Mountain Views News, Sierra Madre edition

Sierra Madre Edition

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Inside this Week:

Community Calendar:
SM Calendar of Events

Sierra Madre:
Walking SM … The Social Side
Sierra Madre Police Blotter

Shop Local:

Pasadena – Altadena:
Altadena Sheriff News Briefs
Pet of the Week

Arcadia · Monrovia · Duarte:
Arcadia Police Blotter

Education & Youth:

Best Friends and More:
Happy Tails
The Joy of Yoga
The Missing Page
Katnip News!
SGV Humane Society

Food & Drink:
Chef Peter Dills
Table for Two

The Good Life:
Senior Happenings

The World Around Us:
Looking Up
Christopher Nyerges
Out to Pastor

F. Y. I. :

Section B:

Arts and More:
Jeff's Book Pics
All Things
Family Matters
Business Today

Opinion … Left/Right/Center:
John L. Micek
Michael Reagan
Graham West
The Funnies

Legal Notices (1):

Legal Notices (2):

Legal Notices (3):

Legal Notices (4):

Legal Notices (5):

Newspaper Fun:
Newspaper Fun!

A Taste of Arcadia:

Columnists:
Jeff Brown
Deanne Davis
Peter Dills
Bob Eklund
Marc Garlett
Chris Leclerc
Christopher Nyerges
La Quetta M. Shamblee
Rev. James Snyder
Keely Totten

Recent Issues:
Issue 37
Issue 36
Issue 35
Issue 34
Issue 33
Issue 32
Issue 31
Issue 30
Issue 29
Issue 28
Issue 27

Archives:
MVNews Archive:  Page 1

MVNews this week:  Page 1

SIERRA MADRE EDITION

 
SATURDAY, SEPTEMBER 23, 2017 

VOLUME 11 NO. 38

SIERRA MADRE TO CONSIDER 
COPS GRANT

Council will discuss accepting $100,000 to assist with 
SMPD Policing

At next week’s City Council meeting, the council will discuss 
whether or not to accept the “Citizens Option for Public Safety, 
Supplemental Law Enforcement Service Funds” (COPS/SLESF) 
that have been approved by the State of California for Sierra Madre. 
If accepted, it will not be the first time the city has received such 
funds, but the need for this additional support may very well be 
more critical than ever before given the increase in residential 
burglaries in not only Sierra Madre, but surrounding cities. Sierra 
Madre has received the grants every year since 1996.

 According to the staff report to be presented Tuesday evening, the 
funds, “ have certain restrictions on their use, which include the 
fact that they must be used to support “frontline” 
police operations, 
require a public hearing as to proposed use, and that they must not 
supplant funds that would normally be used for police operations. 
These funds do not require any matching contribution from the 
City.” 

In the past, according to the city, nearly seventy-five percent of 
the funds received from this grant, will fund the city’s current 
Community Service Officer (CSO) program. CSO’s perform a 
variety of non-hazardous duties in support of sworn personnel, 
including report preparation, investigation and public education. 
Sierra Madre now has two CSO’s working in the unit. One officer 
is dedicated to community outreach and social media and the 
other officer is assigned to uniformed position(s) in Patrol, Crime 
Prevention, Evidence, Administration, Investigation, Parking 
Enforcement or other duties within the Police Department. 
Additionally, the CSO Program will continue to provide focus on 
crime prevention and parking enforcement as well as taking some 
of the non-law enforcement duties away from the police officers, 
allowing them more time to focus on high visibility patrols and 
enforcement. 

Community Service Officer. 

If approved, the funds received this year will go towards:

Community Service Officer Program Cost: $75,000 

Helicopter Services - payment to Foothill Air Support for annual 
Police 

Helicopter Services in the community. Cost: $12,000 

ICI Radio System - Annual ICIS subscriber cost for radio system. Cost: $13,000

CITY LIKELY TO AMEND CURRENT WATER 
CONSERVATION PLAN

 Earlier this month, the Sierra Madre City 
Council, after hearing from residents, 
decided to consider making changes in 
the Mandatory Water Conservation plan 
and amendments that have been enacted 
beginning in 2013. At that time, the city 
imposed water conservation goals for 
each household, changed the method for 
calculating water use and adjusted the 
billing cycles. Later they also implemented 
penalties for those households that did not 
comply.

