Sean BelkStaff Writer

Just in time for holiday travel, the transportation Security administration (tSa) opened three new preCheck-application centers in los angeles County, including one in Signal Hill, this month.

launched two years ago, tSa preCheck is an expedited screening program that allows travelers to pass certainairport-security checkpoints without having to take off shoes, belt or outerwear. the program also allows an airlinepassenger to keep a laptop in a case and liquids/gels in a carry-on bag.

For a fee of $85 for a five-year membership, travelers may apply for the program by first starting the enrollmentprocess online at tsa.gov and then making an appointment to complete the rest of the preCheck-application processin person at an application center.

On Wednesday, Dec. 18, tSa opened three new preCheck-application centers in the los angeles area, includingone in Carson at 460 e. Carson -plaza Drive, Suite 114, one in Glendale at 603 South Brand Blvd. and one in SignalHill at 2501 e. 28th St., Suite 105.

tSa spokesperson nico Melendez said the application center in Signal Hill is currently the location to apply fora transportation Worker identification Credential (tWiC) card, which is required for workers at the ports of longBeach and los angeles. the office now offers application services for both tWiC and preCheck.

Melendez said, last year, tSa expanded the program to about 40 airports, including long Beach airport, andover the last two months the program expanded to about 107 airports. tSa

CJ DabloStaff Writer

long Beach still hasn’t figuredout just how to effectively regulatethe medical marijuana dispen-saries, but city officials are not giv-ing up on the daunting task, inspite of concerns expressed by thepolice chief– and in spite of a num-ber of advocates of medical mari-juana who don’t like the idea ofkeeping dispensaries in industrialzones. the Council has also laidthe groundwork to put a measureon the april 2014 ballot that wouldestablish a city tax on marijuanadispensaries.

last week at its Dec. 17 meet-ing, the long Beach City Councilprovided additional direction to theCity’s planning Commission in

order for the commission todevelop recommendations for azoning ordinance. (For the specificdetails of the Council’s directions,see accompanying box).

the planning Commission isanticipated to discuss the medical-marijuana issue in February. Oncethe commission completes a studyand finalizes its recommendationsfor a draft ordinance, it is expectedto report back to the Councilwithin 60 days.

Development Services Directoramy Bodek initially estimated thatthe commission would need aboutsix months to return to the Councilwith its recommendations for anordinance because the commissionis not familiar at all with any of the

Sean BelkStaff Writer-

the cities of Signal Hill, Cerritos and Downey havebeen ordered by a California appellate Court to paymore than $15 million in water bills they withheld fromthe Water Replenishment District of Southern California(WRD) while in ongoing litigation, but the cities hope toget the money back in a refund.

From april 2011 to October 2013, the cities stoppedpaying replenishment assessment (Ra) payments toWRD, a regional water agency that charges water-rightsholders or “pumpers” for replenishing groundwater usedby residents and local businesses. the cities, which with-held Ra payments in reserve accounts, won in trial courtthat WRD illegally raised rates without following proce-dural requirements of a state law known as proposition218. the law requires that property owners be notifiedof any rate changes and given a protest hearing.

a los angeles Superior Court judge ruled twice in

favor of the cities that WRD didn’t follow the law, but afinal judgment that would determine how much moneythe cities are entitled to in damages has yet to be heard.

in response to cities withholding payments, WRDsought a preliminary injunction to force them to pay,threatening to stop pumping water. in april 2012, how-ever, a trial court denied WRD’s request.

patty Quilizapa, an attorney representing the cities,said in an email that the California Supreme Courtopined that “payment of an invalid tax by a publicagency” amounts to a “gift of public funds,” a legal argu-ment that she said is also supported by the CaliforniaConstitution.

after WRD appealed, however, a California appel-late Court panel overturned the previous court decision,ruling on Oct. 30 that the cities would have to follow the“pay first, litigate later” doctrine, which requires that anyparty disputingcharges imposed

Your Weekly Community Newspaper December 27, 2013Vol. 35 No. 30SERVING BIXBY KNOLLS, CALIFORNIA HEIGHTS, LOS CERRITOS, WRIGLEY AND THE CITY OF SIGNAL HILL

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“Ren Olive”glass mosaic on wooden lazysusan by Tina Burnight

See page 15

see TSA page 6

see WRD page 13

see Marijuana page 6

OveR 35 yeaRS expeRienCeBixBy KnOllS ReSiDent

liCenSeD • inSuReD

Call Dennis Bartlett: (562) 427-0688

TSA opens PreCheck-application center in Signal Hill for expedited passenger screening

Sean Belk/Signal TribuneTraveleres get on and off flights at the Long Beach Airport on Tuesday, Dec. 24, the day before Christmas.

Signal Hill, Cerritos and Downey ordered to pay $15 million in water bills withheld from WRD

Long Beach Council presses for new city ordinance on medical marijuana,prepares for April 2014 ballot measure

Courtesy Long Beach CreameryRandy Adams prepares some dry ice to make ice cream during a tasting/kick-starter event on Saturday, Dec. 21 for Long Beach Creamery, a new startupthat specializes in handcrafted ice cream. At Farm Lot 59 at 2714 CaliforniaAve. on the border of Long Beach and Signal Hill, tasters were able to helpbuild the Long Beach Creamery business by making mini “kickstarter”pledges of $4 (for a push-up pop) to $10 (for a pint of ice cream). Startingnext year, Farm Lot 59, a one-acre mini farm, will be having a Farm Event,featuring local businesses, on the second Saturday of every month.

Kickstarting taste buds

ST3530 - Dec. 27_Layout 1 12/27/13 11:51 AM Page 1

tesoro Refinery in Wilmingtoncontinued its support of SignalHill-based, multi-regional foodbank Food Finders and the non-profit organization’s “Keep thetrucks Rolling” campaign byrecently providing a $10,000 grant.an official check presentation tookplace on Dec. 13 at tesorogrounds.

“We greatly appreciate ourtruck sponsors since our trucks areessential to our business, and fuel-ing and maintaining them hasalways been a significantexpense,” said patti larson, exec-utive director of Food Finders.

the 24-foot truck covers muchof downtown los angeles and isused to pick up and distribute thebulk of the produce and other fooditems that are donated. Sponsorlogos are placed on either side ofthe vehicle for maximum expo-sure.

Food Finders had previouslypartnered with tesoro for a specialawareness presentation provided toits “safety council,” in which thecompany invited contractors and

employees within the refinerybusiness. tesoro employees alsovolunteered with Food Findersduring the holiday food drive,helping to sort and pack items fordelivery.

“tesoro is a proud sponsor ofFood Finders, a local nonprofitorganization that relies heavily onvolunteers’ time and disposition,”said Olga Chavez, public relationsassociate for tesoro. “tesoro val-ues the service Food Finders doesto better the nutrition and wellbeing of our citizens.”

Food Finders is a community-based food-rescue organizationthat serves as a conduit for food,education and awareness betweendonors, volunteers, agencies andpeople in need. it provides food tomore than 210 nonprofit agenciesthroughout los angeles andOrange counties. its vision is to“eliminate hunger and food waste,while improving nutrition in thecommunities served,” according toa statement from Food Finders.

Source: Food Finders

DeCeMBeR 27, 20132 SIgNAL TRIBUNe COMMUNITYTesoro gives Food Finders $10,000 grant to ‘Keep The Trucks Rolling’

Courtesy Food FindersFrom left, Lisa Hoffmaster (Food Finders), Olga Chavez (Tesoro), Brissa Sotelo(Tesoro) and Patti Larson (Food Finders) hold a $10,000 check that was grantedby Tesoro to Signal Hill-based Food Finders in support of the nonprofit’s “KeepThe Trucks Rolling” campaign.

