Mountain Views News, Combined edition

Combined Edition

Inside this Week:

F. Y. I. :

Conversations:
Preserve Sierra Madre
Neighbors for Fairness
Letters to the Editor

Sierra Madre:
Walking SM … The Social Side

SM Community Calendar:
SM Calendar of Events

Pasadena – Altadena:

Altadena · So. Pasadena · San Marino:
Letter: Pasadena Mayor Victor Gordo
San Marino Events & Programming

Around The San Gabriel Valley:
L.A. Health Update

Support Your Local Businesses:

Best Friends and More:
Chef Peter Dills
Table for Two
Family Matters
Christopher Nyerges
Katnip News!
Pet of the Week

The Good Life:
Tom Purcell
Out to Pastor
Senior Happenings

Opinion:
Rich & Famous
Stuart Tolchin On …
The Funnies

Legal Notices:

Support Your Local Businesses:

Columnists:
Deanne Davis
Peter Dills
Marc Garlett
Rich Johnson
Christopher Nyerges
Rev. James L. Snyder
Stuart Tolchin

Recent Issues:
Issue 33
Issue 32
Issue 31
Issue 30
Issue 29
Issue 28
Issue 27
Issue 26
Issue 25
Issue 24
Issue 23

Archives:
MVNews Archive:  Page 1

MVNews this week:  Page 1

SATURDAY, AUGUST 20, 2022 
VOLUME 16 NO. 34VOLUME 16 NO. 34 
SIERRA MADRE NEWS BRIEFS 
SATURDAY, AUGUST 20, 2022 
VOLUME 16 NO. 34VOLUME 16 NO. 34 
SIERRA MADRE NEWS BRIEFS 
Sold for $1,900,000 | Sold In Less Than 3 Weeks 
Multiple Offers Over Asking 
4 Beds | 2 Baths | 2,144 sqft | 10,103 sqft Lot 
JUST SOLD 
NEW PRICE 
Listed at $2,248,000 
Contemporary Craftsman | 471Auburn.com 
4 Beds | 4 Baths | 3,679 sqft | 11,179 sqft Lot 
AREA MARKET REPORT 
APRIL-JUNE 2022 
SIERRA MADRE 
SINGLE-FAMILY HOMES 

SFR AVERAGES BR BA SF LOT 
April-June 2022 4 3 2,499 10,896 
April-June 2021 3 2 1,832 9,532 

LIST PRICE SOLD PRICE PRICE SF 
$1,676,547 $1,832,942 $764 
$1,194,954 $1,271,259 $724 

CONDOMINIUMS 

LIST PRICE SOLD PRICE PRICE SF 
SFR AVERAGES BR BA SF 
April-June 2022 3 3 1,736 

$942,500 $989,500 $574 

The data indicates now is the time to sell….reach out to 
any of us to assist you in that process. If your home is 
priced right, we have consistently been able to get well 
over asking for our very happy sellers. 


x beds | x baths | x,xxx sqft.

We continue to be so appreciative of all our clients 
whom we have been able to support. Despite 
everything, we are NEVER too busy to support you. 
Feel free to reach out to any of us with questions 
about the market and/or if you are interested in 
moving forward with selling or buying a home. 

Jan Greteman 626.975.4033 

lic #01943630 

Judy Webb-Martin 626.688.2273 

lic #00541631 

Katie Orth 626.688.0418 

lic #00942500 


real estate 

webbmartingroup.com 


BALLOT MEASURE NAMED MEASURE HR 

The ballot measure that will appear on the November 
ballot opposing the "Meadows at Bailey Canyon" project 
was officially named late Friday. Based on information received 
at press time, voters will be casting their votes to either 
approve or reject Measure HR (Hillside Residential).

In a related matter, the Sierra Madre City Council will 
meet on Tuesday, August 23, 2022 to formally develop 
their ballot statement opposing the measure. 

U.S. MARSHALS PERFORM A 
SEX OFFENDER COMPLIANCE 
CHECK ON E. MIRAMONTE 
On Friday morning, several members of the Los Angeles U.S. 
Marshal Service conducted a compliance check at a home on 

E. Miramonte where a registered sex offender resides. DeputyOlvera of the USMS in Los Angeles confirmed the activity Friday 
afternoon.
Because of the proximity of the home to a school, school authorities 
were alerted the day before that the activity would take 
place and that the officers would be armed.

