Recently in Rosemead Category

Apparently, Huy Fong Foods Inc. - which produces and distributes the ever popular Sriracha sauce - is getting a little too hot for Rosemead.

The company is in negotiations with Irwindale to move its entire operation to a 22.9-acre site on Azusa Canyon Road. Talks have been ongoing for nearly nine months, and Irwindale City Manager Robert Griego said he hopes to put a cap on it by December.

The owner of Huy Fong declined to comment on the plans Wednesday. But officials in Rosemead and Irwindale said the company is simply getting too big for its own facilities.

"It looks like we're close to finalizing the actual transaction," Griego said. "It's really exciting because their plans are to actually double in size over a period of time."

Huy Fong is currenlty housed at a 68,000-square-foot plant in Rosemead. But the company has grown since first opening shop in 1986.

"When you have places like Irwindale, which may be to offer a cheaper place to do business ... I don't blame a business for wanting to jump on that," said Councilman Steven Ly.

Upon learning of the negotiations, Rosemead officials at City Hall Wednesday morning were trying to schedule a meeting with the company's owner -- an 11th-hour bid to persuade Huy Fong to stay put.

"We just want to speak with them to find out if there's anything we can do to entice them," Rosemead City Manager Jeff Allred said. "But we also understand they are very much a booming business and they have expansion needs."

If they move to the Irwindale, Huy Fong plans to increase its operating facilities by nearly 10 times -- constructing a 626,186-square-foot building with offices, a warehouse and a manufacturing plant, said Ray Hamada, Irwindale's director of planning and community development.

It would probably take a year and half to two years to complete the move, Griego said.

Officials have not named a price on the land, at 4702 Azusa Canyon Road, just yet, but the property is appraised at about $20 million, Hamada said.

It seems former Rosemead Mayor John Tran just can't stay out of the political ring.

Five months after losing his seat on the Rosemead City Council by just one vote, Tran is now trying for the El Monte Union High School District board, which serves parts of Rosemead.

Tran will be facing six candidates in the Nov. 3 race: incumbents Tonson Man, Carlos Salcedo and Theresa Velasco, and newcomers Ben Escobedo, Jane Myring and Steve Ortiz.

He also would have been facing former El Monte Police Chief Ken Weldon, who pulled papers to run on July 15. But Weldon must have had a change of heart -- he never filed his nomination forms.

Tran served on the Rosemead City Council for four years.

He lost a bid for reelection in March, but didn't give up that easy. He filed a lawsuit and challenged dozens of disqualified ballots, which resulted in four additional votes going to Tran.

But it still wasn't enough to beat Councilwoman Sandra Armenta, who won by one vote.

Rebecca Kimitch writes that the City Council will replace the entire planning commission, the board that votes on planning related issues in the city:

ROSEMEAD - The City Council voted Tuesday to replace all five members of the Planning Commission because of their support last year of controversial planning changes in the city.

The change marks the latest move by the city council, elected in March, to remove all traces of the former council majority.

Members voted to place Nancy Eng, William Alarcon, Diana Herrera, Victor Ruiz and Joan Hunter on the commission.

The terms of the current five commissioners will be up June 1. Commissioners Daniel Lopez, Todd Kunioka, and Allan Vuu had had applied to be renamed to the commission but were denied because of their support last September of a controversial new general plan - a blueprint for development - in the city, Mayor Maggie Clark said.

Council members also objected to the current commission's vote last November to allow a chicken slaughterhouse to continue operating in the city, Clark said. The council later reversed that decision.

Though new, the new commission is experienced, Clark said.

Alarcon has served on the city council and the planning commission; Herrera has served on the planning commission; Hunter has served on the traffic commission and as president of the Rosemead Chamber of Commerce; Ruiz has served on the traffic commission and has worked on county public works projects; and Eng has served as a neighborhood watch captain and on the Garvey School Board bond oversite committee.

The planning commission will be tasked this year with revising the new general plan. Though the plan was approved last year, the new council majority has vowed to change it because of concerns that it will increase the city's population.

