Following Lakers parade the after party is at Azusa City Hall

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If you plan on attending the Azusa City Council meeting Monday night post Lakers victory parade, bring a snack, some comfy shoes and drink plenty of water as it is shaping up to be a long night.

On the agenda for Monday: the first step in reconsideration of Vulcan Materials Azusa Rock Quarry mining proposal, adoption of the 2010/2011 city budget, and a trash rate adjustment.

If you live in Azusa, or Duarte for that matter, and have been too wrapped up in the NBA playoffs for the last few months, (full disclosure: I am a Lakers fan so today has been a very good day. On the other hand, Duarte City Manager Darrell George is a Celtics fan. Send your condolences to Duarte City Hall, 1600 Huntington Drive, Duarte) the mining proposal is the most controversial issue for Azusa in years and is a huge issue for many residents in Duarte who will also be affected.

It was turned down a month ago by the Azusa City Council 3-2, but they recently voted unanimously to reconsider the issue.

The meeting is sure to be filled with Duarte councilmembers, city staff and lawyers, Vulcan’s PR team and employees as well as many Azusa and Duarte citizens who will speak during the meeting’s public comment period.

Azusa staff is expected to give a recommendation on how the city should proceed with the reconsideration process, including setting hearing dates, what issues should be further evaluated, and other aspects of the proposal the council would like to see renegotiated.

The meeting is at 6:30 p.m. Monday at Azusa City Hall Auditorium, 213 E. Foothill Blvd.

Email: daniel.tedford@sgvn.com | Twitter: @dgtedford @sgvtribune | Facebook: SGVTribune

Are Supervisor Antonovich and Jack LaLanne friends?

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Politicians receive gifts from a number of sources. Some are more interesting (such as overseas trips) than others (say, a basket of fruit). One local supervisor received a small, but nonetheless, intriguing one.

Of the three gifts (pictured) Supervisor Michael Antonovich, 70, reported receiving gifts last year, one of them was a $100 juicer from the “godfather of fitness,” 95-year old Jack LaLanne, according to the supervisor’s disclosure forms.

Has anyone tried one of them?

Email: james.wagner@sgvn.com | Twitter: @jmswgnr @sgvtribune | Facebook: SGVTribune

Commissions, committees and boards, oh my!

Cities are chalk full of boards, committees and commissions. Transportation, park, trails, business, water, etc., etc., etc.

Most of the positions are filled by volunteers, community people interested in public service or the specific subject the commission relates too.

Other commissions, most notably Planning, are more involved. There are many applicants and a number of City Council members have used the position as a spring board and/or learning experience before running for council.

But in some places, the abundance of such committees may make it difficult to fill all the positions.

In Glendora, that is one of the issues they faced recently as numerous commissions and committees didn’t have new applicants or enough to fill all its vacancies, forcing the city to extend its application period.

The city had 17 vacancies across seven city advisory groups.

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NFL stadium battle moves online with new website opposed to downtown concept

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Two months ago, local billionaire Ed Roski Jr.’s grand plans of returning the NFL to the Los Angeles region encountered an interesting twist. A former business partner, Tim Leiweke, and Casey Wasserman announced they were exploring their own idea of building a $1 billion NFL stadium next to the Staples Center in downtown Los Angeles.

As some predicted, Roski (pictured) wasn’t the only one gunning for an NFL team in L.A. And some of that jockeying for position has now moved online.

A new website and Twitter account in opposition of the downtown stadium concept were recently started. The site, nostadiumatstaples.com, is a collection of news stories and items relating to the Leiweke-Wasserman plan. It covers everything from questions about L.A. Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa’s tickets from Staples Center owners to the mayor’s hopes of luring Comic-Con to the L.A. Convention center (which could be torn down as part of the downtown stadium concept). Leiweke, president and CEO of AEG, which owns and operates the Staples Center, is a political ally of Villaraigosa.

It’s unclear who runs the website or Twitter account. The website was created on May 30, according to a website registry. And the tweeting didn’t start until June 1. Here’s who is behind it, according to a vague description on their website:

We are a group of concerned citizens of the Los Angeles area bringing you current news information regarding the possible development of a 80,000 seat stadium at the Staples Center.

A Twitter message to the group wasn’t immediately returned. And a call to a Roski representative wasn’t either.

Roski, CEO and Chairman of Majestic Realty Co., has said he won’t build his shovel-ready 600-acre, 75,000-seat stadium in Industry until he lands a team.

Note: For more coverage on the prospect of the NFL in L.A., check here.

Email: james.wagner@sgvn.com | Twitter: @jmswgnr @sgvtribune | Facebook: SGVTribune

Glendora department directors try to lead by example

In an effort to save money, cut the budget, and show their willingness to make the same sacrifices they are asking of employees, Glendora department directors voluntarily agreed to pay an 8 percent employee share of their retirement benefits.

The restructured payment was approved Tuesday and will take affect in July.

The 8 percent is the maximum amount allowed for an employee to pay into the PERS retirement system, according to the staff report.

According to the staff report, “These individuals want to lead by example and are committed to being part of the solution to ensure the health and stability of the city organization.”

The city estimates this will save $68,000 in the next fiscal year, according to the staff report.

The department directors include City Manager Chris Jeffers, Deputy City Manager Brenda Fischer, Finance Director Josh Betta, City Clerk Kathleen Sessman, Director of Community Services La Shawn Butler, Director of Planning and Redevelopment Jeff Kugel, Director of Public Works Dave Davies, and Library Director Robin Weed-Brown.

Email: daniel.tedford@sgvn.com | Twitter: @dgtedford @sgvtribune | Facebook: SGVTribune