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Biggest news of the day comes out of Temple City .....

It will be interesting to see how this probe unfolds in the coming days and weeks.

Reporters Amanda Baumfeld and Alfred Lee are covering all the courthouse drama surrounding Temple CIty Mayor Judy Wong, former Mayor Cathe Wilson and former City Council candidate Scott Carwile.

They were all indicted this morning on felony charges of bribery, perjury and other counts related to a corruption probe into their dealings with a local project developer.

This story is developing and we're sure to have more later ... for now, read the rest of the update here

This Temple City story just keeps getting better and better.

Alfred Lee's story on now former Temple City Councilman David Capra really developed Wednesday as Capra pleaded guilty to a misdemeanor campaign finance reporting violation and then resigned from office.

Apparently Capra made the plea Tuesday and has been placed on 36 months probation. As part of the plea deal, he was also forced to resign and agreed not to run for public office again for four years.

Read Alfred's full story here.

Breaking news from Star-News reporter Alfred Lee:

Mayor David Capra has resigned, the city announced this morning.

Capra is among the 3 council members investigated by a grand jury after a developer alleged he and the 2 others asked for bribes in exchange for smooth approval of the Piazza project.

He's also had health problems.

Alfred will following this story today.

Charles Martin got the boot from the Temple City City Council Tuesday night, Star-News reporter Alfred Lee reports.

This will end a 55-year public employee career for Martin, who had been serving as Temple City's city manager and city attorney since 2005. He'll stay on as interim city attorney until the end of the month, according to Lee.

Martin is keeping mum on the issue.

Martin, 85, wanted to stay on as city manager until the recruitment of replacement was completed, according to Mayor Judy Wong, but the City Council needed to "move on," she said.

"To eliminate him from both positions would have been quite too much for him, so I was thinking to maybe do it more gently," said Wong, who had considered keeping Martin on as interim city attorney for even longer.

The coroner is investigating whether the death of a 45-year-old man from La Mirada, who died April 22 at Coast Plaza Doctor's Hospital in Norwalk, is due to swine flu. Via LA Observed. 

Meanwhile, local cities and schools are taking precautionary measures against the flu, Amanda Baumfeld reports.

Temple City enacts a moratorium on pot dispensaries. Read more.

Temple City will start televising its meetings, and will also push up the public comment period to the beginning of the meeting. Read more.

It's election day in several of our cities, including Monrovia, Covina, Azusa, Monterey Park and Temple City.

Any voting issues today?

We got one call this morning about a Covina resident who said the polling place at the Covina United Methodist Church didn't have the information for voters with last names M - Z. It took the guy, whose last name was in the M - Z category, 25 minutes to vote. There were only three people in line, but he had to use a provisional ballot because of the name mix up.

Here it is...

When we think about the financial meltdown cash-strapping America, we usually think about the shrinking job pool, toxic housing market and weakened bank industry.

But there are other things being affected by this economic downturn, something near and dear to the hearts of our local politicos -- campaign fundraising.

In Monterey Park, some of the six City Council candidates running in the March 3 race are having a bit of trouble filling their campaign piggy banks.

So far, Councilman David Lau has raised nearly $75,000, but none of that occurred this year. Most of the money actually was raised during one event.

Councilwoman Sharon Martinez hasn't had as much luck. She's only raised $10,000 because businesses -- where she gets her most of her contributions -- are just tapped out.

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Speaking of money, San Gabriel Valley city managers are dealing with the fiscal crunch in a variety of ways.

Temple City's City Attorney/City Manager Charles Martin has offered to work for free after his Feb. 5 retirement if the city can't find his replacement before then.

In a report earlier this month, Martin said he "would be happy to return the benefit of my 44-year tenure with the City by continuing in office, even if I had to serve as a volunteer."
Martin gets $96,696 a year for his duties as city manager and an additional $61,980 annually for being city attorney.

On the other side of the spectrum, La Verne City Manager Martin Lomeli just got a 10 percent pay raise, which takes him from $14,741 a month to $16,215 a month. His yearly salary will be $194,580.

The only dissenting vote was from Councilman Steven Johnson.

Temple City has 33,377 residents, and La Verne has 31,638.

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It wouldn't be a week of political news without an update from the Hilda Solis race.

The already long -- and we mean long -- list of endorsements for state Board of Equalization Chairwoman Judy Chu now includes her husband, Assembly Mike Eng, and United Farm Workers co-founder Dolores Huerta.