 The conservation targets became a bone 
of contention among many residents due 
to what some have described as unrealistic 
targets based upon the size of the home and/
or household. The imposition of a tiered 
billing system was also cited as being unfair 
by many residents and, the penalties were 
deemed excessive for many households. 
At recent public meetings, residents have 
shared horror stories about exorbitant bills. 

 In 2016, the council revised the penalty 
for water consumed in excess of customers’ 
water conservation targets. The penalty was 
raised from two-times the tier 1 rate to two-
times the tier 4 rate. Another issue raised by 
residents is the fact that the entire city is not 
all on the same ‘seasonal’ schedule. (Half the 
town had their rates calculated on ‘winter 
rates’ while the other half was calculated on 
‘summer rates’.) 

 A recent analysis of the effectiveness of the 
city’s conservation efforts by city staff, it was 
noted that between July 2016 and July 2017 
the number of households that exceeded 
their conservation goals had increased 
significantly despite the penalties. (It should 
be noted that California Governor Jerry 
Brown did not announce that the drought 
was ‘over’ until April,2017). 

 Water conservation is still a priority in 
Sierra Madre in order to restore our wells 
to satisfactory levels, but the council is 
considering the following:

Discontinuance of Seasonal Conservation 
Targets: 

 On July 9, 2013 City Council established 
seasonal water conservation goals. The idea 
was to identify seasonal water conservation 
goals replacing the previous “base year 
average bi-monthly consumption” 
calculation. Using a summer and winter 
conservation target would result in a shorter 
base period; instead of using an average of 
a full year’s consumption, only six months 
(three billing cycles) of consumption would 
be averaged. This would result in less 
variation between the consumption target 
and the customers’ actual usage. 

 The majority of water use is consumed by 
landscape irrigation with up to 75% of water 
used for outdoor irrigation. For this reason 
excessive water use typically occurs during 
summer months when landscape irrigation 
demands are greater. Winter conservation 
is driven by the shorter and cooler seasonal 
days resulting in lower outdoor watering 
requirements. Peak demand occurs in the 
months of June through September with up 
to 50% of the City’s water use occurring in 
those 4 months. All residents will have their 
targets now based on what was previously 
calculated as their “summer” target 
throughout the year. The summer target will 
maintain mandatory 30% conservation over 
the base year calculation.



Return to Pre-May 2016 Penalties: 

 In an effort to further water conservation 
and to help the City meet State imposed 
conservation goals, in 2016 the City Council 
set a penalty for water consumed in excess 
of a customer’s assigned water conservation 
goal at 2 times Tier 4 rate per billing unit 
used in excess of the conservation target. 

The two-times tier 4 penalty went into 
effect July 1, 2016 and is applicable to water 
consumed after that date, and only applicable 
to the amount of water used in excess of the 
customer’s assigned conservation goal. The 
intent of the resolution was to target “Super 
Users” in an effort to curtail water use of the 
highest users in the City, Rescinding the 
current penalty will reestablish 
a penalty two 
times the Tier 1 volumetric rate, currently 
$5.38 per billing unit. The penalty would 
be applied to water used in excess of the 
established conservation goal.

Both changes will be discussed at the next 
council meeting, Tuesday, September 23, 
2017, 6:00 pm in City Council Chamber

Source: City of Sierra Madre. For additional 
information go to: www.cityofsierramadre.
com


SIERRA MADRE ROSE FLOAT 
ASSOCIATION SEEKS APPLICATIONS 
FOR APPLICATIONS FOR PRINCESSES/
AMBASSADORS

CITY LOOKING FOR HOMES TO 

TEST FOR LEAD AND COPPER 

LEVELS IN WATER SUPPLY

Beware Sierra Madre!! - 

A Murder of Crows!

