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While Keith Hanks is running for reelection this March on the Azusa City Council, he is also hoping for another election in the coming weeks.

Hanks sits on the board for the Metro Gold Line Foothill Extension that is now chaired by La Verne Mayor Jon Blickenstaff. Blickenstaff is leaving the La Verne council at the end of his term this year.

When the board is restructured, Hanks has his fingers crossed in hopes of becoming the new chair, or at least the vice chair, told me today (Wednesday).

I can't say I would blame the board for the decision. Hanks has a firm grasp on engineering and transportation issues. The man just gets excited about things like this and you always want that out of a representative.

In terms of engineering, I would probably be described as a novice and I would take that as a compliment.

But when Hanks, who works in the public works department for the city of Los Angeles and focuses on sewer systems, was explaining to me different parts of how sewers work, not only was it interesting, but I understood.

It takes someone who really knows what they are talking about to not only taking something like how sewers work and make it interesting, but to also allow a Lehman like myself to understand the basics of some complex issues.

The leader of the San Gabriel Valley Economic Partnership says cities should stick together, literally.

Ron Wood, the partnership's CEO, said plenty of area cities could save cash by combining.

He said Covina and West Covina could become more efficient by becoming one municipality. So could Pasadena and South Pasadena. He also mentioned Temple City and Arcadia and El Monte and South El Monte.

The idea has been floating around for years, but he wonders if economic hard times will make people take it more seriously.

"I think it's one of the answers to economic problems in the San Gabriel Valley," he said. "It's an opportunity for people to take a fresh look."

He doubts politicians could set aside their egos to accomplish such a huge change, but he says people are more receptive to the idea than in the past.

"Sometimes crisis brings about changes in people," he said.

Full disclosure: Wood used to be the publisher here at the Tribune.

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.

Hate Athens? If you do, you're not the only one: http://www.stopathens.com/

Athens serves these cities, according to its Web site:

Leftovers Column: City's image takes a beating
By Jennifer McLain and Tania Chatila, Staff Writers
Article Launched: 10/05/2008 11:04:48 PM PDT

It's been a rough few months for the city of Baldwin Park's image.

Residents still are concerned about school board member Sergio Corona's arrest in May on suspicion of driving under the influence of alcohol and drugs and being under the influence of a controlled substance.

He currently is facing misdemeanor charges of vandalism, resisting an officer and driving without a license in connection with the arrest.

Then last month, Baldwin Park Councilman Anthony Bejarano was booked on suspicion of public intoxication.

The Los Angeles District Attorney's office said last week week it would not be filing charges against Bejarano, who said he was not drunk the night of his arrest.

Still, the incident has stirred unrest in the community and has brought to light a question that often goes unanswered in the political realm - just how high should the ethical and moral bar be set for our public officials?

We put the question out there and got some interesting responses from anonymous readers of the Leftovers blog.

Here's a sample:

-- "Let's face it none of us is perfect in our personal lives..., we go through divorces, we have children who occasionally get in trouble, we occasionally say things in frustration or in the heat of the moment that upon reflection we wish we didn't say, we sometimes get our facts wrong."

-- "Yes, we do hold our elected officials to a higher standard, especially when they are representing us at a public event."

-- "I'm not saying we treat our elected with kid gloves in terms of their policy positions or in terms of factors which might impact their ability to act fairly, honestly and impartially. But I don't care to know about him having a simple argument with a spouse or that his or her kid got a D on their algebra exam or that (on one isolated) night they may have seemed a bit tipsy..."

-- "Character does matter."

Our elected officials have been in the news a lot lately over questions of ethical behavior among themselves and their relatives.

Pico Rivera Mayor Ron Beilke's son was recently detained by the sheriff's department in a case where a reserve deputy's .45-caliber revolver and vehicle were stolen. Beilke's son wasn't charged, but two of the 17-year-old's friends were.

Last month, the teenage son of former Irwindale Councilwoman and Baldwin Park Chief Deputy City Clerk Rosemary Gutierrez plowed his car through a neighbor's wall while driving home around 4 a.m.

A police report was not made, no one was arrested, no one was hurt and neighbors decided not to press charges on what was classified initially as a hit-and-run.

