Mountain Views News, Combined Edition Saturday, January 28, 2023

Mountain Views-News Saturday, January 28, 2023 


SIERRA MADRE POLICE BLOTTER 

The following represents a summary report of some of the major incidents 
handled by the Sierra Madre Police Department during this period. This list is 
not intended to be considered exclusive or all-inclusive. 

Tuesday, January 17th Theft 
At approximately 1 PM, officers responded to the 700 block of W Sierra Madre Blvd for reports 
of a theft. The reporting party stated that unknown suspect(s) stole the rear license plate to 
their vehicle. The Detectives' Bureau is following up on this incident. 

Wednesday, January 17th Vandalism 
At approximately 2 PM, officers responded to the 200 block of N Hermosa Ave for reports of 
a vandalism. The reporting party stated that unknown suspect(s) shattered the rear window of 
their vehicle. The Detectives' Bureau is following up on this incident. 

Wednesday, January 18th Commercial BurglaryAt approximately 1 AM, officers responded to 58 West Sierra Madre Blvd (The Bottle Shop) 
for reports of a possible burglary that had occurred. Upon further investigation, it was discovered 
that the front glass door of the business had been broken with a brick. Surveilance footage 
showed a suspect taking approximately $700 worth of property. 
Anyone with information is encouraged to call the Sierra Madre Police Department Detective 
Bureau at 626-355-1414. If you wish to remain anonymous, please visit lacrimestoppers.org 
and submit a tip. 

Wednesday, January 18th Traffic Collision 
At approximately 10AM, officers responded to the area of Sierra Madre Blvd, just east of 
Baldwin Ave. for reports of a traffic collision. Upon arrival, officers discovered a traffic collision 
involving 3 vehicles. One of the involved parties complained of non-life threatening injuries 
and they were transported to a local hospital by Sierra Madre Fire Department Paramedics. 

Thursday, January 19th Theft 
At approximately 12 PM, officers responded to the 00 block of E Montecito Ave. for reports of 
a theft. The reporting party stated that unknown suspect(s) stole a desktop computer from their 
unlocked vehicle. The Detectives' Bureau is following up on this incident. 

Saturday, January 21st Residential BurglaryAt approximately 9 PM, officers responded to the 400 block of West Orange Grove Ave for 
reports of a burglary alarm. Officers conducted a check of the residence, and discovered that 
a rear door had signs of forced entry. Upon further investigation, surveillance footage showed 
2 masked individuals enter the property, and exit from the interior of the home shortly after. 
Anyone with information is encouraged to call the Sierra Madre Police Department Detective 
Bureau at 626-355-1414. If you wish to remain anonymous, please visit lacrimestoppers.org 
and submit a tip. 

LETTER TO THE EDITOR 

Here is what we learned at the January 24th City Council Meeting. The City of Sierra Madre and 
developer, New Urban West, are being held hostage and extorted by a group of about 20 members 
of the Stop Development Project committee who are on an ideological mission to delay the Passionists’ 
Meadows project at any cost. 

In Tuesday’s discussion of the referendum to overturn the city’s approval of Ordinance 1461, City 
Manager Jose Reynoso said the negotiations with Barbara Vellturo’s STOP group have resulted in 
concessions by the City and New Urban West in negotiations to withdraw their Initiative, however, 
this has resulted with more demands and a deadline that would put a special election date in June 
if these concessions are not met. Upon questioning by the Council, Manager Reynoso said in the 
past two weeks he has spent approximately 70% of his work time and some weekend hours negotiating 
with STOP and the developer. The City Attorney has also been involved in discussions with 
the STOP group attorney. 

A bit of background: The STOP group fostered an Initiative, Measure HR, to kill the Meadows 
project by rezoning the Mater Dolorosa property from Institutional to Hillside Residential, which 
would have allowed 6500 sq. ft. mansions. The Initiative was soundly defeated in the November 
8th election. By then, Mrs. Vellturo was already moving forward with Plan B, showing that they 
never intended to accept the will of the voters. They circulated a petition for a referendum to overturn 
Ordinance 1461, which approved the zoning map amendment, the developer's Specific Plan, 
and the Development Agreement of the Meadows project. After certification of the signatures on 
the referendum petition, the City was left with two choices: either withdraw their approval of the 
Meadows project or put it to a city-wide vote. 

A special election in April would cost us about $325,000 from the city’s reserves. After much deliberation 
at a subsequent special meeting, the Council agreed to allow more time for City Manager 
Reynoso to negotiate in good faith with the Stop group for a possible withdrawal of the referendum. 
More time would miss the deadline for an April election. 

At the January 24th meeting, the Council learned that negotiations had failed to resolve three of 
the original eight demands, and more demands were to be met. The Council, having delayed long 
enough, voted to schedule a special election on May 9th, now costing closer to $400,000. That gives 
Mrs. Vellturo almost two weeks to withdraw the referendum, avoiding this huge drain on the city’s 
reserves. 

What happens if the referendum should overturn Ordinance 1461 or if there is a further delay? The 
developer will go ahead with an already submitted SB 330 project to replace the proposed park in 
the original Meadows plan with eight additional homes, including three very low-income units, 
costing the city $7 million in lost concessions. The city cannot stop this SB 330 project which is 
allowed under state law. 

Can a small group of people hold the City and a developer hostage to delay a project? Apparently so, 
and at a cost of more than $400,000 to us and, who knows how much to New Urban West. 