 

 Gentle citizens of Sierra Madre arm yourself, not with shotguns – with 
scarecrows! A convention of crows (a murder of crows) are arriving 
for their annual rally in our quiet village. Ignite imagination, not 
torches, as we band together to defend our streets, parks and public 
arenas, and quell these raucous intruders cloaked in black. 

 Thus marks the beginning of fall. Sierra Madre’s 6th Annual 
Scarecrow Festival kicks off in October with scarecrows appearing 
throughout town through the end of the month. Individuals, families, 
businesses, civic and religious organizations located in Sierra Madre 
are invited to participate.

 This year’s calendar includes the following dates:

Monday, Oct. 2nd Voting begins. Maps available online and at Creative Arts Group

Saturday, Oct. 7 Free shuttle tour of scarecrows

Thursday, Oct. 19 Voting ends at noon

Friday, Oct. 20, Awards ceremony at Creative Arts Group 7pm

Registration for the workshop, contest and bus tour can be 
complete online at www.
creativeartsgroup.org/
scarecrow-festival as well as 
in person at Creative Arts 
Group, 108 N. Baldwin Ave., 
Sierra Madre, CA, 91024 or by 
phone: 626.355.8350.

The Sierra Madre Rose Float 
Association is once again seeking 
applications for the position of 
Princess/Ambassador (in any 
combination of female/male) 
to represent the City at local 
functions and activities and to 
ride on our float on New Year’s 
Day in the Pasadena Tournament 
of Roses Parade!

This year we are searching for 
three (3) Princesses/Ambassadors 
who will not only have the honor 
of riding on the Sierra Madre 
float, but will have the pleasure 
of speaking to the Sierra Madre 
City Council and local service 
organizations and clubs. In 
addition, they will assist with 
float decorating and contribute 
to publicity opportunities. 
Princesses/Ambassadors will have 
a very exciting and educational 
year!

Application Guidelines and Process:

1)Applicants must be 15 to 18 
years old, have a 3.0 grade average 
and be a resident of Sierra Madre.

2)Applications may be picked
up at City Hall, your High School 
or downloaded from the Sierra 
Madre Rose Float Association 
website: www.smrosefloat.org

3) Applications must be received 
at the SMRFA post office box by 
Friday, September 22th, 2017. 
Applications submitted later 
than September 22 will not be 
considered.

4)Applicants must be able to
attend judging interviews on 
Sunday, September 24th at 3:00pm 
at the Sierra Madre Lodge. (No 
parents please.)

5)Princess Coronation
Ceremony will be held Sunday, 
October 1, 3:15 PM at the Sierra 
Madre Lodge. Tickets are $5.00 
for friends and family (candidates 
are free). Tickets will be available 
at the door. Refreshments will be 
served.

 For more information or 
questions, please contact Donna 
Sutcliffe at 626-355-8579.

Sierra Madre must conduct lead and copper sampling as required 
by the State Water Resources Control Board.

The City is currently looking for a few homes that meet certain 
criteria to complete its lead and copper sample requirements. 

If you have a home that contains copper pipes with lead solder 
installed before 1983 and you wish to participate in the lead 
and copper sample program please contact City staff Clare Lin 
or Jose Reynoso

If your home does not meet this criteria and you wish to participate 
in the lead and copper sample program, a representative 
sample can be taken from most homes excluding homes 
plumbed with PEP pipe.

The City is currently in need of 4 sample locations.

For more information please contact Clare Lin or Jose Reynoso

Clare Lin 626-355-7135 CLin@cityofsierramadre.com 

JReynoso@cityofsierramadre.com Jose Reynoso 626-264-8489


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

Useful Reference Links

Mountain Views News 80 W. Sierra Madre Blvd. #327 Sierra Madre, Ca. 91024 Office: 626.355.2737 Fax: 626.604.4548 www.mtnviewsnews.com