On Monday, the nation will 

celebrate the birthday of 

Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.’

Celebrate His Life.......

 Make it a day of service to 
others.

S. Henderson, Publisher/Editor

PASADENA/ALTADENA

AROUND SGV

SPORTS

EDUCATION & YOUTH

La Salle Sweeps 
Maranatha

Harvey Hyde

Bobby Eldridge on Golf

 

Alverno Students Give 
Back

Judy Chu and Mike Eng:

The Dynamic Duo of the 
San Gabriel Valley

Next Steps for Heritage 
Square Senior Housing to 
be Discussed

Page 8

WORLD


ONLINE: The Price 
of Cheap

Page 5

Page 4 

Page 18

Page 19

SATURDAY, JANUARY 14, 2012

VOLUME 6 NO. 2

SIERRA MADRE BUSINESS SPOTLIGHT

Part 1 of 2 Photos and Story By Chris Bertrand

THIEVES STRIKE SIERRA MADRE AGAIN

Another Sierra Madre Gas Station ‘Compromised’

Where One Door Closes, 
Another Opens: Sales, 
New Businesses, CUP 
Applications Ramp Up 

The Heart Rate of the SM 
Business Community

 Sierra Madre has seen a surge of new 
businesses over the last year. Mother 
Moo Creamery, Sierra Bistro, Wistaria 
Grill and Taco Fiesta have added new 
retail and restaurant services to the 
mostly family owned businesses in the 
downtown area. Where one business 
closes, it seems the interest level is 
brisk in filling the spot, usually with a 
different flavor or type of business. 

The last two franchised fast food 
restaurants closed their doors. 
Kentucky Fried Chicken is now Taco 
Fiesta. Domino’s Pizza morphed 
into Mother Moo Creamery, 
offering artisan ice cream and food 
preservation classes. Charcuterie was 
reborn with a great new chef, Sean 
Roche, great live music and a new 
attitude as Sierra Bistro… and much 
more. 

 A recent visitor from Mercer Island 
Washington commented on the 
buzzing vitality and friendliness at the 
businesses and restaurants in town, 
wishing her own town offered as many 
dining choices. She said she didn’t 
have time to try them all.

Reni Rose and John Barker 
Purchase Prudential in Sierra 
Madre

 A new chapter begins now at 
Prudential California Real Estate in 
Sierra Madre. As of December 20, 
2011, John Barker and Reni Rose have 
completed their purchase of the local 
realty franchise from longtime owner, 
Daniel Bryant. Rose and Barker have 
known each other and done business 
together for 25 years.

“We have had a very positive response 
from the Sierra Madre community, 
our own 32 agents and our peers in 
the real estate world,” said Rose.

Rose has been a Realtor for 25 years 
and a top selling agent at the local 
office since 1988, and ranked in the 
top 1% of Prudential agents since 
1993. She has served as a Director of 
the Arcadia Association of Realtors.

Barker, born and raised in Pasadena, 
and attended Arcadia High School. He 
has been a Realtor since age 18, when, 
in his first year, he rose to top agent 
at his office and remained there from 
1976-82. Since then, he has managed 
or owned several large real estate 
franchises in Southern California, 
served as President of the Arcadia 
Association of Realtors and held a 
Director position at the California 
Association of Realtors for several 
years recently. 

 Barker is also President and CEO 
of Arcadia Real Estate Corporation, 
an organization that serves real 
estate professionals with online new 
licensing, continuing education classes 
and developed the iPad application, 
“Realty Agent” that has sold in over 
twenty countries. 

 Regarding 2012 real estate in Sierra 
Madre, Rose said, “Sierra Madre is 
an interesting and unique town. It 
has actually been less affected by the 
downturn, and prices have been more 
stable here than in some other cities. 
Recently, I have noticed that buyers 
are feeling more confident about the 
market, and feel it’s a good time to 
buy. We have that Norman Rockwell, 
Mayberry kind of town, where people 
buy here for the special lifestyle Sierra 
Madre has to offer.”

 “People walk in the door here and 
want to do business. We have such a 
great location for that and great people 
to serve them,” said Barker. 

Rose and Barker plan to continue their 
traditional involvement with the 4th 
of July parade celebrations, the Wine 
and Jazz Walk, and other charitable 
and community involvements. They 
intend to grow this independently 
owned franchise real estate office, 
building on the 32 agents now in 
their fold. “We like the traditional 
name recognition and stability of the 
Prudential rock,” they said. 

 For more information, contact Barker 
or Rose at Prudential California Real 
Estate, 115 W. Sierra Madre Boulevard. 
626-355-1600. 

