February 2009 Archives

                                                                                                              Frank Perez/Correspondent

Mastering a foreign language takes time. Some languages take longer than others.

The American Council on the Teaching of Foreign Languages classifies languages into four categories. Languages that belong in Category One (French, Spanish, Portuguese, Italian and others) take English speakers the least amount of time to master. Only four languages belong in Category Four, which takes the longest to master. Can you guess what those languages are?

Well, Chinese is one of them and Rancho resident Michelle Munguia, pictured, seems to have a hang of it. Michelle, 10, a student of Pomona Valley Chinese School, is featured in my Sunday article about the growing interest in studying Chinese. If you speak just English, the article will make you feel somewhat inferior because the young students interviewed are on their way to mastering their third or fourth language.

Answer: The Category Four languages are Chinese, Japanese, Korean and Arabic.   

The fire district will hold a neighborhood meeting on the planned Hellman fire station at 6 p.m. March 5. The public meeting will be held in the Cucamonga/Etiwanda rooms in Central Park.

The city is preparing to build the new station on the west side of Hellman, north of Wilson and south of Hillside. The site is part of the County's surplus flood control property. To build the station, a portion of the basin will be filled with dirt from the county.

Residents who live near the project are encouraged to attend the meeting. This is the second such neighborhood meeting about the station.

The Hellman Station is one of two fire stations planned for the city's future. Another station is expected to arrive in the southwest corner of Central Park.

Originally, the Hellman Station was set for the southeast part of Heritage Park. But after hearing disapproval from the equestrian community and after a draft environmental impact report suggested an alternate site, the city voted in 2006 to build the station on Hellman.

If you can't make the meeting, you can visit the fire district's Web site one week after the meeting to read the questions and answers brought up at the meeting. You can also call the district at (909) 477-2770 ext. 3030 if you have questions or concerns about the project. To be included in future e-mail updates, send an e-mail to Gina Molina.

The idea of spraying dead grass green was discussed in this space last week as one possible tool to ease the blight caused by the foreclosed and abandoned properties in this city.

It turns out, green paint is not new to this community.

A reader named Kitty told me that in 1980s, at the height of another drought, paint was used to beautify some of the city's biggest streets. "It was great," she wrote. "If you didn't know it, you would not have known what was going on."

But the plants that were painted weren't actually dead, according to City Manager Jack Lam. They were drought tolerant plants that turn brown during portions of the year. Residents moving in complained about the dead-looking plants so the developers turned to paint for a quick fix.

"For one or two years, the developers -- who had not yet relinquished these parkways for City maintenance -- used to enhance the color of certain plant materials with a spray material that
created a more green look in the dormant season until they systematically replaced certain plants to have more of an actual overall greener looking landscape palate year around," according to Lam.

I guess that poor guy hired to spray paint every stem and leaf green was the first to get a green collar job.

The Historic Preservation/Planning Commission will vote on a resolution to give the Cucamonga Service Station a historic landmark designation at the 7 p.m. meeting Wednesday.

The property on Foothill and Archibald was a service station during Route 66's heyday. It was built by Henry Klusman at least 94 years ago. The now neglected property is currently owned by Lamar Advertising.

With fears that the structure would be vulnerable to demolition without the landmark status, the Planning Commission initiated the landmark designation application without the owner's consent. If the commission approves the resolution, the matter will be forwarded to the City Council for final approval.

Feb. 26:  This item is continued until March 11.

The guest curator of "Raised in Craftivity," the current exhibit on craft media at the Chaffey College Wignall Museum, will host a walk-through during an artist reception tonight at 6 p.m. Maria Elena Buszek, a contemporary arts professor at the Kansas City Art Institute, will present the pieces of embroidery, ceramics, beadwork, and knitting. There will be refreshments and entertainment by dj Trickmilla.

On March 2, Minneapolis-based artist Ernest Arthur Bryant III will give an artist lecture about his art work and his experiences as a curator and performance artist. Bryant's work from his series "Trick Baby" appeared at the Wignall Museum last August. His lecture is in conjunction with "Raised in Craftivity."

The museum is on 5885 Haven Ave. Click here for directions.