Then in El Monte, Mayor Ernie Gutierrez - who is not related to Rosemary Gutierrez - took a lot of heat for allegedly showing up at a city event drunk and shouting vulgarities.

In May, city officials prepared a report looking into Gutierrez's actions, but concluded the allegations had no merit.

We see this all the time - someone in the public spotlight, whether they be authorities, politicians or entertainment superstars, slips up and all of a sudden their abilities to perform come into question.

Only voter turnout will tell us how much constituents really care.

Welcome back to the work week!

Here's this week's column inspired by the great dialogue by our readers last week. Thanks to everyone for participating in the conversation. There were many ideas that we've not heard from our elected leaders:

They say drastic times call for drastic measures.

We've certainly seen a lot of that as local leaders struggle with faltering revenues and excruciating budget cuts.

In West Covina, every department head was asked to cut five percent from their budget to make up for a $2.1million deficit.

In El Monte, facing a $400,000 deficit, council members slashed the Police Department's funds, maintained hiring freezes and cut back on recreation programs.

And in cities like Pico Rivera, El Monte, San Gabriel and Covina, taxes seem to be the only answer to supplement wavering incomes.

Many city council members have said this undoubtedly is a difficult time and it never is easy making cuts.

But what you would do if you were running the show?

Here are some ideas readers came up with, and they're nothing like what our elected officials have suggested:

Eliminate all car, travel and cell phone allowances for council members, as well as car allowances for city employees. "Stop paying for trips to China, Paris, Mexico, etc.," according to one reader.

Cut back on recreation departments, including youth and senior programs.

"Seniors tend to be better off than most non-retired working age folks. Seniors, though they are on fixed incomes, usually have a lifetime's worth of savings and investments accumulated ... and they also enjoy many discounts that non-seniors do not enjoy," another reader wrote.

Turn off at least half of street lights.
"We're figuratively throwing our money into the sky with all the lighting that goes up where it is not needed," one reader wrote.

Cut back on overtime for public safety, review every contract that has been in place in the city for at least three years and consider cutting staffing of "non-essential things such as school resource officers or farmer's markets," according to another reader.

Require those on the Metropolitan Transportation Authority to use public transportation to attend meetings. "They're in charge of the MTA; they should be able to get to the meetings using the same public transit they govern. If it's not good enough for them, it's not good for us, either."

While some of these ideas are downright impossible others are more feasible.

Elected officials say city government is a labor of love.

So maybe they should think outside of the box a little more often. And maybe readers should get up from behind their computer screens and attend council meetings a little more often, too. Give those councils a piece of their minds.

Open Forum: Should council members go on conferences out of state if their cities are facing deficits?

Many of our cities are facing budget cuts. So, here's an uplifting weekend question:

If you were in charge, what would be the first thing that you would cut out of your city's budget?

If all the tax measures pass, including a one-cent sales tax hike that the Governor is allegedly suggesting, cities such as Pico Rivera will be paying as much as 10.75 percent in sales tax.

Here are the proposed city and county tax measures appearing on the November ballot affecting San Gabriel Valley voters:

El Monte
What: A half-cent sales tax for a period of five years
Expected revenue: $4.4 million a year
Reason: To preserve funding for public safety, street and storm drain maintenance, rebuild reserve funds, plug a $400,000 deficit

Los Angeles County Metropolitan Transportation Authority
What: A half-cent sales tax increase for 30 years
Expected revenue: $30 - $40 billion
Reason: To improve traffic flow, expand public transportation, extend light rail with airport connections and provide clean-fuel buses

Pico Rivera
What: A one-cent sales tax increase
Expected revenue: $6 million
Reasons: To preserve public safety, community programs, plug a $4.8 million deficit, and maintain city infrastrcuture

Pomona
What: An increase of the utility users tax to 10 percent from 9 percent for 2 years and 2 months
Expected revenue: $1.8 million
Reasons: Maintain city services and capital improvement projects

San Gabriel
What: An increase in the utility users tax to 8 percent from 6 percent
Expected revenue: $1.2 million
Reasons: Improve police protection and investigations that reduce crime, preserve fire and paramedic emergency response times, plug a $600,000 deficit, and perform capital improvement projects.

