Arcadia Fire Chief Gerald Gardner says his department will recommend Anoakia School not be allowed to reopen this fall if safety deficiencies are not fixed. School owner Lowry McCaslin vows that everything will be taken care of.
Lowery McCaslin, owner of Anoakia, has asked that his application for a general plan change for the property be withdrawn. He has been working with a local builder who has a good feel for the area and would like to develop the property at a density of 2.4 homes per acre. Late in this same meeting, the council voted to change the zoning on the estate to match the existing general plan. What this might do to future McCaslin plans is not clear.
At a meeting of about 200 Anoakia School parents, directors of the school, which has operated on the former estate of Anita Baldwin for 48 years, explained the reasons the school wants to relocate after June 1990. Lowry McCaslin, who owns the property, wants to develop the 20 acre estate.
Arcadia Planning Commission has approved a zone change for the Anoakia property from R-O 30,000 to R-O and D 22,000. The zone change will allow owner Lowrey McCaslin to develop the 19.13 acre site with 29 to 32 homes instead of 23.
Anoakia School plans to relocate to another city. The Fire Department has cited the school with many violations in the past year. Last month the Department closed a group of 10 classrooms for being unsafe.
The Arcadia Unified School District's scores on the California Assessment Program went up in math for all grades this year, but down in reading in the 3rd and 6th grades, while 8th grade students showed an increase in reading. Other figures are also given in the article, as well as a chart of scores for each AUSD school on page A-2.
An informal committee of some 15 people was initiated by the Arcadia Historical Society in mid-September in an effort to preserve the old Anoakia School site, now that the school has relocated to Duarte.
The hearing by the Planning Commission on the Anoakia property has been put off until a later date. Some specifics of what Mr. McCaslin will seek when the hearing is scheduled are given.
The Arcadia Christian School has leased the Santa Anita Elementary School which was closed due to declining enrollment. Article describes the school which expects 200 students this year ranging from pre-school through 8th grade.
Residents have petitioned the Planning Commission to change the area's zoning from R-1 (7500 square feet) to R-O&D (30,000 square feet) because of fears that Mr. McCaslin, owner of Anoakia, may build too densely.
A committee set up by the Arcadia School District to study AIDS education has come up with a proposal to integrate it into the district's current health curriculum, which extends from kindergarten to 12th grade.
The Anoakia School, soon to be renamed the Anita Oaks School, won a victory against staunch opponents of the relocation when the Duarte City Council unanimously approved the move to property owned by New Life Assembly of God Church.
The Early Childhood Education program in effect at Camino grove School since last fall has been ranked 19th out of 800 in the State. The program provides funds to expand the program from K through 3rd grade. It is the ultimate goal of California State School Superintendent Wilson Riles that all schools will be able to have ECE.
Battle lines seem to be drawn between the residents of the area, who want 0-2 dwelling units per acre as the general plan calls for, and owner Lowery McCaslin, who would like 0-4.
Richard Dana intermediate school to open doors for first time. It is the second educational plant serving 7th and 8th grades, the other being First Avenue School. Dana's first principal is Joseph Bagnall. The modern school was designed by Boyd Georgi and Lee Kline, the same architects who planned the buildings at Camino Grove Elementary. See Also Arcadia Tribune, September 13, 1954, p. 1, Schoolroom doors open tomorrow for 7000 pupils.
The City Council voted on March 1, 1977 to uphold the 30,000 square foot minimum lot size set by the Planning Commission on any development Mr. McCaslin might build. Room for compromise seems possible.