A lot of Chu's support is local, although several San Gabriel Valley politicians have come out in support of Sen. Gil Cedillo.

They include Monterey Park Mayor Frank Venti, La Puente Councilman John Solis and Baldwin Park Councilwoman Marlen Garcia.

And those who just can't decide? Irwindale Councilman Larry Burrola and Baldwin Park Mayor Manuel Lozano have endorsed both candidates.

I guess the real test will come inside the voting booth.

One city manager offers to work for free, while another one gets a 10 percent raise. 

Temple City-City Attorney City Manager Charles Martin, who gets $96,696 a year as city manager and $61,980, offered to continue working after his retirement free of charge, while La Verne City Manager Martin Lomeli got a pay bump to $194,580.

Temple City has 33,377 residents, and La Verne has 31,638 residents.

Alfred Lee reports:

TEMPLE CITY - As the economy sputters and cities dig deep to avoid cutting services, one high-ranking bureaucrat said he is willing to work for free.

Amidst discussion about his potential retirement and replacement, City Manager-City Attorney Charles Martin has offered to continue on in both of his positions - as an unpaid volunteer.

"I was contemplating my retirement on February 5, 2009, but that if the Council could not find a replacement by that date, I would be happy to return the benefit of my 44 year tenure with the City by continuing in office - even if I had to serve as a volunteer, without pay for a part or all of that time," Martin, 84, wrote in a Jan. 15 manager's report.

Wes Woods II reports:

LA VERNE - City Manager Martin R. Lomeli will receive a 10 percent increase of his base salary. The City Council approved the increase Tuesday night by a 4-1 vote.

Later in the week, Lomeli said he was "very grateful" for the increase. The increase was a management performance award, city officials said.

Lomeli's pay had been $14,741 a month and now will be $16,215 a month, or $194,580 a year.

The allegations that Temple City elected officials demanded bribes is gaining momentum. Prosecutors seized tape-recordings made by a developer who claims three city council members asked for bribes -- thousands of dollars and a condo --  in return for support on a project.

Prosecutors seize tapes in Temple City bribery probe
By Alfred Lee, Staff Writer
Posted: 01/08/2009 04:11:18 PM PST

TEMPLE CITY - Prosecutors have seized tape-recordings made by a developer who claims they support his allegations that city leaders demanded bribes from him in return for cooperation on a long-delayed development project.

The recordings contain conversations between Randy Wang, the developer of the Piazza mall project, and City Council members. The recordings back up Wang's claims of bribery solicitation, said his lawyer, Patrick Duffy of Monteleone & McCrory.

"They support the allegations that are in our affirmative defense," Duffy said.

Wang has accused Mayor Cathe Wilson and council members Judy Wong and David Capra of demanding thousands of dollars in cash payments and a condominium from him in order for his project to progress smoothly through City Hall.

Wilson, Wong and Capra have denied Wang's claims. Read more.

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.

Six are competiting for two seats on the Temple City Council amid accusations that two council members solicited bribes. Read more.

Walnut prepares for legal battle against city of Industry for the proposed NFL stadium. Read more.

West Covina community activists move forward in effort to get council districts in city. Read more. Read more.

La Puente files claim against county for missing $500,000. Read more.

Leftovers from City Hall column.

 "Who throws a shoe? Honestly."

Stimulus package may benefit local infrastructure projects. Read more.

6 file for 2 seats on Temple City City Council
By Alfred Lee, Staff Writer
Posted: 12/14/2008 10:48:45 PM PST

TEMPLE CITY - The balance of power in City Hall is at stake in the upcoming race for two City Council seats.

Four candidates will challenge incumbents Cathe Wilson and Ken Gillanders in their bids for re-election.

Tom Chavez, Silenus Ong, Chuck Souder and Vince Yu will join Wilson and Gillanders on the ballot in March, City Clerk Mary Flandrick said.

The race could very well be seen as a referendum on the performance of the current City Council, where Wilson, Gillanders and Councilman David Capra have formed a majority voting bloc over the past two years.

The trio have often controlled policy, over the opposition of council members Judy Wong and Fernando Vizcarra.

Both Wilson and Gillanders enjoy long-standing support in the community - Wilson was elected with more votes than any of the sitting council members - but the struggles of the City Council to bring redevelopment to the city could be a thorny issue.