A check of Megan's Law website (www.meganslaw.ca.gov)
for offenders in the area does reveal that AWest resides on that 
street. According to the site, Awest was convicted of "Lewd or 
lascivious acts with a child under 14 years of age" in 2006 and 
released from prison in 2014. Upon his release he was required 
to register with SMPD and listed on Megan's Law list. 

The outcome of the USMS activity was not available at press 
time. (Related story: http://mtnviewsnews.com/v08/htm/n34/
index.htm) 

PROGRESS AT THE POST OFFICE 


As you may have noticed, the landscaping of the Sierra Madre 
Post Office has taken some giant steps forward and we are ready 
to announce more. 

FormLA, the landscape architecture firm that specializes in 
drought tolerant native landscaping has been busy with the design 
and they are ready to reveal it. On Tuesday, August 30 at 
6pm there will be a Zoom presentation and everyone is invited. 
The landscape architecture team of Cassy Aoyagi, Eric Crow 
and Isara Ongwiseth will do a presentation of the final design 
and are looking for the public’s feedback. If you want to be part 
of the big reveal, go to: www.formlainc.com to register.
In preparation for the final design, you may have noticed some 
additions at the Post Office. One of our intrepid volunteers designed, 
built and installed a new bench for the front that also 
covers the new irrigation valves and matches the mid-centurydesign and colors of the building.

 We also installed the foundation for the non-flammable walkway 
that is part of the landscape design. Other ongoing preparation 
work includes the digging of the new swale, the addition 
of new topsoil and the digging for the new irrigation system. 
The plants can’t go in until all the hardscape has been finished. 

The project has also received a generous donation from Rain-
bird that will cover all the irrigation needs. Fun Fact: The 
founder of Rainbird lived in Sierra Madre! We are planning a 
public demonstration on how to install a Rainbird drip irrigation 
system for native plants so please keep an eye out for the 
announcement. 
Our future public demonstrations will cover how to create 
a swale to capture rain water and how to plant native plants. 
We expect those presentations to take place in October and 
November. 

If you would like to help us with this project, please send a tax-
deductible donation check payable to the “Post Office Landscape 
Project c/o SMCF.” The mailing address is Sierra Madre 
Community Foundation, P.O. Box 716, Sierra Madre, CA91025. If you prefer to make your donation by PayPal, please 
scan the PayPal QR Code below: 


Thank you for your support to 
safeguard the viability of this important 
Sierra Madre community 
resource by helping us attract 
people to the re-landscaped Sierra 
Madre Post Office. 

We hope that, when people come 
to the newly landscaped building, 
they will admire the planting,
learn about the water saving vegetation 
options, and transfer that 

interest to their own yards. 
Thank you for your consideration! 

PHASE I OF “THE MEADOWS” 
PROJECT APPROVED BY THE 
PLANNING COMMISSION 

It’s off to City Councilfor a final vote 

By Kevin McGuire 

Well, the dog days of summer are 
winding down, the kids are back in 
school, and The Planning Commission 
has given a passing grade to The 
Meadows at Bailey Canyon Project, 
with some minor adjustments agreed 
upon by the developers. 

During what would be continued public 
hearing number six on Thursday,
August 18, the Commission was presented 
with these familiar options: 

A. Certify the Environmental ImpactReport (EIR) and adopt the MitigationMonitoring and Reporting Program;
and 
B. Approve the Specific Plan; and
C. Approve amendments to the General 
Plan and Land Use Map and Zoning 
Code and Zoning Map to changethe project site from Institutional to 
Single-Family Residential Specific 
Plan Overlay; and
D. Approve the Lot Line Adjustment,
and 
E. Approve the Development 
Agreement. 
At the August 4th meeting, The Planning 
Commission hit the developers 
with requested revisions to the Specific 
Plan, Development Agreement, design 
guidelines, and park design. Some of 
the revision requests to the Specific 
Plan included clarifications on maximum 
height, identifying the amount 
of 2-story houses proposed, allowance 
for appeal, mandatory recommendation, 
and notice requirement for the 
Final Park Design. 

