A $30 million plan to provide standardized breathing equipment for every fire department in Los Angeles County has been suspended after a lawsuit alleged the contract process was mishandled and firefighters complained about the quality of the equipment. Arcadia-based Allstar Fire Equipment is suing the city and county of Los Angeles, contending the contract process was improperly handled in a manner that ignored firefighter input and unfairly favored the winning bidder, L.N. Curtis and sons.
A chart shows school enrollment numbers from 1998 to 2004. More than 40 percent of the public school districts in California are experiencing declining enrollment. Experts say it is due to a decline in the birth rate and families' migration patterns.
The Library Board of Trustees voted to post a PATRIOT Act notice, as required by the act. The notice reads, "Although the Arcadia Public Library makes every reasonable effort to protect your privacy, under the federal USA PATRIOT Act (PL107-56), records of the books and other materials you currently have on loan from this library, your inter-library loan requests placed during the past year, or the Internet sites and e-mails that you access through our computers may be obtained by federal agents. That federal law prohibits library workers from informing you if federal agents have asked about or obtained your records.
Los Angeles Superior Court Judge James Chalfant has voided a $30 million contract that Los Angeles County awarded to L.N. Curtis and Sons for fire equipment. Arcadia-based Allstar Fire Equipment sued the city and county of Los Angeles, claiming the selection process used to award the contract was improperly handled and the judge agreed. The actual funding for the contract came from the federal Department of Homeland Security. The judge's orders require the county to either restart the bidding process or re-evaluate all the bids properly.
A new $6.7 million Maternal Child Health Center will open in the next several weeks at Methodist Hospital. It is larger and will make mothers and families more comfortable. Jan McEachern is shown in a photo.