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Signal Hill holiday outreach program donates $8,450 in gifts to needy familieseach year, the Signal Hill police

Department (SHpD) and CommunityServices Department partner withlocal residents and businesses toshare the “holiday spirit” with fami-lies in need.

this year, the outreach programraised $8,450 to provide gifts toneedy families and individuals,according to SHpD. On thursday,Dec. 19, Santa Claus rode in a SignalHill police patrol car for the specialoutreach program in Signal Hill andlong Beach.

there were several dozen donors,but the most significant donationswere received from Boulevard Buick,Cadillac & GMC, Mesa environmen-tal Services, Mercedes Benz of long

Beach, aleshire & Wynder, llp,RKa Consulting Group, Signal HillCouncilmember larry Forester, ever-son Spice Company, Capital invest-ment advisers, accountable HealthCare, los angeles County SupervisorDon Knabe, eDCO Disposal, SignalHill Community Foundation, SignalHill petroleum and the Sultan’s Clas-sic Car Club.

the holiday outreach providedgifts to 23 families, which includes atotal of 90 people. these familieswere identified throughout the yearvia contacts with various Signal Hillprograms, according to SHpD. Mostof the families included young chil-dren, however there were also a fewelderly gift recipients. One of the

families consisted of a single momwith two children. the momexpressed that “without the help ofthe outreach she would not have beenable to provide gifts for her children,”stated SHpD.

Before heading out to visit thefamilies, police Chief Michaellangston had an opportunity to visitwith the outreach team. langstonthanked each of the workers anddonors, large and small. langstonemphasized the importance of theholiday outreach and building“productive relationships withinthe community that benefits theentire community.”

Source: SHPD

WISHING YOUAND YOUR FAMILY

A JOYOUS HOLIDAY SEASON!

Best wishes!Congressman Alan Lowenthal & Debbie Lowenthal

ST3530 - Dec. 27_Layout 1 12/27/13 11:59 AM Page 2

DeCeMBeR 27, 2013 NeWS SIgNAL TRIBUNe 3

Help SpReaD HOliDay CHeeRWhat Food and toy driveWho McKenzie MortuaryWhere 3843 e. anaheim St.When Friday, Dec. 20 through the month of DecemberMore Info McKenzie Mortuary will be collecting donations throughout the hol-iday season. the mortuary will match donations, based on the monetary value ofthe donated items. unused gift cards can also be donated. Donations can bedropped off at the funeral home, or pick-ups can be arranged. Call (562) 961-9301.

OveRDue?What library Fines amnesty MonthWho Signal Hill libraryWhere 1770 e. Hill St.When Friday, Dec. 20 through the month of DecemberMore Info the Signal Hill library will waive all overdue fines during the monthof December.

let it SnOWWhat 5th annual Wrigley Snow DayWho Wrigley associationWhere veterans park, 101 e. 28th St.When Saturday, Dec. 28 at 11amMore Info the event will include snow, sled runs, bounce houses and more. Foodtrucks and vendors will be on-site.

taKe a WalKWhat Raptor Ramble nature WalkWho los Cerritos WetlandsWhere the driveway/parking area at the corner of 1st St. and pCH in Seal BeachWhen Saturday, Jan. 4 from 8am to 9:45amMore Info Biologists and environmental educators taylor parker and eric Zahnwill lead the walk. parking lot gate will open at 7:45am and close at 8:10am. allparticipants must stay for the entire tour. Closed-toed shoes are required. Kidsunder 16 must be accompanied by an adult. email ejlambe@verizon.net .

BOOKWORMS uniteWhat Monthly community book clubWho the Bixby Knolls literary SocietyWhere elise’s tea Room, 3924 atlantic ave.When Wednesday, Jan. 8 at 7pmMore Info next month, the club will delve into Rabbit is Rich by John updike.parking is available along atlantic avenue. Refreshments will be provided. Call(562) 595-0081 or email info@bixbyknollsinfo.com

tHe paWFeCt eveninGWhat 2nd annual Cat video FestivalWho Walker arts CenterWhere Federal Bar, 102 pine ave.When Friday, Jan. 24 at 9pmMore Info Festival will include cat video screenings, appearances by specialguests and “celebricats,” live music and cat-centric art. the Federal Bar’s fullmenu will be available during the showcase. ticket cost is $20.

See tHe SiGHtS On a BiKeWhat Sunday Funday: Mini long Beach architecture Bike tourWholos angeles County Bicycle Coalition (laCBC)Where downtown long Beach meeting place When Sunday, Jan. 5 from 1:30pm to 4pmMore Info this 10-mile ride tours the many architecturally unique buildings in longBeach, such as those done by Killingsworth, neutra, lautner, Greene & Greene and manyother world-famous architects. this two-wheeled mini tour is led by laCBC boardmember april economides and is family-friendly. participants may receive aspecial discount at a local cafe along the route. Riders may also get a 15-percentdiscount on the book Long Beach Architecture at apostrophe Books for saying“Sunday Funday” on the day of the ride (or receive 10 percent off in-store oronline before the ride). to RSvp, email Carol Feucht at carol@la-bike.org .

lB checkpoint nets two Dui arrests

Long Beach Transit offers free bus service on New Year’s eveFree system-wide bus service

will be available on long Beachtransit (lBt) starting at 5pm thisnew year’s eve. the promotionencourages residents to take publictransit to and from festivities inlong Beach to avoid drinking anddriving.

this free service was madeavailable in part by the Downtownlong Beach associates in promo-tion of the new year’s eve eventshappening in downtown longBeach.

the events include a family-friendly celebration, fireworks dis-play and live music at RainbowHarbor, as well as a street party onpine avenue and Broadway thatends at 2am.

“We want everyone to enjoya fun and safe celebration, solet us be your designated driverfor the night. leave your car athome, avoid parking and ring inthe new year,” said Robyn Gor-don-peterson, long Beachtransit’s chief operating officerand senior vice president.

in addition to free boarding onregular routes leaving the FirstStreet transit Gallery through12:30am, free extended eveningservice will be available on newyear’s eve to accommodate antici-pated high demand in downtownlong Beach. the last buses runningextended service will leave thetransit Gallery, located on 1stStreet between pine avenue andlong Beach Boulevard in down-town long Beach, at 1:30am and2:30am.

Bus routes during the extendedservice hours will be abbreviatedand outbound only, so residents areencouraged to plan their trip earlyby calling lBt’s customer-serviceteam at (562) 591-2301 (on Mon-days through Fridays from 7am to6pm, Saturdays from 8am to 3pm),or by visiting the transit & visitorinformation Center.

transit assistance from a liveperson will be available in down-town long Beach during the newyear’s eve festivities and regularroute information is available at

lbtransit.com .trips at 1:30am and 2:30am will

leave the First Street transit Galleryat the following shelters:

Shelter BRoute 46: to anaheim at pCHRoute 181: to Wardlow Station

via MagnoliaShelter CRoute 111: to lakewood at Del

amo via BroadwayRoute 191: to Del amo at lake-

wood via Santa FeShelter eRoute 94: to Bellflower at

Stearns via 7th/CSulBShelter FRoute 173: to lB towne Center via

atherton/CSulBShelter gRoute 61: to atlantic at Del amoShelter HRoute 21: to Cherry at Del amoRoute 121: to alamitos Bay land-

ing (not CSulB)Route 151: to Colorado lagoon via

4th

Source: LBT

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On Saturday, Dec. 14, 2013,the long Beach police Depart-ment’s (lBpD) traffic Sectionconducted a driving under theinfluence (Dui) driver licensecheckpoint on livingston Driveand prospect avenue, from 7pmuntil 3am.

During the eight-hour opera-tion, which was aided by longBeach police explorers andlong Beach Search and Rescue,1,661 vehicles passed throughthe checkpoint with 802 beingscreened, resulting in two Duiarrests, one citation for unli-censed driving and two cita-tions for suspended licenses.

according to the lBpD, Duicheckpoints are a “vital compo-nent in the fight against both

impaired and unlicensed driv-ing. nationally, impaired driv-ing caused by alcohol and/ordrugs causes one death every 33minutes. the average americanhas a 30 percent chance ofbeing killed or injured by adriver under the influence.Sobriety checkpoints have beenproven to reduce these types ofdriving-related collisions byremoving such drivers from ourstreets.”

