P A R A M O U N T
PULSE BEAT
January 2014
www.paramountchamber.com
Serving the Community Since 1990
Paramount 2013 – It’s a Wrap! New Tot Lot Opens at Spane Park
Local Highlights From the Year Gone By As we enter 2014, it’s nice to pause and glance back on the past year. And when we do, we find it was another stable and progressive period in Paramount. Here are some of the bright spots from 2013.
Salud Park – To Your Health!
Vice Mayor Diane J. Martinez cuts the ribbon to officially open the Tot Lot at Spane Park.
The grand opening of “To Your Health!” Salud Park – at the corner of Texaco St. and Somerset Blvd. – was held in April. A $4.5 million state grant covered construction of this first-class facility on Southern California Edison right-ofway property that is serving thousands of residents. Paramount was given the John Sanford Todd Memorial Award for the Economical Use of Public Resources for the park, which honors excellence, creativity, and innovation in the economical and efficient use of public resources. The inter-agency cooperation with SCE that created Salud Park provides the residents of Paramount with a free “gym membership,” available for use seven days a week, a long-term public benefit. Salud Park has been welcomed enthusiastically by residents in the area.
Healthy-Living Initiative The new playground installation, designed for children under the age of five, was funded by a grant from First 5 LA and built by the non-profit Los Angeles Conservation Corps. On Saturday, December 7, a new playground installation designed for children under the age of five was unveiled at Spane Park. Thanks to a grant from First 5 LA, the non-profit Los Angeles Conservation Corps spearheaded the construction of the project after an extensive community outreach and design process. “On behalf of the entire community of Paramount, I would like to thank First 5 LA and the LA Conservation Corps for creating a great recreational resource for our kids,” said Paramount Vice Mayor Diane J. Martinez at the ribbon cutting. “We’re always looking to enhance our parks and we’re grateful to everyone who helped make this a reality.” The Tot Lot at Spane Park is the second to be built in Paramount. Last spring, the City celebrated the opening of Paramount Park’s Tot Lot. The Los Angeles Conservation Corps teamed up with Rails to Trails and The Better World Group to create and implement the innovative Tot Parks program that will significantly improve existing parks and better serve the needs of young children and their families. The program is creating innovative, safe, and vibrant play spaces by installing new playground equipment and stroller trails for 0 to 5 year olds to make local parks (that are often designed only for older children’s needs) more attractive and usable by young children and their caregivers.
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Besides Salud Park, the City moved ahead in creating other free fitness options for residents last year as part of the “healthy-living initiative.” The new biking/walking pathway opened along the Metropolitan Transit Authority right-of-way from Lakewood Blvd. to Somerset Blvd. This formerly weed-strewn stretch was landscaped and lit up and turned into an attractive, safe, and clean resource that connects with paths that run all the way to the ocean at Seal Beach. Outdoor gyms and new fitness-oriented playground equipment were installed at Progress, Paramount, and Spane parks, including a special Tot Lot at Spane that provides a fun and healthy outlet for kids five years and younger.
A Finalist as Most Business-Friendly City
The Los Angeles County Economic Development Corporation (LAEDC) named Paramount as a finalist for its 2013 Most Business-Friendly City in Los Angeles County Award in the population-50,000-and-over category. The City was recognized for its promotion of programs and services that encourage businesses to locate or expand in Paramount and its commitment to economic development as a top priority. Some of those programs and services included low licensing and permit fees relative to neighboring cities, a streamlined permit process, a “Business Services” page at www.paramountcity.com with numerous special features, the existence of the Paramount Education Partnership and the “Purchase It In Paramount” programs, and the City’s improvement of its water system.
Another Balanced Budget
Paramount has always been very responsible and conservative when it comes to fiscal and financial matters. During these years of economic distress, with various impacts on the City’s revenue streams, hard work has been done to keep
a steady watch on expenditures, and making sure that any necessary cuts have little affect on public services. For the fiscal year 2013-2014, the City once more achieved a balanced budget, with a small general fund surplus. Improvement projects performed included more utility box public art murals around town, upgrades to the municipal water system, and further street and sidewalk renovations, such as the continued resurfacing of Alondra Blvd., one of the most heavily traveled arterials in town.
Paramount’s Latest Gates Scholars
The Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation presents its celebrated Millennium Scholarships to 1,000 students in the United States every year out of tens of thousands of applicants. Paramount High School has developed quite a record with this prestigious program. The Class of 2013 produced five more Gates Scholars, bringing the total number over the last few years to a remarkable 17 Paramount High students recognized by the Foundation. The recipients – who study in the fields of health, science, or education – have their tuition, books, and living expenses paid for completely at any school of their choice, all the way through graduate school. Paramount High’s latest Gates Millennium Scholars are Faviola Zuniga, Crystal Estrada, Thalia Hernandez, Xavier Aldana, and Lucio Lopez. They are fine representatives of our community, and the entire City is proud of them and their accomplishment.
Volunteers Giving Back to the Community
Pitch In, Paramount – which offers volunteers the chance to spruce up the homes of residents-in-need, as well as perform other clean up tasks in town – had a bumper crop year, with hundreds of individuals taking part from Paramount High School and local churches to give back to our community. One interesting project helped keep the costs down with the biking/walking path mentioned above. All of the landscaping along the corridor was planted by Pitch-In Paramount volunteers. This saved the City $100,000, money that will be used for other programs and services for residents. It was a great year in Paramount. Here’s to a fine 2014, and all the good things we have to look forward to in the City.
The spirit of volunteerism was alive and well in 2013 with Pitch In, Paramount, a program that helped residents-inneed and spruced up City parks.
More Photos on Page 3
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