Jeff Allred will serve as Rosemead's newest City Manager, Rebecca Kimitch reports.

ROSEMEAD - The Rosemead City Council selected its fourth city manager in as many years Tuesday, naming Jeff Allred to the post.

Allred, Norco's city manager, replaces Jeffrey Stewart, an interim who was brought aboard April 7 with hopes from the council that he would stay permanently. Those hopes were dashed when Stewart later accepted the city manager post in the Orange County city of Los Alamitos.

"I'll be glad to work with Jeff Allred... but I'm not going to lie, we were lucky to have (Stewart) for six weeks," said councilman Steven Ly.

Allred has served as the city manager of Norco - known as Horsetown USA for its red carpet welcome to horses - for more than five years. Previous to that, he served as assistant city manager in La Verne for 13 years, and has also worked in the cities of El Monte, West Covina and Downey. Read more.

It hasn't been very long since Jeff Stewart took over the Rosemead interim city manager position --- and he's already got one foot out the door.

Stewart is in negotiations with the city of Los Alamitos for a permanent city manager position there, which means Rosemead could be out of a CM really soon.

Stewart took over after Oliver Chi resigned earlier this month, and city officials said they had hoped to keep Stewart on permanently.

"Though our desire was to have him full-time in our city, we knew there was possibility he would be leaving us," Councilman Steven Ly said. "Our goal was we needed to have a quick change in direction of the city to acknowledge the voters' desires ... If (Stewart) does end up leaving, I'm sure we will begin our search process sooner rather than later."

Covina-Valley Unified School District voted to close two schools, Covina and Valencia elementaries, because of budget cuts and declining enrollment. Read here.

New council majority, new guidlines. The Rosemead City Council looks for middle groud as it rethinks the city's building heights, parking requirements and density laws. Read here.

The California Democratic Party endorses Board of Equalization Chairwoman Judy Chu, who is running for the 32nd Congressional seat.

Assemblyman Anthony Adams served with recall papers. Read more.

Updated story on the resingation of Rosemead City Manager Oliver Chi. Read more.

Higher than normal number of candidates gearing up for Monrovia election. Read more.

Aside from the nearly $330,000 severance package, Rebecca Kimitch said that former Rosemead City Manager will also keep his city car: a 2008 Toyota Highlander Hybrid Limited.

 

Looks like my head was up my rear afterall, as one of our readers noted.

Oliver Chi got a nearly $330,000 severance package, and the council will offer Jeffrey Stewart, a former Rosemead employee and former city manager of El Segundo, as interim city manager, Rebecca Kimitch reports.

This takes the tally up to nearly $600,000 that the council has paid out over the past two years in severance packages to its fired city managers. Andy Lazzarretto got a nearly $262,000 severance package when he was fired in 2007.

But is the price worth it to fire another city manager? Absolutely, Councilwoman Margaret Clark said.

Asked if that price was worth terminating Chi, Clark said, "yes, to get a new direction, yes."

They just don't waste any time in Rosemead when it comes to firing people, now do they?

During a special meeting on Tuesday, the City Council will vote to "release a public employee," and then immediately after, will consider "Public Employee Appointment: Title - City Manager/Interim City Manager."

So, I guess that means City Manager Oliver Chi will soon be out of a job. We can only wonder how long it will be before the staff that Chi hired will be out of jobs, too.

Here's the agenda.

Any guesses about who the interim will be?

Just speculating, but I wouldn't be surprised if we see the return of Willdan.Former longtime Rosemead City Manager Frank Tripepi is now the President and Chief Executive Officer of the Financial Services division of Willdan, a company that was on Rosemead's payroll for many, many years.

Tripepi is now serving as interim city manager in La Puente.

Insiders, what do you know?

Montebello Councilman Robert Urteaga is being sued for fraud, Amanda Baumfeld reports. The lawsuit comes several years after Urteaga was charged with grand theft, a felony.