Potential Martial Arts/Wellness 
Facility Requests CUP Feb. 2 At 
Remodeled Former Highland 
Liquors Site

 Scheduled for a February 2 meeting 
at the city’s Planning Commission, 
the proposed tenant for 303 W. Sierra 
Madre Boulevard, Gary Gapezzani, 
will request a Conditional Use Permit 
(CUP) to establish a Martial Arts and 
Wellness School for those “6-96 years 
old,.” 

 The building was extensively updated 
by owner, Nancy Shollenberger, after 
the closure of Highland Liquors in 
2011. 

 A lifelong local resident who 
graduated from Arcadia High School, 
Gapezzani is an educator with two 
masters degrees and a passion for the 
martial arts. “I’ve been studying with 
the same teacher since I was fourteen 
years old,” said Gapezzani. He and a 
business partner, who ran a different 
martial arts studio, or dojo, together 
with a larger group, have decided to 
venture on their own at this time. “In 
the previous studio,” he said, “we all 
took a couple of days a week. This will 
be my full time job now.” 

 Gapezzani continued, “I am looking 
at serving the entire community, from 
6-96. Not only will we have beginning 
to advanced martial arts classes, we 
will especially be expanding into 
seniors exercise. I am trained in Qi 
Gong breathing and exercise, a system 
of breathing and slow movement 
very appropriate for seniors, similar 
to Tai Chi.” Qi Gong, a moving 
meditation practice connecting the 
mind and breath, involves postures, 
conditioning and training of the 
whole body from bones to connective 
tissue, plus the musculature. 

 According to Dereck Purificacion 
of the Sierra Madre Planning 
Department, “Pursuant to SMMC 
Sections 17.36.020 and 17.60.30, 
fitness studios or similar uses in 
the Commercial Zone require the 
approval of a CUP to ensure that such 
uses will be rendered compatible with 
other existing and permitted uses 
located in the general area.” 

(cont. on page 3)

 
On January 9th, after receiving numerous 
inquiries from residents, the 
Sierra Madre Police Department issued 
a press release warning the public 
that there is an investigation into another 
possible ‘skimming’ scam at the 
Valero Gas Station on the corner of Sierra 
Madre Blvd. and N. Baldwin.

 The police, however, were already 
aware of the possible crime prior to 
receiving reports from the community 
because of a reported vandalism on 
December 27, 2011.

 According to Edgar Artenyyan, owner 
of the station, when his employee 
arrived to work on that day,that the 
station had been vandalised. When 
the police arrived they discovered that 
“one of the gas pump doors was pried 
open and evidence that a “fraud skimmer” 
had been placed inside the gas 
pumps and then had been removed.”

 Customers did not start contacting 
police until about a week later when 
most had been notified by their banks 
that their credit and debit cards had 
been compromised. At press time, 
there were 17 such reports.

 In their press release, the SMPD stated, 
“This is very similar to the crimes 
that took place in 2010 where “fraud 
skimmers” were placed inside the gas 
pumps at the old EVG Gas Station located 
at 50 S. Baldwin Ave.”

 Owners of the Valero Station, formerly 
the Union 76, were understandably 
distraught and are cooperating with 
the authorities in both investigations.

 For sixteen years, Edgar Artenyan 
and Gary Tashchyan have operated gas 
stations in Sierra Madre. They originally 
operated a Valero station for 10 
years, at 50 S. Baldwin. Then, when 
the opportunity became available, they 
bought the Union 76 station on the 
corner of Baldwin and Sierra Madre 
Blvd. and operated both stations for 
four years until they parted ways with 
Union 76 in 2008. 

 When the Union 76 relationship 
collapsed, they moved the Valero operations 
to the Sierra Madre Blvd. location. 
As soon as the lease expired 
on the Baldwin property they put that 
business on the market.

 The business was sold in 2009 to 
Evengy Yakimenko who operated it 
as EVG until he disappeared when the 
first crime was discovered in 2010. Although 
many have been suspicious of 
the relationship with the current owners 
of Valero and the EVG owner, Yakimenko, 
Artenyan made it very clear 
in 2010 that he sold the business a year 
before the first scandal and had no ties 
with Yakimenko,, nor did he know him 
before the sale.

 One troubling fact expressed by several 
members of the community is that 
even in the EVG scandal, there were 
a few questionable transactions that 
were done at the current Valero station. 
However, according to law enforcement 
sources the EVG scandal 
did not involve the Valero station.

 And yet, despite the Valero owners 
spending more than $20,000 upgrading 
our pumps and credit card processing 
last year, it appears that thieves 
managed to bypass it.

