Hawthorne councilman indicted in conflict case

By Ari B. Bloomekatz, Times Staff WriterJuly 27, 2007
Hawthorne City Councilman Ludwig "Louis" Velez was indicted this week on charges that he used his elected position to trade favors with a developer.Velez was indicted on felony charges and has surrendered to authorities.Sandi Gibbons of the Los Angeles County district attorney's office said Velez was accused of a "conflict of interest" but would not comment further because the indictment was sealed.

See article L.A. Times

Nissan HQ tax dollars

From BlogoWogo:

Police officers in Gardena, California and Rocky Mount, North Carolina have taken to setting up roadblocks to check vehicles for illegal tint, registration and drivers for belt usage and license possession. No drunk drivers were busted, but 62 vehicles were impounded during the four-hour California roadblock alone. Police estimate that each seizure is worth around $1,400 in towing, ticketing and impound fees each. Well, it is twenty-three years past 1984, we suppose. This makes us feel a little queasy and a lot mad. After all, they disbanded the Royal Ulster Constabulary. Who told freaking Gardena they could pick up the mantle. We suppose losing those Nissan HQ tax dollars hurt worse than they initially thought. Thanks Carlos. Thanks a lot. – Davey G. Johnson

Be part of the start up of a new Charter School in Los Angeles

Developer committee is looking for volunteer members to help research the feasibility of starting a new charter school in south central Los Angeles, Torrance or Gardena. Become part of a founding community. Your kids get first choice to enroll in new school or you may become a full time employee once charter is granted.Charter schools are publicly funded, but community and privately managed public school. Our Mission is to create a 6-12th grade school dedicated to instructivist teaching methods and a college-prep curriculum.Instructional Methods - Direct Instruction and Mastery Learning (used now by catholic, private college prep., and Asian schools)Academic Curriculum - phonics, literacy, mathematics, science and empiricism, Core Knowledge (E.D. Hirsch), and character values.Our founding team has a total of over 30 years teaching experience, plus 18 years experience in private business and management. All are experienced in the Sylvan Learning methods in which a student is not promoted until he masters the previous skill level.

Kids enjoy learning, but enjoyment is a consequence of achievement not a prerequisite. If interested in making this charter happen, contact CharterStartUp@yahoo.com and let us know if you are a: 1)Parent 2)teacher 3)Administrator 4)Business leader 5)Education Reform supporter 6)other (specify).Thank you,

Trash hauler alleges illegal political solicitations in Gardena

Interference is alleged in lawsuit that includes charges that councilman sought illegal donations.
Gardena City Councilman Oscar Medrano solicited campaign contributions from the city's commercial trash hauler, in apparent violation of city law, according to a lawsuit filed Monday.

The suit also alleges that Medrano wanted his campaign fliers to be included in city trash bills, which would also be illegal.

The allegations arise from a deepening dispute between Gardena's two rival haulers.

Click here to read Daily Breeze article By Gene Maddaus Staff Writer (from The Daily Breeze 07/17/07)

Waste Resources of Gardena Files Lawsuit to Stop Illegal Interference of Waste Hauling Contract in the City of Gardena

