Business Women
in Eagle Rock Win!

by Tom Topping
October 20, 2005 - Ladies of Eagle Rock were well represented at the annual Women in Business Awards, held this year at the Pasadena Hilton. Winners were selected from nominees within the 43rd and 44th Assembly Districts and the 21st Senatorial District. The International Ballroom at the Hilton Hotel in Pasadena was near capacity with about 500 people attending. The tables were beautifully decorated as were the attendees.
State Senator Jack Scott started off the ceremony by saying, "We tied one hand behind our back, when we closed so many businesses & professions to women." Assembly member Carol Liu reminded the audience of the importance of continuing the struggle for child care and pay equity.
Paula Madison, President and General Manager of KNBC, gave the keynote address. Under Madison's direction, KNBC continues to be the top revenue generating station in the western United States. She relayed her success story of education, driven by her parents sacrifice, and their refusal to accept anything but success from their children.
Pictured above are Eagle Rock natives, sisters Kathy and Sharon Kroner from Owl Talk resale store, Senator Scott, Amelia Cordova-Gonzales from Camilo's Restaurant, and Linda Allen of the ERCPR. All were awarded beautiful glass trophies at the ceremony. The 6th annual awards event was sponsored and organized by State Senator Jack Scott, and State Assembly persons Carol Liu and Dario Frommer.

Polite Bandit hits Eagle Rock, is Captured

by Tom Topping
Word of a string of robberies by a knife wielding criminal spread like wildfire last month. The first robbery that came to the attention of the community happened at the Blissful Soul gift and candle shop. The suspect, a latino man in his mid thirties, was in the store looking at merchandise and asking questions, pretending to be a shopper.
When other patrons left, he approached the owner with a knife. Telling her he did not want to hurt her, and that she should just give him what he wanted, he showed a four inch blade, and asked for the cash. Only about forty dollars was in the till, so he took it and left. He apologized for the crime, giving him the nickname of the "Polite Bandit." The Blissfull Soul responded by removing the cash register, and posting a sign reading, "Credit Card and ATM Sales only."
The next week the "Polite Bandit" struck again. He robbed XICA women's clothing store, and then on Wednesday morning, hit Twerp's Children's store.
"He came in and just sort of blended in," said Stella, owner of Twerp's. "I was rewinding the video (surveillance tape) and he approached and said, 'listen, I don't want to hurt you.'
"I tried to open the register, I couldn't do it 'cause I was really nervous. He was oddly polite 'cause he took a step back to give me space." After he took the money, Stella grabbed her telephone, and followed him out. She watched him just go walking down Eagle Rock Boulevard, then called the police and locked the door.
After the detectives arrived and went through all the questions, they showed Stella mugshots. She was able to identify the "Polite Bandit."
The next day, he was found. The police discovered he was staying at a motel on York Boulevard, where he was arrested.

October 18, 2005 - The Candidate Forum in Hermon took on a distinctively jovial tone. Moderator Joe Walker made event both informational and enjoyable.

Hermon CD14
Candidate Forum
In yet another forum for Council District 14 candidates, held last month, the location and the focus was on the community of Hermon. Hermon is small community nestled in-between Highland Park, El Sereno and South Pasadena. The intersections of Avenue 60, Monterey Road and Via Marisol make up the heart of the Hermon community. Although small in size, the community is big on pride and ownership and boasts of many committed activists that make it so.
Some issues that Hermon addressed at the forum were concerns about the possible upcoming sale of the Monterey Plaza Shopping Center, open space issues, homelessness and crime, and how best to embrace diversity, instead of letting it be divisive.
I noted some interesting things the candidates said on these and other issues.
In opening statements, Brian Heckman surprised some with his familiarity with the Hermon community as two of his sons had attended Pacific Christian Academy located there. Nick Pacheco vaunted his activities there when he served the district previously. Ruby de Vera quoted Martin Luther King and said that "People don't have trust in Politics anymore, I'd like to bring that back."
David Sanchez may have been thinking about an unfortunate run-in with a meter maid recently, as he suggested he could "Fix" parking tickets as Councilman.
When the subject of the Monterey Plaza came up, Pacheco referred to how he handled a proposal for Eagle Rock during his tenure. "No zoning changes, no variances, and no permits under my watch," was the message relayed to proponents of building another public storage where the All Star Lanes now sits. That is all it takes for developers to want to move on to another location, he said.
A light moment of the evening was when 18 year old candidate Crystal Arceo addressed the issue of affordable housing by saying, "There's no constitutional right saying everyone can live in L.A.!" It was, however, the answer that people living in single family homes wanted to hear. They are usually in favor of low income housing as long as it's not built in their neighborhood.
Pacheco talked about how he addressed the problems of homelessness quickly as they came up. Heckmann talked about trying to balance the rights of individual homeless, with protecting the public, reminding how homeless are the customers of drug dealers. Still apparently mad about citation, David Sanchez continued to call for less parking meters and tickets.
On the subject of dealing with racial diversity, Pacheco vouched for cultural, non-agendized events as the best way to progress. Ruby de Vera called for more diversity to be taught in the schools, while Heckmann vowed to keep an open door to all. (The de Vera campaign, by the way, was a victim of racial hatred last month when an anonymous caller threatened to blow up a business that displayed her campaign's signs. Jim's Chevron showed no fear by insisting the signs remain up, no matter what.)
In closing:
Crystal Arceo: "I want to create partnership."
David Sanchez: "I run for democracy."
Jose Huizar: "I will have a great staff that lives in the community."
Juan Jimenez: "We're all Christians."
Nick Pacheco: "Bring back no appointment necessary council hours."
Paul Gonzales: "Vote for Paul Gonzales, I'll show you the way."
Ruby de Vera: "I worked for three great council persons."
Brian Heckmann: "Those (neighborhood councils) will be my eyes and ears."