In recent months, officials imposed and then cancelled a controversial ban on non-retail businesses; flirted with and then pulled out of a plan to buy a string of commercial properties on Las Tunas; and, most notably, saw further delays in the Piazza mall project.

Both Yu and Souder hope to capitalize on residents' frustration.

Yu, a Temple City Planning Commissioner, is running on his experience with development as a former architect in the private sector and current head of an architectural unit in the county Department of Public Works. He has close ties to Wong and is also backed by Vizcarra.

"Like most Temple City residents, I'm a bit frustrated to see the lack of progress," he said. "The things that we really wanted to do in the Planning Commission, when they got to the council, not a whole lot was done."

Yu voted against the Piazza project while on the Planning Commission.

"I can look at plans and I can listen to the developer and the architect's presentation, and I can tell based on my own experience how well they prepared and whether or not what they said can actually be done," he said.

Souder, a two-time mayor and member of the City Council from 1994-2003, is running as the most vocal opponent of Wilson and Gillanders.

"I'm running to see if I can't straighten out the City Council," Souder said. "It'd be more business-friendly and put some transparency and integrity back into the City Council."

He said the lack of transparency in City Hall was "absolutely disgusting," and he also criticized the performance of current city manager-city attorney Charles Martin.

Wilson, Gillanders and Ong could not be reached last week.

Chavez, a Parks and Recreation Commissioner for Temple City who works as an attorney and adjunct professor in Pasadena, also stressed the need for redevelopment in the city.

"We need to seek additional sources of revenue for the city, but at the same time I'm in favor of keeping a small-town atmosphere," he said.

Chavez said he is supported by Wilson but is not interested in lining up along the divisions on the council. Yu and Souder also said that they would vote independently.

"We do have a City Council that doesn't seem to get along," Chavez said. "It could be a problem and I think we need to try to clear that up and get us back on track."

alfred.lee@sgvn.com

(626) 578-6300, Ext. 4496

A boo-boo on Temple City's part may cost the city $50,000 and may earn City Manager/City Attorney Charles Martin a raise, according to Star-News reporter Alfred Lee.

TEMPLE CITY - When city manager-city attorney Charles Martin revealed earlier this month that the city had been flagged by the IRS for improperly hiring full-time employees as independent contractors, he attributed it mostly to Temple City's contracting of parks and recreation workers.

Turns out, Martin himself was part of that problem.

Since taking over the dual roles of city manager and city attorney in 2005, Martin has been paid as an independent contractor, rather than as a city employee.

That has allowed Temple City to avoid providing medical, dental or retirement benefits to Martin, and to pay him less than it might otherwise have to.

The city also does not have to pay or withhold taxes on Martin's behalf, as he gets paid on a 1099 tax form instead of a W-2. Such contractors are responsible for paying their own income taxes.

The city, which may be fined up to $50,000 by the IRS for such hiring practices, plans to comply with the audit by changing the wording of some contracts, and also by converting some contractors to regular employees.

Martin will be reclassified as a full-time employee as of Jan. 1, and he might receive a pay increase at that time, Financial Services Director Monica Molina said.

A developer is claiming that Temple City officials asked for money in exchange for their support on a project in the city.

TEMPLE CITY - The developer of the long-delayed Piazza mixed-use project has accused unnamed city officials of soliciting bribes in return for cooperation on the project.

The accusations were made in a countersuit filed on behalf of Randy Wang, owner of TCD Enterprises, as part of an ongoing litigation battle with the city.

"Representatives of the city of Temple City and the Temple City Redevelopment Agency have repeatedly solicited bribes from cross-complainants, and have conditioned their cooperation with the progress of the project on the payment of bribes, which have included demands for condominiums and cash payments," the cross-complaint stated.

It also alleges officials made a specific request

Developer's counter-complaint alleging bribery for $3,000 from Wang, which he was instructed to deliver in an envelope at an Arcadia private school. Read more.

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?

In a story Star-News reporter Alfred Lee writes in Monday's paper, Temple City Councilman David Capra's medical mystery is addressed.

Apparently, Capra suffered a mild stroke.

Lee writes: Capra added that although he is still in physical therapy, he has recovered "100 percent, mentally."

"I'm feeling great and the progress is remarkable," he said. "I look at things with more open eyes, a more open heart. It just changes things, because I was on a death bed and I got a second chance."

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.