Horse euthanized two days before new season starts at Santa Anita Park. Truest Reward, a 3-year-old gelding died during a period when the track was closed to workouts but open for jogging and galloping. The horse broke its left front leg on the training track, which is considered the safest surface. This is the 38th horse to die at the track since December 2018.
Food critic Merrill Shindler writes about comfort food and mentions two in Arcadia: Din Tai Fung (dumplings) at Westfield Santa Anita mall and Moffett's Family Restaurant, which serves chicken pies.
Arcadia kicks off 2020 City Council election. Final candidates in District 1 are Mayor April Verlato running for reelection and newcomer Yuli J. Sira. Verlato is currently on the last year of her first term on city council and she as elected mayor her last year. She is an attorney with Verlato and Roberts law firm in Arcadia. She is a native of Arcadia, with a long list of endorsements, including former mayors of Arcadia. Sira is a real estate agent with Coldwell Banker. District 4 has two candidates--longstanding council member and former mayor Peter Amundson and newcomer Paul Cheng. Amundson has completed three terms on City Council and served twice as mayor. He is an Arcadia native, with a long list of endorsements. Paul P. Cheng is a highly publicized attorney specializing in business operations and commercial realty transactions. He previously ran for Arcadia City Council in 2010. Also up for reelection is City Clerk Gene Glasco. He is running unopposed.
City of Arcadia employee Tim Schwehr, Senior Economic Development Analyst, will talk to Arcadia Community Coordinating Council on February 3, 2020 about what's happening in Arcadia. In his role, he oversess efforts to attract new business and development, fosters economic growth and acts as liaison to the business community. Includes some biographical information.
Ed Andersen of Arcadia Historical Society will present a program about Elias J. "Lucky" Baldwin to the Arcadia Community Coordinating Council on March 2, 2020.
Thoroughbred horse owner George Sharp has filed a lawsuit against Santa Anita Park saying his horse League of Shadows would have won race if veterinarin had not removed it. Sharp wants at least $90,000 in damages--the winner's share of the $150,000 purse because he believes his horse was likely to win. Sharp alleges the racetrack's owner Stronach Group has created a "culture of hysteria in the horse community by implementing ad-hoc and ever changing rules" in response to more than 40 equine deaths since December 2018.
Bradbury man Steve Chen, CEO of U.S. Fine Investment Arts, Inc. Gem Coin, and other companies, allegedly conspired to commit fraud with his Arcadia-based marketing company, to plead guilty. He promised potential investors gemstones from their mines along with valuable digital currency. See also Arcadia Weekly, p. 4, February 27, 2020.
More than 30 years later, USC professor pays off debt. Real estate broker David Hyun and his former student at USC Marshall School of Business, Frank Gangi, president of Gangi Development, are having Peking duck together, which Hyun promised his business students if they made $1 million within 5 years of graduation. Frank Gangi was in Hyun's real estate development class in 1984. Hyun is an Arcadia resident, architect, and real estate broker.
Elections in Arcadia: what you need to know. The election for Arcadia City Council members in District 1 and District 4 is on Tuesday, April 14, 2020. It is a mail-in ballot, which can be dropped off no later than 8:00 PM on Election Day. In District 1, incumbent April Verlato is seeking re-election and is being challenged by businesswoman Yuli Sira, a real estate agent and partner in a local engineering company. In District 4, incumbent Peter Amundson seeks re-election and his challenger is Paul Cheng, an attorney
City of Arcadia receives over $1.5 million in annual revenue from Santa Anita Park, according to a report from Keyser Marston Associates, which was commissioned for the city's Economic Development Division. Over the next five years, the racetrack is estimated to generate $7.5 million in sales tax, pari-mutuel revenue and property tax. According to the report submitted in the fourth quarter of 2019, Santa Anita Park is responsible for 1,160 jobs annually.
Santa Anita Park: no crimes in horse deaths report says. California Horse Racing Board's yearlong investigation into deaths of 23 horses at Santa Anita Park has determined there were no violations of animal welfare laws and no evidence of illegal medications, but exams possibly were compromised by anti-inflammatory medications. All but two of the horses that died between December 30, 2018 and March 31, 2019 appeared to have preexisting injuries caused by high-intensity racing and training. Senator Dianne Feinstein, D-Calif. said the report makes it clear that transparency is needed in the sport. She has called for the passage of the Horseracing Integrity Act, a bill that would establish a national anti-doping authority for the country.
Arcadia to suspend large events for seniors due to COVID-19 (coronavirus) concerns. Out of an abundance of caution, the City of Arcadia is suspending all large scale public events (100 or more in attendance) featuring a high concentration of older adults (55 and over) in order to help slow the transmission of the novel coronavirus (COVID-19). This is in response to guidance received from the California Department of Public Health. The suspension will initially be in effect through April 15, 2020, but may need to be extended further.
Arcadia High School young television newscasters beat virus shutdown. Student journalists work from home to fill void for classmates. The novel coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic forced schools to close but journalism students worked from home to put together an informative, inspiring newscast called The Quarantine, for their more than 3000 classmates who are home during the crisis.
Arcadia Transit Dial-a-Ride temporary modifications--offering transit assistance to senior/disabled riders who are self-isolating and who may need help by allowing caregivers of registered riders to use Dial-a-Ride to do essential errands for them.
Santa Anita Park will stay closed; Derby to be rescheduled. Santa Anita Park will remain closed for live racing, at least through the upcoming weekend, as a result of last week's order by the Los Angeles County Health Department in response to the novel coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic. More than 1700 horses are stabled at Santa Anita Park and are cared for by more than 750 people who live and work at the track. A track press release said, "We will continue to work with county officials and health authorities to familiarize them with the protocols already in place and our plans to protect the health and safety of the community who works with the horses and calls Santa Anita home."
Arcadia Announces Limited Reopening of City Facilities by Appointment. The City of Arcadia is reopening City Hall to the public for services by appointment only for essential activities in response to the revised Safer at Home Order issued by Los Angeles County on May 13, 2020. These include building permits, inspections, and planning related services. Tennis courts are now open for modified use. All players must abide by posted rules and those who ignore the guidelines will not be allowed to play.
Decades-long debate over Arcadia High School's use of Apache imagery resurfaces. The controversy began in 1997. In the late 1990s, Native American activists threatened to sue Arcadia High School over the use of the Apache mascot. "Apache Joe" mascot is no longer used. In 2020, a year of massive protests and change in the United States, perhaps another look at the logo and name may be in order. Arcadia schools Superintendent David Vannasdall responded, in part, with why Arcadia High School continues to use the Apache name, citing the strong partnership between Arcadia High School and the White Mountain Apache Tribe, who granted the use of their name to the school. He said, regardless of the school's mascot name, he will continue to honor the relationship he and Arcadia High School have with the White Mountain Apache Tribe and is fortunate to call them friends. He believes revisiting this issue on a regular basis is wise.
Former Mayor, students reflect on continuing controversy over Apache imagery use at Arcadia High School.1342 people have signed petition to stop its use as a mascot.