Mountain Views News          Saturday, September 4, 2010

4

 
MountainViews-News Saturday,September 4, 2010 


Thousands Expected 
in Annual Queen and 
Royal Court Tryouts

Hit and Run 
Suspect 
Sought by 
Police

 
Eighty-three year old 
man critically injured 
in incident 


Playhouse Plaza Redesign Gets the Ok

By Dean Lee

 The city’s design commission 
gave the go-ahead Monday 
night voting 5-1 stating there 
are no significant changes or 
new information that would 
trigger further environmental 
review for new construction of 
a six-story 159,829 square-foot 
mixed-use building that some 
say would dwarf the Pasadena 
Playhouse directly across the 
street.

 Commissioner John Byram 
was the only nay vote on the 
nine member board.

 The commission also favored 
a number of minor conditional 
use permits for the Playhouse 
Plaza at 680 East Colorado Blvd, 
including increase in the square 
footage and four adjustment 
permits for deviations from the 
Zoning Code, including the 
building’s height. 

 The new submitted design 
redistributes the mass of the 
project, including the addition 
of a full story making the overall 
project now six stories along 
Colorado Blvd. It also increases 
the floor area ratio (FAR) 
something many at the meeting 
were apposed to including 
Councilmember Terry Tornek. 

 “The approved project has an 
FAR in zone 1 on Colorado of 
3.02,” he said. “Which is less 
than a percent higher than the 
maximum of 3.0.”

 Tornek further said that 
nowhere in the city’s Central 
District, bound east and west by 
Mentor and Pasadena Avenues, 
was there a floor ratio above 3.0. 

 He said the new proposal in 
zone 1 now has an FAR of 3.98. 

 “This minor modification is 
32 percent greater than the 
FAR provision for anywhere in 
the Central District,” he said. 
“So the solution that you’re 
being presented with tonight, 
of height averaging that isn’t 
really averaging and an FAR 
that is not a minor but is a major 
modification, is really quite 
extraordinary.”

 Tornek added that he also 
did not think the project met 
the requirements for both the 
Central District Specific Plan 
and the city’s General Plan. 

 Many at the two hour long 
packed meeting said they 
approved of the new plans 
including a large group of 
Pasadena Playhouse members. 
Some said they changed their 
minds, first opposed to the 
project, now that most of 
the bulk of the project had 
been moved away from the 
Playhouse. This was something 
the city council asked for at a 
June 7 meeting.

 The project’s zone 2 and zone 
3 along El Molino include a 
public plaza aligned with the 
open courtyard of the Playhouse 
and a six story subterranean 
parking garage. The plans 
include a public gathering 
area and outdoor dining. The 
square footage for public space 
increases from 9,600 to 10,515 
something supporters also 
liked. Parking would include 
522 spaces, of which, 155 would 
be public. 

 Byram shared similar concerns 
as Tornek including height 
averaging, FAR and if the 
changes would trigger further 
environmental review. 

 Members of Pasadenans for a 
Livable City also spoke against 
the project. The group formed 
by former council member Sid 
Tyler and Pasadena planning 
Commissioner Richard Norton 
are suing the city to stop 
the project. Tyler was not at 
Monday’s meeting.

 The Pasadena Police 
Department asked for the 
public’s help Friday looking 
for Lucio Morales, also 
known as, Martin Beltran, 
in connection with a felony 
hit and run that left a 
eighty-three year old man 
critical injured. 

 Police say Wednesday 
morning Pasadena resident 
Frank Paneno was riding 
a motorized wheelchair in 
the bicycle lane westbound 
on Cordova St. when he was 
struck by a vehicle driven 
by Morales. Police further 
said Morales then made 
a left turn onto Chester 
Ave striking Paneno in the 
intersection dragging him 
and his scooter several feet 
before stopping. 

 Morales along with his 
passenger exited their 
vehicle and pulled both the 
scooter and victim from 
underneath the vehicle. 
Morales got back into his 
vehicle and fled the scene 
leaving his passenger and 
the victim behind. 

 Paneno suffered major 
injuries to his head and 
body. He was transported 
to a local hospital in 
critical condition. Police 
said investigators had 
located the suspect’s vehicle 
abandoned in Los Angeles. 
Morales is wanted for felony 
hit and run and possibly 
DUI police said.

 He is described as Hispanic, 
5’ 8” tall, approximately 
160 pounds, with wavy 
black hair. Anyone 
with any information 
about him is asked to 
contact the Pasadena 
Police Department at 
626.744.4241. 

2010 Royal Court (from left) Rose Princess Ashley Thaxton, 
Rose Princess Kinsey Stuart, Rose Princess Katherine Hernández, 
Rose Queen Natalie Innocenzi, Rose Princess Michelle Van 
Wyk, Rose Princess June Ko, Rose Princess Lauren Rogers

 Out of thousands expected 
to take part in this year’s 
Tournament of Roses Queen 
and Royal Court Tryouts 
Sept. 18 and 20 only seven 
lucky women will be named, 
after a month-long try-out 
process, to the 2011 Royal 
Court. 