My apologies for not updating the blog earlier today. Because today will be a late night -- I got in at 2 p.m. to cover the El Monte meeting -- I am just now getting into the daily grove.

For the reader concerned about our Gregg Industries coverage: It is my understanding that a reporter has been covering that and is still at the hearing. We will have an update when she returns.

And yes, chasing down dead ducks and chickens does cut into blogging and reporting time.

Leftovers Column: Fuentes hit for political approach
By Tania Chatila and Jennifer McLain, Staff Writers
Article Launched: 07/27/2008 09:29:44 PM PDT

It seems Pico Rivera's city manager may have committed the cardinal sin in his profession: playing politics.

Of course, that depends on who you ask.

Charles "Chuck" Fuentes says he's just one of the few city managers who actually admit to politicking.

"Am I more political? I'm the first one to say yes, and that's a plus," Fuentes said in an article that ran a week ago in the Whittier Daily News. "Every city manager does what he or she has to do to take care of his majority."

But if you bring the issue up before ethicists at the state and national levels, they say Fuentes - who worked on President Jimmy Carter's re-election campaign and

eventually became chief of staff for Rep. Grace Napolitano, D-Santa Fe Springs - has got it all wrong.

After all, the job of a city manager is to work for all council members, not just the majority, experts said.

And if Fuentes were to read the code of ethics that the members of the International City Manager's Association follow, he would see that endorsing candidates - whether on the local or national level - is a big no-no, said Bill Garrett, executive director of the California City Management Foundation.

"The code of ethics says that you don't play favorites, and don't involve yourself in the political game," Garrett said.

By working for all members of the council, the city manager is completing the obligation to serve the interest of the com-

munity, said Martha Perego, ICMA's ethics director.

"When you have city managers that are more concerned about protecting their jobs and counting votes, then you need to think: Are they serving the long-term interest of the community?" Perego said.

Fuentes is not a member of the ICMA, Perego said.

Nearly 100 years ago, the council-city manager system was formed as a way to keep City Hall staff - the brains behind the requests and wills of council members - from being politicized, according to Garrett.

"It has been set to try to make sure that the manager responds from a professional standpoint, not from a political one," he said.

That hasn't always been the case.

South Gate's former elected city treasurer Albert Robles was convicted of soliciting more than $1.8 million in bribes from bidders on municipal contracts.

According to the Los Angeles Times, three of Robles' supporters formed a new majority on the City Council in 2001.

With their votes, Robles influenced ranks of city department managers, firing those who refused to do his bidding and promoting those who would, even though his official title granted him no such authority, according to the Times article.

"South Gate is a good example of what can happen when a City Council hires someone purely from a political background, and then tells them, `We want you to run this thing the way we want you to run it."'

Of course, some argue politics is inevitable when you are working for, well, politicians.

"Every city manager has to deal with the reality that there is a political component to the job," said Rosemead City Manager Oliver Chi. "But we must continue to strive in all ways to remain apolitical in our efforts to serve every single council member."

jennifer.mclain@sgvn.com

tania.chatila@sgvn.com

(626) 962-8811, Ext. 2477, 2109

www.insidesocal.com/sgvgov

Star-News report Nathan McIntire's story about a Southern California Edison proposal to increase rates is getting picked up everywhere.

ROSEMEAD - Southern California Edison estimates rates for some residential customers could increase by an average of 30 percent or more next year because of soaring fuel prices and costs to upgrade infrastructure, according to a company executive.

The utility will submit the final component of its application to raise rates next month. Any rate increases must be approved in December by the Public Utilities Commission, which sets the three-year rates and can deny all or parts of Edison's request.

Another interesting point in the story is Edison's proposal could really affect municipalities too, as Arcadia City Manager Don Penman points out: "Obviously its ominous, both for the consumer and for public agencies that depend on a lot of electricity."

I guess gas isn't the only thing we should be worried about these days...

It's the weekend! So here's something to think about:

Would you ever consider running for the City Council? Why or why not?

El Monte Councilman Art Barrios called this week, asking why I wasn't at the pancake breakfast last Friday. Um, because I had the day off and would much prefer to spend my free time at the beach.

