Mountain Views News, Combined Edition Saturday, February 13, 2021

6

ARCADIA/MONROVIA-DUARTEARCADIA/MONROVIA-DUARTE

Mountain View News Saturday, February 13, 2021 

ARCADIA HAS A 'PERDY' BIRD

ANITA MAY BALDWIN STATUE AT LE MÉRIDIEN HOTEL TAKES FORM

February 8, 2021 – Anita May Baldwin is coming back to Arcadia. 
The new Le Méridien Hotel has commissioned a statue honoring 
Arcadia’s most famous female pioneer. Anita is the daughter of the 
City's founder, Elias Jackson "Lucky" Baldwin and for the past year, 
the developer of the Le Méridien Hotel has been working with the 
Arcadia Historical Society, the Baldwin family, and the City of 
Arcadia on the design of the statue and fundraising. Famed artist 
Alfred Paredes, who created the Elias Jackson “Lucky” Baldwin 
statue on the corner of Huntington Drive and Holly Avenue, has 
been commissioned with sculpting his daughter Anita, where she 
will be featured on the opposite end of the Huntington Drive islands’ 
hotel property.

“The City of Arcadia is very excited that this statue is finally coming 
to life,” said Mayor Roger Chandler. “The addition of Anita to 
the hotel property will add immense historical value to the community 
as well as being a beautiful addition to the Downtown. I 
want to thank the developer, the Arcadia Historical Society, Council 
Member April Verlato, Margaux Viera, and all those who collaborated, 
supported, and donated to this effort.”

The 4.5 star Le Méridien Hotel features 233 rooms and suites, a 
restaurant, bar, grand ballroom, and a beautiful courtyard. The addition 
of a public art space was part of a negotiated agreement between 
the developer and the City. “We chose Arcadia as the site for 
this development because of the natural beauty, history, and the 
local amenities nearby. Adding a space for public art is part of our 
commitment to the Arcadia community and we are honored to 
memorialize Anita Baldwin on our property,” said Jonathan Tseng, 
Construction Manager of SAICP and Château Group.

The Anita statue is being sculpted by local artist and southern California 
native, Alfred Paredes. “I am once again honored to be given the privilege and challenge of continuing the Baldwin 
family legacy through the art of public monuments,” said Mr. Paredes. “Anita Baldwin was a woman of great character 
with a generous and charitable spirit. Capturing that in a single image or sculpture

is the artist’s challenge. My sincerest hope is that I am creating a work of lasting beauty that the Baldwin family, the City 
of Arcadia, and all who visit the monument can be proud of.”

The fundraising for this project was spearheaded by the Arcadia Historical Society in partnership with the Baldwin family, 
and began in earnest in March 2020. “We have secured all of the funding necessary to commission the artwork and 
are very excited to be bringing Anita back to Arcadia. I want to particularly thank Jeff Lee and the Dextra Baldwin McGonagle 
Foundation for their generous contributions,” said Jim Considine, President of the Arcadia Historical Society. “The 
Society is always looking for opportunities to honor the rich history of Arcadian’s who came before us that helped shape 
our beloved community. Anita really fits the mold,” he added.

Margaux Viera, the great-great-great granddaughter of Elias Jackson “Lucky” Baldwin, championed the idea of honoring 
Anita. “On behalf of the Baldwin family, I would like to express my deepest gratitude to the Arcadia City Council, the 
Arcadia Historical Society, and the Le Méridien Hotel for this incredible opportunity to pay homage to my great-great 
grandmother, Anita May Baldwin,” said Ms. Viera. “This project, like the Elias Jackson “Lucky” Baldwin statue project, 
means so much to me and my family. The magnificent statue of Anita will showcase a strong woman who was ahead of 
her time. After her father's death, Anita strapped on her father's boots and never hesitated to take the reins of what he had 
spent his entire life building. I am proud to call Anita May Baldwin my great-great grandmother, and I am truly proud 
to be a part of this historic project.”

The Le Méridien Hotel is scheduled to open in Spring 2021. The unveiling of the Anita Baldwin Statue is scheduled for Fall 
2021. To follow the sculptures progression, follow Alfred Paredes on Instagram at @apsculpturestudio.


Big thanks to everyone who sent in name ideas for our new 
peacock mascot.

There were so many names from which to choose!

We had lots of fun reading all the emails and ideas.

After lots of discussion and a final vote from our Board of 
Directors, the winning name is:

Perdy Peacock

Because...he is such a Perdy Bird!