Chaffey Community Republican Women, Federated will have its monthly dinner meeting at 6 p.m. Wednesday.
 
The Republican women's group gained national prominence when its October newsletter included a depiction of President Obama surrounded by a watermelon, ribs and a bucket of fried chicken.

The illustration of "Obama Bucks" included a phony $10 bill featuring the president's face on a donkey's body, labeled "United States Food Stamps."
 
The image led to outrage in many political circles.

The meeting's guest speaker will be Shawn Steele.

The conference will be at the Magic Lamp Inn, 8189 Foothill Blvd. Cost to attend is $25.

Information: (909) 981-8166.

To mark the Lewis Family Playhouse's bloody production of "Sweeney Todd," a number of Victoria Gardens restaurants will be serving bloody mary drinks to get everyone in the mood. Anytime bartenders celebrate an occasion by pouring hot sauce into a cocktail is noteworthy in my book. Here's a glimpse of what they're serving, as listed in VG Dine.

Gyu Kaku, the Japanese barbecue restaurant, has a bloody mary that features shochu:

1/2 glass hot and spicy V8 juice 1/2 glass Clamato juice 1 pinch Horseradish 1 dash Worcestershire sauce 1 dash Tabasco sauce 1 tsp Olive juice 1 pinch salt 1 pinch Black pepper 1 shot Shochu Instructions: Add together in a glass, and stir. Garnish with a lemon or lime wedge, chunk of cheese and an olive. At Lucille's, bartenders are serving the drink Cajun style: 1 ½ oz Absolut Peppar 1 ½ oz Lucille's Signature Bloody Mary Seasoning Mix 4 oz Tomato juice 1 squeeze of lime 1 squeeze of lemon Served in a 16 oz salt rimmed chimney glass Garnished with a celery stick & two olives And for teetotalers, there's a version at Johnny Rockets that's actually a strawberry banana shake. I hear they go a little berserk on the strawberry syrup and the shake is garnished with a gummi eyeball. "Sweeney Todd" opens 7:30 Friday night at the Lewis Family Playhouse.

This is not some Dr. Seuss musical you can bring your children to. In fact, you should probably get a sitter for this one.

Anyone who has seen the Johnny Depp version of "Sweeney Todd" knows this is a dark, grim tale about a lunatic barber who you probably don't want styling your hair. This production is the first for Broadway at the Gardens, a theater project hoping to bring something edgier to the Lewis Family Playhouse stage.

There will be 7:30 p.m. performances on Feb. 27, 28, Mar. 6, 7 and 2 p.m. performances on Mar. 1 and 8. Tickets, available online, are $33.50; $31.50 for youth and seniors.

Information: (909) 477-2752

 

When was the last time you cross-stitched or beat a dusty rug? These are just a couple of activities to occupy your day if you visit the historic John Rains House on History Day Saturday. 

Every year, the house on 8810 Hemlock Street, which is run by the county, invites the public to experience life as it was in the 1800s. The family-friendly event, from 11 a.m. to 2 p.m., is free.

Information: (909) 307-2669 ext. 271 

More than 500 tickets were passed out for the Black History Month Cultural Arts Night last night and from the looks of it, most of them showed. I met Dylan Thomas, 8, right, and his brother Devin Thomas, 4, at the children's area of the Biane Library.

The organizers had made cut-outs of trees that had the phrase "If I were president I would ..." written on them. One girl wrote, "... I would fix the broken economy."

Dylan had one even better, in my opinion: "... I would make healthy candy."

To see more photos of the event, see staff photographer Jennifer Cappuccio Maher's slideshow.   

A couple of events are on the horizon for the Alta Loma Educational Foundation.

Registration is under way for the March 24 charity golf tournament to support the foundation.
The tournament will be held at Upland Hills Country Club, with a shotgun start at 9 a.m. The registration deadline is March 19. The cost is $100 per golfer and $350 for a foursome. The price includes complimentary gift bag, cart and lunch. Details: (909) 484-5151, ext. 2063.