But he didn't care about me: He wanted to know why the Tribune only writes negative stories about El Monte. It's a common complaint we get. Barrios was right, we didn't cover it. But we also didn't cover the dozens of other Fourth of July events in the 31 cities in the San Gabriel Valley. There's just not enough space.

But in honor of Barrios, how about we spend some positive attention to what is going on in your cities this weekend.

OPEN FORUM: What will you be doing in the SGV this weekend? 

It's been a tough few months for many of our cities in the San Gabriel Valley. And judging from the comments on the blog, many are upset at what their cities are doing -- and consequentially what this blog and newspaper reports on.

Most cities are dealing with budget cuts, some are dealing with embarassment by their elected representatives and several have or are facing lawsuits that have rocked city morale. But we may as well take one day to try to muster up some positive feedback about our cities and elected officials.

So, here's an open forum: What have your elected officials done to improve your city?

I got a "tip" from a caller yesterday who left a voice mail talking about South Pasadena's council meeting tonight. The caller alluded to a potential topic on the agenda about the city manager, but I didn't see any such item. However, I did see two items of interest:

• Request for review of employee salary increases approved for last year's budget (2007-08)
• Report from the City Attorney on the role and authority of the City Treasurer.

Reporter Robert Hong will be at the meeting tonight and will let us know what comes out of the meeting.

Local politicians had some harsh words for MTA officials today at a meeting unveiling a plan for toll roads along San Gabriel Valley freeways.

Reporter Dan Abendschein attended the meeting, which he said focused more on MTA's lack of funding for local projects rather than the proposal for HOV lanes on the 10 and 210 freeways.

Here are some snippets of information from Abendschein:

"Before I would even consider this plan, I would have to be assured that we see serious funding for the Gold Line," said Assemblyman Ed Hernandez, D-West Covina.

If the plan is approved, MTA would receive $214 million in federal money, which it could use to spend on additional bus and van service to use the lanes.

Richard Katz, an MTA board member appointed by L.A. Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa, told the Los Angeles Times last week that MTA should not approve the Gold Line unless the toll lane project is approved.

"It wouldn't make sense for us to fund the Gold Line at the same time that [some members of Congress] are trying to take money away from congestion pricing," said Katz. "That doesn't make sense to me. If you're going to oppose this chance to get $213 million, why should we support 80 million over there?"

Sounds like the transportation debate could get heated...

I grew up in Fremont, a city in the San Francisco Bay Area that falls between Oakland and San Jose. So did my dad, who grew up in a section of Fremont called Niles, which backs up to a canyon. I've heard plenty of stories from my dad of how the Bay Area changed since he was born, in 1955. An area that was once filled with orchards and undeveloped land is now lined with homes, traffic and industry.

Growing up in the Bay Area and being a reporter for the Bay Area newspapers, I was fascinated with its history, whether it was the ghost story of the White Witch in Niles Canyon, the once thriving and colorful community that lived in the salt marshes in Fremont, or the cult-like history out of Holy City in the Santa Cruz Mountains.

But yesterday, as I was reading "Thirst for Growth," a book that looks at the hisotry of water agencies in Southern California, it hit me: I know nothing about the San Gabriel Valley's past.

I report on the daily murders, crimes and local political upheavels, but I don't know what makes the San Gabriel Valley the way it is today. What are its legends? Are there ghost stories? How has the SGV changed over the years? What did your parents used to tell you about the area? What are the historical landmarks in the area that anyone who has lived here for more than 50 years should know about?

Its been almost two years since I moved here. I guess it's about time that I call it home.

(The photo is a picture of the SGV in 1900, taken from this Web site.)

A new park is opening in South Pasadena. Will you visit it?

SOUTH PASADENA — By mid-April, a small section of Garfield Park will have trimmed bottleneck trees, a sitting wall, and stones etched with the names of 15 young people who have died in the city since the 1970s.
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Stones with the names of the deceased will be added throughout the garden. Kramer said she is receiving phone calls from people with new information.
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While the cost of building the garden has doubled to $30,000 from the initial $15,000 estimate due to soaring construction costs, Kramer said the strong show of community support - from money to donated materials and labor - surprised her.