Congratulations and thanks to Kim Chacon for coming up 
with this brilliant and fun name. Kim will receive a $100 gift 
certificate to use at the Downtown Arcadia business of her 
choice. (We'll be in touch with you soon Kim!)

Follow Perdy Peacock on TikTok @DowntownArcadia

PLEASE STAY 
SAFE!

SOCIALLY 
DISTANCE!

WEAR A MASK! 

MAIL THEFT PREVENTION TIPS From Arcadia Police Department

Recently the Arcadia Police Department and surrounding agencies have no-ticed an uptick in the number of mail thefts. This increase 
may be in response to the recent stimulus checks/debit cards that have been sent out. In order to prevent these thefts, we offer 
the following tips:

 -Please pick up your mail as soon as possible after it is delivered.

-Secure or Lock your mail box.

-Don’t let your mail stack up for multiple days. 

-If you are gone during the daytime, consider a Post Office Box (PO Box).

-If you are out of town, have a neighbor or relative collect your mail daily.

 We are working together with the US Postal Service to combat these thefts, but we need your help to reduce the opportunity for these 
thieves. We have adjusted our regular patrols to have officers in the areas where mail theft is more prevalent. 

The Arcadia Police Department wants to remind our community to call us if you see someone or something suspicious. As always, 
we ask “If You See Something, Say Something.”

ALTADENA-SO. PASADENA-SAN MARINOALTADENA-SO. PASADENA-SAN MARINO

South Pasadena looking 
for New City Manager

Tournament Sues City 
over Rose Bowl Name

Barger Sends Letter 
Urging the Reopening of 
All Schools in La County

 


 The Tournament of Roses 
Association filed documents 
Thursday suing the city of 
Pasadena asking a federal court 
in California to protect its 
rights in the tradenames Rose 
Bowl Game and Rose Bowl. 
According to Tournament 
officials, the organization has 
been nearly synonymous with 
the annual Rose Parade and 
Rose Bowl Game for more than 
100 years.

 “We are a nonprofit civic 
organization with hundreds 
of volunteers and deep roots 
in Pasadena,” said Executive 
Director/CEO David Eads. 
“This is where the parade and 
the game belong every year, and 
we have no intention of going 
anywhere. Unfortunately, the 
City of Pasadena’s attempt to 
assert co-ownership in what are 
indisputably our trademarks 
threatens to interfere with 
our ability to carry out even 
routine business activities, and 
we have no choice but to get 
confirmation of our rights by 
the courts.”

 The Association owns the 
“Rose Bowl Game” trademark 
and related marks, and usage 
of the mark, along with other 
aspects of TOR’s relationship 
with the city, are spelled out in 
a Master License Agreement 
and two additional agreements 
between the two parties. The 
MLA requires the Rose Bowl 
Game to be held in the city’s 
Rose Bowl Stadium except in 
the event of a “force majeure” – 
a legal term generally meaning 
an event beyond a party’s 
control which prevents the 
game from being played at 
the Rose Bowl Stadium – in 
which case the Association is 
permitted to move the game 
they said.

 Although the dispute 
originated in the move of this 
year’s game to Arlington, Texas 
as the result of the COVID-19 
pandemic, a move agreed to by 
the city, it has persisted through 
the city’s continued insistence 
that it is the co-owner of the 
marks and that its consent is 
necessary to invoke the MLA’s 
“force majeure” clause. While 
the Association has no plans or 
desire to move the game in the 
future – this year was only the 
second time in history the Rose 
Bowl Game was played outside 
Pasadena, the other time being 
the immediate aftermath of the 
December 1941 attack on Pearl 
Harbor – it does need a court’s 
clarification of its contractual 
and ownership rights, Eads 
said.

 The Pasadena Tournament 
of Roses Association is a non-
profit organization comprising 
more than 900 volunteers, 
deeply rooted in Pasadena, 
California, home to both the 
parade and the iconic Rose 
Bowl Stadium, which the 
Association built and then 
deeded to the city of Pasadena 
in 1922. 

 Pasadena city officials said 
on Friday they have yet to 
review the lawsuit. According 
to reports, they received the 
documents just minutes before 
Tournament officials made it 
public.

 The case was filed Thursday 
afternoon in U.S. District 
Court for the Central District 
of California. 

 
Supervisor Kathryn 
Barger sent a letter Friday 
to Governor Gavin Newsom 
asking for the immediate 
reopening of schools, grades 
TK-12, in Los Angeles 
County.

 “It has been 11 months 
since the state closed L.A. 
County schools, and during 
this time, we have witnessed 
a significant academic, social 
and emotional decline in our 
children and youth,” said 
Supervisor Barger. “I am 
urging Governor Newsom 
to allow for the immediate 
reopening of schools to 
provide in-person learning, 
which is critical for the 
development of our school-
age children.”

