Mountain Views News          Saturday, December 21, 2013

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Mountain Views-News Saturday, December 21, 2013 

CITY NOT RESPONSIBLE FOR ROBO-PHONE CALLS 

Sierra Madre, Calif. – Residents have reported receiving a “robo-call” from a group identifying itself 
as, “Water for You”, no other identification or return number is provided for this group. A number of 
residents have reported the calls as “threatening” and the City felt it was important to clarify that the 
City is not responsible for the calls. The City of Sierra Madre does not know who has paid for these 
robo-phone calls, nor does the City have contact information for this group. 

While the City is confident that our water customers will read the information that was included in 
the Proposition 218 mailing that was mailed to all water and sewer customers and will ultimately 
make their own decisions regarding the proposed water and sewer rate increase, the City felt it was 
important to correct misinformation provided in the robo-call.

First, the “water rate increase” is not a 69% rate increase, but a total revenue increase of 61% over 
five years. This does not translate into a direct 61% increase to every water customer’s bill. (For the 
impact on individual customer bills please see the next paragraph.) The water fund needs to increase 
its total revenues in order to reverse the deteriorating financial condition of the fund. Currently, the 
water fund does not generate sufficient revenues to support its annual operational, capital and debt 
payments. Please refer to the “Fact sheet” that was included in the Proposition 218 mailing, and is 
also available on the City’s website for a complete explanation of the difference between a “revenue 
increase” and a “rate increase.”

Secondly, under the proposed rate increase, the majority (more than 50%) of Sierra Madre water customers’ 
bi-monthly water bills will increase less than 10% the first year of the proposed increase. A 
typical residential water customer, who uses 33 units of water is estimated to experience the following 
increases in their water bill:

• 10.3% ($12.70 bi-monthly, or $6.35 a month) increase the first year, 

• 14.3% ($19.40 bi-monthly or $9.70 per month) increase the second year, 

• 12.7% ($19.71 bi-monthly, or $9.86 a month) increase the third year, 

• 2.5% ($4.24 bi-monthly or $2.21 per month) increase the fourth year, and a 

• 3.7% ($6.70 bi-monthly or $3.35 per month) increase the fifth year. 

There is a Water Rate Calculator available on the City’s website to assist customers in determining the 
estimated impact on their own water bill. 

Lastly, the Sierra Madre City Council unanimously approved presenting the proposed rate structure 
to the City’s water and sewer customers. 

For information about the proposed water and sewer rate increase, please call City Hall at (626) 355-
7135 from 11 am to 5:30 pm on Monday to Thursday. Or you can go to the City’s website at www.
cityofsierramadre.com.

SIERRA MADRE CITY HALL - Special Holiday Hours

The City of Sierra Madre City Hall, Public Library, Community Recreation Center and Hart Park 
House Senior Center will be closed December 25, 2013 - January 1, 2014. Normal operations will 
resume Thursday, January 2, 2014.

 

City Hall and the Community Services Offices will have special hours on December 23, opening at 
7:30 am to 12:30 pm. Similarly there will be special hours on Friday, January 3, 2014 from 11:00 am 
to 5:00 pm. During the closure, water customers will still be able to pay their bills online or drop bills 
off in the drop box located in the City Hall parking lot. Customers can call 626.355.1414 for service 
requests. 

 

The Sierra Madre Public Library will be open to the public on Christmas Eve, Tuesday, December 24, 
2013 from 10:00 am to 2:00 pm. A special holiday craft will be offered on Tuesday, December 23 at 
10:00 am. Children of all ages are welcome to make mini rose floats.

 

During the holiday closure Library patrons will still have access to online databases, catalog searches 
and book renewals, and patrons can still return material at the outside book drop in front of the 
Library.

 

The City of Sierra Madre staff wish all happy holidays and look forward to seeing everyone in the new 
year!

 

*Please note there will be no Farmers' Market on December 25th or January 1st.

Parking Enforcement

The Sierra Madre Police Department will suspend overnight parking enforcement during the Christmas 
and New Year holidays. Overnight parking enforcement will be suspended starting at 02:00 am 
on Friday December 20th and will resume at 02:00 AM on Friday January 3, 2014.

WALKING SIERRA MADRE……THE SOCIAL SIDE 
By Deanne Davis


Dear Sierra Madreans! 
In a few days it will be 
Christmas! The actual day 
we’ve all been waiting for, 
planning for, shopping 
for (I love Amazon.com 
more than I can describe), 
cooking for, and if you’re 
ten and under, being 
beyond excited about. 

That First Noel’s come 
‘round again,

Just like it does each year!

To tell us it’s Christmas!

Finally it’s Christmas! 
Joyfully it’s Christmas,

The best time of the year!

Sunday the 15th, had a 
wonderful walk up through 
the canyon very early and 
saw our family of six deer, 
wandering casually down 
somebody’s driveway, but 
stopping long enough to 
pose fetchingly, especially 
the antlered buck, who let 
all the girls go first while he 
kept a close eye on us, then 
bounded over a little rock 
wall and herded his group 
out of sight.

Oh! The tree is in the 
window,

A wreath is on the door!

About a million ornaments 
are scattered on the floor!

Finally it’s Christmas! Joyfully it’s Christmas,

A very Merry Christmas, the best time of the year!

Driving through town at night is delightful, observing all the splendid lights on the houses. Ours 
are up and look pretty splendid, too. Christmas trees are filling a whole lot of front windows and we 
realized we needed to quit procrastinating and get our own personal tree up and decorated.