 Since the investigation is ongoing, 
no dollar amount has been released at 
this time. And, although the SMPD 
and the US Secret Service and FBI are 
investigating both matters, at least one 
bank, Bank of America, is conducting 
its own investigation into the fraud.

 

Police ask that anyone who has purchased 
gas from the Valero Gas Station 
from December 1, 2011 thru December 
27, 2011 and used a debit or credit 
card at the pumps should check their 
bank statements and report any misuse 
or fraud to the Sierra Madre Police Department 
at (626) 355-1414.

The former site of Highlander Liquors 
may become a Martial Arts Studio

BE A FLOAT DESIGNER WINNER . . .CONTRIBUTE A DESIGN 
FOR THE 2013 SIERRA MADRE ROSE FLOAT

 This year’s design contest will be held until 
Friday, January 27th, 2012. We

recognize that the official Tournament of 
Roses Theme Announcement will occur in 
mid-January, but we have been given information 
about the concept for the 2013 
Parade. Please see the Tournament of Roses 
concept for the parade at www.smrosefloat.
org/get-involved/design-a-float.

Design Guidelines:

1. Designs must be received no later than 
Friday, January 27th, by 5PM at P.O. Box 
603, Sierra Madre, CA 91025.

2. Design submissions need to take into 
consideration the Tournament of Roses 
2013 theme. 3. Designers should consider 
the appropriate use of float riders, Sierra 
Madre Rose Princesses/Escorts (2-4) and 
animation. Float designs should

represent a float no longer than 55 feet and 
18 feet wide. 

4. The design contest is open to all ages 
(need not be a Sierra Madre resident nor a 
Sierra Madre Rose Float Association member). 
Designs developed by Groups, Art 
Classes or other organizations are gladly 
received. Designers are encouraged also to 
submit more than one design.

5. Please provide a title to the float design. 
Submission should include a written description 
(no more than 100 words) of the 
concept and possible animations.

6. While only a very simple sketch is required 
to illustrate the concept, more detail 
can help in the selection process.

Design Rules:

1. Designs must be submitted on an 8 ½ X 
11 “Theme Draft Form” in black & white 
pencil. No color drawings or oversized 
drawings will be accepted. Do not put the 
name of your float as part of the drawing.

2. Designs submitted to the Sierra Madre 
Rose Float Association will become the 
property of the Association and may be 
modified by the Association to achieve construction 
and floral requirements.

3. Designers will be required to sign a Design 
Release form certifying the originality 
of their design and assigning those design 
rights to the Sierra Madre Rose Float 
Association.

4. The designer(s) may be asked for 
consultation.

5. The designer understands that he/she 
will receive no compensation, monetary or 
otherwise, for the use of the design and that 
the Sierra Madre Rose Float Association, 
City of Sierra Madre and/or the Pasadena 
Tournament of Roses have no obligation of 
any kind towards designer(s).

6. Submitted designs are not returnable.

7. Mail all designs to:

Sierra Madre Rose Float Association

P.O. Box 603

Sierra Madre, California 91025

For further information, please call the Sierra 
Madre Rose Float Barn at 626-355-7005, leaving a 
message on the answering machine. We will return 
your call as soon as possible. Submission forms 
available at www.smrosefloat.org

TAKE A TOUR OF “THE 
LODGE” 

 Last year, Dr. Roger Joe, a dentist whose 
practice was in Arcadia, bought the 
Masonic Temple and refurbished it. The 
second floor now houses a state of the 
art dental facility and the lower floor is a 
remodeled meeting/banquet facility for 
public use. 

 On Tuesday, January 17th, take a tour 
of the building with the Sierra Madre 
Kiwanis Club and hear Dr. Joe speak on 
modern dentistry.

 The meeting begins at noon at “The 
Lodge” - 33 E. Sierra Madre Blvd. The 
public is invited, and lunch will be 
served. The cost for lunch is $10 per 
person. The tour is free and will being 
at 12:30. Call 626-355-0728 for lunch 
reservations. 


Inside This Edition...

CALENDAR Page 2 

Sierra Madre News Page 3

Pasadena/Altadena Page 4

Around San Gabriel Valley Page 5

Nature & Environment Page 5

Arcadia Page 6

Monrovia/Duarte Page 7

Education & Youth Page 9

SUBSCRIBE TODAY Page 10

Arts & Entertainment Page 12

Left/Right Page 13

Opinion Page 14

Homes & Property Page 18

 The Good Life Page 19

World Around Us Page 20

SPORTS - Harvey Hyde Page 21


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