November 2008 Archives

The debate surrounding holiday gift cards for La Puente employees was a little more in-depth than I had expected.

I wrote this story earlier this week about city staff members recommending the City Council axe the annual holiday gift cards given to employees in an effort to save money. It's $75 for full-timers and $25 for part-timers.

The gift card tradition started back in 1999 as a replacement to a holiday party, which has since been reinstated. Still, at Tuesday's night meeting, council members voted unanimously voted to keep the gift cards -- at least for this year.

Councilmembers seemed to agree it was a little late in the game to cancel the tradition, though, "I would like to see, as we move forward, that in the future maybe we can give an option to employees that they can either have the dinner or the gift card," Councilman Dan Holloway said.

Apparently, the holiday party is a negotiated item in employees' union contract. As of Tuesday night, only 35 people had RSVP'd for this year's party, despite the fact that the city is reserving a room that can accommodate 120 people.

"I'm not in favor of taking the holiday gifts from these guys," Councilman John Solis said. "These guys work all year long for us hard ... We just gave ourselves a raise for $300 for faxes and phones for us and we're gonna take their gift cards away?"

Looks like the employees are getting some nice end-of-year perks.

Getting a sit-down restaurant to set up shop in South El Monte is apparently a lot harder than it looks, Ben Baeder reports:

SOUTH EL MONTE - With the economy sagging, this little blue-collar city is facing the cruel sting of rejection as it tries to attract a restaurant to a freeway-close street corner.

The city is offering financial help to any sit-down restaurant that would open on a pair of adjacent parcels at Santa Anita and Merced avenues near the 60 Freeway, according to city officials.

So far, sixteen out of 17 restaurants rejected the city's offer, according to city documents. Twenty others did not respond.

Only Panda Express expressed interest, but officials opted to locate to a different location in South El Monte.

Ouch...

Residents are always pushing for more traffic signals near schools and in residential neighborhoods -- especially after tragic traffic accidents.

The process, however, to get such devices installed is a long one.

In La Verne, one resident claims it took five years and a fatality to get a light installed at Fruit Street and Base Line Road, Daily Bulletin reporter Wes Woods II reports.

Daniel Tedford's story on the top cities in the San Gabriel Valley ran in today's paper.

Here's a snippet:

Best place to live in the San Gabriel Valley?

It's Walnut, according to statistics gathered by CNN/Money Magazine, which recently released a list of the 100 best places to live in the United States.

While no San Gabriel Valley city ranked among the magazine's national top 100, a comparison of local cities based on CNN/Money's statistics and methodology yielded some interesting, and in some cases unexpected, results.

Behind Walnut came Diamond Bar, with La Verne weighing in third.

Covina came in dead last among the area's 25 cities.

Pasadena - considered by many to be the jewel of the Valley - came in 18th of 25 San Gabriel Valley cities for which information was available.

Other notable numbers showed Baldwin Park and El Monte with the greatest job growth since 2000, while Covina and Montebello had some of the poorest math and reading test scores when compared to the state average.

Read the entire story to see how your city did...

This story from reporter Bethania Palma:

INDUSTRY - Owners of a nightclub say they are going to sue Industry after the City Council shut down their business.

City officials voted last week to close the 5150 Bar and Lounge at 15455 Valley Blvd. and said owners Cheri and Rene Cota failed to follow city rules restricting live entertainment.

"During these tough economic times, the City of Industry has chosen to revoke our business license," the Cotas wrote on their Web site. "We are forced to sue the City of Industry to gain our right to stay open for business."

Rene Cota said the only way the business can thrive is to have live entertainment and dancing, which the city says violate his use permit.

****

Cota said he applied for a conditional use permit to have live entertainment, but city officials rejected the application because of insufficient parking, they said.

Do you think Industry should allow 5150 to stay open?

I've been pretty much out of the office since Wednesday, so blogging has been a little slow. Hope everyone had as good a holiday as I did. Now getting back to local politics....

I teased this story about former La Puente Community Services Director Rozanne Adanto suing the city for wrongful termination a little over a week ago.

The full version ran in today's paper. In a nut shell, Adanto is alleging that former City Manager Carol Cowley created a hostile work environment and harassed Adanto because she is "Latina." Adanto also claims she was unjustly fired.

She's not talking, and neither is Cowley, for the most part. Though Cowley did say she wanted to let her track record at City Hall "speak for itself."

Most of the information I got is from the actual complaint, which was filed in court just six days before Cowley's retirement.

I doubt the suit will actually make it into a courtroom. It will be interesting to see what kind of concluson will be reached.

Read the suit here: LPlawsuit.pdf

Montebello Councilwoman Kathy Salazar is still suing the city she serves because she was booted out of a community patrol group. But Salazar is definitely not the first council person to sue a city.

One example is El Monte Councilwoman Emily Ishigaki sued El Monte several years back, according to this story. Do you know of any other council members who have sued the cities they served?

Ishigaki settles with El Monte council
Whittier Daily News, The (CA) - Thursday, September 4, 2003
Author/Byline: Karen RubinStaff Writer
Section: News

EL MONTE -- The El Monte City Council approved a settlement with Councilwoman Emily Ishigaki , who agreed to drop her lawsuit against the city, officials announced Wednesday.

In a closed-session meeting Tuesday, Mayor Ernie Gutierrez and councilmen Art Barrios and J. Gomez voted to approve Ishigaki's proposal. Councilwoman Pat Wallach was absent and Ishigaki recused herself.

The 59-year-old Ishigaki says she is relieved it's over. "I truly appreciate the sensitivity of the City Council," she said. "It was a huge misunderstanding and at times it was hurtful, but being patient worked everything out."

The terms of the proposal are spelled out in a Wednesday letter from Michael B. Montgomery, Ishigaki's attorney. Ishigaki has agreed to resign voluntarily and will not have to pay back approximately $27,500, the money she earned working from March 20, the day she was sworn into office, to July 17, the day she was forced to resign.

In addition, she is entitled to her retirement benefits and accrued sick leave and vacation. She can also pursue retirement benefits with the Public Employees Retirement System.

The final settlement will be signed by Sept. 23 or sooner, said El Monte City Attorney Clarke Mosley. "This is a case of misunderstanding," Mosley said. "Mrs. Ishigaki operated under the honest belief that she could (work for the city) while in office."

Mosley said his firm made a mistake when they told Ishigaki she could continue working for the city while serving on the City Council. "We though it would not be a ... conflict," Mosley said. "We missed it. We honestly missed it."

