Exactly a year after the Sierra Madre earthquake, the Arcadia Post Office remains shored up by wooden beams. Renovation of the structure may begin soon.
An earthquake registering 5.5 on the Richter scale hit Australia's southeast coast at 3:28 PST on Wednesday, December 27, 1989. Newcastle, Australia's fifth largest city, suffered the majority of damage as 11 were known to have died. A city of 500,000, Newcastle has the largest concentration of heavy industry in the country.
The City Council gave preliminary approval Wednesday to an expansion of the Arcadia Public Library that may add 15,000 square feet of space at a cost of about $3.5 million.
Two commercial buildings on Huntington Drive, damaged in the October earthquake, need to be repaired or torn down. Letters from the city to the owners have gone unanswered.
A 5.0 aftershock from last October's earthquake did little damage but rattled the nerves of local residents. Three people were treated for minor injuries as a result of the aftershock.
City Council declared buildings at 162-164 and 135-137 Huntington Drive, damaged during last year's earthquake, unsafe and gave the owners 90 days to repair or demolish them.
In an informal, long-range planning session, City Council members made a new library and police station two of their top priorities. Last month, the council approves spending $55,000 to hire a consultant, to be chosen at the June 19th meeting, to draw up plans for a new library to replace the overcrowded library.
Friday's 6.0 earthquake struck as Art Lerille, 56, and Julie Nickoley, 34, watched horses run in early morning workouts at Santa Anita Park. Nickoley was killed by a plunging 20 foot steel beam and Lerille was injured.
A new or improved public library could become a reality in the near future. The current library is bursting at the seams with increasing amounts of books, computer equipment and an increasing number of people using the 28-year-old library.
The City Council passed a resolution supporting the Arcadia Coalition for Education, a group of educators and community members demanding more state money for schools.
"Wild About Reading" is the theme for the summer program to be sponsored by the Jerry Broadwell Children's Room of Arcadia Public Library. Registration begins June 6 through July 18.