Presents piled each place you look,

Bikes and dolls and even books.

Candles red and holly green, 

Warm and light this Christmas scene.

Sunday, the 15th, John, my handsome and amazingly patient husband, took me to Pepper’s Mexican 
Restaurant for Huevos Rancheros and a glass of champagne before tackling Tree. Got it in the house, 
put it in the stand, gave it a healthy drink of water and tree food, brought up the boxes, put The Santa 
Clause in the DVD player, started stringing lights and feeling fairly jolly. A couple of hours later, Tree 
looked fantastic. We stood back and pronounced it Best Tree Ever. 

Monday the 16th. Got ready for the walk, turned on the lights and discovered that Tree was lying on 
its side, surrounded by a whole lot of wet carpet.

But that’s not the reason, 

We celebrate this Season!

When finally it’s Christmas! Joyfully it’s Christmas!

A very Merry Christmas, the best time of the year!

Some Christmases are just a little more exciting than others. A number of years ago, one of our 
neighbors experienced a fire in their Christmas tree, which brought out the neighborhood, the fire 
department, and a lot more attention than they really wanted.

Peace on earth, good will to men,

We celebrate that night again.

Hope was born that Christmas, Joy was born that Christmas.

Angels filled the sky with light, the first Silent Night, Holy Night.

I resisted the urge to throw myself on the floor (in a dry spot) and throw a tantrum and made coffee 
instead. We picked Tree up, did a whole lot of readjusting, got out the Shop Vac, sucked up as much 
water as possible and started over. Nothing broke, it all looks beautiful and, with any luck at all, it 
won’t find it necessary to collapse again.

Hope your tree is gorgeous, all your lights twinkle merrily, and none of the Christmas cookies stick 
to you longer than a second!

Finally it’s Christmas, joyfully it’s Christmas,

The best time of the year, the best time of the year!

“That First Noel’s Come ‘Round Again”

Lyrics by Deanne Davis, Music by David Wheatley

CHRISTMAS SERVICES AT SIERRA 
MADRE’S VILLAGE CHURCH 

Family Service & Midnight Mass - All are Welcome 

SMPD TOY DRIVE

The Sierra Madre Police 
Department will be collecting 
toys for the U.S. Marine 
Corps Reserve Toys for 
Tots program. All toys collected 
will be distributed to 
less fortunate youngsters in 
the community. To donate, 
simply drop off a new, unwrapped 
toy at the Sierra 
Madre Police Department, 
242 West Sierra Madre 
Boulevard. The Police Department 
will be collecting 
toys until December 20th.

 

This year, the area Toys 
for Tots campaign is partnering 
with the Southern 
California Division of The 
Salvation Army. Families 
requesting a toy can contact 
the Salvation Army in 
Pasadena at 626.773.4404.

Many special events take place at 
Ascension during Christmastide. 
You are invited to join us as we 
celebrate this glorious season 
through story, pageant, song, 
prayer, scripture, and candlelight. 
This year’s schedule of special 
services for Christmas includes:

December 24th Christmas Eve 
- Family Service and Pageant 
at 5:00 p.m. This special family 
service features the Children’s 
Christmas Pageant during 
which our youth inspire us with 
an adaptation of Max Lucado’s 
story - The Crippled Lamb. All 
children attending this service 
are encouraged to participate 
in the telling of the story. The 
service will also be filled with 
music provided by the children 
and a musical quartet.

December 24th Christmas Eve – 
Carols and Hymns at 10:30 p.m. 
and Mass at 11:00 p.m.

Ascension’s late Christmas Eve 
service features the traditional 
procession, incense, candles, 
prayer, sermon, and the great 
music of the season as the 
congregation joyously celebrates 
the birth of Christ. This glorious 
service of congregational and 
choral song, including the 
following anthems: Hodie, 
Christus Natus Est – Healey 
Willan; Nativity Carol – John 
Rutter Masters in This Hall – 
arr. William R. Price; Christmas 
Folksong – Roland E. Martin; Ave 
Maria – Franz Biebl; Christmas 
Cantata: Gloria in Excelsis Deo – 
Daniel Pinkham and

What Sweeter Music – John 
Rutter. 

December 25th Christmas Day - 
11:00 a.m. the Celebration of the 
Feast of the Nativity.

Church of the Ascension is located at 
25 E. Laurel Avenue corner of Laurel 
and Baldwin Avenues in Sierra 
Madre. For more information, please 
call the parish office at 626-355-1133 
or visit: www.ascension-sierramadre.
com. 


CHILDREN CREATE ROSE FLOATS AT SIERRA 
MADRE LIBRARY

Local children will create mini rose floats on Monday, December 23 at the Sierra Madre Public 
Library. Sierra Madre Rose Float Association official Bob Young will bring pieces of foam from Sierra 
Madre’s entry into this year’s Tournament of Roses Parade and children will use them as the bases 
for their own beautiful floats. Afterwards, the children will tow their floats in a parade through the 
Library to the new Local History Room. 

Teen Docent Coordinator Diane Siegel and several of the teen history docents will share a short 
presentation on Sierra Madre’s rose floats throughout the years using the new digital storyboard.

“We are so pleased to partner with our Rose Float Association and to showcase local history with our 
amazing digital storyboards,” said Library Director Carolyn Thomas.