A 2-year-old legal battle between the city of Arcadia and Taboo Gentlemen's Club, a strip club, will most likely result in the club being closed or sold off by April, 2009. The federal court case started when the city revoked Taboo Gentlemen's Club's business license for breaking the city's adult business codes. The club's owners Bill Badi Gammoh and Chawkat Jajieh sued in response, claiming city and police had obstructed business and violated their civil rights. The city's adult business ordinance prohibits lap dances, sexual contact, private dance booths and direct tipping. It requires licensed dancers to perform on an elevated stage.
A 13-year-old female was critically injured after a motorist lost control of a vehicle and struck her in front of Dana Middle School. A surgical team decided to amputate the lower portion of her right leg 5 inches below knee.
The $16 million Arcadia Police Station building, built with bond money and city and CRA funds, is on target for completion in July. WWM Associates designed the building. Mallcraft of Altadena is the contractor and Construction Control Group is the manager of the project. The station is the first civic project constructed with bond funding.
17-year-old Arcadia High School student Courtney Chou Lee has been named the 91st Rose Queen. Six other young ladies are princesses including another AHS student, Lauren Valenzuela. The Rose Queen and her royal court will reign over the 120th Rose Parade and the 95th Rose Bowl. Article contains some quotes from Courtney Lee's parents, Andrew Lee and Ulanda Lee.
A 22-year-old El Monte man, Daniel Sisneros, is suing the owner and an employee of AM Donuts at 34 E. Las Tunas Drive. He was left partially paralyzed after being shot at AM Donuts. He was pressing buttons on the cash register but not robbing the store.
The 25-year-old City Council chambers will undergo its first major renovation, a project that will relocate meetings for the next few months to the Arcadia Public Library. Renovations will be completed in February.
48th Annual Arcadia Festival of Bands will be held Saturday, November 17. The event, which showcases the finest high school instrumental music talent in Southern California, has been a proud tradition in Arcadia since 1953. Dennis Davies, who recently retired after serving 39 years as a music director in Arcadia Unified School District, has been named Grand Marshal.
81 percent of area schools met their growth targets on the California state Academic Performance Index (API). However, 35 percent of West San Gabriel Valley schools failed to meet the federal accountability targets determined by Adequate Yearly Progress (AYP), under the federal No Child Left Behind Act. See chart on page A6 for Arcadia Unified School District progress.
After receiving intense pressure from San Gabriel Valley lawmakers, the county's transportation board, the MTA, finally put the Gold Line extension in its long-term plans. This opens up the possibility of federal funding for the project. With this commitment, the Metropolitan Transportation Authority (MTA) has agreed to provide day-to-day operational funding for the first phase of the Gold Line Foothill extension once it is completed.
Air quality concerns were raised by track employees over fumes and breathable fibers being emitted by the artificial track known as the Cushion Track, which was treated for drainage problems by Pro-Ride Racing in late August. Cal/OSHA hired Colin Young, a certified industrial hygienist to study health risks posed by the track. Young will recommend the artificial race track poses "absolutely no health risks."
Amanda Mosher, a Pasadena area native and Arcadia business owner, recently won the 2005 Los Angeles Music Award for female singer/songwriter of the year. She is also the co-owner of Sugar Glider Studios in Arcadia.
Ambassador Jason C. Yuen, director general of the Taipei Economic and Cultural Office, will be grand marshal of the 49th Festival of Bands Parade in Arcadia.
An apartment fire in Arcadia Wednesday left six people uninjured but looking for shelter. The blaze was reported at about 2:45 p.m. in unit 235 at 425 E. Live Oak.
Annie Yuen was elected as the Arcadia school board's first Asian member. She is part of a growing group of local politicians who came as immigrants and ended up in public office.
The Apache marching band will participate in the annual Festival of Bands. Dallas Massey, Apache Tribal Chairman for the White Mountain Apaches, will be the Grand Marshal of the parade.
Arcadia Battalion Chief Don Shawver received a request to report for special duty at the Pentagon six hours after the first terrorist attack on September 11, 2001. He went to help as a safety officer.
The Arcadia Board of Education approved a Local Agency Education plan to bring the district into compliance with the federal No Child Left Behind program, which requires that students meet state proficiency standards by 2013-2014. For California, the standard is 100% graduation with all requirements for University of California admission met.