The fifth annual Festival of Arts to benefit the foundation will be April 11 at Vineyard Junior High School. The festival will begin at 10 a.m. at the school, 6440 Mayberry Ave. There will be student art as well as music performances by students of the school district. There will also be a silent auction as well as a gift basket raffle and grab bag items for sale.

Last year, the foundation in conjunction with the Rancho Cucamonga Kiwanis Club sent all district second-grade students to a live performance of "Frog and Toad" at the Lewis Family Playhouse and all fifth-grade students to the Inland Pacific Ballet's "The Little Mermaid."

A letter to the editor by Rancho residents Ralph and Pearl Snider published on Feb. 11 was so darn sweet, it's worth reprinting in this space.

I'm 87 years old and never have I been more surprised than at Marie Callender's restaurant in Ontario.

Another couple, Harold and Doreen Terry, and my wife, Pearl, and myself were celebrating our 69th wedding anniversary. A double ring ceremony. The waitress mentioned the corsages the women were wearing and we explained.

Across from us, two women were having dinner. They started to leave and stopped at our table to congratulate us on our anniversary and then left. Now, either the waitress told them of our celebration or older folks sometimes speak louder than they realize.

Shortly thereafter, the waitress returned to tell us the ladies that had just left had paid our tab. Harold Terry, being more agile, tried to catch and thank them but they were gone.

In this day of gloom and doom, it's refreshing to see people doing loving things that make others and themselves happy.

Thank you, ladies, for your thoughtfulness.

Ralph and Pearl Snider
Alta Loma

Less than nine hours after Wednesday's City Council meeting, the state Legislature passed a budget that seemed to please few.

Speaking by phone from Sacramento Thursday, Mayor Don Kurth, a Republican, said he wasn't happy at all with a budget that included $12 billion worth of tax hikes.

"We send these people to Sacramento to solve these problems but these are stop-gap measures that don't solve the problems inherent in the budget," Kurth said. "The spending policies that brought us into this mess ... we still have them. It looks to me, they've stuck their finger in the dike but there are still cracks in the dam."

But didn't we make some major cuts, too? Aren't we curbing education and healthcare spending -- something Republicans wanted?

"That's great but they're just throwing us the bone," Kurth said.

Talk about a quick fix.

Council members Sam Spagnolo and Dennis Michael have been crafting an ordinance to deal with the blight caused by the number of foreclosed properties in the city. Among the tools this subcommittee wants to adopt is a spray-on product to turn dead grass green. Apparently, there are companies out there who'll give abandoned lawns a green treatment.

"We'd pay for that and then we would put a lien on the property," explained Spagnolo. "This ordinance would give us the tool to do what we need to do so there won't be a blight on the neighborhood."

What happens if Spot rolls around in it, I wonder. Would he turn green? All this reminds me of what Beijing officials did to the city's lawns to make the polluted metropolis look nice for the Olympic committee.

The ordinance will include other measures to deal with abandoned homes. More details will come out when the council votes on it in March.

The city lowered the electric rates for the retailers at Victoria Gardens by .6 percent tonight in accordance with Southern California Edison's rates.

"That's about the only thing going down nowadays," said Councilman Dennis Michael.

"Well, my 401K went way down," said Councilwoman Diane Williams.

... with his left hand!

Our prez is left handed, if you haven't noticed. Many former presidents are lefties, too, like Ford, Reagan, H. W. Bush and Clinton.

In this city, Spagnolo, Gutierrez, Williams and Michael are all southpaws, as reported by this blogger in 2007 in a hard-hitting page 1 story. This means the entire council, with the exception of the mayor, are lefties.

Imagine if Obama was the mayor of this city. No elbow bumping on the dais!










Associated Press  

We don't yet know whether the closures of Sisley and Wapango will be the last this year for Victoria Gardens but the outlook is grim. Talbots and Borders, both at the mall, are struggling significantly. The women's clothing store recently slashed 370 jobs and is looking to close 20 stores this fiscal year. The bookstore meanwhile is watching its sales plummet without any buyers showing interest.

It'll be sad news if the two leave the mall, especially with Circuit City leaving. According to City Manager Jack Lam, sales tax projections for the 2009/10 fiscal year will be approximately 17 percent lower than the 2007/08 fiscal year, when the recession began.