LOS ANGELES, July 16 /PRNewswire/ -- Waste Resources of Gardena ("WRG") filed a lawsuit today seeking to protect its rights against unlawful interference with its contract and unfair competition in connection with WRG's commercial waste hauling contract with the City of Gardena. The lawsuit was filed in the Superior Court of the State of California in Los Angeles County against Phoenix Waste & Recycling Services ("Phoenix") and its associates, Haig Papaian and Rouben Kandilian, waste haulers who hold the residential waste hauling contract with Gardena. Haig Papaian and Rouben Kandilian, on behalf of Phoenix, made numerous false statements about WRG's performance in order to cause the City to seek an early termination of the commercial waste hauling contract. Further, Haig Papaian and Rouben Kandilian, using improper relationships with City of Gardena officials, sought to force WRG into giving up its substantive rights, and ultimately, to seek an early termination of the WRG's commercial waste hauling contract. WRG is operated by Kosti Shirvanian, who has over 50 years in the waste management business. Until Phoenix's attempts to interfere with its contract, WRG's performance of its commercial waste hauling contract received strong reviews from City of Gardena officials. After Phoenix began to make false statements about WRG's capabilities, WRG began receiving critical reviews of its performance. Further, Phoenix began to use City of Gardena Councilmembers, including Councilmember Oscar Medrano, to force WRG to give up portions of its contract for the benefit of Phoenix. WRG was threatened with retaliatory action if WRG did not comply with Phoenix's demands. Phoenix ultimately caused the issuance of a five year notice of termination against WRG, which would cause WRG to lose substantially all of the investment that WRG made into providing waste hauling services for Phoenix. WRG is represented by Robert Bonner and Maurice M. Suh, lawyers with the international law firm, Gibson, Dunn & Crutcher. "Spreading misstatements about WRG's performance under the contract and using City of Gardena officials to extract concessions from WRG is simply wrong," said Maurice Suh, who represents WRG. "Waste hauling contracts are of critical importance to the proper functioning of the City of Gardena, and those contracts should be awarded based upon performance and experience, not upon misstatements and political favoritism." "My career has been about providing cost-effective trash hauling services in an efficient and consumer-friendly manner. I have tried to resolve this matter with City officials, I feel like I have been given no choice except to file this lawsuit," said Kosti Shirvanian. SOURCE Waste Resources of Gardena -0- 07/16/2007 /CONTACT: Pearl Piatt of Gibson Dunn & Crutcher LLP, +1-213-299-7963, for Waste Resources of Gardena/ CO: Waste Resources of Gardena; WRG; City of Gardena; Phoenix Waste & Recycling Services; Phoenix; Gibson, Dunn & Crutcher ST: California IN: ENV CHM SU: LAW SS-AB -- LAM145 -- 1895 07/16/2007 16:33 EDT http://www.prnewswire.com

Click here to read article

Anonymous said...

It's unbelievable how the public can be fooled and unaware of a person of this poor character being able to be elected as a public servant.Character traits and poor judgement exhibited by Tanaka rarely change over time. Instead people like this learn how to hide it.He's costing the public money in trade for his own ambition and gain.I will not vote for him. Tell your friends and neighbors. http://www.worldfreeinternet.net/news/nws168.htm

Comments not citing an individual's name are the express opinions of those individuals and not the opinion of Gardena Watch.

Meeting Minutes

At one time the videotape of the council meeting was available to all residents, at no charge, from our local L.A. County library. Things have changed and we're not sure when, how or why that's happened. It now costs $10 for a copy of a DVD of the meeting, available at City Hall. That's more than some albums cost these days.

Postings not citing an individual's name are the express opinions of those individuals and not to be considered fact-based.

Gardena Watch: Lynwood defies order to hold recall vote

Gardena Watch: Lynwood defies order to hold recall vote

Council Meeting Tonight

City Council will discuss waiving fee for Phoenix Waste. Watch on cable channel 22 (Time Warner).

Lynwood defies order to hold recall vote

The council strips the city clerk of her duties when she tries to certify petitions. And it refuses to set an election date. A judge gets the case today.


A battle over the integrity of the election process is coming to a head this week in Lynwood, where the City Council has defied the Los Angeles County registrar-recorder and refused to set a date for a recall election targeting four of its members. The registrar-recorder's office concluded in June that there were enough signatures on recall petitions to force a special election for the four officials, two of whom were recently indicted on public corruption charges. But when Lynwood's elected city clerk tried to certify the recall petition, the City Council voted to strip her of all election duties, appointing its own election official to take up the matter. The city clerk gave the petitions to the Sheriff's Department, which has rejected the City Council request to review the documents.