Ruby de Vera Talks

What is the number 1 issue that voters are responding to?

They're responding to getting their fair share of city services. I think that's the number one issue.
Number two is crime and violence. People are tired of making phone calls and not getting anywhere. They've lost faith in the city. So I'm trying to restore that faith back so they'll trust the city one more time.
Give 'em a chance to make up for the past years that nothing has happened.

Why do you think they are having those problems?

It's about of sheer neglect. The city is just not responsive to most of the calls. And you can see it for yourself, you drive around and you see it. Nothing's happening.

What skill talent and or experience, do you bring to the job, and how would it benefit CD14 and also the city at large?

I have a degree in business administration, which means I can look at the city and the district two ways. And I also have the ten year experience of working in the city, and that definitely qualifies me to able to get things done!
Right now, in the city, the committee that is vacant is the audit committee, you need somebody that has a business administration degree, one who has majored in accounting to make sure this committee works. I will tell you I am the only candidate that is qualified for that position.

When you said you could look at it two ways with your degree in business administration, what were you referring to?

You can look at it on the economic development portion of it, and at the same time, the audit portion; holding departments accountable. Where is the money going? Why aren't we seeing all this improvement?
Because we know that maybe the money that is encumbered for a particular project gets put somewhere else, and that's not right. There's one project in Boyle Heights I know of that has been sitting for the last, I would say three years. It doesn't take three years to do a project.
You know I did the Eagle Rock (Carnegie Library/Cultural Center) rehab in one year and everybody said, "That's not possible Ruby! You can't do that!" There were a bunch of lawyers that wanted to buy that from the city and make it into a law office. And Councilman Alatorre said at that time, "What do you think Ruby?"
I said we should find the money, and let us rehab the building using city forces, and dedicate it back to the community as a community center, as a Cultural Center.
And he said, "Well, if you can do that, I'll find the money." And he did, he found the money for it. And the nice thing about that building, too, is we worked really hard... rehabbed it according to its historical fabric, but we got our money back because we were awarded a grant by the state for preserving that building. And so the city got half of the money back they spent on that building.

What skill talent and or experience, do you bring to the job, and how would it benefit CD14 and also the city at large?

We have been, I would say, some areas in Eagle Rock we're pretty lucky, among all the other little communities of the 14th district, There are communities like... Eagle Rock is very fortunate.
We have, I would say, Eagle Rock is the Beverly Hills of the 14th district, and it is... it's like the upper middle class to higher income people live in Eagle Rock, and most of them are able to afford some of the things... If there is a tree in front of their house that they feel like.. doesn't belong there, they will go apply with the city to remove that tree and put something else, but some of the other communities are at the mercy of the city.
They can't afford to do... they can't even afford to call for bulky item pickup sometimes. Either they don't know what needs to be done, if they need to educate them further... I think it's because they have lost faith, they don't want to be bothered anymore.

So you're saying the benefit to the city at large you bring is what of those things?

Well an improvement in city services for one thing, and holding departments accountable. And pushing for a more business climate that will improve the communities that are in dire need of redevelopment.

What is your philosophy to guide those decisions when the interests of the whole city might be conflicting with the local interest?

I always say that there's 15 council districts, and a lot of them will be in dire need of city service. But then there are areas in the city that could very well afford the same city services that some of the smaller communities don't have. Getting 1/15 their share of city services may not be accurate.
If the west side doesn't need all this, and the northeast side needs it, I think the west side should at least give back to the city.

What about the times, that say for instance, there's always the contentious issue about filming, because the city's very liberal policies allowing filming helps the region overall, the city overall, but it adversely affects people in their front yards. For instance when your previous boss wanted to put a prison in East L.A., definitely, the space was needed, but definitely, the people who lived there didn't want it there. So if you can think of what your philosophy is to decide on those things?