There are so many people that the City Council wants to honor today that they will hold a special meeting starting at 5:30 p.m. to do so. The city will recognize the 2008 senior follies, Pop Warner's Pee Wee Wildcats, Jr. Midget Braves cheerleaders and Rancho Cucamonga High's football team. The council will also applaud the volunteers and sponsors of the Spark of Love toy drive and the presenting sponsor for the Rancho Cucamonga Community Foundation $100,000 golf tournament.

The regular meeting will still start at 7 p.m. The city will likely conduct second reading on three ordinances dealing with curb numbering regulations, sales from vehicles and anti-scavenging. City staff members will also update the council on the number of taxi cab permits issued (there are 25).   

I made the idiotic mistake of going northbound on Haven to get to City Hall today despite informing readers of this blog to avoid the street due to construction. I need to do a better job heeding my own advice.

At Seventh Street, northbound cars were directed eastward toward Milliken but since Seventh dead ends at Empire Lakes Golf Course, motorists started freaking out and making illegal U-turns, heading into a business park in hopes of an exit strategy. Of course, there are none. There are no northbound streets from Seventh.

Until March 9, Haven will be closed from Jersey to Sixth as construction gets underway to build a railroad bridge over vehicular traffic. The project is expected to be complete at the end of the year and Haven will remain opened with the exception of this three-week period.

Use Hermosa or Milliken instead. If you accidentally use Haven, you just might see me cursing at myself inside a Honda Civic. 

The Biane Library will host a cultural arts event marking Black History Month on Friday from 7 to 9 p.m. There will be live music, storytelling and arts activities for children. Tickets are free but required. They can be picked up at the information desk at either the Archibald or Biane libraries.

Information: (909) 477-2720

Dan Barker, co-founder of the Wisc.-based Freedom From Religion Foundation, will speak to the Monte Vista Unitarian Universalist Congregation Sunday at 10:30 a.m. Barker, a former Ontario resident, will talk about his new book "Godless: How An Evangelical Preacher Became One of America's Leading Atheists." He will likely talk about the brouhaha concerning the "Imagine No Religion" billboard in this city.

The foundation put up an "Imagine No Religion" sign last year on Foothill and Archibald. It came down after a few days following a barrage of complaints by passersby and motorists. The group is now suing the city for their role in the sign's demise.

The church is on 9185 Monte Vista Ave. in Montclair.  

Don't know what's in Rancho's water lately but two, count 'em, two residents will be on "Wheel of Fortune" this week.

Louisa Hanna, right, a medical resident, will be on tonight. Mike Murphy, a contractor, will be on Thursday. They will appear on "Great Outdoors" week, which features various vacation packages as prizes.

It's not the only time Pat Sajak uttered "Rancho Cucamonga" twice in a week. Last May, there were two father-and-son teams from Rancho on the show.

Rancho Cucamonga resident Mike Morrell announced today he is running for the 63rd Assembly District in 2010. Morrell, 56, is president of Provident Realty in Upland.

Former assessor Bill Postmus, a Rancho resident, is said to be looking for a new city to reside in.

Postmus' resignation was final as of noon today. He announced last week he was stepping down to focus on fighting substance abuse.

Councilman Rex Gutierrez, who was hired by Postmus when he worked at the assessor's office, said he spoke to Postmus earlier this week. Postmus told Gutierrez he was moving and leaving Rancho. 

Race car driver Jack Beckman will be the speaker at Mayor Don Kurth's fundraiser today at Victoria Gardens Cultural Center. At a previous fundraiser, actors impersonating Elvis, Cher and Neil Diamond showed up. This time, it's the real "Fast Jack."

The luncheon will raise money for Kurth's mayoral campaign, not his Assembly bid. But it's natural for donors to wonder where their dough will go. Kurth can and probably will transfer some of his mayoral campaign funds to his Assembly committee. The reason he's still raising money as mayor is well, he needs a back-up plan.

"Things may not turn out as I plan," Kurth said. "I have to maintain my mayoral base. I've got to be prepared for either eventualities."