Funding for this programwas provided by a grant fromthe California Office of trafficSafety, through the nationalHighway Safety administra-tion.

Source: LBPD

happy new year!

be safe.Don’t drink and drive!

A reminder om e signal Tribune

Fire displaces 38 residents from north LB assisted-living facilitya fire at an assisted-living facil-

ity at the 3100 block of east arte-sia Boulevard in north long Beachon Sunday, Dec. 22 injured threeresidents and displaced 38 resi-dents from the structure that sus-tained heavy smoke and waterdamage, according to fire authori-ties.

long Beach Fire Department(lBFD) resources responded tothe 3100 block of east artesiaBoulevard for a reported structurefire at 4:21pm, according to astatement from lBFD. thoughfire officials couldn’t confirm the

name of the assisted-living facility,the address is of the Chateau, anassisted-living facility for seniorsand mentally disabled individuals.lBFD officials said it took approx-imately 10 minutes to extinguishthe fire.

On arrival, units reported heavysmoke on the second floor of thefacility. the fire was contained toone bedroom, and residents wereevacuated. the structure sustainedheavy smoke and water damagerequiring residents to be displacedto another facility, according tolBFD. three residents were trans-

ported to local hospitals for “minorchief complaints.” the longBeach Health Departmentresponded to evaluate the facility.

Matthew Dobberpuhl,spokesperson for lBFD, said atotal of 38 residents were displacedfrom the facility that sustained“extensive damage due to [the]sprinkler system and smoke.” Hesaid residents were displaced to an“unknown” location and the causeof the fire is still under investiga-tion.

Source: LBFD

Apartment fire on 4th Street in LB displaces five residentsthe long Beach Fire Department (lBFD) responded to a reported structure fire on the 300 block of West 4th

Street on Sunday, Dec. 22 at approximately 2pm, according to a statement from lBFD. On arrival, units reported smoke coming from one window on the second floor. Fire personnel made an “aggres-

sive attack” to extinguish the apartment fire and confine it to the unit of origin, according to lBFD. three additionalunits below the unit sustained water damage.

no injuries were reported, but five residents were displaced. the american Red Cross is assisting the occupantswith lodging, according to lBFD.

Source: LBFD

�e families were assisted by

McKenzie Mortuary.For more details on

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Louis Mumalo 93William gatoff 65

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timothy Williams 52William hansen 85Marcelle gaffney 84

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�

ST3530 - Dec. 27_Layout 1 12/27/13 11:59 AM Page 3

now that Christmas is over for this year, the words “Happy new year!” seem to be com-ing from everyone i meet. i’m not saying it isn’t expected, but the sentiment behind thephrase appears to be delivered with a bit more fervor this season. the words don’t appearto be said as wishes or prayers, but rather as a statement of fact. Happy neW yeaR.period.

My guess is that folks are feeling a bit more settled these days and maybe not quite asstressed about money as they had in days gone by. they may not have more dollars tospend, but i think people have found a new or better way to juggle their finances. Restau-rants seem to be a bit busier, my higher-end advertising clients are reporting a bit morebusiness coming their way, and i have a general sense of peacefulness as i drive throughour neighborhoods and shopping corridors. true, maybe i am a bit of a pollyanna, but itruly believe that 2014 will be an amazing time for small business and, therefore, amazingfor all of us.

part of my new year’s resolution will be to work even harder this year to shop and dinelocally. although i do a pretty good job as it stands, i believe i can do even better next year.One way to accomplish the task is to get out of the office more often and see what is hap-pening in my own backyard. With publishing duties taking up the lion’s share of my time, iam going to also resolve to do more delegating in 2014. Warning to my husband Steve andassistant tanya, i am finally going to take you up on all those offers to help me run errandsand deal with paper work. Frankly, i am looking forward to getting out in “the field” more

often and out from behind the computer. i further resolve to spend more time with thewomen in my life, including long-time friends, colleagues and Mom too! i definitely needmore girls’ nights out!

now that i have shared with you my plans for resolutions in 2014, here are a few belowthat i solicited on Facebook from my “friends”…

Melissa Zambrano, owner of urban Cottage : “Dump the negatives!!!!!!!!!” Dyana Dulin of Dynamic Glass: “Quit smoking.”Kate Braid, owner of Hungry Dog printing: “Jump on it.”Linda Conn: “to enjoy every minute possible with the people i love. time is too short.”Steve Strichart, associate publisher of the Signal Tribune: “to stay out of your col-

umn...”Debbie King, owner of Willie’s tin Shop: “laugh more.”Blair Cohn, executive director of Bixby Knolls Business improvement association: “i

resolve to make [fiance’] alissa Sablan happy; to reenergize my commitment to BixbyKnolls and the City of long Beach; to get down to my fighting weight; and to find theanswer to ‘what's the next big thing?’”

Kati ennis of Friedmans appliance Center: “to be not only 100% meat free but fish andcheese as well! vegan lifestyle, here i come!”

John Royce president of the California Heights neighborhood association: “to find abalance.”

PUBLISHeR/eDITOR-IN-CHIeFneena R. Strichart

ADMINISTRATIve ASSISTANTtanya paz

CULTURe WRITeRSDaniel adams vicki paris Goodman Gregory Spooner

COLUMNISTSJennifer e. Beaver Kenneth McKenzie Shoshanah Siegel Carol Berg Sloan, RD

ADveRTISINg CONSULTANTS Barbie ellisen ashley Goodsell

ASSOCIATe PUBLISHeRStephen M. Strichart

DeSIgN eDITOR/PRODUCTION MANAgeRleighanna nierle

MANAgINg eDITORCory Bilicko

the Signal Tribune welcomes letters to the editor, which should be signed, dated and include a phone number to verify authenticity. letters are due by noon on the tuesday before desired publication date. the SignalTribune reserves the right to edit letters for grammar, language and space requirements. letters should be 400 words or less. the Signal Tribune will publish no more than one “pro” letter and one “con” letter on a particulartopic in a single issue. the Signal Tribune does not print letters that refer substantially to articles in other publications and might not print those that have recently been printed in other publications or otherwise presented ina public forum. letters to the editor and commentaries are the opinions of the authors and do not necessarily reflect those of the Signal Tribune or its staff. although the editorial staff will attempt to verify and/or correct information when possible, letters to the editor and commentaries are opinions, and readers should not assume that they are statements of fact. letter-writers will be identified by their professional titles or affiliations when,and only when, the editorial staff deems it relevant and/or to provide context to the letter. We do not run letters to the editor submitted by individuals who have declared their candidacies for public office in upcoming races. thispolicy was put in place because, to be fair, if we publish one, we would have to publish all letters submitted by all candidates. the volume would no doubt eliminate space for letters submitted by other readers. instead, we agree to inter-view candidates and print stories about political races in an objective manner and offer very reasonable advertising rates for those candidates who wish to purchase ads. The Signal Tribune is published each Friday with a circulationof 25,000. Yearly subscriptions are available for $50.

939 e. 27th St., Signal Hill, CA 90755 (562) 595-7900 www.signaltribune.com newspaper@signaltribune.com

STAFF WRITeRSCJ Dablo Sean Belk

OPINION DeCeMBeR 27, 20134 SIgNAL TRIBUNe

SIGNALT R I B U N E

S i g n u p f o r yo u r s u b s c r i p t i o n & r e c e i vet h e S i g n a l Tr i b u n e by f i r s t - c l a s s m a i l !