Cities across the San Gabriel Valley -- except for Rosemead -- are pulling the plug on community events like July 4 parades and Easter Egg hunts, Alfred Lee reports.

Gregg Industries is getting ready to close in a month, but employees are working just as hard as they normally do. And when they are out of a job, many are wondering where they will go, Rebecca Kimitch reports.

If there's no sign telling you that you're entering the San Gabriel Valley, how will you know? Well, one group of people is proposing that a bridge become the area's welcoming sign, Nathan McIntyre reports.

Nice one, Save Our Community.

As the blog pointed out, former Mayor John Tran makes a cameo as a cop in Taboo's music video, titled, "March 27" DUI:

We got another one running for the 32nd Congressional District. Democrat Rafel Nadal (not to be confused with tennis champion from Spain) of Rosemead pulled papers for the seat. Here's a list of other candidates, according to Los Angeles Wave.

Here's Nadal's press release:

NADAL FOR CONGRESS

NADAL FIRST TO FILE

PRESS RELEASE
Contact Lynette Bigelow - 323-230-5467 Ext 600

Los Angeles - Democratic congressional candidate Rafel Nadal is

the first candidate to return his filing papers to run for the seat

vacated by Labor Secretary Hilda Solis.

Nadal indicated that his main concern is Protecting

Social Security and the Department of Veteran Affairs.

Nadal Stated:

"It is a National Insult to the Taxpayers the poor care
we are providing our seniors and veterans. If elected
I will resolve that problem."

Mr. Nadal is available for Press Interviews

Bigelow Associates
5786 Rodeo Road Suite PMB 150
Los Angeles. CA 90016

The city attorney known for his late - and high - billing habits resigned from his post as Rosemead's legal defender on March 19, reporter Rebecca Kimitch confirmed today.

Bonifacio Garcia was hired on April 3, 2007, the same day that the city was slapped with a lawsuit by a former city employee alleging that former Councilman John Nunez subjected her to sexual harassment. The lawsuit was later dropped and there was a settlement, and officials have said that Garcia's hiring date was just a coincidence that it fell on the same day the lawsuit was filed.

During the time that Garcia was employed, he charged the city more than double the amount it budgeted for legal fees. Garcia and Nunez worked together at the Garvey School District.

The City Council will consider hiring Joe Montes of Burke, Williams and Sorensen as the interim city attorney.

Former Rosemead Mayor John Tran was voted out by five votes, Bethania Palma Markus reports. So what happens next? I guess we'll see at the swearing in ceremony whether Tran is going to try to get a judge to intervene.

The ousted first-time councilman is considering a legal challenge, saying some ballots were not counted because they were disqualified by the county.

"I'm weighing my options right now," he said. "There were 112 ballots that were never opened and per the election code that can be challenged."

For those of you wondering, here are the final numbers in the Rosemead election:

Margaret Clark: 2,231 votes
Steven Ly: 2,100 votes
Sandra Armenta: 2,084 votes
John Tran: 2,057 votes
Henry Lo: 1,849 votes
John Nuñez:1,556 votes.

Close call.

****Thanks to the commenter who noticed my complete brain fart. Henry Lo got 1,849 votes, NOT Polly Low. She's in the middle of a term. 

Now that the election is over, it's time for the results to really sink in.

It was the last Rosemead City Council meeting for John Nunez and John Tran last night. Newcomers Steven Ly and Sandra Armenta will be taking over for them, alongside Margaret Clark -- who was re-elected -- and the rest of the council.

I just sifted through the beginning, end and public communications portions of the meeting, but it didn't sound like Nunez or Tran commented about their departures.

In fact, it was the residents who spoke out -- mostly saying that they were happy with the work the two did, and sad to see them go.

Even kids who helped out in the Johns' campaign came out in support of the outgoing councilmen:

Here's some general quotes:

"Mayor Tran, I have seen you conduct the City Council meetings with order. You are well-mannered, polite man and respectful of others ... Be careful not to give place to the deceit and viciousness allowed to be spit out by a very few of your supporters. For without it, you may have won this election."