 The month long process 
will include quarterfinals, 
semifinals and finals. The 
2011 court will be announced 
Oct. 11, and the queen 
announced Oct. 19. Both 
announcements will take 
place at 9:30 a.m. in front of 
the Tournament House.

 In a statement Tournament 
officals said, “This is a 
wonderful opportunity for 
young women who live in the 
Pasadena surrounding area 
to represent not only their 
city, but their school and the 
Tournament of Roses.”

 They also said representatives 
of the Tournament of Roses 
and former Royal Court 
Members will be conducting 
informational sessions at 
area schools over the next 
few weeks. “Contact your 
school administrators or the 
Tournament of Roses for 
more information.”

 As ambassadors of the 
Tournament of Roses and 
the city of Pasadena, the 
2011 Rose Queen & Royal 
Court will reign over the 
122nd Rose Parade and 97th 
Rose Bowl Game on January 
1, themed Building Dreams, 
Friendships & Memories. 
The New Year celebration 
will be seen by millions of 
people around the world. 

 Participants can pre-
register by submitting 
an application at http://
www.tournamentofroses.
com/participants/court-
registration.asp.

New Gold Line Phase 2 Public-
Private Partnership Announced 


Citizen Journalism Meet-up

 Moving forward, extending 
light rail from Pasadena 
to Azusa, the Metro Gold 
Line Foothill Extension 
Construction Authority 
Tuesday opened a Request 
for Proposals (RFP) to design 
build and finance the $450 
million project expected to 
be completed by 2014.

 According to officials, Phase 
2of the project will include 
construction and financing of 
11.5 miles of track, utilities, 
crossings and systems; six 
stations and multiple bridges. 
It will also include a 25 acre 
light rail maintenance facility.

 “Our communities are 
eagerly awaiting arrival of the 
Gold Line,” said Construction 
Authority Board Chairman, 
Azusa Councilman 
Keith Hanks. “With the 
construction industry’s 
enthusiasm for the financing 
component of the project, it 
is incredibly exciting that we 
will be able to realize those 
dreams years earlier than we 
would through traditional 
financing.”

 Construction Authority 
officials said they would 
be entering into a public-
private partnership with the 
winning bidder, who will 
finance the gaps between 
the Construction Authority’s 
funding stream and the 
project’s cost curve during 
the first several years of 
the project. They further 
explained, this financing plan 
will afford project completion 
years ahead of the anticipated 
public funding stream. 

 The RFP includes more 
than 10,000 pages of updated 
engineering drawings 
and project information, 
including details of each 
station and the 11.5-mile 
corridor. Proposals are due 
January 27, 2011 and an 
award is anticipated in April 
2011 they said.

 “This has taken a significant 
effort,” said Construction 
Authority CEO, Habib F. 
Balian. “My staff has spent 
the last five months drafting 
procurement documents, 
coordinating decisions with 
corridor cities, Caltrans and 
Metro and going through 
an extensive external review 
process which included 
a peer review panel of 
transportation agency 
representatives from around 
the country.”

 “Because of the level of 
detail we are able to provide 
the bidders, as well as today’s 
very competitive bidding 
environment” adds Balian, 
“we believe the final bids will 
save millions of tax dollars 
over the next four years.”

 The RFP was released to three 
pre qualified firms, short 
listed through a competitive 
process earlier this year, 
they include: (1) Foothill 
Transit Constructors (Kiewit 
Pacific Co. and Parsons 
Transportation Group Inc.); 
(2) Shimmick Construction 
Company/URS Corporation; 
and (3) Skanska USA Civil 
West California District/
Balfour Beatty Rail, Inc.

 Officials said the first 
contract was awarded in June 
2010 to Skanska/AECOM for 
$18 million, to design and 
build a 584-linear foot bridge 
over the I-210 Freeway 
that will allow connection 
between the existing Sierra 
Madre Villa and future 
Arcadia stations. A third 
procurement process will 
begin in late 2011 to select a 
team to design and construct 
parking facilities planned at 
the six stations.

According to a study 
published earlier this year by 
the Los Angeles Economic 
Development Corporation, 
The Foothill Extension could 
result in an estimated 7,000 
jobs and nearly $1 billion 
in economic output for the 
region during construction.

 It would also the first rail 
project to break ground 
under Measure R, the 
county’s half cent sales tax 
increase approved by voters 
in 2008 committing $40 
billion to traffic relief and 
transportation upgrades 
throughout the county over 
the next 30 years.

 
Learn not just how 
to blog but how to 
report the news

 

 The Pasadena Community 
Network and this newspaper 
are holding a workshop on 
Citizen Journalism. 

