Did you have a good Christmas? Well, it’s beginning to look like a pretty good one for Whittier.
The city received an early Christmas present with the news that Kohl’s will move into the Whittwood Town Center, taking the place of the Mervyns Department Store.
And in Wednesday’s newspaper we will report on the Presbyterian Intercommunity Hospital deal to purchase the Fisher building and bring 225 jobs to the Uptown area.
This is in contrast to December of 2007 when we learned that Board Ford had closed. The year would follow with the news of the closure of Whittier Chrysler Jeep Dodge and Whittier Mitsubishi dealerships.

It’s the day after Christmas, and plenty of people are out stocking up on next year’s decorations or redeeming their gift cards.

But longtime day-after-Christmas shoppers say the crowds are nothing compared to previous years.

At the Kohl’s store in La Habra, there was only a smattering of people waiting for doors to open at 6 a.m., with a few trickling in over the next hour. The line outside Wal-Mart in La Habra was also pretty modest.

With most retailers offering between 50 percent and 70 percent off holiday decorations and other items, shoppers said the deals were good. But with the economic downturn, it seemed not as many were able to sock enough money away this year for after-Christmas sales.

Whittier’s local representative in Washington, D.C., is among good company.

Rep Linda Sanchez, D-Lakewood, joins such names as former Presidents Jimmy Carter, George H.W. Bush, Bill Clinton and Gen. Colin Powell on the Presidential Inaugural Committee.

In issuing the statement, President-elect Barack Obama said the list includes prominent Americans “from both sides of the aisle who have dedicated their lives to selfless service to their fellow citizens.

“Vice President-elect Biden and I are grateful to these distinguished men and women for agreeing to serve as Honorary Co-Chairs for the Inauguration,” Obama said.  “From family members to former Presidents, each of these leaders has an unwavering commitment to bipartisan cooperation and a proud record of service to their community and our country.  They exemplify the spirit of unity and shared purpose this Inauguration will reflect.”

For the latest information on the 2009 Presidential Inauguration, visit www.pic2009.org.

80-pound ice block smashes into home

Only about two months after the dispute over three California Domestic Water Co. buildings was resolved, Whittier could be in for another fight over what some say are historic buildings. If you were at last week’s Historic Resources Commission meeting, the same two forces were there in a battle over whether Whittier College should be allowed to demolish Guilford Hall, a 105-year-old house at 13501 Earlham Drive. The commission eventually voted not to make the house eligible, thus allowing it to be demolished.

But during the hearing, you had members of the Whittier Conservancy testifying in support of declaring the house to be eligible for historic designation. And you had members from Coalition for a Better Whittier — formerly the Presidents Council — supporting the college. The latter group was formed in response to the fight over the water company’s buildings. In that case, the conservancy and the company eventually reached settled a lawsuit agreeing to save one of the buildings.

The fight moved into the political arena in the 2008 City Council election when the Coalition endorsed Mayor Joe Vinatieri, Councilwoman Cathy Warner and challenger Jeannette Fasone, significantly leaving out Councilman Owen Newcomer. They weren’t successful in taking out Newcomer, but the Coalition remains as a force in Whittier politics.

The Conservancy also appears to be a force and we’ll have to see whether or not they appeal the commission’s decision. But if they do, they’ll need help from some who haven’t been supporters in the past. This time, only three members of the City Council will be allowed to participate.

Councilman Owen Newcomer teaches part-time at Whittier College and Mayor Joe Vinatieri has a law partner who represents the college and both have a conflict of interest. That means the conservancy needs the vote of not only Councilman Bob Henderson, who supported the group in the water company vote, but also the support of Council members Greg Nordbak and Cathy Warner. Both voted to allow the water company demolish its buildings.

Three votes — no matter how many members of the council can participate always are needed to pass a resolution and override the commission, said Jeff Collier, director of community development. Anything else would mean the council did nothing and the commission’s action stands. But no matter what happens, the issue shows the divisions in the California Domestic Water Co. case haven’t gone away.