You know, the 14th district used to be the dumping ground for everything, most of the affordable housing, most of the housing projects were dumped in Boyle Heights, because they felt, that's the community with the most need for affordable housing, but the community feels that's not true.
If there's any section of the 14th district, maybe there's some part of the industrial area that can handle affordable housing, that's something to look into. But at this point, we don't have enough housing to handle the population growth. I'd say, El Sereno probably needs a lot of housing. At one of the candidate forums, Hermon said that they tripled in population in that particular small area of Hermon, but they don't have the housing.

So you really don't have a particular philosophy, or a way of looking at issues like that?

Well my philosophy is where there's a need, that's where it should go. And in some of the other areas there, they can pass it up.

Will you go along with the unwritten rule of the other 14 council members going along with the local council person's desires, when it come to deciding issues within that local council district?

Well, I feel if it's a citywide issue, everybody should put their two bits into it, but if it's a local issue, you see the thing about it is the policy, in order to get it through, you need to lobby- some of your other council members, cause you will probably need ten votes to get it through.
In order to do that, you need to walk to your other council members and say, "Listen this is important to me, I'd like to get it passed." By himself he couldn't do it, he would need the help of the other council members, and that's what he does, that's the process, that's the policy that the city has.
Then it's up to the council members to say, "Listen, we don't have enough information on this, let's put it back to committee- it's actually a delay tactic, that's what it is. You just give the community a lot more chance to go back to the burner, go back and review this process, or this particular project and put it back on the burner and forget it, and sometimes that also happens, it goes back to committee, because the committee, the three committee members would be the experts in that particular field.

What is your experience with vetting and selecting possible staff members, and how will you determine if they have the proper disposition or attitude to be of service to the constituents, and still carry out your initiatives and philosophies for the district?

That question came up last night at one of the meetings, and said, "What will you do in your first 30 days in office?" And I said I'm gonna have to find the most qualified staff members, to serve this community. Staff members who know this community by heart, staff members who feel for this community, and who will be dedicated and committed to this community.
Because what's happening is, we hire people who do not have the background for one thing, and then we have to train them, cause that's the problem, when you start training people, some of them just don't come out, and I say, "I'll give you a probation period of three months, if you do not deliver, then you will get replaced."
But I'm not going to stick with somebody who claims to have all the qualifications and experience but will not be able to deliver. I'd like to see staff members go from start to finish, nothing has got to be half-done.
And that's I think, what the problem is, when you get a case reported to you, bang, "Hey! I've got bulky item pickup here, there's a lot of trash here," what happens is the case worker calls the department and reports it, but there is no follow through.
And you leave it up to the department to take care of that and the case is closed, because it has been referred to the department. And I'd like to see (it) referred to the department, look at the situation one more time, maybe a phone call, "Has that problem been resolved, if so, thank you, if not we'll follow up on it."
But that's what seems to be the problem- delegate it to the department and they don't follow through with it, and then you get the cases piling up, and there are cases that have been sitting there for years.

Have you been in a position before, to have to select people and then vet them?

Before I worked in the public office I worked in the private industry, and I worked in the insurance and real estate development field, and I've had the opportunity to hire people, and you know I look at their qualifications, they tell me what they can do, and they get hired.
But if you do not deliver, I said listen, you know uh, um I thought you would be good for this job, but it doesn't look like you're cut out to do this. We need more that what you can deliver, and we need to find somebody else.
In the city council offices, too, you're hired at will, there is no security in city council. Your job is... you can be fired the next day. We're not represented by the union like some other city employees are.

Why do you want the job?

I want the job because I know that I'm probably the most qualified to do it. Based on my experience, based on what I have seen happen the neglect in some of the areas, the business as usual attitudes, and when people make this community, the 14th district, a stepping stone to something better, I don't really agree with that.
I'm not trying to allude to Antonio, the opportunity was there for him to run for office, the mayor, and I think he's always wanted that, but there's other people out there who just want to make this their stepping stone to a brighter future, and they want to go into a higher office, and using it. You have three lawyers running here. They would not stop to want to become City Attorney...

(ha ha ha) That's possible!

There's a lot of community activists, who are running, and some of them have been in the community very long like Mr. Jimenez (Johnny J.) Some of them are just, I think, out there who do what they can do, but they don't have the background, they don't have the qualifications, and they think that this job is something they can just go in and learn.
You can't learn this job, you've got to have it in your heart, you've got to have the commitment, and I'm rooted in this community, I'm not going anywhere. And I'd like to see a lot more changes happen.

Can you articulate in a real short, few sentences, as few as possible, what is your vision for the 14th?