Click here to read article: By Hector Becerra, Times Staff WriterJuly 3, 2007

L.A. THEN AND NOW

Gardens, glens and people inspired some city names
The beauty of their surroundings and the females in founders' lives provided fodder.
By Cecilia Rasmussen, Times Staff WriterJuly 8, 2007

GLENDORA
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HERMOSA BEACH
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Third in a series of occasional storiesEarly cityhood names often stem from pride — in a famous novelist, an entrepreneur's thatched roof "punch" stand or even God.Los Angeles County has 88 cities, each with its own story. Here's how some of them got their names, along with the year they incorporated:

Gardena (1930)Local legend has it that Spencer R. Thorpe, credited with starting the first settlement near 161st and Figueroa streets in the late 1880s, named the town because he thought it was a beautiful garden spot. Three communities — Gardena, Strawberry Park and Moneta — joined together to create what began as an agricultural town.

Glendale (1906)This foothill town was originally known as Verdugo, named for Spanish soldier Jose Maria Verdugo, who began farming on the 36,403-acre Rancho San Rafael in 1784. An 1881 county map identified this area as Riverdale, but the post office refused to recognize the name because there was already a Riverdale in Fresno County. The community took the name Mason for a short period, until the village of citrus orchardists officially became Glendale at a town meeting in 1884. Its name is a bit redundant: "Glen" and "dale" both mean valley.

Glendora (1911)The name was coined in 1887 by Chicago manufacturer and town founder George Dexter Whitcomb, who combined two words: glen (to connote the adjacent terrain) and his wife's nickname, Dora, short for Leadora.

Hawaiian Gardens (1964)Credit for naming this community belongs to an enterprising but unknown businessman who turned a Prohibition-era thatched-roof fruit stand near Carson Street and Norwalk Boulevard into a thriving refreshment stand. Legend has it that the proprietor had a talent for moonshine, and farmers would trot over from their lima bean fields and dairy barns for spiked punch. Travelers on the horse trail often said the shack resembled a Hawaiian garden. The name stuck.

Hawthorne (1922)This city received its name around 1906 after Laurine Harding Woolwine, daughter of Benjamin Harding, one of the town's founders, suggested that the community of barley fields be named for her favorite novelist, Nathaniel Hawthorne. She shared the author's birthday.

Hermosa Beach (1907)The name stems from the Spanish word for beautiful, which the Hermosa Beach Land & Water Co. used in 1901 to advertise the property. When the community incorporated six years later by the slimmest of margins — 24 aye, 23 nay — the only beach bunnies on the Hermosa sand were rabbits that lived under the pier. In an appeal to snootier settlers, Hermosa Beach used to call itself "The Aristocrat of the California Beaches."

Hidden Hills (1961)The 2,000-member gated equestrian community near Calabasas and the Los Angeles-Ventura County line was named by A.E. Hanson because the hills shield the area from nearby roads. Hanson — landscape architect for such stars as Mary Pickford and Douglas Fairbanks — was known for his vision, drive and appreciation of simplicity.

Huntington Park (1906)Developers E.V. Baker and A.L. Burbank named the community in 1903 as an enticement for Henry E. Huntington to build his Pacific Electric Railway through their 100-acre development, which had been called La Park. However, the post office considered it La Park until the city incorporated.

Industry (1957)Once undeveloped agricultural land in the La Puente Valley, it became a community devoted solely to commerce after World War II, evoking images of smokestacks and tireless assembly lines, of great machines clanking around the clock.

Inglewood (1908)This community was once part of two land grants: the Ranchos Aguaje de la Centinela and Sausal Redondo. After several changes in ownership, the 25,000-acre ranch was purchased by Canadian immigrant Daniel Freeman, who was in search of a warm climate for his wife, ill with tuberculosis.In 1887, Freeman and a group of investors organized the Centinela-Inglewood Land Company and laid out the town of Inglewood, so named by a stockholder's relative who supposedly hailed from Inglewood, Canada.

