a glowing review of the outstanding history of the Pasadena Playhouse, a performance by the youth theatre company “Theatre 360,” and a brief video exploring the “Hidden gems of Pasadena,” Mayor Bogaard took to the stage for his State of the City Address. He started off by joking that his wife Claire was the “One person to [his] knowledge who has attended [the annual state of the city speech] all sixteen times.” After thanking the Council, Mayor Bogaard addressed the current investigation into the Underground Utility Funds scandal, but didn’t mention anything new: “The city manager has announced the engagement of an independent investigator to facilitate the completion of a wide-ranging personnel review.”
VOLUME 2, NO. 4
Gold Line Maintenance & Operations Yard Nears Completion in Monrovia By SUSAN MOTANDER
she can get things done, fight for working families and advocate strongly for our Democratic values. Her leadership in gang reduction and youth programming through the 20/20 initiative
For months workers have been swarming over the construction site along Evergreen Avenue between California and Shamrock. Huge buildings have risen and nearly six miles of rail track have been laid on the 26 acres site. Slowly the Gold Line’s $265 million Construction and Maintenance Yard is coming to life. The site will provide storage space for as many as 84 light rail vehicles when they are not in use. In addition, the facility will also contain the cleaning and repair facilities for the cars. There is even a gigantic “car wash;” it is like Fashing’s on steroids with the ability to wash an entire train at once. Mark Mickelson, the segment manager coordinating the construction of the site, dubbed the largest building “The Mall of Shops,” noting that it housed separate bays for the different types of work being done to keep the vehicles in good running order. There is even a $3 million lathe used to true the wheels on the vehicles (oval wheels lead to a bumpy ride). In this building the cars can be run in on tracks at ground level, but the tracks are on trestle-like bridges over some of the work areas so the maintenance
Please see page 3
Please see page 2
Terry Tornek
In addition to this measure, Bogaard stated that, “The city attorney will maintain a close working relationship with the District Attorney and strongly support the criminal prosecutions to the fullest extent of the law. Further, she has been directed to use civil litigation aggressively to recover the losses and damages suffered by this city.”
– Photos by Terry Miller
Bogaard then turned to Pasadena’s bright future while glancing nostalgically at the past -- Pasadena real estate is up 5.4% at $24 billion while unemployment is down to 6% and thus, below the 7.2% average for California. Bogaard explained that to Please see page 4
L.A. County Democratic Party Endorses Jacque Robinson for Pasadena Mayor At the Los Angeles County Democratic Party (LACDP) January Meeting, LACDP Members voted to endorse Jacque Robinson for Mayor of the city of Pasadena. LACDP Chair and California Democratic Party Vice Chair
see page 3 for women at work leadership league
Eric C. Bauman said of the endorsement: “Jacque Robinson has accomplished much throughout her career as an advocate for working men and women, city council member, and Vice Mayor of Pasadena. She has shown
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Newcomers and Friends of San Gabriel Valley Invites Local Residents to February Events Newcomers and Friends of San Gabriel Valley invites local residents in the San Gabriel Valley to join in their upcoming February events. Newcomers’ meet-andgreet coffee and general meeting will be held on February 4th, at 10 am to noon, inArcadia. The coffee is a great way to learn about the club’s fun activities. Anyone interested in joining the club is welcome to attend. It is a nice way to meet new people, keep busy, and make friends. A luncheon, followed by a speaker on women’s heart health, will be held on February 11, in Pasadena. Also, a tour of an impressive Cuban Bakery will take place on February 25.
Additionally, Newcomers and Friends of San Gabriel Valley will be celebrating their 50th Anniversary at a special brunch in March. Guests are invited to attend the coffee to be eligible to attend the luncheon, tour, and brunch. Other Newcomers’ activities include a Book discussion group, Day Trips, Gardens, Golf, Hiking, Lunch Bunch, Movies, Wine Tasting, Travel, and Games: Bridge, Bunco, Mah Jongg, Pinochle, Rummikub, Scrabble, etc. To learn more about Newcomers and Friends of San Gabriel Valley, visit them online athttp://www.sgvnewcomers. com or contact them at sgvnewcomers@yahoo.com.