First and foremost, I'd like people to get along, and that seems to be the biggest drawback in any community, and I'm not just targeting one community, I'm targeting all communities.
And I'd like to see more community participation in issues. That's very important to me, because if you don't know what's going on in your community where you have made an investment in your community, if you've bought a home there, you know that that home is your investment, you have to take pride in that community by getting involved, and that seems to be a lot of the problem, the involvement.
I'd like to be that voice for the community. I'd like to see that this community is transparent, where there are no back room deals, there are no secrets that are happening. Where development happens before you know what's happening, it's done. I don't want to see that happen.
So I'd like to see more community involvement, more people getting out there and putting their two bits in what they want to see happen in their community. And I'd like to see the council member being open to a lot of these suggestions.
And that was the very reason I opened the campaign headquarters in Boyle Heights, I don't know a whole lot about Boyle Heights, because that's a distant little community, but in order for you to find out what's going on you need to immerse yourself, into that community.
And that immersion told me, there's a lot of concerns from the people, and not just the activists, these are the people who said this is my home, there's gonna be a lot of eminent domain happening here, this home is historical, lets try and preserve it, let's preserve the history of Boyle Heights.
You know Boyle Heights is the best kept secret, it's so accessible to a lot of these places, accessible to downtown L.A. You go down on first street and you're in Boyle Heights. If you work Downtown, this is the nice little area where people are gonna start tearing down homes and rebuilding beautiful homes.

Gentrification?

Yes gentrification, but the housing values are still affordable. That's why Eagle Rock, nobody can afford to come here anymore, it's too expensive. But for me, ten years experience is enough for me to take this job and hit the ground running.

Lunch w/Brian Heckmann

What is the number 1 issue or idea that voters are responding to?

Again, Tom, I've been consistent on this all the way through.. It's public safety issue. We really have to be dealing with that, be a lot more focused on it... Public safety is the number one issue. There are some other issues that are fairly close second maybe, but public safety is most important. We need to still, be helping out youth stay out of trouble. We have the ROCK teen center here in Eagle Rock, we've got Father Boyle helping out with Homeboy Industries, getting, helping young fellas get out of gangs, and then getting a decent job, the ROCK helping the high school kids, when they get out of school, help 'em with computers, tutoring.

Why do you think that public safety is on everybody's mind the most?

Again, I think education is a close second, third, but those are right up there. I just think there's been a realization, even here in Eagle Rock, that we don't have enough police, I talked to a lot of people... We had a burglar at our house back in June, a daytime burglar, between 8:30 in the morning, ten o'clock. My children are wonderful children... one of them neglected to lock the front door, somebody walks in, they took two of my son's I-pods- he paid for them, I don't- they were very upset- and my son was in the back of the house, car was in the driveway, back of the house, they didn't bother him, whoever came in. We call the police- nobody comes- for two days. Mary calls the third day- a policeman comes out- I can't name his name- I don't want to get him in trouble- but basically I said, "Officer so-and-so, do we have enough police? He says, "No, we should have ten on this shift, we have seven." I had a number of people tell me here in Eagle Rock- we don't get nearly enough patrolling here on Colorado Blvd. It's not just Highland Park and Boyle Heights, it's also Eagle Rock. In Boyle Heights, a couple of years ago, Tom, fifty murders, fifty, in a population of 80-90 thousand people. In Highland Park, we had a murder here a few weeks ago, at one of the Liquor Stores. A month or two ago, at Toland Way there was some gang- drug related murder. We really have to clamp down on the hard core criminal element. and really, the way you have to do that is by getting more police.

What skill or talent or experience would you bring to the job, and how would it benefit Northeast L.A. and/or benefit the city at large?

Well, Tom, I've been a practicing attorney for 23 years, and there's two other candidates that are attorneys, I think Mr. Pacheco's been an attorney for 11 or 12 years, Mr. Huizar 6 or 7 or so, I have more experience than the two of them combined as an attorney, and as an attorney, Tom, It's problem solving. I have to empathetic to my client's problem, listen to my client's problem- 75% of them are senior citizens, analyze the problem and come up with a solution. I have the problem solving skills you need as an attorney, I'm also, if necessary, I can fight for something that I believe in. I've developed that skill as an attorney, because sometimes when you're in court, in a lawsuit situation you have to really fight for your client. So I'm going to be aggressively pursuing the 14th Council District's interests, in the area of getting more police in the 14th council district, getting more funding for various projects in the 14th Council District, I take that problem solving skill, and that empathy for my clients. I've probably been in leadership positions in a faith based ministry and in my church I'm a Sunday School teacher, I was a former deacon at our church, and I've been president, and now I'm treasurer of Avenues Pregnancy Clinic, which is a crisis pregnancy center to help women who are in crisis pregnancy, so I've had leadership positions, too.

And, as far as benefiting the entire L.A. City at large?

Well, I think if we have more police, those are going to go to different council districts, And I think that's going to benefit the entire city as far as further reducing the crime rate. One thing we have to remember is that there is the reported crime rate, and the actual crime rate. Some of our hot spots here in Los Angeles, there's a major under-reporting of serious crime, cause people are afraid to report, you know, crimes to the police for fear of being retaliated against, I think you have to remember that.