Helping Kurth woo his base is Beckman. The race car driver taught at a NHRA drag racing school in Pomona. One of his students was Kurth.

The mayor's wife bought Kurth a weekend class as a Christmas gift. Kurth is a huge car aficionado but like most people, he was inexperienced with drag racing. During a lesson, Kurth got screamed at by Beckman for going too far on a burn-out. Nevertheless, Kurth got his licence, which he carries in his wallet.

You might say by loaning himself $55,000, Kurth did a burn-out in his race for the Assembly.   

"The face of the Republican party needs to start changing. I feel the Republican party needs to develop some talent among people of color, for example. The state of California will soon be majority Latino. ... I want to be one of those new faces. I want to be part of that. I feel that I can be part of the solution in Sacramento."

The Planning Department, hoping to gather as much input as possible for the General Plan update, is taking their show on the road. An advisory committee has written "Spirit of RC," a draft document that will set guidelines for future planning decisions, and the city wants to know what you think about it. And by you, they mean, anyone who lives, works or plays in the city.

Community groups like Kiwanis and Chamber of Commerce have scheduled their road show. Organizations wanting a presentation from the Planning Department can schedule one by calling (909) 477-2750.

Don't dismiss all planners as map-touting white guys talking about the concentric ring theory. I got a sneak peak of this "road show" and although it was missing free food, it was a worthwhile presentation. The "Spirit of RC" is a pretty accurate snapshot of Rancho but if you disagree, you can be civic minded and throw your two cents in.

The press -- and by the press, I mean the Daily Bulletin -- was chided by some on the City Council for misleading the public when it published an article earlier this month citing an 18 percent increase in violent crime in the first six months of the year.

Sheriff's Capt. Joe Cusimano was asked to set the record straight. Cusimano said the 18 percent increase is misleading because even though the percent change sounds high, the actual number of criminal acts in the city are relatively low compared to neighboring cities. Also, when you factor the statistics for the rest of the year, overall crime actually dropped 3 percent.

This was what the City Council wanted to hear.


 

Mayor Don Kurth has loaned himself $55,000 to start a campaign committee for the Assembly seat. Bill Emmerson, who occupies the seat right now, will be termed out in 2010. There's not a whole lot of information yet but his statement of organization is here.

Kurth2010.410.pdf
Kurth2010.460.pdf

Councilman Rex Gutierrez, who has expressed interest in running for the same seat, has yet to start a committee.

Starting Friday, Haven will be completely closed from Sixth Street to Jersey Boulevard. Workers are in the midst of a massive project that will put traffic underneath the railroad tracks -- just like the way it is on Milliken. Cars will be routed onto Milliken until March 9.

The grade separation construction is expected to last through December.

New labor laws will be the topic of a seminar hosted by the Small Business Development Center on Feb. 26 from 9 to 11 a.m. at the county's Business Resource Center on 9650 Ninth St. The event costs $30 but if you pre-register by noon on Feb. 23,  you'll get a $10 discount.

Register online or call (951) 781-2345.

The Albertsons on Base Line and Archibald is slated to close April 9. The other two locations -- Kenyon and Highland, and Foothill and Vineyard -- will remain.

"While the decision to close a store is always difficult -- given the impact on associates and customers -- it is guided by what is best for the company's ongoing success and future growth," according to an Albertsons press release.

No word yet on whether the store will have a going-out-of-business sale. I don't know if anybody went to the liquidation sale when the San Antonio Heights store closed in 2007. Those are always fun. Seventy-five percent off toothpaste! I'll take the whole shelf, please.

It's eight days before Valentine's Day, do you know where you're taking your partner?

Wine Styles, the small wine shop on 8200 Haven Ave., Suite 103, is hosting a $100 dinner for two on Valentine's Day. The dinner, at 5 or 7:30 p.m., will include champagne, appetizers, dessert and a choice of four entrees. Continue reading for the full menu prepared by former Saffron chef David De La Cruz.

Call (909) 702-9078, (909) 944-9966 or (909) 697-9565 for reservations.