 The state previously created 
a waiver program for schools 
to apply to reopen, during 
which L.A. County allowed 
the reopening of schools for 
grades TK-2nd. The ability 
to apply for these waivers 
ended on Jan. 14 as set by 
the state, with the caveat 
that only those schools that 
had reopened with approved 
waivers could remain 
open. Under the current 
guidelines, any school 
that had not applied for a 
waiver, or who had received 
a waiver but not reopened 
prior to Jan. 14, would have 
to wait to reopen in-person 
instruction for any grade 
until the case rate in Los 
Angeles County falls below 
25 cases per 100,000 people 
per day for five consecutive 
days. Furthermore, no 
schools in the county 
may open for in-person 
instruction for grades 7-12 
while the county remains in 
Tier 1 (Purple Widespread 
Tier).

 In her letter, Supervisor 
Barger expressed grave 
concerns regarding any 
further delays and asked 
Governor Newsom to 
consider allowing all K-6 
classrooms to reopen and to 
enable all counties in Tier 1 
to open grades 7-12.

 “The safety of reopening 
classrooms has been well-
documented worldwide and 
is supported by the Centers 
for Disease Control,” 
said Supervisor Barger. 
“California remains one of 
the only places in the world 
where the vast majority 
of schools have remained 
closed – causing detrimental 
impacts for children and 
their families. They cannot 
and should not have to wait 
another day to get back to 
school.”

 A copy of the letter from 
Supervisor Barger to 
Governor Newsom can be 
found at: kathrynbarger.
lacounty.gov.

 The City of South Pasadena 
is seeking a City Manager with 
exceptional interpersonal, 
leadership, communication, and 
negotiation skills. The incoming 
City Manager will be a seasoned 
individual and forward-thinking 
visionary who will continue 
to move the City in a positive 
direction by providing clear 
direction to staff, engaging and 
building relationships with 
the business community, and 
being responsive to community 
concerns. A candidate who 
possesses appreciation for and 
understanding of diversity within 
a city organization and community 
will be valued.

 A service-minded individual 
who listens and is approachable, 
accessible, and open to suggestions 
is highly desirable. The City 
Manager should be a skilled public 
speaker, a good communicator 
capable of exercising discretion, 
confidentiality, and tact when 
dealing with sensitive matters or 
communicating with internal and 
external stakeholders.

 The desired candidate has a 
strong finance background as 
well as experience with economic 
development. The City will 
benefit from a City Manager who 
understands and values the needs 
of the organization as well as the 
community and is willing to make 
a long-term commitment to South 
Pasadena.

 The incoming City Manager will be 
expected to take an active interest 
in the community and maintain 
effective working relationships 
with City staff, regional partners 
and outside organizations, and the 
general public.

 The Council is seeking a candidate 
who will communicate directly 
and openly and be transparent, 
consistent, and equitable in their 
dealings with all elected officials.

 The selected individual will 
show strength of character and 
unquestioned integrity, as well 
as the ability to work with the 
Council toward consensus on 
difficult or complex issues. The 
ideal candidate will possess a 
combination of strong political

leadership qualities and strong 
managerial experience. As a 
leader, the selected candidate 
will create an environment where 
employees feel empowered to 
excel. Candidates should possess 
excellent management skills and 
be able to delegate effectively while 
holding staff accountable.

 Any combination of education, 
training, and experience that 
could likely provide the required 
knowledge, skills, and abilities 
will be qualifying. The typical 
candidate will possess a Bachelor’s 
degree in public administration or 
a related field from an accredited 
college or university along 
with extensively responsible 
administrative experience in 
the planning, coordination, and 
financing of varied municipal 
activities; a Master’s degree is 
desirable. 

TO APPLY

If you are interested in this 
outstanding opportunity, please 
apply online at: bobmurrayassoc.
com

Filing Deadline:

February 28, 2021

 Following the filing deadline, 
resumes will be screened 
according to the qualifications 
outlined above. The most 
qualified candidates will be 
invited to personal interviews 
with Bob Murray and Associates. 
Candidates will be advised of the 
status of the recruitment following 
finalists’ selection. Finalist 
interviews will be held with the 
City of South Pasadena.

 A select group of candidates will 
be asked to provide references 
once it is anticipated that they 
may be recommended as finalists. 
References will be contacted only 
following candidate approval.

 If you have any questions, please 
do not hesitate to call Mr. Gary 
Phillips at: (916) 784-9080


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