In June, Ishigaki sued the city for an undetermined amount of money and "declarative relief" over a dispute concerning the amount of her final salary that could affect her retirement benefits. Ishigaki was forced to retire July 17 because a state mandate forbids a city employee to be sworn into office unless they resign. Ishigaki says she planned to retire Aug. 1.

Ishigaki claimed the city was cheating her out of $108,000 in retirement. Under CalPERS, a retired person's monthly retirement is based on the highest salary made during the last year of employment. For this to occur, Ishigaki, who earned $82,000 per year, needed to retire Aug. 1.

Under the August date, she would be eligible to $680 per month in state retirement. -- Staff Writer Cindy Arora contributed to this story.

I've written a few stories about prostitute stings, and I always wondered whether any officer goes a little further than he should during an undercover operation. The answer is yes.

According to the Beaumont Enterprise on 8/21/08:

Officer Keith Breiner, suspended from the police force in Beaumont, Texas, for crossing the line during an undercover prostitution sting (that is, he actually had sex), defended himself in an August hearing: "It was a job, sir. I didn't have pleasure doing it." It was, he said, "something I did for the city."

 

The popular bar in Covina is hoping to expand. Rude Dogs has been around for 16 years, and it is a great venue to watch live music, shoot pool or even dance. But it is getting so popular that the bar wants to add more pool tables, outside dining, a restaurant, game machines and add another bar.

Rude Dogs is at 114 North Citrus Ave., and it will expand to the next building at 118.

To get more details, scroll down to page 5.

The Covina Christmas Parade is back. It took a year off, but the 58th annual parade will ride in on Dec. 6. Click here for more info.

Although, I am just wondering: If it was cancelled last year, wouldn't it technically be the 57th annual parade?

We're defintely trying to branch out in covering more Pasadena-area and Whittier-area cities on this blog, but sometimes it can be difficult.

That's why we love stumbling upon community blogs. Star-News reporter Dan Abendschein tipped me off to this local blog covering Altadena. There's a lot of interesting tidbits on there. Worth a read.

This time from reporter Jennifer McLain.

The county postponed voting on awarding a seven-year trash hauling contract to Athens Services - which would replace the existing residential services provided by Valley Vista Services and Waste Management.

The issue of exclusive contracts and Athens has been big lately, with contentious debates in Montebellow and Hacienda Heights. In fact, a large group of Hacienda Heights residents swarmed the Tribune offices Tuesday afternoon to express their concerns over the Athens contract.

The county is going to vote next week instead.

Reporter Rebecca Kimitch had this story out of El Monte in today's paper. When I read the following lede, I almost fell out of my chair:

EL MONTE - The city's budget deficit has ballooned to $4 million - 10 times larger than anticipated just a few weeks ago when voters approved a half-cent sales-tax increase.

How the heck did that happen? For months the city had been telling the public its budget deficit was around $400,000 - not good, but not as bad as some other cities. Now, all of a sudden they realize the deficit is actually in the several millions?

That sales-tax increase will do little to help the growing shortfall, officials said Tuesday, and the city is now studying employee layoffs, program cuts and sales of city assets.

Sales-tax revenues are down $2.7 million from what was expected when the City Council adopted the 2008-09 budget in July. In the second quarter alone, sales-tax revenue was down 17 percent compared to the previous year, according to city staff.

*****

Staff will determine whether and how to implement department-wide layoffs; identify programs that can be eliminated, reduced or suspended; and identify city assets that can be sold.

They will present their findings to the City Council at its Dec. 16 and Jan. 13 meetings, and members will likely vote on specific actions to be taken, Mussenden said.

Meanwhile, some El Monte officials continue to rake in substantial salaries, including the city attorney and the city's top tier police department officials. I wonder if their salaries will be taken into consideration when staff studies cost-cutting measures.

And the big question: how could the disconnect between the estimated shortfall and the realized shortfall be so vast?

The city of Sierra Madre is under a Yellow Flag Mud Alert because of forecasted rains.

According to the city's Web site, residents in the following areas are being asked to prepare for potential mudflow: Auburn Avenue east of Auburn Debris Basin; the development under construction north of Carter Avenue; Carter Avenue between the development and Mira Monte Avenue; Mt. Wilson Trail near Mira Monte Avenue; Churchill Road near Skyland Drive; Skyland Drive; streets below Sierra Madre Debris Dam (Sumac Trail, Brookside Lane, Woodland Drive); Yucca Trail; Lotus Lane, above Camillo Street and Sturtevant Debris Basin; Sunrise Hill Lane; Santa Anita Canyon Road above Lannan Debris Basin.

For more information visit the city's website,or the city's blog.

Just because the presidential election is over, doesn't mean there isn't still interesting election news on the horizon.

Reporter Daniel Tedford reports that Glendora Councilman Mark Kelly isn't going to be running for reelection come March 2009.

It appears Kelly wants to spend more time with his family.

Nomination papers were due in about two weeks.

Mayor Karen Davis is also up for reelection and will be running.

While talking to West Covina resident Alfred Williams today, he brought up Councilman Steve Herfert, who notoriously clicks away at his laptop during council meetings. 

Williams speculated that if there's one thing that Herfert isn't doing, it's checking his city email address for constituent concerns. Why does he think that? Because unlike all of his other colleagues, Herfert doesn't list his email address on the city's web site.

I'm going take a wild guess that his email address, which he likely has even though its not on the web site, is set up the same way the other council members emails are, and it's probably steve.herfert@westcovina.org

But it's still a fair question: Where is the contact info?

I wrote a story for tomorrow's paper about a pair of bronze dedication plaques at the La Puente Community Center and Youth Learning Activity Center that are causing quite a stir.

Former Mayor Louis Perez said he was told by both a former city official and an employee with Chevron Energy Solutions -- the project's contractor -- that Chevron originally submitted plans to include Perez and former Councilwoman Renee Chavez's names on the plaques. But Mayor Louie Lujan rejected the idea.

Ken Casey, business development manager for Chevron Energy Solutions, declined to comment.

Lujan called the allegations "ridiculous."

The plaques cost the city $1,467, according to interim City Manager Frank Tripepi. They include the names of current council, the developer and the architect.

Look for the story tomorrow....

Some of his fellow colleagues on the dais have expressed their hopes that Gutierrez will make some sort of statement. But they weren't optimistic it would actually happen.

Guess we'll find out.

It's the season of giving, but only if you are on the right list. That's what one San Gabriel Valley resident found out today when he swung by a turkey giveaway by Congresswoman Hilda Solis in El Monte.

