Alhambra man Isaac Campbell was sentenced to the maximum of 11 years in prison for killing his girlfriend Liya "Jessie" Lu, 31, of San Gabriel, and then putting her body in a trash can full of kitty litter in the backyard of Campbell's friend in Arcadia.
An activist group called Save the Arcadia Highlands is suing the City of Arcadia over two residential developments that Arcadia City Council approved in February, citing possible violations to "specific provisions of the California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA) and the California Planning and Zoning Law, filed March 12. The addresses involved are 29 East Orange Grove Avenue and 1600 Highland Oaks Drive. See also Arcadia Weekly, p. 1, 17, March 19, 2015.
Arcadia City Council declared its intention to provide seed redevelopment money--provided a state Supreme Court ruling in January frees up such funding--to help the Arcadia Downtown Business Association breathe new life into the city's traditional downtown, by establishing a property-based business improvement district.
Arcadia City Council puts restructure of zoning on hold; exempts Highlands from historical preservation due to ongoing lawsuit that Highlands residents filed against City Council. The lawsuit, filed in March by a group called Save the Arcadia Highlands, seeks to force the City Council to rescind its approval of two construction projects that would replace existing mid-20th century homes with significantly larger homes. Council members Tom Beck, Sho Tay, and Mayor Gary Kovacic voted to move forward with establishing historic preservation guidelines and exempt the Highlands HOA territory from the forthcoming ordinance.
Arcadia City Council upholds delay of zoning revamp and exclusion of Highlands from historical preservation survey. Divided Council rescinds nonpublic votes, reaffirms stance on zoning delay and historical preservation.
Arcadia Councilman John Wuo's ties to GemCoin (digital currency) draw scrutiny. The Fair Political Practices Commission is investigating him for a potential violation of the Political Reform Act. Arcadia resident David Arvizu filed the complaint with the FPPC.
Arcadia Mayor Peter Amundson defends his speaker of choice at next month's Mayor's Community Breakfast. He has invited H. B. London, of Focus on the Family, a conservative Christian group that opposes same-sex marriage. Residents and activists upset about this choice are organizing two counterevents of their own. Activists are planning a "peaceful" demonstration March 4 outside Arcadia Community Center and a bar-b-que at Pasadena's Unitarian Church for all families. Focus on the Family was founded in Arcadia by Dr. James C. Dobson and believes marriage is meant to be between a man and a woman. Amundson said the event is not about sexuality but about the Arcadia family.
Arcadia Mayor Peter Amundson's selection of Reverend H. B. London, Jr. to speak at the community breakfast on March 4, is drawing criticism from some residents and gay-rights activists. London is a vice president of ministry outreach at Focus on the Family, a conservative Christian group that opposes gay marriage. Some residents are asking Mayor Amundson to reconsider and they feel Focus on the Family delivers hateful messages. The city estimates it will pay between $5000 and $5500 for its contribution to the event, which will include the speaker's plane fare.
Arcadia resident David Arvizu to challenge city on open meeting law. His letter gives city officials 30 days to respond to alleged open meeting law violations before he files a complaint with the D.A. or a lawsuit against the city. He offered two alternatives to litigation: the Council would either set aside the decisions made in closed session on May 5, or make the meeting minutes available to the public. In a closed session May 5, City Council voted to suspend comprehensive updates to the city's residential and commercial zoning codes, postpone the Neighborhood Impacts Committee, and move forward with a citywide historic preservation survey, excluding the Highland Oaks Homeowners Association. City Attorney Stephen Deitsch said officials did not violate the Ralph M. Brown Act when they voted on three "procedural" items in closed session because they were tied to pending litigation against the city.
Arcadia resident Roger Nemrava, filed FPPC complaint against Arcadian's Rights Protection Association (ARPA) because ARPA sent out mailers supporting city council candidates Bob Harbicht and Roger Chandler, without the required disclaimers.
Arcadia Unified School District has been mandated to honor transgender student's rights. A settlement agreement resolves a complaint filed October 2011. The complaint alleged that the district had prohibited the student from accessing facilities consistent with his male gender identity, including restrooms and locker rooms. The United States federal government investigated the complaint under Title IX of the Education Amendments of 1972 and Title IV of the Civil Rights Act of 1964. Both Title IX and Title IV prohibit discrimination against students based on sex.
Business profile on Pieology, a restaurant in Monrovia that serves artisan-style customized pizzas. Franchisees Stanley Poon, James Poon, and George Li are Arcadia High School graduates.
Charges filed in the deaths of teenagers, slain brothers Anthony Lin and William Lin. Deyun Shi, 44, the uncle of the Lin brothers, is accused of beating his two teenage nephews with a bolt cutter.
A class action lawsuit filed against the city of Arcadia and Extended Stay Hotels claims the city "improperly levied a daily room tax" on guests staying beyond 30 days and violated state and local law.
Dajin Tang, 52, employee of Arcadia-based Millennium Trucking Company filed a negligence lawsuit against his employer and his supervisor Xu Chen. Tang was involved in a crash near Rockwood, Tennessee. The suit alleges his employer forced him to wait a week to get medical care, after he was seriously hurt.
Experts say city violated Brown Act meeting law. Arcadia City Council made three housing policy decisions in closed session without public input. At the meeting last week, officials voted to shelve a comprehensive update to city's residential and commercial zoning codes, postpone the Neighborhood Impacts Committee, and move forward with a citywide historic preservation survey, sans the Highlands Homeowners Association. City Attorney Stephen Deitsch said the decisions came as a result of a lawsuit filed against the city targeting mansionization.