Mayor's Final Message
Dear Friends,
Since 2007, I have been thankful for the opportunity to serve the residents of the City of Artesia as a city council member.
In December 2010, I was honored to be chosen by my council colleagues to serve as the Mayor of the City of Artesia. Ten months later, I see that, although we have accomplished much, we still have much more to do.
This past year, I have worked to engage my constituents to come together to improve the quality of life for all Artesians.
In August, "Artesia in Action", a collaboration of Artesia churches, businesses, and service groups, organized over 50 volunteers to clean up an abandoned warehouse property, formerly used by local gangs. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xR0rcxt_TWc
This year, I helped bring to our local school district, ABC Unified School District, 15 graduate social work interns from the University of Southern California, who will be providing counseling services to children at nearly every one of the 19 elementary schools, 5 middle schools, and 3 high schools in the district. I am working directly with one of the interns to support the development of the new community-based center at Fedde Middle School and to implement a Full-Service, Community-Based School at Burbank Elementary School. I submitted a Policy Advocacy Fund Grant to First 5 Los Angeles in collaboration with ABC USD, the Asian American Drug Abuse Program (AADAP), the California Conference on Equity and Justice (CCEJ), and the South Asian Network (SAN), to build parent leadership within the district among parents with pre-school aged children.
Wells Fargo will be providing a workshop entitled "Using Credit Wisely" to Seniors at Tracy, Cerritos, and Gahr High Schools. Thanks go to Brad Blackwell, Executive Vice President, Retail Sales Manager for Wells Fargo Home Mortgage, and to Brenda Gonzalez, Vice-President, Hands on Banking, California Manager, Wells Fargo Foundation for bringing this important information to our students.
I have conducted three of four scheduled town hall meetings throughout Artesia, and I thank my constituents who took time out to hear about Artesia's current challenges and opportunities and to share with me their observations and concerns. Their overall concern is about the quality of services that they receive from the city and our ability to continue providing these services, given the economic downturn. To their credit, once they understood the impact of the economy on our city, they all expressed their willingness to help.
Our new Public Works yard will be ready in January, and the Los Angeles County Sanitation District is replacing a major sewer line that runs through our downtown area. Unfortunately, because the State of California is trying to dismantle cities' Redevelopment Agencies, the improvements that we had planned for our downtown business district with more landscaping, better lighting, and a new parking structure is on hold. We have joined with the League of California Cities and the California Redevelopment agency in a lawsuit against the State to prevent this from happening. The California Supreme Court has decided to hear our lawsuit, and they will decide in January.
As my time as Mayor winds down, we still face many uncertainties about the economy, but we know that we will have to continue to look for ways to maintain the services that Artesians have come to expect from the city. I will continue to work to improve the quality of life for all Artesians, and I hope that you will join me.
Since 2007, I have been thankful for the opportunity to serve the residents of the City of Artesia as a city council member.
In December 2010, I was honored to be chosen by my council colleagues to serve as the Mayor of the City of Artesia. Ten months later, I see that, although we have accomplished much, we still have much more to do.
This past year, I have worked to engage my constituents to come together to improve the quality of life for all Artesians.
In August, "Artesia in Action", a collaboration of Artesia churches, businesses, and service groups, organized over 50 volunteers to clean up an abandoned warehouse property, formerly used by local gangs. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xR0rcxt_TWc
This year, I helped bring to our local school district, ABC Unified School District, 15 graduate social work interns from the University of Southern California, who will be providing counseling services to children at nearly every one of the 19 elementary schools, 5 middle schools, and 3 high schools in the district. I am working directly with one of the interns to support the development of the new community-based center at Fedde Middle School and to implement a Full-Service, Community-Based School at Burbank Elementary School. I submitted a Policy Advocacy Fund Grant to First 5 Los Angeles in collaboration with ABC USD, the Asian American Drug Abuse Program (AADAP), the California Conference on Equity and Justice (CCEJ), and the South Asian Network (SAN), to build parent leadership within the district among parents with pre-school aged children.
Wells Fargo will be providing a workshop entitled "Using Credit Wisely" to Seniors at Tracy, Cerritos, and Gahr High Schools. Thanks go to Brad Blackwell, Executive Vice President, Retail Sales Manager for Wells Fargo Home Mortgage, and to Brenda Gonzalez, Vice-President, Hands on Banking, California Manager, Wells Fargo Foundation for bringing this important information to our students.
I have conducted three of four scheduled town hall meetings throughout Artesia, and I thank my constituents who took time out to hear about Artesia's current challenges and opportunities and to share with me their observations and concerns. Their overall concern is about the quality of services that they receive from the city and our ability to continue providing these services, given the economic downturn. To their credit, once they understood the impact of the economy on our city, they all expressed their willingness to help.
Our new Public Works yard will be ready in January, and the Los Angeles County Sanitation District is replacing a major sewer line that runs through our downtown area. Unfortunately, because the State of California is trying to dismantle cities' Redevelopment Agencies, the improvements that we had planned for our downtown business district with more landscaping, better lighting, and a new parking structure is on hold. We have joined with the League of California Cities and the California Redevelopment agency in a lawsuit against the State to prevent this from happening. The California Supreme Court has decided to hear our lawsuit, and they will decide in January.
As my time as Mayor winds down, we still face many uncertainties about the economy, but we know that we will have to continue to look for ways to maintain the services that Artesians have come to expect from the city. I will continue to work to improve the quality of life for all Artesians, and I hope that you will join me.
"Artesia in Action" Cleans Up Abandoned Warehouse in Artesia
Artesia in Action, a collaboration of local churches, businesses, and service groups, came together in August to clean up an abandoned property that was being used by local gangs.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xR0rcxt_TWc
Artesia in Action is working on identifying properties in Artesia in need of maintenance and clean-up, especially for property owners that have limited means and resources. For more information on Artesia in Action, contact Brenna Rubio, at New Life Community Church, at BrennaR@cc-nl.org
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xR0rcxt_TWc
Artesia in Action is working on identifying properties in Artesia in need of maintenance and clean-up, especially for property owners that have limited means and resources. For more information on Artesia in Action, contact Brenna Rubio, at New Life Community Church, at BrennaR@cc-nl.org
New Veterans' Memorial on Schedule
The new Veterans' Memorial is progressing for it's scheduled unveiling on November 10th, 2011 in front of the Albert O. Little Community Center at Artesia Park. Memorial bricks can be purchased in memory of those who have served in our nation's armed forces. For more information, contact the City of Artesia, 562-865-2727.
Artesia Chamber of Commerce Expo
Congratulations to the Artesia Chamber of Commerce for its very successful Expo, held October 15, 2011 at the City Plaza in Artesia. Over 50 organizations and businesses including Artesia restaurants, medical, educational, and commercial businesses set up their booths to provide information and samples to the participants. Artesia is truly an International City, with diverse restaurants and shopping representing cultures from all over the world, including China, India, Mexico, Vietnam, Korea, Italy, Philippines, and Portugal.
Service Requests and More. . .
To make a request for service in Artesia and for more information on what's happening in Artesia, visit our website:
http://www.cityofartesia.us
http://www.cityofartesia.us