Apprently, the resident said that he went to pick up a free turkey only to be told that he couldn't have one.

Doh! 

A representative from Solis' office confirmed that, yes, there was a turkey giveaway but only for people who were selected by agencies co-sponsoring the event.

So, the turkeys would be given to those agencies so that those groups could in turn give to those in need.

While there was probably the image of Solis smiling and handing out turkeys, it was to the middle man, not the people in need. As long as those in need get the turkeys, I guess that's all that matters.

Meantime, Assemblyman Ed Hernandez had a turkey hand out of his own on Tuesday at Picasso's Cafe in Irwindale. The event benefits Our Neighborhood Homework House.

Some interesting news out of the Baldwin Park City Clerk's office.

About two months after Chief Deputy City Clerk Rosemary Gutierrez came back from a several-month hiatus due to an injury, she's gone again -- from the city clerk's office that is.

Officials say Gutierrez has been "re-classified" as an administrative analyst in the Housing Department.

Gutierrez is a former Irwindale councilwoman.

Baldwin Park's got an opening.

The city is looking for a finance director. This four-page brochure explains the position, qualifications and compensation.
]
The position pays up to $150,000 a year with a $300 monthly car allowance, a $75 monthly cell phone allowance and a $1,200 monthly allowance for health and dental benefits. Plus retirement benefits....

I just received word that the founder of the Baldwin Park-based Community Alliance for Redevelopment Accountability is going to be out for some time recovering from back surgery.

While friends of James Treasure hope he'll be back soon, it'll all depend on his recovery.

Think your city is hot stuff?

Find out this weekend. Reporter Daniel Tedford is working on a story about the top cities in the San Gabriel Valley. Tedford is using a CNN/Money Magazine formula to rank the cities based on housing affordability, job growth, marriage and divorce rates, commutes, school test scores, and crime rates.

Just a heads up, you'll likely be VERY surprised to see whose at the top and bottom of the list.

Reporter Amanda Baumfeld got back from the Monterey Park special meeting a little bit ago and said that the city decided to salvage the annual two-day New Years celebration.

The council had considered significantly scaling back the festivities to only four hours because of budget concerns.

Watch for her story in tomorrow's paper.

Charles Co. owner Arman Gabay has pushed developments all over the San Gabriel Valley.

It seems he (or one of his staff members) got a little confused when they sent this letter to South El Monte about a property in "La Puente." gabayletter.pdf

It seems James Treasure is no longer with CARA, the Community Alliance for Redevelopment Accountability.

It's no wonder the self-proclaimed founder of the Baldwin Park-based group against the downtown redevelopment project hasn't been calling me back.

Not sure the reason for his departure quite yet, but I'll hopefully be finding out soon.

Well not quite. But I just got this e-mail from La Puente Mayor Louie Lujan. He can add secretary of the Hispanic Elected Local Officials to his resumé:

Orlando, Fla., Nov. 13, 2008 - Bridgeport, Conn., Council Member Carlos Silva was elected the 2009 president of the Hispanic Elected Local Officials (HELO) constituency group during the annual membership meeting at the National League of Cities' (NLC) Congress of Cities.

1st Vice President: New Haven, Conn., Alderman Sergio Rodriguez
2nd Vice President: Carson, Calif., City Treasurer Karen Avilla
Treasurer: Roeland Park, Kan., Council Member Adrienne Foster
Secretary: La Puente, Calif., Mayor Louie Lujan
Immediate Past President: Avondale, Ariz., Mayor Marie Lopez Rogers
HELO also set its agenda for the upcoming year designating its priority efforts as the issues of immigration and obesity.

I'm writing a story for tomorrow's paper about employee holiday gift cards in La Puente. Looks like they might be on the chopping block because of budget constraints.....

The City Council will consider Tuesday eliminating annual employee holiday gift cards in an effort to save more than $4,000 annually.

The city has been handing out the gift cards at the end of each calendar year since 1999. It began as an alternative to a holiday party, and cost the city about $1,700 in its first year when employees were getting $50 each, according to city staff reports.

In 2005, the amounts were increased to $75 for full-time employees and $25 for part-time employees despite the fact that the city's holiday party had been brought back.

If the City Council axes the long-time tradition, city coffers would save an extra $4,230 this fiscal year, staff reports show.

What do you guys think? Fiscal responsibility or penny pinching?

***I just got off the phone with officials in Whittier and Pasadena. I wanted to get a feel for whether or SGV cities were cutting back on holiday employee perks. It looks like they're not.

Both Whittier and Pasadena provide holiday breakfasts for their employees. Whittier Assistant City Manager Nancy Mendez said most of the preparation is done in-house, so it doesn't cost much.

Pasadena spokeswoman Ann Erdman said her city's holiday party would be scaled back, but not cancelled.

Both cities offer no holiday bonuses to employees.

"There are (non) ... that go to employees on the taxpayers' dimes or anybody else's for that matter," Erdman said. "I've never heard of such a thing."

The La Puente Community Center is finally open, after four years of waiting.

Saturday's event was well-attended. Here are some photos of all of the festivities...

Reporter Rebecca Kimitch wrote this story for today's paper about the Chinese American Live Poultry slaughterhouse in Rosemead. This place has been an issue for years...

Store owners say they offer the San Gabriel Valley's immigrants a taste of the old country and keep them from manhandling live chickens in their backyards and garages.

But some neighbors say a slaughterhouse has no business operating in the city, which lately has been looking for a facelift. They also say this store in particular has been bad for the neighborhood because it violates laws, reeks of rotting chickens and flushes blood down drains.

"After all this time, this is not the kind of business that should be in Rosemead," resident Jean Hall said at last week's planning commission meeting.

Regardless, the city is opening the door for more such establishments in Rosemead.

Whether they will come depends on the pocketbooks of the newly arrived and the tastes of those already here.

The planning commission voted

 5-0 last week to recommend the City Council change the municipal code to allow poultry slaughtering in the city. The council may vote on the issue at its December meeting.

Slaughterhouses have been prohibited in Rosemead since 2001. CAL Poultry opened a decade before that and was allowed to stay under the condition that it does not expand.

Two years ago complaints from neighbors began to pour in to the city. Chickens ran loose in the streets, blood was flushed down drains and broken eggs rotting in the sun created horrible odors, they said.

Last year, the city tried to force the business to move but ran into challenges since it is legally allowed to be there.

CAL Poultry owners now want to make improvements to the slaughterhouse, including raising the roof six feet to reduce odors and limit its impact on nearby homes and businesses.