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‘Right’ down the wrong road

in looking for words to describe the “Know and vote” initiative, several readilycome to mind– “confusing” and “unnecessary,” among others. Stronger words mightbe “ridiculous” and “nuts,” but one word stands out above all the rest and that wordis DanGeROuS. Why? Because this initiative would kill any future developmentin Signal Hill.

in order to attract development, Signal Hill and many other cities provide finan-cial incentives to encourage developers to locate in their city. Signal Hill is at astrong disadvantage in attracting developers due to the fact that many pieces ofland were involved with one of the largest oil operations in the country. Becauseof that, development involves extraordinary start up costs related to required cleanup of abandoned oil well remains and soil remediation, costs that other cities don'tface. according to an independent fiscal analysis contracted by the city, “the Knowand vote initiative will result in Signal Hill not being able to compete with surround-ing communities that offer economic development incentives, including the City oflong Beach. Many of these cities do not have major soil contamination and aban-doned oil well issues, which drive up the costs of safely building on a property

located in Signal Hill.”Despite the clear disadvantage Signal Hill faces, this initiative would put us at a

further disadvantage by requiring that development incentives be approved by a2/3rds vote in a citywide election. to add insult to injury, the initiative would requirethe developer to pay for the election, the cost of which has recently been estimatedat $39,400. no developer in their right mind would choose to locate in Signal Hillgiven the problems posed by an unknown vote result and the addition of such onerousfinancial requirements.

the proponents of “Know and vote” keep saying that is not their intention. i’mreminded of an old saying– “the road to hell is paved with good intentions.” this ini-tiative will pave the way to economic and financial hell of Signal Hill.

Bill YochumSignal Hill

[Ed. note– Yochum is a member of the Civil Service Commission for the City ofSignal Hill]

l e t t e R S   a n D   e M a i l

Thoughtsfrom the

Publisherby Neena Strichart

hAPPy neW yeAr!hAPPy neW yeAr!from neena strichart and the signal tribune

ST3530 - Dec. 27_Layout 1 12/27/13 11:59 AM Page 4

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Hawaiian gardens gang member arrested forshooting, killing 54-year-old LB resident

On tuesday, Dec.17, 2013, atapproximately 10:05pm, longBeach police responded to a call inthe 3500 block of Monica avenueregarding a report that a person hadbeen shot, which resulted in thedeath of a female adult and theinjuring of a male adult.

When officers arrived, they dis-covered 54-year-old Monica Bar-boza inside the converted garage,where she had apparently been liv-ing. She had sustained a gunshotwound to the upper torso and deter-mined deceased at the scene bylong Beach Fire Department para-medics.

Shortly thereafter, long Beachpolice Department (lBpD) wasnotified that a male adult gunshotvictim had been transported to alocal hospital by a friend. throughour investigation, we were able todetermine that the 52-year-old resi-dent of Hawaiian Gardens, who wasvisiting the location at the time theshooting occurred, was a secondvictim. He sustained what appearedto be non-life threatening injuriesand is listed in stable condition.

Detectives immediately began

investigating and following-up onleads. Robert Rubio Jr., 53, ofHawaiian Gardens, was arrestedwithout incident at the home of afriend in Hawaiian Gardens. Rubio,a documented gang-member, isbeing booked for murder andattempted murder, and will be heldat the long Beach City Jail on $1million bail. He was expected to bearraigned in long Beach SuperiorCourt.

Based on the investigation,detectives believe Rubio wasinvolved in an ongoing dispute withother residents who reside in thehome, which ultimately led to theshooting. the victims are not mar-ried, but are related through mar-riage.

anyone with information isencouraged to contact long Beachpolice Homicide Detectives toddJohnson and Roger Zottneck at(562) 570-7244. anonymous tipsmay be submitted by calling 1-800-222-tipS (8477), texting tiplaplus your tip to CRiMeS (274637),or visiting lacrimestoppers.org .

Source: LBPD

the long Beach Board of Har-bor Commissioners elected DougDrummond as its new Board presi-dent on tuesday night, Dec. 17, andwelcomed newly appointed Com-missioner lori ann Farrell to herfirst meeting. Composed of longBeach residents, the Board over-sees the port of long Beach.

the board also voted RichDines as vice president and Farrellas Secretary. the election of boardofficers was conducted followingthe departures of former presidentthomas Fields and former vicepresident nick Sramek last month.

Drummond, a former longBeach City Councilman for the 3rdDistrict and retired long Beachpolice Department Commander,was appointed to the five-memberHarbor Commission in 2011 byMayor Bob Foster.

“it’s my goal to promote a spiritof cooperation among the Board

and the staff of the Harbor Depart-ment. the port of long Beach(pOlB) is a leading internationalseaport, and i know that all of thecommissioners take our responsi-bilities here very seriously. Weintend to work together to makethis port even stronger and betterable to compete in the internationalmarketplace,” Drummond said.

in her first meeting, Farrell saidshe looked forward to her new roleas a Harbor Commissioner. Farrell,who has a long record of publicservice, is a former Chief FinancialOfficer for the City of long Beachand currently works as the City ofHuntington Beach Finance Direc-tor. She will remain in her positionat Huntington Beach. Serving onthe Commission is a civic role thatoffers only a $100 stipend for eachmeeting. Farrell is a 14-year resi-dent of long Beach and formerlyserved on the long Beach transit

Board of Directors as Secretary-treasurer.

“i just wanted to say howthankful i am for the opportunity toserve our community once again. ilove this city and i love our com-munity,” Farrell said. “i’m hopingthat together with the other com-missioners we can really take ourport to the next level.”

With the seating of Farrell, theboard has four members includingSusan e. anderson Wise, who willserve as assistant Secretary. thefifth commissioner will beappointed by Mayor Foster andconfirmed by the City Council.

the Harbor Commission directsthe 450-person staff of the City oflong Beach Harbor Department indevelopment and promotion of theport of long Beach, which is oneof the world’s premier seaports anda primary gateway for trans-pacifictrade. a trailblazer in innovativegoods movement, safety and envi-ronmental stewardship, the porthandles trade valued at $155 bil-lion each year and supports hun-dreds of thousands of jobs inSouthern California.

Source: POLB

Commissioner Drummond elected as new lB Harbor Commission president

Doug Drummond

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medical marijuana issues andneeded to conduct a study session.

“the public has been ready, sothey’re not going to hold this up,”said 2nd District CouncilmemberSuja lowenthal. She added thatthere is no need for a commissionto conduct a study session, arguingthere will be opportunities for thepublic to comment on the issue andthat the commission is alreadyfamiliar with land-use zoningissues.

“none of us want to subvert theplanning Commission process,”lowenthal said, acknowledgingthat the Council has many priori-

ties for planning staff. She criti-cized the six-month timetable.“this has been around for fiveyears,” she said. “this is a prior-ity.”

More than three years ago, theCouncil approved an ordinancethat allowed and regulated a lim-ited number of collectives and dis-pensaries to operate in longBeach. the ordinance was updatedin 2011 and, in that same year, cityofficials even conducted a lotterythat was intended to pick whichdispensaries would qualify for apermit. no permits, however, wereever issued. Moreover, the Councillater enacted a ban on dispensariesafter the California Court ofappeals ruled that parts of the pre-

vious ordinance conflicted withfederal law.

although the outline of recom-mended parameters for a new ordi-nance won the full support of theCouncil, not everyone embracedthe possibility of another mari-juana-dispensary ordinance.

police Chief Jim McDonnellurged against allowing medical-marijuana dispensaries to operatein the city, warning that cityresources have been “ill-equipped”and that there has been a negativeimpact on the quality of life in thecity. He said, despite the currentban, six dispensaries are still oper-ating in the city and the departmenthas been spending a vast number ofhours dealing with the issues.

“Whatever possible good youbelieve that [the City] would bedoing for a small segment of thepopulation would drastically beoutweighed by the negative impacton the greater community and asignificant strain on already lim-ited city-staffing resources,”McDonnell told the Council lastweek. He further explained that thestate law called the Compassionateuse act already provides for care-givers to grow and share marijuanafor medical purposes.

