Mountain Views News, Combined Edition Saturday, July 27, 2019

6

Mountain View News Saturday, July 27, 2019 

South Pas National Night Out

Resident Donates 60 
Beanie Babies to SPPD


August 6, 2019

6:00 pm - 9:00pm

Orange Grove Park

815 Mission Street, South Pasadena

 This FREE event is designed to promote community 
camaraderie and make our neighborhoods safer, more 
caring places to live--come meet your police, fire, and 
various other city departments.

 There will be games, inflatables, and more! Food will 
be available to purchase. Bring your friends and family 
for an evening of fun!

 One of South Pasadena’s residents, Hanna Crowley 
(pictured), came to South Pasadena Police Department 
and donated a collection of about 60 Beanie Babies that her 
mother had collected over a decade ago. Margo and Hanna 
had heard of a story up in San Luis Obispo where a person 
had donated stuffed animals to local law enforcement. The 
stuffed animals were given to kids during a crisis situation 
to help comfort them. Hanna previously worked as a camp 
counselor did not want their valuable collection of Beanie 
Babies to just end up on the trash or to go unwanted. She 
wanted to donate their collection of Beanie Babies to local 
children who could appreciate and also use them in a crisis 
situation as a way of comfort.

Fueling of NASA Mars 2020 
Rover Power System Begins

 NASA’s Associate Administrator 
for the Science Mission Directorate, 
Thomas Zurbuchen, has given the go-
ahead to begin fueling the Mars 2020 
rover’s Multi-Mission Radioisotope 
Thermoelectric Generator, or 
MMRTG. The generator will power 
the rover and help keep it warm 
while exploring the Red Planet.

 “The progression of the Mars 2020 
rover project is on schedule,” said 
Zurbuchen. “The decision to begin 
fueling the MMRTG is another 
important milestone in keeping to 
our timetable for a July 2020 launch.”

 Essentially a nuclear battery, an 
MMRTG can provide about 110 watts 
of electrical power to a spacecraft 
and its science instruments at the 
beginning of a mission. The excess 
heat from the generator can also 
serve to keep spacecraft systems 
warm in cold environments. In all, 
27 past U.S. space missions have 
used radioisotope power — from 
the Viking missions on Mars to 
the Voyager spacecraft entering 
interplanetary space to, most 
recently, the Curiosity rover on Mars 
and the New Horizons spacecraft 
that sailed past Pluto.

 MMRTGs work by converting 
heat from the natural decay 
of radioisotope materials into 
electricity. The generators consist of 
two major elements: a heat source 
that contains plutonium-238 (Pu-
238) and thermocouples that convert 
the plutonium’s decay heat energy to 
electricity. The process of loading the 
heat source into the MMRTG, which 
the Department of Energy (DOE) 
manufactured, is timed to a mission’s 
launch date. The Mars 2020 fueling 
process has been initiated thanks to 
the continued progress constructing 
the rover and the spacecraft that will 
get it there.

 “We are advancing on all fronts — 
including completion of the cruise 
stage that will guide us to Mars and 
the sky crane descent landing system 
that will gently lower us to the 
surface,” said Project Manager John 
McNamee of NASA’s Jet Propulsion 
Laboratory, which manages the 
mission in Pasadena, California. 
With the exception of incorporating 
the Adaptive Caching Assembly, with 
its seven motors and more than 3,000 
parts, work on the Mars 2020 rover’s 
interior is 100% complete. On the 
exterior, the most visible additions 
have been the remote sensing mast, 
the mobility suspension system, the 
main robotic arm and the rover’s 
high-gain antenna. The external 
components of the Mastcam-Z and 
SuperCam science instruments have 
been installed on the high perch of 
the remote sensing mast, and the 
PIXL and SHERLOC instruments’ 
turret assemblies have been added 
onto the end of the robotic arm.

 “Our Mars 2020 rover is on a 
historic mission — the first leg of a 
round trip to Mars,” said Zurbuchen. 
Mars 2020 will launch from Cape 
Canaveral Air Force Station in 
Florida in July 2020 and land at 
Jezero Crater on Feb. 18, 2021. It will 
be the first spacecraft in the history 
of planetary exploration with the 
ability to accurately retarget its point 
of touchdown during the landing 
sequence — technology that could 
prove essential to future crewed 
missions to the Moon and Mars.