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Gold Line Continued from page 1
-Photo by Terry Miller
staff can work on the undercarriage including the wheels without removing the body or chassis. IT is amazing. The 130,000 square foot building also houses the offices and the locker rooms for both the operations staff (those who run the trains) and the maintenance staff (those who keep the trains running). More than 175 people will work out of this facility (the EIR allowed for 191) with more than half working to maintain the cars. They will work three shifts a day every day. At the very top of this large building is the Yard Control Room. From this room, one person will control the movement of all the light rail vehicles at the facility. And the view is spectacular. Set more than three stories above the ground it has windows overlooking the entire yard and beyond, over the freeway and to the foothills. One wonders how the operators will be able to stay focused on the yard with such a vista. The Gold Line tracks in this area run along the north side of Duarte Road. The trains will enter the facility near the end of Shamrock and exit the same way. The interiors will be cleaned out at what looks like a station in the center of the yard and then will move through the car wash barn. They will then be directed back to operation, to the storage area in the tracks along the
north side of the yard, or to the shops in the “Mall” if repairs are necessary. One nice detail for train watchers, there will even be viewing area. There is a small park planned for the northwest corner of facility at California and Evergreen, from which the public can view the yard operations. According to Lisa Levy Buch of the Gold Line Construction Authority, the park will be planted with drought tolerant plants, oak trees and other ornamental shade trees. There will even be benches and a decorative fence with a California poppy motif (the accent color in the yard is “poppy.” of course). Even the walkways will have a light sprinkling of orange speckles. Boulders removed from the site during construction will be used in landscaping this area. There will even be landscaping all around the facility. The construction authority and the city of Monrovia are in the process of identifying the plants to be used and how they will be maintained. One last note: one cannot help but notice the large, 600,000 gallon, tank in the middle of the yard. Relax, the vehicles are electric; the tank will contain only water to be used in the event of a fire emergency if the city water supply is not available. And of course, the tank is “poppy” colored.
JANUARY 26, 2015 - FEBRUARY 1, 2015 | 3
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Women at Work Announces Leadership League Women at Work, the only non-government bilingual (English/Spanish) career and job resource charity serving Los Angeles County, announces the creation of the Women at Work Leadership League comprised of exciting community and business leaders in the Foothills area. The Women at Work Leadership League provides an opportunity to develop relationships with exceptional women in the local community by supporting and promoting Women at Work. Through fun “friend-raising” events, this group introduces the public to the mission and accomplish-
ments of Women at Work and attracts new financial supporters, program partners and volunteers. Members will provide up to date insight and data to the organization to keep it relevant and meeting the needs of the community. The League will hold a special Kickoff Reception at a private historical home in Pasadena on Thursday, Jan. 29. Attendees will be entertained by an original comedic theatrical performance created by Theater Americana about the modern working woman! Theatre Americana produces a variety of performing arts projects in collaboration with organiza-
-Photo by Terry Miller
tions that provide social, educational, and health programs for children and adults and is donating its time and talent to Women at Work. To learn more about Women at Work visit www.womenatwork.org.
Jacque Robinson Endorsed as Mayor Alhambra PRESS
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ANAHEIM PRESS
Baldwin Park
Belmont Beacon Long Beach Office 3780 Kilroy Airport Way Suite 360 Long Beach, CA 90806 Ph. (562) 472-0071 Fx. (562) 689-0071
INDEPENDENT
INDEPENDENT
Jaque Robinson -Photo by Terry Miller
Pasadena Press
San Bernardino Press
and her commitment to public service has made Pasadena a better place to live and work. The Los Angeles County Democratic Party is proud to support Jacque Robinson.” For the full list of LACDP endorsements or for more information, visit www.lacdp.org/ endorsements.