“allowing dispensaries is notthe answer to help those who areill,” McDonnell concluded.

assistant City attorneyMichael Mais also reminded theCouncil that his office is also cur-rently still dealing with 18 activemedical-marijuana cases. He indi-cated that there may be other legalchallenges ahead for the City evenafter city officials finish deliberat-ing over the details of a new ordi-nance. Mais explained that, in anyscenario, there will be dispensaries

that will be excluded from legallyoperating in the city.

“the people who are excluded,sue,” he said.

eighth District Councilmemberal austin acknowledged that therea number of other priorities inaddition to staff concerns, includ-ing the desire to protect neighbor-hoods and business corridors andthe desire to be fair to those collec-tives and dispensaries who havecooperated with the City.

“i think this Council is reallystruggling to… balance all of theconcerns that we hear,” austin said.

the Council’s push to ask for anew ordinance has already drawnsome criticism from marijuanaadvocates, especially after theCouncil requested that the Com-mission consider limiting dispen-saries to industrial areas in the city.

“this prohibitionist Council willnever give us a fair ordinance. i’mconvinced of that,” said 7th-Districtresident David Zink before theCouncil. “Some of you are empa-thetic…it is ridiculous to take them[the dispensaries] away from theneighborhoods because patientslive in neighborhoods. they don’tlive in industrial zones.”

adam Hijazi of the advocacygroup called the long Beach Col-lective association said in an inter-view that he was happy that theCouncil was moving in a directionto allow “safe access” to medicalmarijuana, but he also warnedagainst limiting dispensaries toindustrial areas.

“Disabled people are going tohave a hard time getting [there],and they shouldn’t be treated as ifthey are substandard,” Hijazi said,explaining that, if disabled patientsare forced to go to industrial areas,

they could be going to areas thatare empty or dangerous, especiallyat night.

the Council also voted 7-1 todirect the City attorney to preparedocuments to put on the april,2014 ballot a proposed measure fora city tax on medical-marijuanabusinesses. the proposed tax mustcoincide with whether there willactually be a marijuana-dispensaryordinance in effect. the Councilalso asked for the measure toinclude the ability to create “costrecovery” fees associated with reg-ulating the dispensaries.

the State Board of equalizationis already taxing medical marijuanaat 9 percent. the proposed ballotmeasure would allow the City totax medical-marijuana dispensariesan amount in addition to the 9 per-cent. the staff confirmed last weekthat it recommended that the Cityshould impose a 6-percent tax.

at 4th District Councilmemberpatrick O’Donnell’s recommenda-tion, the Council also requested thatthe proposed measure include lan-guage that gives the Council flexi-bility to adjust the tax rate.

Fifth District CouncilmemberGerrie Schipske opposed a city taxon medical marijuana.

“i think it’s absolutely cruel,”she said of the possibility that med-ical-marijuana patients might pay a15-percent tax. “if you really dobelieve this is medication and thatpatients need it, then they’re goingto be penalized.”

Schipske was the lone voteagainst the recommendation for theballot measure. the Council passedthe recommendation in a vote of 7-1. Sixth District CouncilmemberDee andrews was not present forthe vote.

plans to have more than 300 appli-cation centers operational by theend of 2014.

the goal, he said, is to “revolu-tionize” the way tSa conductsscreening at airports, moving awayfrom a “one-size-fits-all” model andrecognizing that “not every passengerposes the same threat.”

Melendez said the new programenables tSa to be more efficient withits resources.

“We’re getting away from the waywe’ve been doing things,” he said.“it’s about the efficiency of the secu-rity checkpoint. if there is a betterway to use our resources and providean effective security, then that’s whatwe’ve been going through.”

earlier this month, tSa openedapplication centers in indianapolisand Washington, and, by the end ofthe year, tSa expects to open addi-tional application centers in newyork.

at the preCheck application cen-ters, applicants are required to providebiographic information, such as

name, date of birth and home address,along with fingerprints, payment andvalid identity and citizenship/immi-gration documentation. all tSapreCheck program applicants mustvisit an application center in person toverify identity and provide documenta-tion to confirm citizenship/immigra-tion status as well as fingerprints,according to a statement from tSa.

tSa officials say the newprocess will allow all u.S. travel-ers the ability to apply directly totSa’s expedited screening pro-gram as application centers openacross the country.

“this new application processwill greatly increase the availabil-ity of tSa [preCheck] benefits to abroader population of travelersnationwide,” said tSa administra-tor John S. pistole in a statement.“tSa [preCheck] is enabling us tomove away from a one-size-fits-allapproach to transportation security,as we look for more opportunitiesto provide the most effective secu-rity in the most efficient way.”

Once approved, travelers willreceive a Known traveler number(Ktn) and will have the opportu-

nity to utilize tSa preCheck lanesat security checkpoints at morethan 100 participating airports andon nine major u.S. airlines includ-ing: alaska airlines, american air-lines, Delta air lines, Hawaiianairlines, JetBlue airways, South-west airlines, united airlines, uSairways and virgin america.

Before the new tSa preCheck-application process, passengerswere only eligible through existingprograms such as u.S. Custom andBorder protection’s Global entryprogram and frequent-flier pro-grams with certain airlines, but thenew process will allow travelers toapply directly to the expeditedscreening program.

Since its introduction, morethan 30 million passengers haveused tSa preCheck nationwide.

tSa notes, however, that theagency continues to incorporate“random and unpredictable secu-rity measures” throughout airportsand “no individual will be guaran-teed expedited screening.”

MORe inFORMatiOntsa.gov

DeCeMBeR 27, 20136 SIgNAL TRIBUNe NeWSTSA continued from page 1

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ST3530 - Dec. 27_Layout 1 12/27/13 11:59 AM Page 6

California State university, longBeach (CSulB), again, leads the wayamong California State university(CSu) campuses in the number ofapplications received from prospectivefirst-time freshmen and transfer stu-dents interested in attending classes atthe university next fall.

the initial filing period for under-graduate students to electronicallyapply to any CSu campus next fallended nov. 30.

according to figures released bythe CSu system, CSulB received56,281 first-time freshmen applica-tions, which was about 500 more thanthe next highest CSu campus. longBeach also received 25,910 transferstudent applications, which was morethan 3,500 applications higher thanthe next CSu campus. Both CSulBfigures represent modest increasesover the previous year.

Factoring in international and otherapplications sent directly to the cam-pus, CSulB has a total applicant poolof 83,594 new students interested inattending the university in fall 2014.

“We are very pleased that Cal Statelong Beach continues to be a destina-tion campus for so many Californiastudents. it is humbling to note thatwe will again be among the top fewcampuses nationally in the number ofapplications received,” said CSulBinterim president Donald para. “thisincrease is especially meaningful sincethe national demographics show adecline in the number of high schoolgraduates leading to a declining num-

ber of applications.“We are a student-centered, date-

driven campus,” para added. “Oursuccess as demonstrated by the amaz-ing number of applications wereceived coupled with our significantand rapid increase in graduation ratesin the last 10 years is a testament to theentire campus community – staff, fac-ulty, and administration.”

Compared to the number of appli-cations received electronically lastyear, CSulB’s first-time freshmentotal rose by 667 (1.2 percent). itstransfer application total increased by902 (3.6 percent) from a year ago.

“the record number of applica-tions indicates that prospective stu-dents and their parents recognize thatCSulB offers a great educationalvalue–a high quality, low cost educa-tion,” the president added. “at thesame time, it is a harsh reality that wewill likely not admit more than 30,000qualified students. From the 83,500applications we received, we willenroll fewer than 8,000 new students.”

Based on the high number ofapplications, getting into CSulB con-tinues to be extremely competitive.university officials anticipateenrolling about 4,000 new first-timefreshmen for the fall 2014 semesterand 3,500 new transfer students.that’s only about 7 percent of the totalnumber of freshman applicationsreceived and about 13.5 percent oftransfer applications.

