SATURDAY, JUNE 18, 2022 VOLUME 16 NO. 25VOLUME 16 NO. 25 
Jan Greteman 626.975.4033 
lic #01943630 
Judy Webb-Martin 626.688.2273 
lic #00541631 
Katie Orth 626.688.0418 
lic #00942500 
webbmartingroup.com 
real estate 
Home Prices & Sales Slow 
As Mortgage Rates Increase 
From Your Real Estate Experts 
We Are Here To Help & Share Our Wisdom 
IN THE NEWS 
Article by Jeff Collins 
SUNDAY, JUNE 19th 
We are Proud to announce the 
return of our very own 
Harry Shahoian 
CONCERT IN THE PARK | 6:00-8:00pm 
Memorial Park Bandshell 
222 West Sierra Madre Boulevard 
Please Join Us! 
Southern California home prices leveled off last 
month as buyers reacted to higher mortgage 
rates and rising inflation, causing sales to plunge 
16% from year-ago levels. Last month’s sales 
tally was one of the lowest for May in records 
dating back to 1988. “The market’s changed,’’ 
said Katherine Orth of Sierra Madre, a broker-
associate with DPP Real Estate. “It’s not like a 
bubble bursting. It’s more like a punch in the 
stomach.... the market today is entirely different 
from what I saw in the market in May,” she said. 
“We were talking this morning in our office 
meeting how the market has changed drastically. 
The demand is still there, but buyers are afraid 
that rates are going to continue to go up.” 
IS PROUD TO SPONSOR 
ELVIS IS HERE! 
Happy 
Father’s Day 
COUNCIL HONORS CONGRESSIONAL 
WOMAN OF THE YEAR ARIZMENDI 


Councilwoman and two time Former Mayor Rachelle Arizmendi was recognized by the 
Sierra Madre City Council for being honored as the 27th District Congressional Woman 
of the Year for Sierra Madre by Congresswoman Judy Chu. Others honored included 
women from the remaining 8 cities in the district: Sarah Perez (Alhambra), Veronica 
Jones (Altadena), Donna Choi (Arcadia), Daisy Ma (Monterey Park), Dr Kimberly Shriner 
(Pasadena), Bobbi Bruesch (Rosemead), Florence Lin (San Gabriel), and Laura Farber 
(South Pasadena). Pictured above with Arizmendi are, left to right, Mayor Pro Tem 
Ed Garcia, Councilwoman Kelly Kriebs, Mayor Gene Goss and Councilman 
Robert Parkhurst. Photo courtesy City of Sierra Madre. 

DID MATER DOLOROSA HINT AT LEGAL TROUBLE FOR CITY? 

PALMDALE $539,999 

4 bed 3 bath 1,948 sf 
Pool Home on large corner lot with 
gated RV access. 


MONROVIA $799,000 

DUPLEX 1 bed 1 bath Each 
Charming Duplex located close to 
Old Town Monrovia. 


SIERRA MADRE $1,100,000 
3 bed 
1.5 bath 1,282 sf 
Traditional Home with Remodeled 
Kitchen and Mountain Views 


By Kevin McGuire 

After 3 Sierra Madre residents filed a successful 
petition for the purpose of changing 
the zoning of the Monastery (Mater 
Dolorosa), supporters of “The Meadows” 
project came out in full force at Tuesday'scity council meeting to express their disapproval. 
The Initiative Measure will appear 
on the General Election Ballot on November 
8, 2022. 

If the measure passes, the zoning at the 
Monastery parcel and any subdivisions 
would change from Institutional to Hillside 
Residential, spoiling Mater Dolorosa’s 
future building ambitions for a possible 
housing development, shrine, expanded 
retreat area, and gardens or paths. 

Barbara Vellturo, Alexander Arrieta, and 
Gary Bacio submitted their intent to circulate 
their “Stop the Housing Project” petition 
in January. The completed petition 
was delivered to the County Clerk’s office 
in May. Of the 1,492 signatures on the petition, 
1,300 were sufficient, and they only 
needed 856 signatures to qualify for the 
ballot. 

During a public hearing on June 14th, CityCouncil had the option of adopting the 
initiative, submitting the initiative for inclusion 
on the November 8, 2022; General 
Municipal Election; calling for a Special 
Election and submit the initiative there; or 
directing the City Attorney to prepare a report 
under Elections Code § 9212. 