Los Angeles Office 5701 South Eastern Avenue Suite 100 Los Angeles, CA 90040 Ph. (323) 727-1144 Fx. (323) 727-9198 www.heger-industrial.com Lic. #00814086
4 | JANUARY 26, 2015 - FEBRUARY 1, 2015
5th Annual Get Healthy Pasadena This year is especially important for the community. In addition to screenings for diabetes, prostate, BMI, hearing, vision, dental, blood pressure, cholesterol, and stroke, for the first time Get Healthy Pasadena will feature three additional screenings: -SureTouch, a non-invasive, radiation-free breast screening: B. Smith L.Ac. - Pasadena Breast Wellness Center; Sponsored by Women Educating Women About Health -Ultrasound for liver and kidney, with a liver specialist on hand to provide analysis
and advice based on your ultrasound: Dr. Shafiei - West Coast Ultrasound Institute; Dr. Mena - Huntington Medical Research Institutes -PULS test, to detect the #1 cause of heart attacks: unstable cardiac lesion ruptures: G. McLane - GD Biosciences; Dr. Jacobi - Healthy Living Medical. In addition to the great local restaurants who have provided food at Get Healthy in previous years this year’s Get Healthy food court will include local favorite Tender Greens and a cooking demo by California Pizza Kitchen. Lunch will be
provided, courtesy of the Food Court, to participants who complete 5 or more screenings. Get Healthy’s Speaker Series includes 3 seminars this year. A men’s only talk on Prostate & Sexuality will begin at 9 a.m. At 10, top medical doctors who are also on MEMAH’s board of directors (including Jerome Lisk, MD, Joshua Jacobi, MD, and Mauro Zappaterra MD) and the Women’s Advisory Board (Beauty Swe, MD) will discuss Alzheimer’s and Parkinson’s disease, the heart, pain and “Improving a Healthy Attitude”. The final
seminar on domestic violence begins at 11, with a panel including Pasadena Chief of Police Phillip Sanchez, Ahmad Elhan of the Allstate Foundation, Tara N. Thacker, MD of Kaiser Permanente, Sandra Abarca, MS, of Planned Parenthood, and Linda Offray, Founder of Sheppard’s Door: Saturday, February 7, 2015, 8:30 a.m. to 2:30 p.m., Pasadena City College, CC Building, 1570 E. Colorado Blvd., Pasadena. For more information or to make a screening appointment, call (626) 389-2759 or visit www. memah.org.
Mayor Bogaard's State of the City Continued from page 1
address rising pension costs, pension reform would be initiated to keep the cost low in coming years. He claimed that 1,700 new real estate units were under construction, and pointed out that the Playhouse Plaza office complex across the street from the Playhouse was not only the first office building constructed in years, but a sure sign of Pasadena’s ability to bounce back from recession. The mayor was pleased to report that, due to Pasadena’s Innovation Strategy, several new Tech Startups have recently established, or are now planning on establishing, their headquarters in the city. “Pasadena now
stands on the forefront of the high tech world,” he said. Bogaard also announced that “in the past year more than 300 young people have taken place in [Police and Fire Department] mentorship programs.” This Collaborate Pasadena program has allowed the city to, “Change the way we do business with schools … to give every young person a chance to reach their potential.” 2015 will be a “big year,” for the Metro Gold Line, the “unifying goal for the San Gabriel Valley,” according to Bogaard. When the next phase of the project is completed, Pasadenans will be linked to the City of
Hope Cancer Research Center, The L.A. Arboretum, the Santa Fe Dam Recreation Area, five historic San Gabriel Valley city downtowns, and Azusa Pacific University/Citrus College. “Azusa will not be the end of the line for long,” Mayor Bogaard assured the crowd. “We anticipate the second phase will come from a new tax measure to be voted on in 2016. “Tonight caps a remarkable and rewarding period in my life,” the mayor began his conclusion, “Sixteen years as Pasadena’s first directly elected mayor … I was never elected to be a caretaker; no one on the city council is. But to represent those who put their faith and trust in us to carry out our duties because they -- and we -- believe all of our citizens deserve the best city possible.” When the Playhouse went bankrupt in 1969 and its doors shut to Pasadenans, it was very much like losing a piece of their City. But in 1985, then-citizen Bill Bogaard and many other volunteers and contributors were able to refurbish the building back to its former splendor. It was that same idea of seeing Pasadena as a city where its citizens could be inspired to take
on any challenge presented that convinced Bogaard to run for mayor and, through hard work, reap great reward. “In 1999 I promised to be a catalyst for positive change, to bring our community together, and to build a greater city. I urged all of us to go for it, in a quest for improvement. And we did just that …. In the ensuing sixteen years we saw good times and bad,” he said, “[but] in a short span of time, Pasadena emerged as one of America’s leading cities and an internationally recognized symbol of hope, diversity, culture, arts, education, science, jobs, and economic opportunity. We took the best of Pasadena and made it better.” The Mayor urged the City to continue to “Go For It,” stating, “There are no constraints on the human mind, no walls around the human spirit, no barriers to our progress—except any we might upon ourselves, impose.” Immediately concluding the invocation, “God Bless Pasadena, The State of California, The United States of America. God bless all of you. Thank you, and goodnight,” the audience rose to its feet and applauded for a full minute.