Rose Queen Natalie Innocenzi, of Arcadia, and her 6 member Royal Court of princesses, one of whom is June Ko, of Arcadia, prepare for the 2010 Tournament of Roses Parade, by first getting made up at Amadeus Salon at 1:30 AM on January 1.
Santa Anita Canyon Road, aka Chantry Flat Road, has been jointly owned by Arcadia, Sierra Madre, Monrovia, and Los Angeles County for years. The 3-mile mountain road that leads to the Angeles National Forest will be turned over to Los Angeles County if the cities pay to fix it up. Arcadia and Sierra Madre have completed their repairs and are waiting for Monrovia to start a roughly $500,000 project.
A drainage problem forced the cancellation of horse racing at Santa Anita Park since three inches of rain fell yesterday. The track has had to cancel racing 12 times since the synthetic track was installed two years ago. In 2006, the California Horse Racing Board banned dirt surfaces from thoroughbred tracks. Santa Anita Park has tried two synthetic tracks but the surfaces have not worked out. Officials announced they will replace the synthetic surface before the Oak Tree Meet in the fall.
Arcadia-born artist Quinton Bemiller is painting a mural to be displayed at The Armory Center for the Arts through March 21, 2010. This work was inspired by the natural environment of Hahamongna Watershed Park.
The City of Arcadia is using $646,000 in federal stimulus funds for repairs, repaving, re-striping and adding bicycle lanes on Santa Anita Avenue, north of Foothill Boulevard. The city has received $534,000 in stimulus money to retrofit City Hall with an energy-efficient heating and cooling system and $80,000 for equipment and training for its police department. Sometime in late spring, officials plan to widen intersections along Santa Anita Avenue, adding turn lanes or through lanes at Foothill Boulevard, Live Oak Avenue and Duarte Road.
Arcadia ice skater Mirai Nagasu is going to the 2010 Vancouver Winter Olympics. Friends and family send her off with a party at Arcadia Presbyterian Church. She will skate in the singles competition starting February 23, 2010.
Local Arcadia ice skater Mirai Nagasu, a 16-year-old who is home-schooled, is part of the United States ice skating team going to Vancouver for the 2010 Winter Olympics. She has no aspirations for a medal, but is fulfilling a dream by just going to compete. Two years ago, when Nagasu was a freshman at Arcadia High School, she won the 2008 U.S. title in St. Paul, MN.
Arcadia residents may vote again on street lighting fees. Under the new proposal, single family homes on arterial streets would pay about $17 a year, while those not on arterial streets would pay about $27 a year, making the assessments more fair. Voters in 2008 rejected a proposal to fund the lighting and now the city is considering another mail-in vote.
Six candidates are running for three seats on the Arcadia City Council. They are Bob Harbicht, Paul Cheng, Mickey Segal, Peter Amundson, Jason Lee, and Sho Tay. They each answer the questions, "What should be done to improve the city's fiscal situation?" and "How should the city handle the Caruso mall proposal at Santa Anita (Park)?" The election will be in April.
Arcadia local Mirai Nagasu is in sixth place after her performance Tuesday night in the short program for women's figure skating at the 2010 Winter Olympics in Vancouver, British Columbia.
Local friends and supporters of Arcadia's figure skater Mirai Nagasu meet at Matt Denny's Ale House in Arcadia to watch her perform at the 2010 Winter Olympics in Vancouver, British Columbia.
Mirai Nagasu, of the United States Olympic ice skating team, a local Arcadia girl, finished fourth in the 2010 Winter Olympics figure skating competition in Vancouver, British Columbia.
Santa Anita Park owner Frank Stronach met with about a dozen horse trainers to discuss the track's racing surface. Stronach announced that he would not replace the synthetic Pro-Ride track yet, but will stick with it until he gets the ability to run the track with less state regulations. He wants free enterprise, which he may never get. In the meantime, drainage problems and injuries persist on the synthetic track. Stronach said he'd be back in April to discuss the issue more.
The Adams' Pack Station, owned by Deb Burgess, in the Chantry Flat area, 3 miles up a road starting from the top of Santa Anita Avenue in Arcadia, fights to remain open as it faces costly upgrades required by the Los Angeles County Health Department. Forest authorities want it to remain a historic landmark, which would limit the amount and types of renovations that can be done.
The Metropolitan Transportation Authority (MTA) has voted to fully fund the $690 million Gold Line Foothill Extension, from Pasadena to Azusa, and to complete it by 2014, with money from Measure R. Measure R was approved by voters in the November 2008 election. It created a half-cent county sales tax intended for transportation projects. The MTA has the funding for the first phase of the Gold Line light rail to Azusa. The first phase is an 11-mile extension that includes stops in Arcadia, Monrovia, Duarte, Irwindale and Azusa.
Unemployment declines in San Gabriel Valley areas. A chart shows Arcadia has 1,900 people unemployed, or 7.1% unemployment. A chart shows numbers for nearby cities.
Real estate developer and Arcadia resident Henry Nunez (in photo) started a hunger strike on Easter to draw attention to the importance of Arcadia's upcoming City Council elections. He is fasting and drinking only liquids and wants "a record turnout" in Tuesday's election for three city council seats and he wants people to vote for his choices--Peter Amundson, Paul Cheng and Sho Tay.
Six candidates vying for three seats on the Arcadia City Council have raised more than $250,000 in campaign contributions. The candidates are Bob Harbicht, Paul Cheng, Mickey Segal, Peter Amundson, Jason J. Lee, and Sho Tay. The amounts raised for each candidate are given. The election will be on April 13, 2010.