Misinformation and Legal Jeopardy 

The standing-room-only days at CityCouncil Chambers for this hot topic have 
dwindled to just a handful of diehard 
residents committed to keeping the small-
town charm alive in Sierra Madre. Those 
who were there to speak out against “The 
Meadows” project were outnumbered by 
mostly out-of-towners who contributed 
in some way to the religious functions at 
Mater Dolorosa. 

Most of the speakers in favor of the project 
expressed that Sierra Madre residents were 
“misinformed” by unreliable information 
about the Monastery’s intentions and false 
statistics on added traffic, water usage, and 
environmental impacts. In addition, much 
talk of costly legal action against the city if 
this initiative vote passes. 

“I’m a little bit concerned about some of 

the information that’s been passed by 
those who are proponents of this project 
‘The Meadows,’” stated Manuel Briones, a 
board member at Mater Dolorosa. One of 
the points Briones brought up appeared in 
the opinion section of the Mountain Views 
News, in which a resident claimed that allowing 
this project to proceed would double 
the traffic in the local area. “What they 
weren’t able to explain is how producing 
this amount of housing in the area, which 
would be less than one percent of what is 
now available in the city of Sierra Madre, 
would increase it by 100 percent,” Briones 
inquired. Briones also expressed that he 
felt there was much misinformation but 
did not cite any examples. 

Michael Cunningham, O.F.S., Mater Dolorosa 
Retreat Center, and Director and 
CEO spoke out against the Initiative. “Mater 
Doloroso would be greatly harmed if 
this initiative is successful. Damage has 
already been made through considerable 
miscommunication of our development 
plans and the status of our ministry,” Cunningham 
said. “This is not a future that we 
could have imagined for ourselves and not 
a future that anyone else would want,” he 
stated. 

A letter was sent to City Council from Mater 
Dolorosa expressing the disappointment 
and possible consequences of the 
Initiative Measure passing. Those consequences 
could mean a “strong possibility 
for litigation” against the city, which 
Briones also expressed during his public 
comments. 

Those who spoke were board members, 
priests, and Mater Dolorosa staff. Some 
expressed that moving forward with the 
measure would make Sierra Madre’s image 
look bad and discriminatory towards the 
Passionists. Many who spoke did not live 
in Sierra Madre. 

A Message Has Been Sent 

Though residents appeared outnumbered 
by project supporters, a small group of residents 
was still present to push back. “You 
need to listen to your constituents,” said Alexander 
Arrieta, one of the residents who 
proposed the petition. “There has been a 
very compelling message that has come 
across. The success of this Initiative to date 
in securing 1,300 valid signatures is just a 
first step in showing that there are some 
broad-based concerns about this project,” 
he stated. In addition, Arrieta mentioned 

the concerns raised by the Planning Commission 
during their May 24th meeting, 
including the over 4,000 square-foot sizes 
of some of the proposed properties and 
the intention of possibly building upward 
behind the Retreat Center in the future. 

The Commission, during that May 24th 
public hearing, seemed offended and 
shocked by the suggestion from New Urban 
West, Inc. representative Jonathan 
Frankel that the Commission should 
“move the project forward” with a vote 
with included recommendations for CityCouncil to review. 

Architect and former Planning Commission 
member Joe Catalano was the last to 
speak during the public comment section 
of the hearing. “I’m hearing a lot of threats 
tonight. And an awful lot of talk about how 
the Passionists are being invaded against,” 
Catalano said. “I just want to make you 
all aware that there is a really, really serious 
issue here that doesn’t have anything 
to do with what we’ve been hearing about 
tonight…it’s a real lousy design. I don’t 
know how you can talk about forced-down 
zoning when the design creates a density 
packing those houses in that it’s way in 
excess of what we normally have,” he said. 
“It’s absolutely ridiculous.” 

And We Wait…Again 

City Council unanimously motioned for 
the City Attorney to adhere to Elections 
Code § 9212, which stipulates that the 
legislative body may refer the proposed 
initiative measure to any city agency for a 
report on several topics. 

For this measure, those topics include the 
environmental impact of the project vs. 
the initiative, the financial benefits and 
other material benefits of the project vs. 
the initiative, legal analysis, a comparison 
of the level of review authority, and analysis 
of max development potential for the 
unit count and square footage. 

This Initiative Measure was one in a group 
of election-related considerations, including 
five Resolutions, three of which were 
adopted prior in the evening. 

The City has 30 days to get the 9212 responses 
to Council in time for their mid-
July meeting. 

It feels like a long, hot summer ahead.