 This group is the place where 
aspiring journalists can learn 
from trained professionals 
and support their local 
community by covering 
what’s really happening in 
their neighborhoods.

 We will put the news in your 
hands. Learn how to find 
the story, the tools needed 
to capture the story and the 
means to tell the story using 
the power of video, audio 
and print along with online 
social media The next 
meeting will be September 
14, from 6pm to 9pm at 
the Pasadena Community 
Network - Studio G, 2057 N. 
Los Robles Ave.

 For more info call 
626.794.8585 or visit 
pasadenan.ning.com.

Pet of the 
Week

CNN Cameraman David 
Rust to be PCC Honoree

 
David Rust, Pasadena City 
College class of 1976, was 
selected by the board of 
directors of the Community 
College League of California 
(CCLC) to receive the 
California Community 
College Distinguished 
Alumni Award. He will be 
presented with the award 
at the CCLC’s annual 
convention on Nov. 18 at 
the Pasadena Convention 
Center.

 Rust began his college 
education at Kent State 
University in Ohio where 
he found himself struggling 
academically. After a bit of 
soul searching, he returned 
home to his native Los 
Angeles and enrolled in 
the journalism program 
at PCC. Although Rust 
didn’t plan on taking more 
than a couple of classes, he 
ended up completing every 
photography and journalism 
course available. “I enjoyed 
being at PCC so much that 
I didn’t think about making 
money or using my skills 
to get paid,” Rust said. He 
picked up some practical 
experience working on The 
Courier while on campus.

 After earning his Associate 
of Arts degree from PCC, 
Rust found employment 
at several newspapers and 
eventually moved into 
television news. In 1980, he 
landed a job at the fledgling 
cable company called Cable 
News Network (CNN), 
working out of their Los 
Angeles bureau. Since then, 
he has worked in all 50 states 
and on six continents. As 
CNN’s senior cameraman, 
his assignments have taken 
him to such diverse locations 
as the pyramids in Egypt, 
the Great Wall of China, the 
Eiffel Tower, and the Berlin 
Wall.

 “Now when I’m out 
shooting for CNN, I think 
about the tremendous 
knowledge I learned from my 
instructors [at PCC]. They 
not only helped me decide 
whether I wanted to go into 
photography or journalism, 
but also to understand the 
enormous importance of 
ethics and grammar,” Rust 
said.

 Rust currently lives in 
Rosewell, Ga., with his wife, 
Agnes, who is also a PCC 
alumna.

 For more information, 
contact the PCC Alumni 
office at (626) 585-7468. 

 Sicily, a beautiful, three-
year-old, “diluted calico” 
cat is very affectionate. She 
came to the shelter as a stray 
and is currently awaiting 
her new home. She can be 
independent but gets along 
with other cats too. Come 
meet her today!

 The regular cat adoption 
fee is $70 which includes 
the spay or neuter surgery, 
microchip, vaccinations, 
and a free follow-up health 
check at a participating vet.

 Please call 626-792-7151 
and ask about A271900 
or come to the Pasadena 
Humane Society & SPCA, 
361 S. Raymond Ave , 
Pasadena CA , 91105 . 
Our adoption hours are 
11-3 Sunday, 9-4 Tuesday, 
Wednesday, Thursday, and 
Friday, and 9-3 Saturday. 
Directions and photos of 
all pets updated hourly 
may be found at www.
pasadenahumane.org

Northwest Programs Office Moves

One Colorado 
gets into the 
Fashion

 On Friday, the Northwest 
Programs Division of the 
Pasadena Planning and 
Development Department 
moved from Suite 201 at 236 
W. Mountain St. to Suite 110 
A and B in the same building.

 The office will reopen 
Tuesday, Sept. 7, in its new 
location on the first floor.

 Also, at the same time, 
the office’s enterprise zone 
manager and redevelopment 
project manager will 
relocate to the Planning and 
Development Department’s 
Economic Development 
Division, which is now part 
of the City Manager’s Office. 
The Economic Development 
Division is at Pasadena City 
Hall , 100 N. Garfield Ave. , 
Room S116.

 Staff phone numbers and 
e-mail addresses will not 
change. The phone number 
for the Northwest Programs 
Division (626) 744-4791; 
the phone number for the 
Economic Development 
Division is (626) 744-4660. 

 Pasadena is set to take 
part in the biggest fashion 
party in history, Fashion’s 
Night Out, with fall fashion 
previews, consultations, 
demonstrations, samples, and 
free refreshments.

 A live runway show in the 
One Colorado courtyard 
starts at 8 p.m. Sept. 14 and 
will showcase apparel and 
accessories from nearby shops. 

 For more information go to; 
onecolorado.com/fno.

Mountain Views News 80 W Sierra Madre Blvd. No. 327 Sierra Madre, Ca. 91024 Office: 626.355.2737 Fax: 626.609.3285 Email: editor@mtnviewsnews.com Website: www.mtnviewsnews.com