Irwindale (1957)Instead of getting its name from the area's rock, gravel and sand deposits that the construction industry has been digging up for more than a century, it's named for the man who in 1899 owned the area's first gasoline-powered water pump. Irwin's first name is unknown; even the city's website doesn't include it. His daughter, Dale, provided the second part of the name.

La Cañada Flintridge (1976)The first part of the dual name, La Cañada, means valley, glen or dell in Spanish. La Cañada was part of a 6,000-acre Mexican land grant. The second part was named by one-time U.S. Sen. Frank Putnam Flint, who called his subdivision Flintridge.When the two distinct communities opted to become one city, a clerk erroneously put a hyphen between their names. Nearly a decade later, in 1985, residents deleted the punctuation with an ordinance because they believed it connoted separation between the two parts of the community.

La Habra Heights (1978)The area was part of the La Cañada del Habra land grant in 1839. Habra means gorge or pass, referring to the passage through the Puente Hills. "Heights" was added to distinguish the community behind the hills from La Habra in Orange County.Lakewood (1954)Philanthropist Ben Weingart and partners purchased 3,500 acres of the old Rancho Los Cerritos in 1949, eventually supplying thousands of families with low-cost housing in a "dream city" that had been planned since the 1930s.Many think the name comes from Bouton Lake — located on the golf course of the Lakewood Country Club — which was formed in 1895 when oil drillers accidentally opened an artesian well. However, because many early residents of the area were from the East Coast, others believe the community was named after Lakewood, N.J.

La Mirada (1960)Andrew McNally, founder of Rand McNally Publishing Co., first gazed over his 2,378 acres of Southern California in the 1890s. His new holdings included the panorama of verdant hills that were reflected in the nearby lake, creating an enchanting vista — hence, La Mirada, or "the view."He also planted thousands of olive trees on his Windemere Ranch. Another story is that the greenery of the orchard looked like a mirage against the brown countryside.Subdivided in 1953, the community incorporated as Mirada Hills seven years later. But within months voters changed the name back to La

Mirada.cecilia.rasmussen@latimes.comSources:

"1000 California Place Names" by Erwin G. Gudde; The Dictionary of California Land Names by Phil Townsend Hanna; "Los Angeles A to Z" by Leonard Pitt and Dale Pitt; Chambers of Commerce and city websites; Los Angeles Times archives

HISTORICAL #1 DEBUT ON BILLBOARD GOSPEL CHARTS

(July 6, 2007)

The strategic collaboration of Alpha Dog and Tyscot Records has garnered a historical #1 debut on the Billboard Gospel Charts.
Tyscot Records celebrates its first #1 album debut in the 31 year history of the longest running independent Gospel label in the country as Bishop Jones and his church choir rejoice for charting at number 1 with their first CD.
The forecast for the project looked promising well before its June 26 release. Bryant Scott, Tyscot President stated online sales for Welcome to the City were at a record 15 times more that any other new project they have touched. That includes works by John P. Kee, the Anointed Pace Sisters, Deitrick Haddon and other top names in gospel.
"This is exciting because this is Bishop Jones' first release and not many artists have a #1 debut on their first project," says Bryant Scott - President, Tyscot Records. "We are very proud of this CD, which is in stores and online everywhere, along with the exclusive two-disc DigiPak version sold exclusively at Wal-mart and walmart.com." A grand album release concert was held at the Gardena, CA sanctuary on the Sunday before the album release which featured a pre-recorded congratulatory message from Diddy, who is a member of the 20,000 City of Refuge.
Still climbing the Radio & Records charts is the lead off single "Not About Us" produced by Gerald Haddon.
The video makes its debut on BET's Video Gospel this Sunday morning at 10:00 AM EST. Take a look by clicking HERE.