Revisions requested for the Development 
Agreement include an amendment 
to read those offsite improvements 
commence before the issuance 
of the first building permit, and construction 
should be complete before 
the 11th building permit. This is regarding 
Carter Ave. 

Jonathan Frankel of New Urban West,
Inc., presented red-lined revisions to 
the Commission at the meeting before 
a packed room Thursday night. Frankel 
did offer the following adjustments. 

1. The improvements to CarterAve. would comply with requirements 
and be completed “well” before 
the new public park is completed.
2. They have adopted a way tocalculate the floor area except forsmall entryways and foyers connected 
to a staircase that do not exceed 
180-square feet. 
3. Fourteen units will complywith the angle plane height requirements 
in the Municipal Code.
4. Confirmed that the maximum 
retention wall height will be six feet,
except for privacy walls between existing 
Mater Dolorosa Retreat Center 
Gardens and The Meadows, forwhich developers request eight-footwalls. The walls will be fully screenedwith landscape.
5. The final park approval willbe subject to a public design process 
with Community Services review and 
approval, and a public notice will be 
mailed to those homeowners in adjacent 
properties. Appeals to CityCouncil and Community Services 
Commission are permitted.
6. Clarified that minor modifications 
may be approved by theCity Manager upon the written recommendation 
from the Director of 
Planning and Community Preservation. 
Notice of applications for minormodifications will be provided tothe Planning Commission and CityCouncil. Developers also agreed tolower allowable deviations in heightfrom 20% to 10%, making the maximum 
height 27.5 feet.
7. The maximum floor area may 
not be exceeded unless a variance is 
granted in accordance with existingcode requirements. Future homeowners 
will be subject to the regulations 
included in the Specific Plan. 
The public had a chance to comment 
on this subject once again. Comments 
included some of the same concerns 
over fires, water usage, and drought 
situations to impact the surrounding 
communities and lack of outreach. 
A few members of Mater Dolorosa 
pushed for final approval and commented 
negatively about how long this 
process has taken. 

But, the final result after meeting 6 is 
the approval of Resolution 22-10 certifying 
the Environmental Impact Report, 
Resolution 22-11, approving the 
General Plan, Land Use Plan Amendment, 
approval of the Zoning Map,
Lot Line Adjustment, approval of the 
Specific Plan (with some minor revisions) 
and acceptance of the Development 
Agreement (also with some final 
edits). The developers have already 
agreed upon the requested revisions. 

Next stop City Council. Stay tuned 
for announcements when City Council 
will vote on The Meadows Project. 
Phase Two of the Project, which 
includes the Tentative Tract Map and 
Design Review Permit, is subject to a 
Five-Hearing Rule. New Urban West 
has 24 months to complete the application 
for these two entitlements. 

RESERVE COMMANDER MITCHELL THOMAS 
RECEIVES THE CALIFORNIA RESERVE PEACE OFFICER 
ASSOCIATION 2022 DISTINGUISH SERVICE AWARD 


Last week the California Reserve Peace Officer Association awarded Reserve 
Commander Mitchell Thomas the 2022 Distinguish Service Award for his 38 years of 
service to the City of Sierra Madre and the Police Department. Reserve Commander 
Thomas has been a substantial department member, working on various assignments 
on a volunteer basis. Well done, sir, and thank you for your committed and selfless 
service to the City of Sierra Madre. Pictured above r to l: Reserve Unit Coordinator,
Sgt. Charles Kamchamnan, Commander Mitchell, Officer Kenneth Berry,SMPD 
Acting Chief Henry Amos. 


ALHAMBRA $1,200,000 MONROVIA $799,000 SIERRA MADRE $1,100,000 
3 bed 2 bath 2,032 sf DUPLEX 1 bed 1 bath Each 3 bed 1.5 bath 1,282 sf 
Exquisite Mid-Century Modern in Charming Duplex located close to Traditional Home with Remodeled 
Historic Alhambra Hills Old Town Monrovia. Kitchen and Mountain Views

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