They need the change in municipal code in order to do so and their expansion is the only reason the city is even considering the amendment. But in making the request, CAL Poultry could bring competition.

Anybody got any stories about this place, good, bad or indifferent?

Business owners in Monterey Park are not happy with plans to cut their normally two-day Chinese New Year celebration to four hours.

Several community members at Wednesday's City Council meeting voiced concerns over a recommendation that would reduce the two-day festival to a four-hour event.

At the meeting, Assistant City Attorney Adrian Guerra requested more time for staff to review YES's proposal and make a recommendation.

I know it's not necessarily city-hall related, but none the less, reporter Amanda Baumfeld's story about school textbooks filled with errors will likely pick up speed in the coming days.

I wouldn't be surprised if our local representatives get involved.

Here's a snippet:

Newly purchased, state-approved K-5 math books are flooded with errors that include typos, answer-key mistakes and changes in terminology, officials said.

Azusa Unified School District received Texas editions of a teacher reference guide and have error- filled tests from publisher Macmillan/McGraw-Hill.

Covina-Valley Unified School District has to replace all its fifth-grade books after receiving a draft version from publisher Houghton Mifflin Harcourt.

****

Reports of publisher error are as widespread as Riverside County, but officials at the California Department of Education said they are unaware of the problem.

Considering the fact that API test scores are such a big deal for schools, you would think the state would be more concerned with this problem. How are students supposed to succesfully learn California's state math standards with error-filled textbooks from Texas???

This week's leftovers.....

We've probably all had a similar version of the "career talk" with our parents at some point in our lives: If you want to be successful and wealthy, be a doctor, a lawyer or an engineer.

So, if the saying is true and you can't beat City Hall, you may as well join it.

Comments anyone?

We've just received news Covina Councilwoman Meline D. Juarez is resigning to move to the Great Lakes area of Minnesota.

At the next City Council meeting, the remaining council members will have to decide whether to appoint someone to Juarez' seat or wait until the March 2009 election to fill the empty spot.

It seems a special election may be out of the question considering budget concerns.

Anybody have any suggestions for who should take the spot?

I wrote this story for today's paper about Bisno Development Co. pulling out of the Baldwin Park redevelopment project. Apparently, Bisno is the latest victim of a faltering economy.

Looks like opponents of the project finally got what they wanted - though it seems residents can't cry victory just yet. First of all, there is a possibility Bisno could come back in the future. 

Second of all, hopes of any development project in the downtown area anytime soon are likely going to take a back seat to the tanking economy. That means no face-lift of any kind.

While reporting this follow-up story on El Monte Mayor Ernie Gutierrez' Tuesday arrest, I made a round of calls to the rest of the El Monte City Council. Here is what they had to say:

Emily Ishigaki: "It's a huge disappointment and embarrassment to the people of El Monte."

"He needs to start reflecting on what's important to this community and he needs to redeem himself by caring about the community and not himself because it's been about him all along. He needs to redeem himself and he needs to redeem himself by focusing on what's best for the community."

"He made his bed. He has to lay it in now."

Pat Wallach: "Anytime something like this happens it's a negative on the city. I think when you are in that position, you need to be above everything that you normally would be. He should be setting an example for young children in the community."

"He is the leader to our community. We don't need any more bad publicity."

"I could ask until the cows come home and he won't make a statement, that's for sure. I don't understand how he can just let it go and not say anything? But that's the mayor."

Most budgets -- except for our State budget -- were approved at the beginning of July, the start of the fiscal year.

In Covina, the city didn't have a finance director and the final approval of the budget has been on hold. But as now that the city has an interim finance director and the state's preliminary budget was approved, Covina's budget got the final approval Tuesday night.

The city council adopted the 2008-09 budget, and it also got an update from its interim City Manager Cynthia Kurtz on the state of the city's finances. Like many cities, times are tough in Covina. The city has seen a $1 million decline in sales tax revenue. Much of this revenue is largely attributed to the auto industry, which we've all seen in recent weeks has got significant problems.

Also this week, Covina received a letter from the State that it would be tapping into Covina's redevelopment funds by taking $522,000.

The Covina City Council agreed to increase its trash fees by 6 percent on Tuesday, and officials said that water rate increases will follow next month.

The water rates won't be nearly as high as those proposed at a study session in August, when rates were projected to increase as much as 35 percent. Because of the economic times, officials said, they are going to consider how to slightly increase the costs without over-burdening the residents.

Hey, at least Covina is trying to be sensitive, unlike the city of South Attleboro, MA. There, city officials threatened to put a lien on the home of a blind woman because she had an outstanding sewer and water bill of....drum roll please.... one penny! Read more.

I put in a records request earlier today for the police report detailing El Monte Mayor Ernie Gutierrez' arrest. According to Police Chief Ken Weldon, I'll get the report within 10 days. That's the allotted time under the Public Records Act.

In the meantime, I did speak with the Deputy District Attorney handling the case and he told me the mayor may have been acting in self defense or there may have been mutual combat between Gutierrez and the alleged victim.

According to the evaluation worksheet the DA filed in relation to the case, a witness said the victim poured beer on Gutierrez.

There will be a follow-up story in tomorrow's paper.

What are your thoughts on this quote from Police Chief Ken Weldon:

"There was not enough evidence to move forward," Weldon said. "We continue to fully support our mayor."

Read more:

El Monte mayor arrested

EL MONTE - Ernie Gutierrez, the mayor of El Monte, was arrested early Tuesday on suspicion of domestic violence and detained for most of the day, police said.

The Los Angeles County District Attorney's Office refused to bring charges against Gutierrez, whose term expires in 2009, El Monte police Chief Ken Weldon said.

Gutierrez did not comment on the incident.

Police did not identify the victim, or indicate how they received the complaint.

Gutierrez was held by police while the District Attorney's Office reviewed the case. He was released when officials determined there was insufficient evidence to charge him.

Gutierrez was arrested about 2:15a.m. and was booked at L.A. County Jail, according to El Monte police Lt. Robert Roach.

"There was not enough evidence to move forward," Weldon said. "We continue to fully support our mayor."

Councilman Roger Hernandez joined the ranks of his fellow council members when he be appointed as mayor Tuesday night. Hernandez, 33, made history last night when he became the youngest mayor in the city's history.

It was a unanimous vote, although Councilman Steve Herfert was absent. I don't know the reasons why Herfert wasn't there.