Source: CSULB

DeCeMBeR 27, 2013 NeWS SIgNAL TRIBUNe 7

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LB Mayor Foster to deliver hislast State of the City on Jan. 14

long Beach Mayor Bob Foster, who has stated that he is not seeking re-election next year, will deliver hisfinal State of the City address on tuesday, Jan. 14, at 7:30pm at the pacific Ballroom at the long Beach arena.the venue is located at 300 east Ocean Blvd. all long Beach residents are invited to attend the free event, butall attendees must reserve a ticket for admission.

“i am looking forward to delivering my last State of the City address at the pacific Ballroom,” Foster saidin a statement. “this event has always been a great opportunity for our City to come together and reflect on thepast year, as well as celebrate our future to come.”

attendees may reserve tickets by calling (562) 570-5089 or by visiting mayorbobfoster.com . up to two tick-ets may be reserved per address. Residents are encouraged to reserve tickets as soon as possible as seating islimited. last year, all tickets were distributed within two weeks of announcing the event.

a live web cast of the State of the City will be available at longbeach.gov .

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10 SIgNAL TRIBUNe DeCeMBeR 27, 2013FridayDecember 272 p.m. (HALL) Movie “Karroll’s Christ-mas” (2004, Comedy) Tom EverettScott. The Christmas ghosts end up atthe wrong house and Allen Karroll istaken on a ride.4 p.m. (HALL) Movie “The SantaSwitch” (2013, Family) Ethan Erickson.A man is given the gift of being Santathis year and he finds himself with newpowers.5 p.m. (FAM) Movie “The SantaClause” (1994, Comedy) Tim Allen.When a father mistakenly kills SantaClaus, he is magically recruited to takehis place.6 p.m. (HALL) Movie “The ChristmasBlessing” (2005, Drama) Neil PatrickHarris. A man meets a young womanand little boy who are in need of mira-cles for the holidays.7 p.m. (FAM) Movie “The SantaClause 2” (2002, Family) Tim Allen.After being Santa Claus for a fewyears, Scott Calvin must find a wife andhelp his son.8 p.m. (HALL) Movie “Help for theHolidays” (2012, Family) SummerGlau. An elf sets out to teach her new

employers what it means to be a familyat Christmas time.9 p.m. (FAM) Movie “The SantaClause 3: The Escape Clause” (2007,Family) Tim Allen. Santa Claus pre-pares for a busy Christmas with his in-laws and the mischievous Jack Frost.10 p.m. (HALL) Movie “MatchmakerSanta” (2012, Romance) LaceyChabert. A mysterious Santa strands abaker and her boyfriend’s best friend ina small town.Midnight (FAM) Movie “The SantaClause 3: The Escape Clause” (2007,Family) Tim Allen. Santa Claus pre-pares for a busy Christmas with his in-laws and the mischievous Jack Frost.(HALL) Movie “It’s Christmas, Carol!”

(2012, Fantasy) Carrie Fisher. A ruth-less tycoon is visited by the ghost ofher old boss to help her change herways.SaturdayDecember 2810 a.m. (HALL) Movie “Help for theHolidays” (2012, Family) SummerGlau. An elf sets out to teach her newemployers what it means to be a familyat Christmas time.Noon (HALL) Movie “Silver Bells”

(2005, Drama) Anne Heche. A widowerand a young woman help each other toput their painful pasts behind them.2 p.m. (HALL) Movie “MatchmakerSanta” (2012, Romance) LaceyChabert. A mysterious Santa strands abaker and her boyfriend’s best friend ina small town.4 p.m. (HALL) Movie “A Bride forChristmas” (2012, Romance) AndrewW. Walker. A woman falls in love,unaware she’s been handpicked tohelp the man win a bet.6 p.m. (HALL) Movie “A Boyfriend forChristmas” (2004, Romance) KelliWilliams. A girl tells Santa she wants aboyfriend for Christmas and he turnsup 19 years later.8 p.m. (HALL) Movie “A Princess forChristmas” (2011, Family) KatieMcGrath. A young woman falls for adashing prince when she visits Eng-land for Christmas.10 p.m. (HALL) Movie “ChristmasWith Holly” (2012, Drama) Sean Faris.A young girl asks for a mother forChristmas following the death of hermother.Midnight (HALL) Movie “All I Want forChristmas” (2007, Drama) GailO’Grady. A nine-year-old boy enters a

contest to find a new husband for hismother.SundayDecember 2910 a.m. (HALL) Movie “A Princess forChristmas” (2011, Family) KatieMcGrath. A young woman falls for adashing prince when she visits Eng-land for Christmas.Noon (HALL) Movie “A Boyfriend forChristmas” (2004, Romance) KelliWilliams. A girl tells Santa she wants aboyfriend for Christmas and he turnsup 19 years later.2 p.m. (HALL) Movie “Christmas WithHolly” (2012, Drama) Sean Faris. Ayoung girl asks for a mother for Christ-mas following the death of her mother.4 p.m. (HALL) Movie “A Season forMiracles” (1999, Drama) Patty Duke. Awoman leaves with her sister’s childrenin an attempt to keep them from fostercare.6 p.m. (HALL) Movie “All I Want forChristmas” (2007, Drama) GailO’Grady. A nine-year-old boy enters acontest to find a new husband for hismother.8 p.m. (HALL) Movie “A ChristmasWish” (2010, Family) Kristy Swanson.A woman, left destitute by her hus-

band, faces a bleak Christmas with herchildren.Midnight (HALL) Movie “Farewell Mr.Kringle” (2010, Comedy) Christine Tay-lor. A journalist writes about a SantaClaus impersonator who lives in aChristmas-themed town.MondayDecember 302 p.m. (HALL) Movie “Come DanceWith Me” (2012, Romance) AndrewMcCarthy. A financial executive learnsto waltz, but falls in love with his danceinstructor.6 p.m. (HALL) Movie “Farewell Mr.Kringle” (2010, Comedy) Christine Tay-lor. A journalist writes about a SantaClaus impersonator who lives in aChristmas-themed town.8 p.m. (CW) iHeartRadio Music Festi-val This concert extravaganza includesperformances by Justin Timberlake,Katy Perry and more.9 p.m. (ABC) Rudolph’s Shiny NewYear Rudolph must find Happy, themissing baby new year, before mid-night on New Year’s Eve.10 p.m. (HALL) Movie “A ChristmasSong” (2012, Family) Natasha Hen-stridge. The fate of two music teachersis to be decided in a city-wide Christ-mas carol contest.Midnight (HALL) Movie “Annie Clausis Coming to Town” (2011, Family)Maria Thayer. Santa’s daughter AnnieClaus travels to Los Angeles in searchof love.TuesdayDecember 311:30 p.m. (TBN) King of Kings TheJews suffer under King Herod but thearrival of Jesus offers them hope.2 p.m. (HALL) Movie “A ChristmasSong” (2012, Family) Natasha Hen-stridge. The fate of two music teachersis to be decided in a city-wide Christ-mas carol contest.4 p.m. (HALL) Movie “A HolidayEngagement” (2011, Comedy) HaylieDuff. A woman hires a man to comehome and pretend to be her fiancéover the holidays.6 p.m. (HALL) Movie “The Most Won-derful Time of the Year” (2008, Drama)Brooke Burns. A single mom who haslost all faith in Christmas finds answerswhen her uncle visits.8 p.m. (CW) iHeartRadio Music Festi-val This concert extravaganza includesperformances by Justin Timberlake,Katy Perry and more.10 p.m. (ABC) Dick Clark’s PrimetimeNew Year’s Rockin’ Eve With RyanSeacrest The countdown to midnightfrom Times Square in New York contin-ues.

(HALL) Movie “Debbie Macomber’sTrading Christmas” (2011, Romance)Gil Bellows. A man and woman findlove at the most unexpected time andhave the best Christmas ever.11 p.m. (FOX) Fox New Year’s EveSpecial11:30 p.m. (ABC) Dick Clark’s Prime-time New Year’s Rockin’ Eve WithRyan Seacrest The countdown to mid-night from Times Square in New Yorkcontinues.Midnight (HALL) Movie “The Christ-mas Pageant” (2011, Comedy) MelissaGilbert. An overbearing theater directorbegrudgingly takes a job directing aChristmas pageant.