 NASA will use Mars 2020 and 
other missions, including those to 
the Moon, to prepare for human 
exploration of the Red Planet. The 
agency plans to establish a sustained 
human presence on and around 
the Moon by 2028 through NASA’s 
Artemis lunar exploration plans.


Summer Concerts In The Park

 Feel the beat of the summer with the city's free summer concert 
series! “Summer Throwback” at Washington Park tonight, “80’s 
Vibe” at Grant Park on July 27 and “Latin Fiesta” at Villa-Parke 
on August 10 (Latin Fiesta is subject to change). All concerts start 
at 5:30 p.m. and end at 7:30 p.m. Bring a lawn chair, a picnic and 
your dancing shoes. For More information visit: cityofpasadena.
net search “Concerts In The Park.” or call 626-744-6523. 


ARCADIA POLICE BLOTTER

MONROVIA SET TO FOLLOW-UP 
WITH SUPERVISOR BARGER’S STAFF 
AFTER SUCCESSFUL BREAKFAST 
MEETING EVENT

This past Friday, the City Council 
held a special meeting with LA 
County Supervisor Kathryn Barger 
to discuss a variety of issues that 
overlap between the City and LA 
County. The meeting was successful, 
and all of us at the City appreciate the 
work that Supervisory Barger does to 
support Monrovia and the rest of her 
district.

We wanted to share that based on the 
Supervisor’s comments at our meeting, 
coupled with follow-up discussions 
that we had with her staff following 
the meeting, it appears that 
some tangible take-away results from 
the meeting include the following:

• Consideration by LA County 
to allocate $300,000 (from LA County 
Parks & Open Space District Ex-
cess Funds) to support our efforts to 
upgrade Lucinda Garcia Park

• Commitments to improve 
the process of allocating LA County 
Measure H homeless funds to support 
successful local homeless response 
models, with a particular 
emphasis on Monrovia’s very own 
Housing Displacement Response 
Program

• An allocation of $5,000 from 
LA County to support our Youth 
Employment Services internship 
pro-gram

• Continued support from the 
Supervisor for our rWMP stormwater 
programs

A copy of the presentation that we 
used to guide the discussion with the 
Supervisor can be found online, and 
of course, we will be certain to keep 
everyone informed as to our progress 
on each of the above referenced partnership 
projects with LA County!

For the period of Sunday, July 14th, 
through Saturday, July 20th, the Police 
Department responded to 912 calls for 
service, of which 114 required formal 
investigations. The following is a 
summary report of the major incidents 
handled by the Department during this 
period.

Sunday, July 14:

1. Shortly before 6:55 a.m., 
officers responded to the Racetrack 
76 gas station, 701 West Huntington 
Drive, regarding a burglary report. 
Officers discovered unknown suspect(s) 
smashed the glass door, stole the 
register and keys, and fled undetected. 
No suspects were seen and no witnesses 
were located. 


2. At approximately 2:15 p.m., 
officers responded to the 1000 block of 
West Duarte Road regarding a vehicle 
burglary report. Sometime between 
Friday, July 12th and July 14th, unknown 
suspect(s) entered the victim’s vehicle by 
unknown means and fled with clothing, 
shoes, and toiletries. No suspects were 
seen and no witnesses were located. 


Monday, July 15:t after 11:14 a.m., an 
officer responded to the front counter 
of the Arcadia Police Department 
regarding a forgery report. The officer 
determined an unknown suspect forged 
two of the victim’s checks and cashed 
them for a total loss of $262.87. The 
victim does not know how the suspect 
obtained their personal information 
or the identity of the suspect. At 
approximately 3:42 p.m., officers 
responded to JCPenney, 400 South 
Baldwin Avenue, regarding a theft report. 
Loss prevention employees witnessed 
the suspect steal approximately $100.00 
worth of merchandise before exiting 
the store, failing to make payment. The 
19-year-old male from Altadena was 
arrested and transported to the Arcadia 
City Jail for booking. 