What is your philosophy to guide those decisions when the interests of the whole city might be conflicting with the local interest?

Well, you know that could happen, and that's where I have to aggressively pursue 14th Council District interests, but I see, though, there's been an uneven distribution of among some of the council districts, and I think the 14th Council District is short-changed. So what I would do is move to equalize things more. And if I have to fight to do that, I'm willing to do that. In that situation you have to fight and sometimes we have to hopefully work out something everybody can agree to. So there's a balance between the entire city and the 14th council district. But I think the 14th council district has been shortchanged.

When I ask about philosophy, I just want to keep going on this again, because so often you have things like the interim control ordinance, or the housing for low income people so they're not living in garages, so the local interest, often is "We don't want it next to us, where we 're living."

Well that's a good point that kind of confirms what we were just saying though, Tom, is we have plenty of low income housing in the 14th council district, sand I mde this point at the forum, in Hermon. What about west L.A.? What about the San Fernando Valley? We can be spreading that affordable housing more evenly among some of the other districts. So I guess philosophy, is I always want to do what's in the public interest... I don't know if there's too many areas, Tom, where there would be necessarily a conflict. Public safety, more police officers will benefit everybody...

Well my experience of watching what the councilman does, what he has the power to do, is that, in his district, he has a lot of power over what happens in it. And of course they all do, so they're being pressured by their voters, who are voting them in, to keep people out, like the ICO to keep out (new construction), but it's also like filming, allowing filming all over the city and being very liberal about that, is great for the overall economy of the south land, but it's horrible for the people who are impacted by it.

Well, Tom, we try to sit down with everybody and work something out, it's always my philosophy to try to work things out. Sometimes, though, you can be a loggerheads and then you gotta fight. So I think the main thing is for all the uh, and you weren't at the pro-L.A. forum last night, but what I was trying to tell the people there was "You gotta sit down with the other side, and talk, and try to work it out, and I would try to bring people together

So your Philosophy is to try to bring people together?

Try to bring people together, at some point though, sometimes you're just gonna have to take a stand though, that everybody's not going to like, what... that's part of leadership, too though, so.

But is there any philosophy of what will guide you, what side to take?

In the abstract it's a little hard, but I can tell you fiscally I think we want to be careful how we spend people's money, I don't want be increasing taxes; sales tax, the property tax, the school bond issue, I'm against that. We've had three bond issues in the last few years, 9.5 billion dollars, and not 18 months later, they're wanting a 4 billion dollar bond issue. My fiscal philosophy is "Watch how we spend the money." I prioritize on some of the most important issues and the main one is public safety, that's kinda my fiscal philosophy, quote-unquote conservative philosophy, but you see all the money that's being spent and you wonder, you know, what benefit are we getting out of it? So I'd really look carefully...

It sounds like you're saying that you'd view it as far as what's the most important thing you're trying to create.

Yes, you have to set priorities, and priorities have not been set adequately.

Will you go along with the unwritten rule of the other 14 council members going along with the local council person's desires, when it come to deciding issues within that local council district?

I don't think any elected official should be a rubberstamp for any other elected official. If someone wanted that I would ask the reasons why they wanted me to do that. I wouldn't necessarily be combative about it if it were something reasonable but I wouldn't rubberstamp something automatically without finding out a little more about what the reason was for it, how much it would cost; I would want to do my due diligence. The reason I'm, not going to give the other council person an unnecessarily hard time, but something I have a question about, hey I'll go right up to him and say "Hey, you need to get me more facts before I go along with this, this area I'm not sure about and this area I'm not sure about.

What is your experience with vetting and selecting possible staff members, and how will you determine if they have the proper disposition or attitude to be of service to the constituents, and still carry out your initiatives and philosophies for the district?

Well, I can't name names at this point cause it would be inappropriate, but there's a number of people I've already thought of if I'm elected, but there's five or six people already I have in mind, if I was elected, I think they'd make excellent staff people. But at this time it's not appropriate...

That's not the question. The question is what experience do you have hiring good people? What have you done in the past?

Avenues pregnancy clinic, as president, treasurer, vice president, and actually co-founder. I co-founded it back in 1986, I've had, we've had extensive experience with personnel, it's not a large ministry but right now I think we have 6 employees, but we've had to make a number of personnel decisions over the years, some tough ones. Not too many fortunately, so yeah, I do have experience in that area. I was kinda the head person for a long time, and I was on the board of directors for a long time, too.

How do you determine whether or not they're cutting it?

Well, first of all, before you hire someone you have to do your due diligence, back ground checks, talking to other people, and there is that... there is that intangible thing, Tom. Their personality, how you think they're going to interact with the public. I seem to be a good judge of people, we've had a good success at Avenues with hiring good people, we've only had one or two situations, the point is, where we've had to let people go, but most of the time we've had good decisions.