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Daniel AdamsCulture Writer

What is, or was, your biggestseemingly unattainable dream?C’mon. What was it? everyone hasa dream at one point or another intheir lives. as a child, did youdream of one day driving the cityfire engine, honking its air horn andspinning those red and white lightsand stopping traffic? Or, did youdream of stepping off rockets inoversized boots on moon landingsor perhaps one day building yourown empire? those who are luckyenough to see their dreams fulfilledbecome legends in their own time.Walt Disney was one such legend, aman of ideas and imagination andan unwavering drive unsurpassed inhis time.

The Disneyland Story by SamGennawey and published by KeenCommunications may be titled“The Unofficial Guide to the Evolu-tion of Walt Disney’s Dream,” butplease don’t let the word “unoffi-cial” deter you from reading one ofthe most fascinating and exhaus-tively researched books on WaltDisney and his creations available.admittedly, the very best part aboutThe Disneyland Story is that it isfilled, filled, FilleD with quota-tions by Walt Disney and those indi-viduals who surrounded him before,during and after Disneyland becamea reality. and, for you detail loversout there, every single quote in thebook has been cited to provide thatextra detail that i, myself, cannot

resist. as Gennawey

explains, Disneylandwould not have beenbuilt at all if itweren’t for Walt Dis-ney’s drive and pas-sion for creating anamusement parkwhere not only thechildren would havea wonderful time, buttheir parents wouldenjoy the experiencejust as much. “Fre-quently, Walt and [histwo daughters] wouldvisit nearby Griffithpark. ‘i’d take themto the merry-go-round, sit on a bench,you know, eatingpeanuts. i felt thereshould be somethingbuilt where the par-ents and the childrencould have funtogether.” But wherewas a man to get thekind of money that itwould take to buildsuch a dream? WaltDisney was just start-ing out his successstory with his won-derful cartoon workand animations.

as explained in The Disney-land Story, in 1937, with the suc-cess of his movie Snow White andthe Seven Dwarfs, Walt Disney took3 million dollars of the film’s profits

in order to buy the property in Bur-bank where Disney Studios sitstoday. after the creation of his stu-dio, however, Walt’s time becamespent on other things, and, over theyears that included World War ii,

and MGM Studios andWarner Brothers stu-dios taking away someof the animationmovie profits withtheir own hits.

But Walt Disneynever forgot, or gaveup on, his dream.Some of you may notknow that originallyWalt intended to buildhis amusement park ina corner of the DisneyStudio lot. the City ofBurbank, however, hadother thoughts on thesubject. Sam Gen-nawey writes “in Sep-tember 1952, theBurbank city councilrejected Walt’s amuse-ment park project. Onelawmaker proclaimed,‘We don’t want thecarny atmosphere inBurbank! We don’twant people falling inthe river, or merry-go-rounds squawking allday long.’ at this point,Burbank’s approvaldidn’t matter to Walt.His ideas were gettingbigger, and he started toconsider other proper-ties. He would not be

deterred.” i have to wonder howmany City of Burbank councilmembers were fired once Disney-land broke ground (in anaheim ofcourse) and started to thrive.

The Disneyland Story pro-

vides wonderful detail and storiesto the reader regarding Walt Dis-ney’s methods, thoughts, feelings,and disappointments in bringinghis dream to life. the book notonly goes into details of the cre-ation of the Magic Kingdom, butalso tells of the stories behind eachride from the 999 happy haunts inthe Haunted Mansion, to thosedarn tootin’ singing bears fromCountry Bear Jamboree, whichdebuted in the park in 1971, andonward to the creation of the fullDisneyland Resort in 1996, andbeyond.

When it comes to fulfillingone’s dreams, Walt Disney certainlysucceeded to the delight of every-one who has had the good fortune tovisit the results of his hard work andimagination. He built an empire,complete with his own fire engines,life-sized miniature trains, and agroup of world-beloved talking ani-mals that still thrives long after WaltDisney himself left us for a betterplace. that empire had only justbegun with Disneyland, and there isno doubt for anyone who enters itsgates, it remains even today one ofthe most magical places on earth.

as stated, The DisneylandStory must have been an exhaustivework to research and create in itsown right on the part of Sam Gen-nawey, and his work pays off as itdoesn’t disappoint. i recommendthis read to all fans of Walt Disneyand of Disneyland. this shouldtruly be an addition to your owncollection at home on your book-shelf. i have mine. Where’s yours?

DeCeMBeR 27, 2013 SIgNAL TRIBUNe 11Big dreams and miniature trains– The Disneyland Story

lB Symphony Orchestra’s free concert at Farmers & Merchants Bank building postponed

a free performance by the long Beach Symphony Orchestra (lBSO) at the Farmers & Merchants Bank buildingin downtown long Beach has been postponed to June 8, 2014.

lBSO’s other free performances, as part of its “Sounds & Spaces” series, will take place as scheduled, includingat St. luke’s episcopal Church on Feb. 23, temple israel on March 23 and the Homeland Cultural Center on May18.

the Farmers & Merchants Bank building performance is called “Classic american 2” and will include string-quartet music performed by the lBSO’s Roger Wilkie and Carrie Kennedy (violins) Colleen Sugata (viola) andtrevor Handy (cello). Sounds & Spaces presents Joseph Haydn’s late Quartet in G Opus 76, No. 1, written duringHaydn’s return to musical life at prince esterhazy’s gilded austrian palace, and antonín Dvořák’s lyrical StringQuartet No. 12, The American.

according to lBSO, the historic Farmers & Merchants Bank building at 302 pine ave. is “one of long Beach’smost stunning architectural and acoustical treasures” and the musical works will be “right at home in the exquisitearchitectural detail of the interior of the bank.”

MORe inFORMatiOnlbso.org

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the los angeles SuperiorCourt approved a new groundwa-ter-storage plan for southeastcities of los angeles County onWednesday, Dec. 18, accordingto a statement released by theCity of Signal Hill.

the groundwater-storage planstands to benefit more than 2million residents and thousandsof businesses that rely ongroundwater supplies in theregion, according to the city. theplan permits the storage of waterduring wet periods and for useduring droughts, effectively“protecting the region’s econ-omy,” city officials said.

“this plan comes at just theright time as our climate is get-ting more unstable,” said SignalHill Mayor Michael noll.

Signal Hill joined Cerritos,Downey, lakewood and longBeach to forge a consensus onthe storage plan with other cities,public water agencies, privatewater companies and individualwater-rights holders. the com-plex storage agreement wasnegotiated over a three-yearperiod by the cities, includingover 140 water-rights holders.

Regional water managerspraised the ruling, which hadlimited opposition in court,according to Signal Hill city offi-cials.

Officials with the WaterReplenishment District of South-ern California (WRD), which is

in charge of replenishing watertaken from underground aquifers,have also praised the agreement,adding that the court’s rulingwould help insure the sustainabil-ity of the water supply for mil-lions of residents in southeast losangeles County.

according to city officials,groundwater began to dry up inthe late 1950’s with the explosiveregional growth in southeast losangeles County. as new com-munities, like lakewood, incor-porated, the need to supply watersoared.

By 1964 the groundwater tablewas close to collapse and majorland subsidence was taking place,as the groundwater table dropped.the water-rights holders at thattime, including many cities,agreed to limit their pumping in a1965 court order, Signal Hill cityofficials said.