All of this for what? To lose $7 million in concessions and build even more houses? This group 
seems to have a personal agenda rather than a concern with the overall benefits and cost to the 
city. –De and Pat Alcorn 


WALKING SIERRA MADRE -The Social 

Side by Deanne Davis 

“If winter comes, can spring 
be far behind?” 
Percy Bysshe Shelley, ‘Ode to 
the West Wind.’ 

“The color of springtime is in 
the flowers; the color of winter 
is in the imagination.” 
Terri Guillemets 

“If we had no winter, the 
spring would not be so pleasant.” 
Anne Bradstreet 
“What good is the warmth of 
summer, without the cold of 
winter to give it sweetness.” 
John Steinbeck 

“Winter is on my head, but 
eternal spring is in my heart.” 
Victor Hugo 

What all these spring and 
summer quotes mean, dear 
friends and neighbors, is I 
am tired of being cold. I 
made lemon muffins this 
morning. My lemon tree is 
loaded with gorgeous lemons 
and we are enjoying 
them thoroughly. A lemon 
muffin with coffee takes 


the chill off the morning. It’s been what seems like freezing weather forever and I am 
so ready for spring. Not including the muffin recipe today but here is something even 
better to ward off this ever-lasting cold. Clam Chowder! Just saying Clam Chowder 
makes me feel less frozen. It starts off with bacon and as all the chefs on the Food Network 
are fond of saying, “Everything is better with bacon!” 

Best Clam Chowder Ever 

8 slices bacon, chopped

½ cup diced celery (the heart part with the leaves still on the stalk – more flavor)

1 cup thinly sliced green onions

1 cup regular strength chicken broth

*30 oz, more or less, chopped clams

3 medium-sized red potatoes (about a pound) peeled and diced

2 cups half and half

Pepper

Chopped parsley 

*I buy Bumble Bee fancy whole baby clams, which show a net weight of 10 oz. and 
a drained weight of 5 oz. When I first started making this clam chowder they were 
$2-something per can. Such is no longer the case, sad to say, but it’s so good, it’s worth 
it. 4 or 5 cans will give you plenty of clams. 

Fry the bacon in a 5 to 6 quart pan until crisp. Bacon is so lean anymore you probably 
won’t need to discard a lot of the drippings but leave about 3 Tb. in the pan. Add the 
celery and green onions. Cook, stirring often, till the onions are limp. Stir in the clams 
and their liquid, the chicken broth and potatoes. Bring to a boil over high heat, cover, 
reduce heat and simmer till potatoes are tender to bite. About 10 minutes. Stir in the 
half & half and season to taste with pepper. As bacon is salty, you might not need more 
salt. Heat till steaming but not boiling. This smells incredible, by the way. Garnish 
with parsley and serve with garlic bread. Notice, no flour was involved so your clam 
chowder will not resemble wallpaper paste as many clam chowders have a tendency to 
do. If you can restrain yourself, leave it overnight and eat it the next day as it will taste 
even better. You’ll be nice and warm after a bowl or two of this. 

The damage to our beloved Mt. Wilson and Bailey Canyon Trails is just heartbreaking 
to see. The picture today, taken by our daughter, Leah, is of my dear John out on 
the Trail. He is now doing his hiking in heaven. He loved to hike the Mt. Wilson Trail 
and made his way up to First Water at least once a week. He had dozens of friends he 
met on the Trail and, as many of them brought their dogs along, he knew all of them 
by name and wore a fanny pack loaded with small Milk Bones. Needless to say, all the 
dogs were delighted to see John on the Trail. He knew all the guys who worked on the 
Trail and came back every time with a great story about who or what he saw. We have 
been out to see the Trail Race every year and, in fact, Leah, the picture taker, has run 
the race a time or two. 

Not to blow my own horn, but I have made a contribution to help repair the trails. The 
annual Trail Race is May 27th and, hopefully, the volunteers who give of their time 
and energy will be able to get the Trail back in shape before then. If you’d like to help 
out, here’s how: 

You can send a tax-deductible donation to Sierra Madre Community Foundation and 
put Fletcher Trail Maintenance Fund on the memo line. Mail it to: P O Box 716, Sierra 
Madre CA 91025. Or you can go to the Sierra Madre Community Foundation website: 
www.sierramadrefoundation.com and make your contribution through PayPal. 

John loved hiking the Trail and, hopefully, it will be back in shape and open to all the 
Trail enthusiasts very soon. 

“Darkness cannot drive out darkness; only light can do that. Hate cannot drive out 
hate; Only love can do that.” 

I’m ending this week with the Martin Luther King quote I put in last week’s Walking 
Sierra Madre. Like all of you, I couldn’t believe the horrendous events in Monterey 
Park last week and the other terrible shootings that have taken place. The shortest 
verse in the Bible is John 11:35: “Jesus wept.” This has to do with the death of his friend, 
Lazarus, and the grieving of Lazarus’ sisters, Mary and Martha. When I heard of these 
tragic deaths this verse came to mind and all I can think is…God wept. 

In a world where you can be anything you want to be…Be KIND! 

My book page: Amazon.com: Deanne Davis 
There are adventures galore available there:
True tales of early California, a story about a well-traveled violin,
Emma Gainsworth and her horrific encounters with pumpkins,
So many Kindle stories to enjoy. Take a look! 

Mountain Views News 80 W Sierra Madre Blvd. No. 327 Sierra Madre, Ca. 91024 Office: 626.355.2737 Fax: 626.609.3285Email: editor@mtnviewsnews.com Website: www.mtnviewsnews.com