Why do you want the job?

I love helping people, as I've indicated to you earlier, Tom. I'll be a little more direct about it. The law is still a helping profession. I've helped people in my law practice, I've helped people through my faith based ministries, and I feel I have the right experience and professional background to really focus in and solve a lot of these problems that have been around for a long time that haven't really been focused on and dealt with the way they should be. Public safety, taxes, eminent domain, some of the issue that haven't been adequately addressed.

What is your vision for the district?

I want to keep that small town atmosphere that we have in a lot of our communities. Have responsible growth I call it, where you don't want no economic growth, or no new business activity because then we become economically stagnant, and we don't have enough employment. On the other hand, I don't want a situation like we have in Old Town Pasadena, where we have too many people there on a Friday and Saturday. I want to keep that kind of balanced growth. And again, some of the discourse is to actually have more sprucing up York Boulevard, Figueroa, some others in Boyle Heights, I want to try to address those issues and one of the big ways you help that though is continuing the trend of reducing the business tax, 15% reduction in the next four years of the business tax. Upping the threshhold, I think it's $50,000, below that you don't get taxed at all, beyond that, make L.A. more business friendly. The crime not only affects our personal safety, but also our business. If business is being burglarized or people are afraid to come to your part of town, you're gonna have, less business, so, I would view...

So I would say that your vision- You talk a lot about the means and the method, but I want to talk about the final result.

The final result is a safer, cleaner, more unified community. It's kinda general.

That's a little too general, because everyone would want that.

A safer, cleaner, more harmonious community where we still have that small town atmosphere, where people are neighbors still. And not just someone you see once in a blue moon, and don't get to know. That's what I like about Eagle Rock and some of the other communities.

Is there anything else you were thinking about, or might have left out, or want to add?

I do want to deal with the tax issue, the topic is very important and has been resonating with a lot of voters. Two aspects of the tax issue. First of all is the sales tax. It's the worst way to tax people, whether your like my mother making $800 a month on social security, or making $10,000, $50,000 or $100,000, you go to buy that box of detergent, you pay the same tax, no matter what your income is. You hear now our politicians are talking about raising the sales tax. A few years ago Sherriff Baca said we're going to have a temporary quarter percent raise. You hear temporary from a politician, be very suspicious. And that disappeared from the political vocabulary, Tom, and now we're talking about a half percent increase. And they say, Ohhh... that not that much money. It's over 500 million dollars- half a billion dollars from L.A. county, and when your poor, working class, or fixed income, every dollar makes a difference. So I'm totally against sales tax increases, As I mentioned before, we have these huge budget increases without a sales tax increase. A 566 million budget increase. We need 700.
Second issue. I'm gonna... education questions didn't come up in the forum I was little disappointed, cause I've really been honing in on that, if the question's asked. Mr. Huizar's talking about building all these new schools, and it's called 100% finance. Why are we having 100% financing building our schools, borrowing all the money when we could take 1% of the school budget- Why can't we take one percent of that every year, two percent every year and using that money, setting it aside every year to build new schools instead of borrowing money, increasing our property taxes? The last bond issue, they haven't even spent the money yet, and they want another one. There's still money in the till. Forget the bond issue, we should vote no on it, we start cutting the bureaucracy, using that money to build schools. The last three years, enrollment has gone done by 20,000. We need to rethink, do we really need all these new schools that we're going to build with declining enrollment?

October 31, 2006 - Eagle Rock, CA - There was Halloween fun all over town like here, at Colombos Restaurant. At left, Jazz night band leader Eric Eckstrand poses with the winners of the Costume Contest. First place, from right, won $50 cash, a $35 Colombo’s certificate went to second place Leslie Baker, and $25 gift certificate for third went to Valerie Dawson.