The house was packed last night and residents abided by Councilwoman Sherri Lane's request to leave politics out of the public comments on the ceremonial night. Nearly everyone who spoke congratulated Hernandez and said that they have high hopes for Hernandez.

But even so, residents undoubtedly have mixed feelings about Hernandez being appointed as mayor. This letter to the article ran in the Tribune yesterday.

Hernandez's behavior Posted: 11/17/2008 11:22:03 PM PST

Attention West Covina Council member Roger Hernandez! The people of West Covina voted you in office to look after our city and help us out with problems throughout our community.

I feel you were not elected to go around inside City Hall to manage city employees, question the value of their work and ethics as needed. These employees have their own immediate supervisors to watch after them and it is the responsibility of those supervisors to reprimand them, not you.

I do not agree with this Peter Scheer of the California First Amendment Coalition that you have the right to bring up the performance of city employees. Doesn't the city have some type of ordinance regarding this situation?

What you need to do is keep your temper down and act like a professional council member, not become extremely angry. I have to hand it to Council members Steve Herfert and Mike Touhey because they sit there and maintain when you get out of hand and I know this must be hard for them.

What is this? You need police protection? We the people of West Covina need more officers out on patrol and here you want to take someone off the streets to protect you. Hire your own bodyguards.

Personally, I do not think it is time for you to become mayor. If you do become mayor, it will go to your head. I feel you must learn to control your temper before becoming mayor.

Leave the city employees alone and let them do their work.

Melissa Saucedo, West Covina

And then there were five...

That is the number of people who now have plans to jump into the City Council race in Azusa with Nick Rosales announcing he intends to pick up nomination papers Thursday and have them submitted early next week.

Rosales manages a real estate company in Azusa and has been living in the city for five years.

"I think we need someone more adept," he said. "We need someone who has got the experience and the knowledge to work with a variety different industries and approaches so we don't find ourselves like we see in L.A."

El Monte Mayor Ernie Gutierrez was arrested early Tuesday on suspicion of domestic violence, Rebecca Kimitch reports.

The District Attorney's office will not file charges.

This is not the first time that Gutierrez's personal life has been in the news. In May, we reported that Gutierrez allegedly appeared at a city sponsored event drunk. On his side was girlfriend Graciela Solano. City records showed that Gutierrez voted on a driveway improvement project for Solano's home.

While reporting on that story in May, Jose Medina claimed that Gutierrez and Solano had a violent history. Medina was married to Solano's daughter.

It's not official, but Councilman Roger Hernandez seems confident that tonight is the night that he will finally become mayor. If appointed, he will become the youngest West Covina mayor.

At 33, Hernandez is serving his fifth year on the West Covina City Council. But he missed his opportunity to become mayor is previous years because of a District Attorney's investigation, which ended up going no where and Hernandez's name was cleared.

The following year, in 2006, the council again decided to side-step Hernandez because of claims that he misused public staff. The District Attorney's office also dismissed those allegations.

Hernandez has invited the community to attend a party after the council meeting at Villa Tepeyac, 2200 E. Garvey Ave. in West Covina.

Today, reporter Rebecca Kimitch wrote a story about Rosemead considering a requirement that would require its recreation centers to teach in English.

This story was printed in 1985, yet the issues are very similar to what we may see happening in Rosemead.

MONTEREY PARK TO VOTE ON ENGLISH AS OFFICIAL LANGUAGE
San Jose Mercury News (CA) - Wednesday, November 13, 1985
Author/Byline: Associated Press
Edition: Stock Final
Section: California News
Page: 4B

A proposal to make English the official language in a city where people of Asian ancestry make up almost half the population has lost one round but is heading to a test of the voters.

'' Monterey Park is turning into another Chinatown," photographer Frank Arcuri, who spearheaded the English - only drive, said Tuesday.

Chinese-language signs throughout the city upset him, he said.

''What bothers Americans about this? The fact that they feel left out," Arcuri said, adding that he plans to work to get his English - only proposal passed into law.

But the City Council didn't go along with that plan Tuesday night as a standing-room- only crowd of about 200 people packed council chambers. The council accepted petitions bearing 3,500 signatures of voters who want an English - only measure approved. The petitions were given to the city clerk for verification, City Manager Lloyd DeLlamas said.

Instead of putting that measure on next April's ballot, the council voted 4-1 to place another proposal before the voters at that election: one that directly opposes establishing English as the city's official language.

That ballot measure was presented by the Coalition for Harmony in Monterey Park , which calls for a "multiethnic and multicultural heritage" for the city. If Arcuri succeeds in his bid to get the English - only measure on the ballot through the petitions, residents would cast votes on both measures next spring. Michael Eng, a spokesman for the Coalition for Harmony group, said the issue was dividing the city.

''If we want a civil war, the likes of which no one has ever seen, which pits neighbor against neighbor, citizen against immigrant and race against race . . . vote for English only ," he told the council.

City officials estimate 40 percent of Monterey Park 's 60,000 residents are Asian, while 37 percent are Hispanic and 22 percent white.

In Los Altos, the city council on Tuesday night decided that it will consider making English the official language of the city.

Dinesh Desai, a naturalized citizen born in India, asked the council to pass a resolution making English the official language.

''Some of you may wonder why it's even necessary to make a formal resolution . . . but the need to protect our language grows stronger every day," said Desai, an investment adviser.

Councilman Roger Eng told Desai he is "favorably inclined to this but not without a public hearing."

The council voted unanimously to put the issue on a future agenda, but didn't say when.

Sorry about the lag of posts the past few days. I was out at the fire in Diamond Bar on Sunday and Monday.

But even while covering a disaster, there was still time to talk local politics. One of the council members who was forced to evacuate was Councilman Wen Chang, who lives in the exclusive Country Estates.

Chang told me about the Diamond Bar Foundation gala that got cancelled on Sunday because of the fire. But with all the catered food already ordered, the foundation opted to send the filet mignons and sushi to the evacuation center.

After Chang got finished telling me about that, I thanked him and told him it was nice to meet him in person. Prior to that, we'd only spoke over the phone. The last conversation was about the proposed NFL Stadium, which Chang, like most of the council, opposes. So, Chang used the opportunity to tell me about why he opposed it, and said that he is just looking out for the best interest of the community.

Driving through the communities of Country Estates and Diamond Ridge, I only saw one house with signs that said "No Stadium."

This just in from reporter Amanda Baumfeld:

The Montebello City Council meeting got a little rowdy on Wednesday.

Resident Chris Robles filed a police report accusing John Edwards of assaulting him during the meeting.