Gardena Gets Greedy

Adventures in Revenue Generation
Police officers in Gardena, California and Rocky Mount, North Carolina have taken to setting up roadblocks to check vehicles for illegal tint, registration and drivers for belt usage and license possession. No drunk drivers were busted, but 62 vehicles were impounded during the four-hour California roadblock alone. Police estimate that each seizure is worth around $1,400 in towing, ticketing and impound fees each. Well, it is twenty-three years past 1984, we suppose. This makes us feel a little queasy and a lot mad. After all, they disbanded the Royal Ulster Constabulary. Who told freaking Gardena they could pick up the mantle. We suppose losing those Nissan HQ tax dollars hurt worse than they initially thought. Thanks Carlos. Thanks a lot. – Davey G. Johnson
Licensing Roadblocks Generate Revenue by Seizing Cars [TheNewspaper]

South LA Teen Loses 4 Fingers In Fireworks Explosion

MSNBC July 5, 2007

LOS ANGELES - A 13-year-old boy lost four of his fingers on his left hand following the explosion of what was described as as "cylindrical firework" at his South Los Angeles home, a city fire spokesperson said Wednesday. Fire personnel were dispatched to the scene of the explosion in the 6900 block of South Main Street at 9:08 p.m. Tuesday, according to Los Angeles city fire spokesperson Brian Humphrey. The teenager told firefighters that he had seen an adult in his home put a "cylindrical firework" in a closet and then leave, Humphrey said.
Mistaking the device for a "Roman Candle," which is limited to producing sparks, the boy took the firework outside and lit the fuse.

Humphrey said the high-powered explosion that occurred in the boy's left hand destroyed four of his fingers beyond recovery, but spared him other obvious physical impairment. "Firefighter-paramedics cleaned and dressed the boy's painful wounds while their colleagues fruitlessly searched the vicinity for remnants of his fingers," he said.

The boy was accompanied by his mother to Harbor/UCLA Medical Center for further medical treatment.

Licensing Roadblocks Generate Revenue by Seizing Cars

From: theNewspaper.com: A journal of the politics of driving http://www.thenewspaper.com/news/18/1830.asp

Roadblocks in California and North Carolina generated significant revenue from licensing infractions and automobile seizures.

North Carolina state police have begun experimenting with short-term "safety checkpoints" that contrast with the more traditional approach used in California.Troopers in Rocky Mount, North Carolina set up a roadblock on Riverside Drive that lasted just thirty-minutes. Joined by the city police, the troopers were able to issue $75 tickets to anyone neglecting or choosing not to wear a seatbelt. Forgetting a driver's license at home yielded $160 citations. The intention behind the short-term roadblocks was preventing motorists from using cell phones to warn friends and family to avoid the road and its inconvenience. According to police, the location of each roadblock spreads quickly.

Traditional four and six hour roadblocks in California this week allowed two police departments to seize 119 vehicles likely to yield $140,000 in fines and fees. In Gardena, 1489 motorists traveling on Redondo Beach and Crenshaw Boulevards between 10am and 2pm yesterday were stopped and ordered to show their paperwork. The effort yielded 62 vehicles seized over licensing violations each of which will likely net $1200 in towing and storage fees. Officers were able to issue another 34 tickets for seatbelt and window tinting issues. No drunk drivers were identified."We were only there for four hours and under 2,000 cars went through the checkpoint," Gardena Police Officer Carl Freeman told the Los Angeles Daily Breeze newspaper. "That means almost 2,000 drivers got educated."The city yesterday received a $468,445 grant of state and federal gas tax money from the California Office of Traffic Safety to conduct additional DUI roadblocks.In the city of Bakersfield, another 1300 motorists were subjected to a search at at Chester Avenue and 40th Street allowing police to collect 57 cars. The roadblock, funded by state and federal gas tax money, lasted from 7am to 1pm. Only one suspected drunk driver was identified.Source: 62 errant drivers make wrong turn in Gardena-- lose cars (Daily Breeze (CA), 6/28/2007)Regional News:Other news about Bakersfield, CaliforniaOther news about Gardena, California