Tuesday, July 16:

3. Around 1:56 a.m., an officer 
initiated a traffic stop on a vehicle in 
the area of Duarte Road and Baldwin 
Avenue for failing to obey traffic signs. 
Upon contacting the driver, the officer 
detected a strong odor of alcohol 
emitting from the vehicle. Through a 
series of tests, the officer determined 
the suspect was driving with a blood 
alcohol content of 0.14%. The 24-year-
old male from Arcadia was arrested and 
transported to the Arcadia City Jail for 
booking. 


4. Just before 7:45 a.m., an 
officer responded to Western 
Rooter, 136 East Santa Clara Street, 
regarding a commercial burglary 
report. Surveillance footage revealed 
three suspects attempted to enter the 
location by prying open a roll-up door 
with two large digging tools but were 
unsuccessful. They fled emptyhanded. 


The suspects are described as Hispanic 
males in a gold or tan colored Honda 
with 4-doors and a sunroof. The 
investigation is ongoing. 

5. At about 10:54 a.m., an officer 
responded to a residence in the 300 
block of California Street regarding a 
burglary report. Surveillance footage 
captured an adult male, an adult female, 
and a child entering the residence 
without the owner’s permission on July 
14th at 4 a.m. No loss was reported. The 
investigation is ongoing. 


Wednesday, July 17:Shortly after 2:10 
p.m., an officer responded to the 1000 
block of East Camino Real Avenue 
regarding the activation of an Arcadia 
Police Department GPS tracking device. 
An investigation revealed the male and 
female suspects were in possession of 
the stolen package, merchandise, and 
tracking device. a 31-year-old male from 
Pasadena and a 29-year-old female from 
Azusa were arrested and transported to 
the Arcadia City Jail for booking. 

Thursday, July 18:

6. Before 12:19 a.m., an officer 
responded to 24 Hour Fitness, 125 
North First Avenue, regarding a burglary 
report. The victim stated he had his gym 
bag, wallet, car keys, and ID stolen from 
his secured locker sometime between 
10:30 p.m. and midnight. No suspects 
were seen and no witnesses were located. 
7. Around 6:15 a.m., an officer 
responded to a residence in the 00 block 
of La Porte Street regarding a residential 
burglary report. The officer determined 
unknown suspects smashed a window 
and removed another window but fled 
emptyhanded. The investigation is 
ongoing. 


DUARTE NEWS BRIEFS

AD HOC CITIZENS FINANCE ADVISORY COMMITTEE

• The Duarte Finance Ad Hoc Committee held its first meeting on July 18.

• Attendees were given a general orientation, discussed the scope and mission of the committee and future 
agenda items. 

• The next meeting will be held on August 1 and will be focused on a discussion of the City's 2019/20 budget, 
historical trends, and forecasts.

CITY COUNCIL SPECIAL MEETING

• The City Council will have a Special Meeting on July 30 in the City Council Chambers (1600 Huntington 
Dr.) at 10 a.m.

• The meeting will focus on interviewing City Manager recruitment consultants. The public is invited to 
attend.

• View the agenda here.

 

COMMUNITY DEVELOPMENT

THIRD AND OAK MULTIPLE FAMILY DEVELOPMENT

• Project is near completion.

• The developer will seek final inspection and approval from Planning Dept. the week of July 29.

ORANGE BLOSSOM PARK

• Park construction anticipated to be complete by August 5.

HARBOR FREIGHT

• Harbor Freight is preparing to move into the building vacated by Staples at 1450 S. Mountain Ave.

• Signs were permitted this week and are expected to be installed within the next two weeks.

• Architectural plans for the remodel of the interior and exterior of the building were approved this week and 
the project is expected to promptly move forward into plan check.

SWEET BASIL PIZZA

• Located at 1215 Huntington Drive.

• Interior remodel is complete and the sign has been installed.

• The soft opening is expected this week and the grand opening is coming soon.

CITYWIDE RESTRIPING PROJECT

• The restriping project in various areas of the city is in its completion phase.

• This project includes refreshing crosswalks, stop legends and other traffic control markings.

CHARTER COMMUNICATIONS

• Charter will be working on Huntington Drive over the next two weeks for the replace of cables.

• Anticipate potential delays in front of 1830 Huntington Drive and 1000 Drive.

POWER POLE WORK

• Southern California Edison is continuing to work in the fire hazard areas of the city.

• They will be replacing poles as needed to reduce the risk of damage to power lines.

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