"I've never spoken at a council meeting until tonight. John and John, I'm proud of your accomplishments over the last four years. You did a great job of bringing Rosemead into the 21st century."

"I hate to think it's going to go back to the way it was (tight wallet). "I hope things that were established will stay in place."

Whoa. There are a few upsets in this round of elections.

• In Rosemead, incumbents John Tran and John Nunez were ousted. Returning to office is Maggie Clark, and now she will be joined by Steven Ly and Sandra Armenta, according to this article.
• In Covina, Kevin Stapleton and John King are returning to the council, and filling the open seat will be former Councilman Bob Low. City Clerk Rosie Fabian received the second lowest number of votes, according tot the city's Web site.
• In Monterey Park, David Lau returns to office, but Sharon Martinez was ousted. Martinez's seat will now be filled by Betty Tom Chu.Here's the unofficial results.
• In Azusa, it's much of the same. Voters returned the city's incumbents to to two council seats Tuesday night. Incumbents Keith Hanks and Robert Gonzales held the lead with only provisional ballots left to count Tuesday night. Gonzales had 1,338 votes, while Hanks had 1,141.
  

We're just a couple of weeks away from the March elections. Here is the latest out of Rosemead. Six are vying for three seats.

The candidates are incumbents Margaret Clark, John Nunez and John Tran, and challengers Sandra Armenta, Henry Lo and Steven Ly. Among the top issues are amending the recently-approved General Plan, reducing crime and graffiti, and spending city reserves to improve services.

Here it is, your weekly dosage of Leftovers:

Foul odors, traffic, noise, pollution and declining property values are among a handful of concerns Baldwin Park residents have about a proposed trash-sorting facility bordering Irwindale at Live Oak and Arrow Highway.

More than 200 residents crammed into Irwindale Council Chambers last week to hear Athens Services' proposal for the 17-acre site. The materials recycling facility would receive a maximum of 6,000 tons of trash a day.

It's not a trash dump. If approved, it would serve as a location to sort trash from recyclables. It also would bring in an estimated $2 million to $4 million annually to Irwindale's coffers.

But Baldwin Park residents aren't having it. They seemed especially irritated it wasn't Irwindale that notified them about the meeting; it was Baldwin Park City Hall.

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The Independent Cities Association, which is an organization of 52 Los Angeles County cities, unanimously has approved a resolution supporting the proposed NFL stadium in Industry.

Not a member of the ICA is the Walnut, which so far has been the lone municipality against the project. Walnut is a member of the Contract Cities Association, which is expected to decide its stance on the project next month.

Monterey Park Mayor Frank Venti, who is a member of the ICA, said he is "incensed" with Walnut Mayor Joaquin Lim's continued disapproval of the NFL stadium.
Lim said he has a lot of concerns about the project, including traffic and "the noise factor that could disturb the peace and quiet of Walnut."

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It seems taggers have taken over the former site of Altmans Winnebago Inc. in Baldwin Park. The Caltrans-owned property that fronts the 10 Freeway has become an eyesore, according to city officials. Walls are tagged from the ground to the roofline.

City officials are in contact with Caltrans to clean up the site. Caltrans spokeswoman Judy Gish said they planned on meeting with contractors last week for graffiti removal.

But she also warned, "Within a very short time of the clean-up, the graffiti will be back."
It seems graffiti removal is costly and timely, and Caltrans doesn't have the resources to continuously clean up the site every time a tagger gets his spray paint can on it.
"It is a priority (for us)," Mayor Manuel Lozano said.

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The Rosemead City Council chickened out on plans last week to allow a popular poultry slaughterhouse to stay in the city.

Cal-Poultry will have to shut its doors following the unanimous vote against allowing a municipal code change that would have allowed the business to expand.

The most interesting point: only a month before, three of the council members actually supported Cal-Poultry's efforts to stay in the city.

Apparently, "passionate pleas" from residents -- who reminded council members of the upcoming March election -- swayed their final decision.