Arcadia City Council must decide how to pay the Metropolitan Water District taxes for 1979-80. Currently the city pays 50% and the property owners pay 50%.
The first reading of a water conservation ordinance was undertaken at the City Council meeting June 8. Five phases of the measure are given. Water rates will increase $.06 per 100 cubic feet as of August 1.
Beginning October 1, Arcadians will pay more for their water. The increase will be in two steps. The first will be an increase of 6% per 100 cubic feet. The second will be dependent on possible increases in the Edison rates for pumping.
Due to the increased property tax assessments throughout the State, the $1750 exemption will begin to disappear. This will hit lower income home owners hardest.
The El Monte City Council formally withdrew its petition to annex some 300 acres of Arcadia property south of Live Oak Avenue. Protests to the annexation represented more than 50% of the assessed property owners.
The City Council has agreed to pay $83,770 of the total $241,957 cost of the new parking district, thus making each of the 62 property owners' assessments smaller.
City Council is considering the purchase of a water well and water rights from Monrovia at a cost of $200,000. An additional $100 thousand will be needed to construct a pumping station.
The Arcadia Tournament of Roses Association will break its ties to the Chamber of Commerce and will form an independent body in order to gain status as a tax deductible organization.
With Arcadia's Foulger Ford now following Arcadia Suzuki out of town, Arcadia stands to lose about $230,000 in sales tax revenue per year, just short of 1% of the city's $23.699 million budget.
City Council has voted to purchase Monrovia's Chapman Well and reservoir. In addition Arcadia will exchange 951 acre feet of water rights in the San Gabriel Basin for the same amount now owned by Monrovia in the Raymond Basin.
For the fourth year Arcadia property tax rate has been set at $.94 per $100.00 assessed valuation. This is the lowest it has been since 1914 when it was $.60 The highest rate was $1.98 in 1945.
Arcadia has won a round in court to force the owners of 2-deck newsracks featuring sexually orients publications to remove them. The same publications could still be sold, however, if placed in single-deck racks.
Longden Well No. 1 has been taken out of service as levels of TCE (trichloroethyene) in the water have risen in excess of the limits set by the Environmental Protection Agency. TCE is an industrial solvent used for cleaning purposes.
Two of Arcadia's wells, Longden 1 and Longden 2, have been closed for months following the discovery of TCE. Now PCE has been discovered. The city is considering a TCE/PCE removal plant.