The City Council gave tentative approval to an ordinance that provides the police and code enforcement the right to fine scavengers. Joe Cusimano, the de facto police chief, said his department gets the occasional calls from residents who witness people rummaging through their trash and recyclable bins.

"I've seen it at my own house," Cusimano said.

Really? Cool. So you ran out of your house flashing your badge and gun?

"I didn't do anything," Cusimano said. "What are you going to do? There isn't an ordinance."

Note to Dumpster divers: Now there is an ordinance, so don't Dumpster dive. Especially not at the police chief's house.

 

Q: Why did Mayor Don Kurth leave tonight's City Council meeting just 12 minutes into it?

a) Kurth, having missed the last meeting because he was at the inauguration, got used to having his Wednesdays free and couldn't take a meeting any more than 12 minutes.

b) Kurth wanted to know whether Kate and Sawyer will hook up on "Lost," which will air it's third episode of the season tonight.

c) Mayor Pro Tem Dennis Michael enjoyed leading the last meeting so much that he begged Kurth to let him run it after the awards and presentations portion.

d) Kurth was leaving town in order to do a presentation about the city for League of California Cities tomorrow.

Answer to be posted after the meeting is over.

8:52 p.m. -- While all options could be true, the only verified answer is D.

The City Council will consider adopting an ordinance that would prohibit scavenging from trash cans and recycling containers at tonight's 7 p.m. meeting. It will also conduct the second reading of a revision to a street parking ordinance requiring motorists to move their parked vehicles at least every 72 hours. In other words, the long-term storage of cars on the street and dumpster diving are now a no-no in this city.

Finis Henderson, a singer impressionist, will perform a musical biography "Someone of Note" at the Los Osos High School Theatre 7 p.m. Thursday and 7:30 Friday. The performance is hosted by the Los Osos track booster club.

A new committee of educators and selected student-leaders will meet to discuss action plans to improve the overall academics in the Chaffey Joint Union High School District. 

The Chaffey Student Achievement Improvement Committee will meet for the first time from 7:45 a.m. to 10 a.m. Feb. 5 at Los Osos High School, 6001 Milliken Ave., Rancho Cucamonga.

Information: (909) 477-6900.

The Upland special meeting -- originally scheduled tonight but later canceled -- concerning Councilman Ray Musser's statements would have likely provided fun fodder for the reporters here.

I'm always amused at how easily white people are offended or shocked by racial epithets. Many of us "people of color," the moniker our editorial suggests, are used to hearing slurs that make us wince, grimace and cringe. As the Rancho reporter for the last three and a half years, I have heard everything from "oriental" to "gook" and many other colorful words in between. If only I had the Upland mayor to defend me during those times.

They are just words and they are only hurtful when we attach meaning to them. By definition, oriental is just a word that means "of the orient" and being from Hong Kong and China, I am indeed oriental. But for many years people have added "you" with derision, as in "you orientals" and voila! a racial slur. These days, oriental should just be used to describe home furnishing and maybe ramen.

Gook, of course, is just downright mean and makes my skin crawl, which is why my jaw dropped when somebody called me at the Daily Bulletin and ruined my day by leaving that word in my voicemail. What made me really mad was that I wasn't there to pick up the phone and scream back, "I'm a chink, you ignorant fool. Get your racial slurs right."

 

Documents listing campaign contributions to our local leaders have been compiled at the City Clerks office. Leading the pack in terms of contributions received and money spent is Mayor Don Kurth, who raised $39,202 in a six-month period ending on Dec. 31, 2008 and $159,717 in all of 2008. He was a big spender too, making payments totaling $78,052 in the last six months and $162,029 in all of 2008. That's a lot of money for a mayor who wasn't even up for election last year. Did someone say assembly race 2010?

You can see all the 460s here:

Kurth.pdf

The 13,000-gallon fish tank inside the Islamorada Fish Company, the Bass Pro Shops restaurant, is fishless. The salt water aquarium has apparently been leaking (yikes) and it'll take three or four weeks to fix. A bartender told me that the lion fish and blow fish are in the upstairs holding tank while the others are off site. That's too bad. The fish were a major draw and the restaurant looks like it needs a jolt.