Cruizin' with Mary

Hello again, Eagle Rock! October was a busy month for the Eagle Rockin' Rodders starting with club elections. New officers for 2006 are Kirk Munday, President; Tom Amrhein, Vice President; Anita Gonzalez, Treasurer; and Amy Peters as Secretary. I want to thank our e-board for this year for what was sometimes a difficult and thankless job, and to welcome the new officers. 2006 promises to be a special year with the club's 10 year anniversary and the new Oinkster.
Our October cruise was festive and bittersweet. Jim's Burgers has not yet closed for remodeling so we were able to hold our Halloween cruise-in. Members and guests showed up en-masse, complete with costumes, pumpkins, and decorated cars. (I didn't know we had so many "witches!") Club member Amy and her daughter, Maddie, came in costumes to match Amy's 1969 El Camino which was spooked with a talking rat, spider webs, and a realistic coffin in the the back of the truck. What fun to drive around like that!
Hemi Tom brought his '31 Plymouth coupe for her maiden cruise after putting in a new engine. Tom won first prize in April for the "under construction" category at the Glendale Kiwanis car show. While driving home from the show, the engine developed a serious rod knock, resulting in that small-block Chevy engine being completely trashed. 6 months and $18,000 later the Plymouth has a new engine with a purple block. The behemoth motor is a 1957 Chrysler 392 Hemi, complete with 6-71 supercharger, and a mixture of new and nostalgic parts. This engine has a serious "bling" factor- almost everything has been chromed, polished, or both, resulting in a very sparkly engine (second only to fine jewelry). Tom's brother-in-law, Donald Ray, spent approximately 150 hours polishing engine parts, one by one. He's turned polishing into an art. Thanks, Don!
Tom decorated the Plymouth with a customized purple pumpkin and highlighted the engine with purple LED lights. This is my pick of the month. It was the hit of the cruise. Congratulations on a job well-done, Hemi Tom.
Most of the club cars arrived with scary passengers like monsters, skeletons, or just dead guys in the passenger seat. When one member was asked where his wife was, he pointed to the monster in the front seat. No names given to protect the guilty...
Anita and Richard Gonzalez came with matching his and hers black hot rods. Richard has a ' 68 Charger (was pictured here last month), and Anita just got a ' 74 Cuda. The cars look great together.
If you drove by Jim's, you may have seen some wild women out on the sidewalk showing a little leg to the passersby. No names given to protect the guilty.
I want to give a mention to a new store in Eagle Rock that I recently discovered: SW Hill Country, located at 1412 Colorado Blvd. is an amazing jewel of a store specializing in western wear and furnishings. They are in the building that used to be the Blue Fox bar, for those of you who can remember back that far. Since I love cowboy boots and anything with fringe on it, this cozy store is a shopping mecca. The owners are friendly and helpful. I also love the smell of the leather boots, jackets, and chaps. Personally, I am NOT liking some of the up-scale changes in Eagle Rock (too many duplicate trendy businesses, and a severe lack of things we need, like a general-purpose book-store, a gardening supply, a fabric shop, and a movie theater). However this is one cute, special store with real nice owners.
As of this writing, the escrow has not yet closed on Jim's/ Oinkster. The Eagle Rockin' Rodders will hold a November cruise as usual because this is the month when we do our toy collections as well as hand out the charity money. All visitors, please bring at least one new unwrapped toy. The club is making donations to several worthy causes this year. If Jim's is closed by then, we will power-up using a generator and portable lights. Please join us for what will probably be our last cruise-in at Jim's. We will of course be back in early 2006 with our monthly cruise-in once the new Oinkster is opened. Until then, keep on rockin'.

Eagle Rock, CA - October 8, 2005 - Good Neighbor Award honorees Lois and Marcus Lowrey pose with last years honoree, Betty Tindal.

Louis Quirarte
(from All Things Hermon)
This last week the communities of the Arroyo Seco lost a brilliant mind -- Louis Quirarte -- to brain cancer. He was an artist, a matchless visionary, and an ardent advocate for the natural beauty of our area. I am profoundly grateful to be able to say that Louis was my friend and my inspiration.
He "belonged to that band of choice spirits who from age to age have been recognized as a blessing to the earth." Louis worked tirelessly on so many good things -- like the creation of the Arroyo Seco Neighborhood Council, and making sure that Hermon and Monterey Hills were included. He helped us run a Bushnell Way School/Debs Park clean up, and even planted a dream that someday, a natural underground spring located around the entrance to Hermon Park could become a lovely little pond. It could happen. Anything can happen.
Soon, Louis' beautiful art design that depicts the Arroyo will be the new Caltrans icon for all the Arroyo Seco Parkway (110 Freeway) signage.
A Louis' Celebration will take place on Thursday Nov 10 at 1pm at the Audubon Center in Debs Park.

