Arcadia City Council appoints ex-mayor Mickey Segal to fill seat vacated by John Wuo's resignation, until the municipal election in April. Wuo, who served on City Council for 12 years, resigned two weeks ago amid mounting allegations over his endorsement of USFIA and Gemcoin, in addition to an ethics investigation launched in September by the Fair Political Practices Commission. Segal is a CPA. Also the zoning code update resumes.
City of Arcadia to revisit divisive, delayed mayoral appointment. The California Fair Political Practices Commission started an investigation into two matters related to Tay even before the April 24 City Council meeting, at which his appointment to mayor was delayed due to allegations of campaign fraud. City Council will address the issue again tonight.
Arcadia City Council candidate Bob Harbicht gets $26,000 donation from local developer Nevis Capital LLC, owned by Ta-Jen Lee, who routed the money through the California Homeowners Association, a political action committee in Sacrmento.
Arcadia vote-by-mail ballots contain translation error in Chinese-language instructions which could cause some votes to be invalidated. Five candidates vie for the two seats on Arcadia City Council in this April's General Municipal Election, but erroneous instructions in Chinese language said to choose up to three candidates.
Arcadia City Council has decided to leave in place a city policy that imposes term limits for serving on City Council, restricting residents from running for more than two consecutive council terms. Had council voted to remove the restrictions, local voters would have had a chance to vote on term limits as a local ballot measure. Arcadia's city charter requires council members who have served two consecutive 4-year terms to take a 2-year break before they can run again for another term.
Arcadia City Council will discuss whether a measure to end term limits should be placed on a future citywide ballot. The City Charter requires council members that have served two consecutive four-year terms to take a two-year break before they can serve another term. The charter can only be amended by a voter approved measure.
Seven candidates for two seats on Arcadia City Council: Paul Cheng, April Verlato, Bob Harbicht, Peter Amundson, Dr. Sheng Chang, Burton Brink, and Paul Van Fleet.
Arcadia election heating up: candidate forum next week. There are two open seats on council for 4-year terms and the City Clerk position is open for a 4-year term.
Arcadia City Clerk is accepting applications from people under age 18 to serve on the Youth Advisory Council. It is a 7 member group appointed by City Council. Four must be current high school students and three must be middle school students. See also Arcadia Weekly, p. 3, March 31, 2016.
Gary Kovacic is Arcadia's mayor for the sixth time since 1998. Mayor Pro Tem is Roger Chandler. Mayor Kovacic is in the final year of a second consecutive four-year term. Due to term limits, he will have to step away from Arcadia City Council for at last two years after he concludes his current term as mayor, next April.
HQH Chinese American Equalization Association demands electoral changes. It alleges the city of Arcadia is in violation of the California Voting Rights Act and should convert from at-large voting to a by-district system to allow more Asian American representation on the Arcadia City Council.
Arcadia Mayor Mickey Segal won't run again, opening the door for at least two first-time new members of City Council. There is no incumbent candidate. Applications for candidates are due today.
Ugly side of politics--a letter naming Arcadia city councilman Sho Tay claims Arcadia property value will fall 30 percent because of the new zoning recommendations that City Council is considering. Sho Tay denies the letter came from him.
California Fair Political Practices Commission (FPPC) warned City of Arcadia of gift limits regarding the trip to China and Taiwan that city officials are planning for cultural learning and sister city relationships. See VF Sister City.
Arcadia City Council approves $30,000 for officials' trip to China and Taiwan. The purpose is to foster a better understanding of Asian culture in order to better serve Arcadia, which is heavily populated by residents from China and Taiwan. Establishing sister city relationships with Chinese and Taiwanese municipalities is another goal of the trip. See VF Sister City.
Twenty-five year old Matthew Fay Echauri of Arcadia, has been found guilty of brutally stabbing his 18-year-old girlfriend in Temple City two years ago. He was found guilty of four felony counts: one count of attempted murder, one count of mayhem, two counts of dissuading a witness from reporting a crime with force and violence. He is scheduled to be sentenced March 12.
Arcadia, Sierra Madre and Bradbury are holding elections today on tax measures and city council members. Arcadia voters will choose two City Council members from the candidates running--Gary Kovacic, John Wuo, Sho Tay, Henry Nunez, and Mary Dougherty--and vote on Measure D, the extension ofthe hotel room tax from a 30-day maximum to a 90-day stay. Arcadia's election is being conducted through an all-mail ballot for the first time.
Bob Harbicht political Facebook photo altered after accusations of campaign law violations. He was in photo with members of Arcadia Police Officers' Association.