The Arcadia City Council denied the application of the International Society for Krishna Consciousness for a religious solicitation certificate. The application has been before the Council for 18 months. Public hearings were held, and the council requested financial statements which were never produced.
The Arcadia Public Library has joined the Metropolitan Cooperative Library System. Library users will have access to MCLS libraries, SCAN (Southern California Answering Network at Los Angeles Public Library) and SCILL (Southern California Interlibrary Loan Network).
A chronology of the city has been developed by the school district's Office of Elementary Instruction utilizing information from the Public Library, the Arboretum and the City Clerk's office. The 35+ page volume will be used by the third and fourth grade classes as they study the community's history.
Biographical profile of Helen Lawrence, who retired May 1977 from the Arcadia Public Library after almost 21 years, the last 10 of which were as head of the Circulation Department.
Grace Clark has retired after more than 21 years with the Arcadia Public Library. She was City Librarian for a number of years and has been head of the Technical Services Department for the past 15 years.
Public participation in City Council meetings has been set for the middle of the meeting. People may speak on agenda items as they occur up to a 5 minute time limit.
Public parking, which is becoming increasingly scarce in the downtown area, was given close scrutiny at the May 18, 1976 City Council meeting. Most Council members seemed to favor a parking structure to alleviate the situation. Comparative costs were given.
The San Gabriel Valley Juvenile Diversion Program has been established to divert local youths from the criminal justice system to local counseling agencies. Arcadia is participating in this program along with Temple City, Alhambra, Monterey Park, Rosemead and San Gabriel.
A confrontation between the Board of Directors of the Juvenile Diversion Program and Ron Weber, Executive Director of the Regional Office of Criminal Justice Planning, has resulted in a renegotiation of the start for this project. Meant to provide counseling services to youths of seven area cities, it was delayed in opening, and the Board of Directors wants and extension on their funds and contract to prove themselves.
The Juvenile Diversion Program, a Federally funded group of which Arcadia is a part, seeks to divert students who have been in minor problems from the courts and sent them to counseling and treatment. The program has come in for heavy criticism recently due to high administrative costs.