We’ll know more later when we see what the Conservancy does.

Owners of blank land in Pico Rivera may soon find that they are being asked to fill it up, with fencing and landscaping, in order to keep the city from blight.

Pico Rivera is considering the same kind of ordinance already implemented by Whittier and La Habra, which would require owners of vacant lots to do landscaping.

Here’s a sneak peak at the story, which will run in tomorrow’s Whittier Daily News.

PICO RIVERA — Officials are eyeing an ordinance that would require property owners to landscape their vacant lots.
The Planning Commission voted Tuesday to further investigate an ordinance which would force landowners to dress up their blank properties.
The ordinance would require landscaping and upkeep on private lots and a few owned by the city, according to Director of Community Development Jeff Brauckmann.
“It all falls in the same category of having a beautiful city to live in,” Mayor Grace Gallegos said. “We’ve come so far. We can’t let any edge of the city down.”
In addition to provisions for vacant lots, Gallegos said she would like to see new rules made to govern the upkeep of foreclosed homes, which would require the bank to beautify them. Vacant commercial spaces, like the long-empty BigLots building at Beverly and Rosemead boulevards could also qualify under the ordinance, Gallegos said.
Brauckmann said staffers would consider those provisions as they work on the ordinance.
He said about 83 lots have been identified which would likely need landscaping under the new ordinance, which is now being researched by staff.
City staff will bring a possible ordinance to the Planning Commission in the next few months, Brauckmann said. If passed by the commission, the ordinance will go to the City Council for approval.
Nearby cities, including Whittier and La Habra, have implemented similar ordinances recently.
“We’ll probably review with cities like Whittier and La Habra to see what kind of impact it’s had, both good and bad,” Brauckmann said.
According to Nancy Mendez, assistant city manager in Whittier, the measure was meant to prevent blight in the city.
“We initiated it because we were interested in having the community look better,” Mendez said.
Under Whittier’s ordinance, owners of lots more than 1 acre in size can use fencing to conceal an unlandscaped center, while planting on the outside perimeter of the fence. Those with smaller lots are required to beautify the entire lot.

While Whittier considered their ordinance, a few landowners came to City Council meetings to voice their opposition, citing the high cost of irrigating and maintaining landscaping.

However, at the Planning Commission meeting on Monday, no one showed up to voice disapproval.

For more on this story, pick up a copy of tomorrow’s Whittier Daily News.

It’s been a long time coming — but in just about a month, more than 50 La Serna High teachers, students and parents will be in Washington D.C. to personally watch as Barack Obama becomes the 44th president of the United States.

It’s a special trip that took root last year, when teachers Cecilia Juarez and Shannon Thompson put through the paperwork to get a student group to the 2009 inauguration.

Even if Obama hadn’t won, Juarez said chances were good that history would be made during this presidential election, either with Hillary Clinton (first woman to hold the office) or John McCain (first prisoner-of-war/oldest person).

So they got their ducks in a row and now, 42 students are headed to Washington D.C. for five days in January with several chaperones to see the inauguration and enjoy the local historic sites.

More on this in Wednesday’s paper.

You might think there’s nothing more boring than going  to or just watch a Planning Commission and listening to a bunch of stuff about zones and variances and other rules.
But that  might not be true about the 7 p.m. Monday Whittier Planning Commission.
The commission will be dealing with some interesting topics from cancer (although on this one they’re not allowed about it) to adult business to parking in the Uptown.

Now, I’ll have to admit the cancer one was just to get your attention because it’s related to a proposed ordinance regulating cell towers. Some believe they might cause cancer. Only the federal government says cities can’t even consider health issues in deciding where they can or can’t go. Still, cell towers have been a hot issue in Whittier and this ordinance is an attempt cool it down.

The commission also will consider an update of the city’s adult business ordinance. One change would make those businesses open no earlier than 10 a.m. as opposed to 6 a.m.
A third ordinance would set up parking structure standards. This relates to the idea of providing more parking in the Uptown area.

Oh and you don’t have to go. If you have cable, it will be live on Channel 6.