Edwards was the campaign manager for Councilmembers Kathy Salazar, Mary Anne Saucedo Rodriguez and Robert Urteaga. Robles has been instrumental in working with independent trash haulers in a political controversy against Athens Services.

Accounts the incident are different from both men. Edwards claims he tapped Robles on the arm to get his attention and wanted to talk to him outside. But Robles said Edwards grabbed his shoulder and said "you come here I want to talk to you."

Robles then told Edwards not to touch him. Edwards said he walked away but Robles said he ensued and threatened his girlfriend.

In the middle of the council meeting Robles shouted, "Sir if you touch me again that's assault."

At that time both men said the meeting stopped and turned toward them.

Robles and his girlfriend filed a police report against Edwards after the meeting. He said the police are investigating.

Edwards said, "The report is BS and nothing is going to come of it."

I've driven around several San Gabriel Valley communities now and there are still lingering political signs. Ones that come to mind are for Clarence Wong and Andrew McIntyre, and I'm sure there are loads more. How long do you think it will be before we see those tore down?

Perhaps if we take a tally of the number of locations that have these signs, we could track how long it takes before they are torn down. Or I guess if we see them we could simply pull over, take them down, and call the people responsible for them and let them know that we have the rest of their signs for them. Just a recommendaiton...

Still working on getting in touch with some of the hopefuls for City Council in Azusa and Glendora, but here is a list of names of those who have pulled papers during the nomination period. The period opened Monday and ends the first week in December.

Pulling papers doesn't mean the person will run for City Council, but does show their interest. In order to officially run, papers must be submitted and then approved by the L.A. County Registrars office.

Glendora:

Mayor Karen Davis pulled papers, showing hopes for reelection.

And two newcomers pulled papers, Gene Murabito and a regular at council meetings, Edward Brubaker.

Azusa:

All three incumbents up for reelection pulled papers, which are Keith Hanks, Robert Gonzales, and Mayor Joe Rocha.

City Clerk Vera Mendoza is seeking reelection and a regular speaker during public comment at council meetings Art Morales is planning a run against her.

As for newcomers to the city council, Edward Alvarez pulled papers.

As the county considers today approving up to $10 million for improvements on Rosemead Boulevard, we got to thinking about the crappy roads in our cities.

We've all driven around the San Gabriel Valley enough to know what roads are terrible. You know, the ones that you have to swerve to avoid the multiple potholes or slow down to 1 mile per hour because of the 3-foot-dip in the road.

OPEN FORUM: What road is the worst, and why?

Covina residents will be asked to grab for their pocketbooks as the Covina City Council considers on Tuesday approving increases to water and trash rates.

The public hearing will take place at 7:30 p.m. on Tuesday in Covina City Hall.

According to city documents, the current residential monthly water rate for 30 units of water is $44.62. If the rate adjustment is approved, the new rate will be $55.90. That comes out to $135 a year.

The city says that the increases are needed because of increased costs for purchasing water, facilities and maintenance and capital projects and financing.

And these are not taxes, said Public Information Officer Bobbi Kemp, these are fees.

Trash services are provided by Athens, and those increases are being proposed because environmental mandates and fuel costs, officials said.

The Covina agenda has not yet been posted online.

This story appeared in August.

At least our council members don't do this...

Report: NJ pol arrested after peeing on a crowd
By Associated Press
Monday, November 10, 2008

JERSEY CITY, N.J. - A Jersey City councilman has reportedly been arrested for urinating on a crowd of concertgoers from the balcony of a Washington D.C. nightclub.

The New York Daily News reports in Sunday's editions that two-term Jersey City councilman Steve Lipski has been charged with simple assault.

The newspaper says 44-year-old Lipski was removed from a place called the Nightclub 9:30 on Friday night.

That's after club staffers saw him relieve himself onto the crowd from a second floor balcony during a concert by a Grateful Dead tribute ban.

Messages left at Lipski's council office, and a Jersey City listing under his name were not immediately returned.

Getting back to West Covina's council meeting last week, there were a few items of unfinished business last week. Because of the large number of residents there to talk about the parking permit ordinance, the other people in the audience didn't get a chance to speak on the things they were there for.

Case in point: the nearly half dozen tow truck representatives, who sat through hours of public testimony. And the council never got to their item, so those guys will have to come back again for another grueling council meeting. (I feel their pain) 

The council was expected to discuss the towing contract, and consider extending it another five years or take it out to bid. There is still two and a half years left on the existing contract.

Another item the council wasn't able to get to was the budget review.

Both of those items are postponed until the next meeting.

Oh yeah, and the deputy city manager. The council held a closed session meeting on the agenda about it last meeting, and no decisions were made.

You know what else is occurring next meeting? The mayoral rotation. Let the bidding begin: Will this be the year that Councilman Roger Hernandez is selected mayor?

Good morning.
In case you missed this over the weekend, problems surface in West Covina City Hall:

Hernandez at center of controversy
By Ben Baeder, Staff Writer
Article Launched: 11/07/2008 11:46:29 PM PST

WEST COVINA - Politics at City Hall are getting personal.

Over the past two months, a councilman has sought police protection at public meetings, alleging he's been intimidated by fellow council members.

And two top city staff members filed complaints about the same councilman, with one demanding $3 million and a guarantee he won't be fired until he is 60.

At the center of all the complaints is Councilman Roger Hernandez, who claims it is his right to manage city employees, questioning the value of their work and their ethics as needed.

"The people elected me to do what I think is right for the city," Hernandez said. "The ethics of the city staff are my responsibility."

Hernandez's complaints about city staffers have upset his fellow council members, he said.

After a closed-session meeting on Sept. 2, Hernandez told the city's police chief that council members Mike Touhey and Steve Herfert physically intimidated him.

"Mr. Hernandez informed me that for the past several months he has felt very unsafe during closed-session meetings," wrote West Covina police Chief Frank Wills in a Sept. 10 memo.

Touhey never touched Hernandez but "often invades his personal space and points a finger very close to his head or chest while in an agitated state," Wills noted in the memo.

Hernandez also said Herfert "made him fear for his personal safety" and threatened to "get" him, according to the memo.

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Hernandez asked Wills that a police officer be present during closed-session meetings.

Herfert and Touhey said nothing close to intimidation ever took place at a closed-session meeting.

Touhey said he and Hernandez have been at several events together since Sept. 2.

"If he was so afraid of me, why does he sit right next to me?" Touhey said.

Herfert said the whole discussion of threats is absurd.

