New regulations require that Arcadia, among other cities in the Los Angeles River basin, reduce the amount of trash put into the system to "zero tolerance" in twelve years. Arcadia has joined other cities in the Coalition for Practical Regulation to appeal the order.
The State of California has required cities throughout Los Angeles County to adopt a program that will reduce trash and other pollutants in urban runoff. Arcadia's municipal code prohibits the dumping or discharging of water containing harmful chemicals or materials into city streets, catch basins, and storm drains.
Arcadia City Council approved the first of a projected series of ten annual 5% increases in the city water rate. Sewer and trash rates will also increase.
The Arcadia City Council has approved increasing the funding and total service hours for the Arcadia Transit System. The transit program is funded through federal, state and local money distributed by the Metropolitan Transit Authority.
Arcadia meets federal and state drinking water standards as reported in the "City of Arcadia Year 2000 Consumer Confidence Report." A photo shows Amanda Silva and Alison Wien.
The Arcadia Board of Education approved a Local Agency Education plan to bring the district into compliance with the federal No Child Left Behind program, which requires that students meet state proficiency standards by 2013-2014. For California, the standard is 100% graduation with all requirements for University of California admission met.
Arcadia and Sierra Madre's water supply to benefit from $1.8 million federal grant. Arcadia will get $900,000 of the grant. This will fund the next phase of an on-going, 5-year program to ensure emergency water for its citizens, following any potential seismic activity.
The Gold Line received federal financial support in the final House appropriations bill. Monrovia, Arcadia and other cities along the planned extension of the route from Pasadena to Claremont have formed a joint powers authority to study grade separations.
Cities of Pasadena, Arcadia, Sierra Madre, and Monrovia are seeking funding for fire training from the federal government (FEMA). They want to establish a training facility on federal property in Arcadia near the 210 Freeway and Santa Anita Avenue.
City councils from Arcadia and Sierra Madre met in a joint session to discuss federal lobbying efforts, the Gold Line Rail project, water and open space.
New estimates of the population released by the California Department of Finance report that the population in Arcadia was 55,500, an increase of 1.1% over the year before. Estimates of other cities are also listed.
In the transition to the new federal No Child Left Behind Program, the Arcadia Board of Education is losing money and is being forced to cut the number of English language instructional aides in elementary school.
City Manager Bill Kelly is concerned about a new measure to penalize cities that are not meeting state affordable housing rules. The Dunn Measure could penalize cities as much as $1000 per needed unit and take away up to 60 percent of gas tax funds. Bill Kelly says Arcadia already has a number of senior citizen projects in planning.
Arcadia City Council has accepted a federal grant of $125,000 to place a uniformed police officer on the campuses of the city's three middle schools. The program is called Youth and Educational Support (YES).
The Library Board of Trustees voted to post a PATRIOT Act notice, as required by the act. The notice reads, "Although the Arcadia Public Library makes every reasonable effort to protect your privacy, under the federal USA PATRIOT Act (PL107-56), records of the books and other materials you currently have on loan from this library, your inter-library loan requests placed during the past year, or the Internet sites and e-mails that you access through our computers may be obtained by federal agents. That federal law prohibits library workers from informing you if federal agents have asked about or obtained your records.
Arcadia City Council has approved a list of a dozen projects to lobby for with the federal government. The projects will be pursued by city lobbyist, the Ferguson Group, by Mayor Mickey Segal, and a representative from Sierra Madre, as they try to coordinate lobbying efforts in Washington DC. On the list is a $20 million request jointly with Sierra Madre, for continuing programs to ensure safety of the water supply in case of seismic problems.