miss mindy’s reviews:
Professor Mojo

"In a world where no one is who they seem to be; At a time when nothing is as it's ever been before; One man alone dare step forth from the darkness; And take charge of that which could never be controlled; He was I, who are we; Who I be and I am… Professor Mojo!"
Happy Halloween, everyone! I hope you're in the mood for one more scare because this month we have a group of creepy characters, squirming around N.E.L.A. on the look-out for fresh brains… to hear their own, personal brand of "Industrial-Horror-Punk-Opera-Rap." A ghoulishly original sound that will have you screaming… with delight!
This band of freaks consists of Professor Mojo ("Lyrical Mastermind, Zombie Lover, Nut Job"), Sweet Pea Darling ("Backing Vocals, Spoiled Little Dead Girl"), Gretchen Von Stylz ("Backing Vocals, Time Traveling Opera Singer") and if you're lucky, you might even catch a glimpse of Boris the Mummy and Fred the Torso!
Their spooky sound is fresh from the graveyard and saturated with an array of different genres. With influences ranging from The Misfits and Danzig to Dr. Octagon and Vanilla Ice, they're sure to send a chill up anyone's spine. "Representing the Brain Dead Zombies World Wide," I bring you Professor Mojo… un-dead fun for all!
"I Heart Zombies" is the bands first, full-length album (out on Snake Oil Records) and they undoubtedly make full use of their electronic arsenal. Fusing digital bleeps, wailing guitar, distorted vocals and campy horror, Professor Mojo is pleased to unleash itself upon the masses.
On the mental ward anthem "Nut Job", Mojo shines with his demented lyrical genius while Sweet Pea and Gretchen engage in some perfectly hellish harmonies. With upbeat drum machine stutters and crazed tempo changes, you're sure to be singing: "I'm a nut job!" in no time.
Then we have the rap-opera masterpiece, "6 FT. Under." Oozing with mile-a-minute drums, epic guitar melodies and brilliant backing vocals, it's definitely cut-out to be a mojo classic. "1,2,3… 4,5,6, Guess what kids, You're six feet under." Just like Hell's version of Broadway!
"I Spit On Your Grave" is best described as some kind of punk-tronica, electro-death-metal mash-up. Whatever it is, it's one of my favorites. Mojo uses a more "traditional" beat on this one but, as usual, completely shreds it to beautiful bits. "Girl, you're so lovely, I've always wanted to eat you."
One of the most unique "mojo combos" on this disc is on "Thunk I Said," combining 80's break beats, kung-fu style strings and blaring guitar. A fun and interesting mix that definitely caught my attention.
"Shadow Language" and "Shadow Language Two"… Waaay too scary!
Ending the album is "Hot Topic Girl," the increasingly up-tempo song about stalking the girl from Hot Topic. An awesome tune that absolutely reaches sing-a-long status… well, maybe if we can keep Sweet Pea from eating everyone's brains!
Professor Mojo is a horrifically talented band that will have you stomping to their scary sound long after the Halloween candy high has worn off. For the lovers of anything spooky, drum machine laden or just out and out different… these guys are for you!
Still thirsty for more? Check out www.myspace.com/professormojo or see them live in the rotting flesh, November 11th at C.I.A. in North Hollywood. "I Heart Zombies" is available at Amoeba Music and online at cdbaby.com, but proceed with caution…this one's a real heart-stopper!

Discovery Tour

The Arroyo Arts Collective, a grassroots community artists' organization in Northeast Los Angeles, presents its 13th Annual Discovery Tour – a self-guided auto tour of artists' studios in Highland Park, Montecito Heights, Eagle Rock and Mount Washington on Sunday, November 20, from 10 AM to 4 PM.
This year the Tour will feature the work of over 100 artists in media ranging from traditional plein air painting to cutting edge animation and, for the first time, local musicians playing in the homes and studios as well as an evening concert at Mr. T's.
Tourgoers can get to know artists and musicians in unique studio settings ranging from storefronts and funky garages to landmark Craftsman homes scattered through the hills of Los Angeles' early bohemian district.
This is a great opportunity to tour the neighborhoods of Northeast L.A., meet new additions to the community and reacquaint with artists and musician friends.
The Collective has played an influential part in the development of the arts community in Northeast Los Angeles for the past 16 years. Drawing on the resources and volunteer efforts of its membership, the Collective has produced an impressive list of site-specific installations, innovative group exhibits, and a bi-monthly newsletter that highlights arts activities in the local area. Its goal is to provide arts experiences that are inclusive in their representation of local work and reflect the creative richness and diversity of the neighborhood. Established as one of the first neighborhood arts walks in Los Angeles, the Discovery Tour this year will be the Collective's 13th annual open house event.
This year the Discovery Tour will finish with a musical extravaganza at Mr. T's featuring The Sirens, Evangenitals, Paul Bailey Ensemble, Cat Hair Ensemble and Artichoke. Mr. T's is located at 5621 ½ North Figueroa in Highland Park.
Advance tickets ($12) are available online at www.Arroyo ArtsCollective .org and at Galco's Soda Pop Stop, 5702 York Boulevard, Highland Park. On the day of the tour maps and tickets ($17) will be available at the Lummis Home and the Center for the Arts, Eagle Rock.
Tour sites will be open between 10 AM and 4 PM. There will be a closing reception at the Lummis Home from 4:00 to 5:30. From 6 PM there will be five music groups playing at Mr. T's.
The Charles Lummis Home is located at 200 E. Avenue 43 in Highland Park. Center for the Arts, Eagle Rock is located at 2225 Colorado Boulevard, Eagle Rock. The Acorn Gallery is at 135 N. Avenue 50, Highland Park. Mr. T's is at 5621 ½ N. Figueroa, Highland Park. Galco's Soda Pop Stop is at 5702 York Boulevard, Highland Park.