"Every time (Hernandez) has a problem, he basically blames it on someone else," Herfert said. "We've never had (physically) confrontational closed sessions. I've never threatened Roger, and he has never threatened me."

Three weeks after the argument in the Sept. 2 closed session, Community Development Director Chris Chung demanded $3 million related to a claim he made a year ago. In Chung's complaint, he says he deserves $3 million because of a hostile work environment created by Hernandez.

Chung claims that Hernandez, over the past two years, has publicly and privately criticized development deals overseen by Chung. He also claimed that Hernandez cussed at him.

Chung has diabetes, high blood pressure and an ulcer because of his dealings with Hernandez, said Victor Jacobovitz, Chung's attorney.

"In this situation, our client's condition has been drastically affected by the conduct of Mr. Hernandez," Jacobovitz said. "These are conditions that could shorten his life."

Hernandez denies harassing Chung. He acknowledges he once cursed in Chung's presence, but contends he never cursed directly at Chung. He rarely ever talks to Chung, he said.

"Put me on a lie detector test," he said. "I would gladly take one. I never have talked to a member of city staff like that. Never."

Then on Oct. 23, Public Information Officer Susan Williams also filed a claim with the city, saying Hernandez has caused her to become physically ill.

In the complaint, she said Hernandez harmed her by naming her when discussing the elimination of the city's public information officer position.

Along with irritable bowels, hair loss and nausea, the episode made Williams fear she would have a heart attack, she wrote in the report.

Williams, who did not return several calls seeking comment, did not detail how much she seeks from the city.

In an e-mail, she wrote: "It is with great regret that I had to file a claim. However, I have been negatively affected both personally and professionally and feel that I must protect my health, welfare, reputation and stand up for what is right."

Touhey said Hernandez should go through the city manager when he disagrees with an employee.

City workers are in a union that demands certain protocols, he said.

"There's still union rights and I respect that," he said. "You can mention an employee's job, but you shouldn't say the name."

Hernandez said the complaints are an organized attack against him because he often votes against development projects favored by the other members of the council.

Either way, Hernandez has a right to bring up the performance of city employees, said Peter Scheer of the California First Amendment Coalition.

Even naming an employee in the context of budget cuts is most likely legal and acceptable.

"It would seem to me the council member is expressing his or her right to speak," Scheer said. "And that includes speaking critically about an employee."

We are considering doing a story about political married couples, such as Mike Eng and Judy Chu, or Montebello Councilwoman Rosie Vasquez and her husband, Central Basin Municipal Water District Director Ed Vasquez.

Do you know of any married couples where both people serve on elected seats?

Former La Puente Community Services Director Rozanne Adanto has filed a lawsuit against the city of La Puente and former City Manager Carol Cowley, claiming wrongful termination, according to court records.

I'm still trying to get a copy of the lawsuit, so I don't know much except that the next hearing is in December.

Adanto parted ways with the city sometime in 2007. Ted Bistarkey has since assumed her role.

Cowley retired Sept. 30. Former Rosemead City Manager Frank Tripepi is serving as an interim.

Adanto filed her complaint on Sept. 24.

Between this and the theft of $500,000 in tow fees allegedly by a former Industry sheriff's sergeant, looks like Tripepi really has his hands full.

More to come when I know it.

The presidency wasn't the only think at stake in Tuesday's historical election.

Here's a breakdown of some of the local candidates and measures that failed or passed:

*Measure CC, which would have changed Rosemead from a general law city to a charter city failed. Voters rejected it by a 63 percent to 37 percent margin.

*Former Assemblyman Ed Chavez took over Leon Garcia's seat in the Upper San Gabriel Valley Municipal Water District. Chavez is the husband of former La Puente Councilwoman Renee Chavez, who was outsed in 2007.

*Assemblyman Ed Hernandez, D-West Covina, will serve a second term in the 57th District. He walked away with 67 percent of the votes versus Baldwin Park resident Victor Saldana's 33 percent.

*Pico Rivera got its wish with the passage of Measure P, the one-percent sales-tax increase that officials say won't likely to take effect before April. Measure P is expected to bring in $6 million annually.

*A half cent sales-tax increase was approved by 71 percent of voters in El Monte. Measure GG will fund public safety and infrastructure as well as rebuild the city's emergency reserves.

Not enough for ya? For more on the elections, visit our special elections page here...

As you can tell, the blog has been a little slim on posts lately. What with the election and all, most of us here in the newsroom have been spread pretty thin.

That being said, here's a few things that got in the paper over the last few days but didn't get on the blog:

The fight over a proposed downtown redevelopment project in Baldwin Park just got a little uglier. A resident is claiming a Bisno consultant assaulted her at a public meeting. The Bisno consultant denies all the allegations. And no one's got any pictures or video to prove one way or another.

Famed police union attorney Dieter Dammeier has filed a lawsuit on behalf of the Baldwin Park Police Association against the city of Baldwin Park over a proposed public safety initiative. The measure, if approved by voters, would essentially guarantee police salaries at the average of other San Gabriel Valley cities - that is, of course, if it gets to the voters. The city wants the courts to interpret the referendum first, but Dammeier claims officials are violating election laws. See the full version of the lawsuit here: BPlawsuit.pdf

I was reading the L.A. TImes story on Prop 8 this morning and came across a quote I thought was interesting:

"This has been a moral battle," said Ellen Smedley, 34, a member of the Mormon Church and a mother of five who worked on the campaign. "We aren't trying to change anything that homosexual couples believe or want -- it doesn't change anything that they're allowed to do already. It's defining marriage. . . . Marriage is a man and a woman establishing a family unit."

Talking to opponents and proponents of the proposition that appears to have a victory, I asked about this quote and the issue of the dichotomy of the arguments being made.

The interesting part of this quote is where the woman says "We aren't trying to change anything that homosexual couples believe or want -- it doesn't change anything that they're allowed to do already."

The argument is often mirrored by those favoring gay marriage, suggesting gay marriage doesn't change anything about religious beliefs and practices, it doesn't affect anyone's way of life by allowing it.

And I wonder how two sides, so different, in a contentious issue that has become quite divisive could have such similar arguments. And not only that, argue that one is somehow better than the other. There is a lot of gray area on this issue.

Anyway, I just wanted to open up that topic for discussion. Most discussions on the comment boards on stories and blogs on this issue haven't been civil or helpful discussion, but I will give it one more try.

There were some suprising results out of the water district elections. Three incumbents were ousted from their seats:

Three Valleys Municipal Water District
John Mendoza Votes: 7,833 Percent : 55.52
JW "Fred" Lantz Votes: 6,315 Percent: 44.48 (Incumbent)

Mendoza was also running for Pomona City Coucil. Lantz served on the board since 2000.

Upper San Gabriel Valley Municipal Water District, Division 2
Charles Trevino Votes: 15,615 Percent: 44.45
Clarence Wong Votes: 9,214 Percent: 26.23
Frank Forbes Votes: 7,138 Percent: 20.32 (Incumbent)
Arthur Munos Votes: 3,165 Percent: 9.01

Incumbent Frank Forbes, 84, sat on the board for 16 years. Trevino previously served on the Central Basin Water District and now works for the Metropolitan Water District of Southern California.

Upper San Gabriel Valley Municipal Water District, Division 2
Ed Chavez Votes: 18,653 Percent: 53.04
Leon Garcia Votes: 12,221 Percent: 34.75 (Incumbent)
Lizet Angulo Votes: 4,297 Percent: 12.22

Leon Garcia, who was appointed to the board in 2005 and then was elected in 2006, was ousted by former Assemblyman Ed Chavez.

To get final election results, go here.

While everyone was glued to their TV sets or the Internet on Election Day, about 200 residents came out to voice both their opposition and support to a proposed parking ordinance. Nearly 40 people said they did not want the permit, and about 20 people spoke in favor of it. And you know what? The council listened.

On a 4-0 vote, the council decided not to pursue the parking permits.

Major points made against the permit were:
-tough economic times, and residents can't afford it
-the ordinance doesn't answer the larger issue of other code enforcement problems that currently are ignored
-it should be taken to the voters
-violation of property rights

-the city did a poor job of informing residents about the topic, and some wondered why of all nights it was on Election Night

Major points made for the permits were:
-reduces crime
-easier access for fire and police
-streets are too narrow
-this will cut back on early morning parties

Are you happy with the results?

This just in from reporter Amanda Baumfeld:

So I called Monterey Park Friday to ask the City Manager June Yotsuya questions about a story I am working on. My storying is about the Athens Trash controversy in Montebello and how it is beginning to spill in other cities.

Monterey Park has started an audit on their contract with Athens. I wanted to confirm this information with Yotsuya and she refused to take my phone call. Her secretary, Laura just said "she has no comment."

The city manager did not even know the questions I was going to ask her and she refused to talk to me.

Oh but it gets better.

When I called City Clerk Dave Barron, an elected official, he said he has not been following the Athens issue.

What city clerk does not know the issues that are happening in their city? Especially a city clerk that residents voted for.

The only conclusion I can come up with is that Monterey Park must have something to hide.

We're hearing now there are several Election parties around town. Our reporters will cover some of them tonight, so if you know of any other parties let us know. Here's what we got so far:

1. Assemblyman Ed Hernandez will have his party at Casa Moreno in Covina, 223 Citrus Ave.

2. Those supporting Mt. SAC's Measure RR will be at 20687 Amar Road.

3. Upper San Gabriel Valley Municipal Water District hopeful Andrew McIntyre will be partying at Hooters in West Covina. (Hey, McIntyre is only 26.)

4. State Senate hopeful Bob Huff will have his party at Red Restaurant at Industry Hills.

In case you missed it, here is the Leftover's column. We were able to confirm after it was published, however, that El Monte also cancelled their City Council meeting on Election Day.

Leftovers Column: Spending Election Night at City Hall
By Jennifer McLain and Tania Chatila, Staff Writers
Article Launched: 11/02/2008 10:58:06 PM PST

Election Night stands as a keystone of our democracy.

If you buy the rhetoric of the past several months, this election may very well be the most important of our lives.

Like so many others who care about politics, we had plans Tuesday night.

Those plans included following election coverage, calling polling places and watching for the final results.

Unfortunately those plans took a back seat for some of us, who found out we wouldn't be spending the night covering the election - we would, instead, be covering meetings at city halls.

Diamond Bar, Arcadia and Norwalk are just some the local cities holding council meetings Tuesday.

At least they decided to keep their agendas relatively light.

The same can't be said for West Covina, which is starting off its night Tuesday with a special meeting at 5:45 p.m. to discuss personnel matters, such as the hiring of a deputy city manager and the evaluation of the city manger.

It doesn't stop there.

At 7 p.m. the City Council will convene for its regular meeting, and a loaded agenda with public hearings about overnight parking permits and updating the city's towing services contract.

We understand that cities have important business. But why cancel a meeting at the end of October, like West Covina did, when officials could have opted instead to cancel a meeting on a day that is more American to some of us than baseball?

Sure, the polls open early and don't close until 8 p.m. It's possible residents could cast their votes early on in the day, and make it to their City Council meetings by nightfall if they wanted.

What about those who won't be able to get to the polls until after work? And how about the residents who will likely have their eyes glued to the TV set once all the votes are cast.

Unlike West Covina, other cities, like Covina, cancelled their regularly scheduled election night meetings - so residents don't have to choose. Covina moved its meeting to Nov. 18.

For the cities that didn't, maybe there was some optimism that less people would show up to for a meeting that's competing with a big national news story.

Then again, officials might have been looking to restore faith in the democratic process - using a national election to inspire more residents to take part in local politics.

Open Forum: What did you experience, see or hear at the polls today? What were voters saying? What were you saying? Were the lines long? Were there any problems at your polling places?

Most of the reporting staff won't be in until 2 p.m. today to cover the Election until the wee hours, although I will be in later to cover the West Covina City Council meeting.

I received several phone calls from residents who said things to the effect of they were "pissed off" that the city was imposing the parking ordinance, so I am anticipating a number of residents there tonight. Tonight, the council is expected to approve a fee schedule for overnight parking permits. The proposed violation cost is $50.

The City Council will also consider renewing its towing services contract with Royal Coaches for another five years so that the new contract includes costs for the city's administrative fees. The current contract still has about two more years left. The city could also decide to take the contract out to bid, and since Jan's Towing and Bob's Towing sent letter inquiring about the contract, I'm sure those companies would much prefer an RFP process.

Also on the agenda is the consideration of hiring a Deputy City Manager, which will take place at a special meeting at 5:45 p.m. This person would replace Artie Fields, who left several months ago to take the city manager position in Salinas. This meeting, however, will not be open to the public, although any action taken will be reported at the City Council meeting.

The West Covina agenda is lengthy, so I would take a look at it yourself to make sure there isn't anything that interests you.