However, the 1965 agreementdid not allow for the storage ofground water. the allocation planwas like having a bank account,where you could only put moneyin but not take it out, said KevinWattier, general manager of thelong Beach Water Department.

the water-storage plan permitscities to invest in storing water,knowing that they can take it outwhen needed. the Cities of Cerri-tos, Downey and lakewood pur-chased water several years ago,placed it into the undergroundwater table, but were prevented

from taking this water out basedon the 1965 agreement.

the new water storage agree-ment also adds flexibility allow-ing cities to purchase water whenit is cheaper during wet years.the rising cost of water is a majorissue, since growth throughout thesouthwestern u.S. and shiftingclimate patterns have been reduc-ing available supplies, accordingto Signal Hill city officials.

the new plan divides morethan 330,000 acre-feet ofgroundwater-storage capacity inthe areas underlying southeastlos angeles County. accordingto city officials, an acre-foot ofgroundwater can supply fourhomes with water for one year.

WRD will be allowed110,000 acre-feet annually torecharge the water aquifer, withimported water, stormwater andother sources, according to Sig-nal Hill city officials. Over108,750 acre-feet will be usedfor storage by those with waterrights.

the City of Signal Hill has2,022 acre-feet of water rights.the agreement allows pumpersto store an additional 50 percentof their rights and carry-overunused water up to 60 percent inany year, according to city offi-cials.

“this agreement will beextremely valuable when wehave water wells being servicedor in case of emergencies,” said

Signal Hill public Works Direc-tor Steve Myrter.

Signal Hill and other commu-nities must purchase moreexpensive water from the Metro-politan Water District (MWD)when their wells go down forextended periods of time,according to Signal Hill cityofficials, who added that, with-out the water storage plan, citieslost their water rights annuallyand could not carry overstranded water.

Myrter noted that the pur-chase price of MWD water iscurrently $997 per acre-foot,while groundwater costs the cityonly the costs of pumping andthe fees imposed on the water byWRD, which is currently $268per acre foot.

Signal Hill currently budgets$750,000 annually for water pur-chase.

the water storage plan was“contentious” with 14 years of“off and on again” negotiationsand four years of litigation andlegislative efforts, city officialssaid.

Signal Hill shared in the liti-gation costs, which cost the Citya total of $105,000. Signal Hillfunded the majority of the legis-lation with the sale of surpluswater property located in para-mount, which netted over$185,000.

though the parties began dis-cussions as early as 1999, they

were unable to agree to a planthat properly served all of thevarious interests. after the seriesof starts and stops, long Beachand Signal Hill began discus-sions early in 2011 on a negotia-tion framework, bringing inCerritos, Downey and lakewoodto reach consensus.

the consensus effort involvednegotiations with the 26 cities inthe southeast los angelesCounty, private water companies,county water districts, regionalagencies, the California StateDepartment of Water Resources,small water producers and oth-ers.

the new groundwater-storageagreement includes a representa-tive governance structure com-prised of pumpers and the WRDand places economic controls onthe lease market. the agreementalso recognizes new sources ofgroundwater supplies, includingthe capture and infiltration ofstormwater. included in the planis a program for disadvantagedcommunities in need of water-system improvements, water-quality projects and ratestabilization.

Signal Hill Mayor noll saidin a statement, “this is a waterstorage agreement that will pro-vide valuable benefits to ourcommunity and the entire regionfor a long time to come.”

Source: City of SH

Court approves groundwater-storage plan for cities in southeast LA County

SUPPORT LOCAL BUSINESSES A reminder om the signal Tribune

ST3530 - Dec. 27_Layout 1 12/27/13 12:00 PM Page 12

by a public taxing entity must firstpay the bills and then seek a refundlater so as to not interrupt operations.

“the money paid to WRD by thecities will make up for replenish-ment that could not be accomplishedwhile the cities continued to pumpgroundwater without paying for it,”said WRD General Manager RobbWhitaker in an email.

Quilizapa said the cities won’tchallenge the ruling in court sincethey will be adding the Ra pay-ments to their refund claim.

“Since the Court of appeal ruledthat the cities must pay and pursue arefund, that is what they will do,”she said in an email. “if the Court ofappeal had ruled that the cities mustpay and never see their moneyagain, it would have made moresense to attempt an appeal to the

Supreme Court. the cities areattempting to pursue the most cost-efficient way to obtain the relief theyare entitled to under the law.”

WRD tried to request that thecities pay interest as penalties ontop of the withheld Ra payments,but that request was denied by thecourt, Quilizapa said. “What thismeans is that the cities are orderedto pay what they would have beenpaying over the last few years–nothing more– and to pursue therefund,” she said.

Whitaker confirmed that WRDis owed a total of more than $19.1million in withheld payments, notincluding interest at the time of theruling. He said that, as of Monday,Dec. 23, WRD had received a total of$5,286,007. WRD has also spentroughly $2 million on litigation costsfighting the cities in court, Whitakersaid.

Quilizapa said the total amount in

withheld Ra payments for Signal Hill,Cerritos and Downey is a little morethan $15 million, which will now beadded to the cities’ refund claim.

On Dec. 12, the Cerritos CityCouncil unanimously approvedpaying WRD more than $5.6 mil-lion, which includes past-due Rapayments of $4.9 million and asso-ciated penalties of $748,022.according to a staff report, thepayments were not included in theFiscal year 2013-14 budget sincecosts were “unforeseen.” the City,however, plans to include theamount in its refund claim.

Signal Hill withheld$1,160,205.72, which was sched-uled to be paid to WRD on nov. 26,Quilizapa said. Signal Hill CityManager Ken Farfsing said themoney was set aside in a reserveaccount and the City Councilauthorized the payment in an exec-utive order in closed session. Farf-

sing added, “there’s no intent toappeal.”

the City of Downey, whichowes about $9 million, has issued acheck that is currently beingprocessed, said John Oskoui,Downey’s assistant city managerand public works director. He saidthe City will not appeal and willseek a refund instead.

Whitaker said, however, thathe disagrees with a statementissued in a press release by thecities that the recent court ruling“affirms” that WRD is required toreturn money it had “over-charged” the cities in past years.

“Despite the statements fromthe litigant cities to the contrary,the appellate court did not affirmthat WRD owes the cities any-thing,” he said in an email. “thecourt opinion held that the citiesmust pay for their pumping whilethey continue to litigate... therewas simply no statement by thecourt that WRD will owe the citiesanything.”

Whitaker said WRD is holdingsteadfast to its claim that the citiesaren’t entitled to a refund.

“i don't see why the litigantcities should get a refund of thereplenishment assessment for waterthey’ve pumped and served to theirresidents because of a technicalitydue to a change in the law,” he said.“and we are not even sure if thatchange in the law applies to ussince we can’t appeal the lowercourt ruling until the cities’ dam-ages case is heard.

On the other hand, Quilizapasaid that every court, including theCourt of appeal, has confirmedthat the cities have a right to arefund. the question, she said, is“how much?” For now, with thewithheld Ra payments added, thetotal refund amount (for 2006through 2013) the cities will berequesting is more than $37 mil-lion, Quilizapa said.

“proposition 218 requires aprotest hearing of the pumpersand the Court has now twiceruled WRD completely ignoredthat and other requirements,” shesaid. “... therefore, to the extentit did so in violation of proposi-tion 218 in any year, it had no

authority to collect any part ofthe Ra.”

Quilizapa said the cities alsoargue they are entitled to “the dif-ference between what they paidand the amount they should havepaid,” since studies have con-cluded the Central Basin pumpersare overcharged to subsidize WestCoast Basin pumpers. this over-charge is approximately 40 per-cent, which would result in anearly $14 million refund claim,she said.

WRD officials, however, denythe claim that rates are unpropor-tional and don’t support a uniformRa-rate structure.

“WRD has always refused tocharge an Ra that is proportionalto the replenishment costs of eachbasin,” Quilizapa said. “after theCourt rulings, they undertook a2013 Cost of Service Study thatsimply concluded a uniform Ra inboth basins is proportional.”

Quilizapa said the cities’ litiga-tion is aimed at “ensuring account-ability and transparency” at WRD.By requiring that the water agencyfollow proposition 218, cities will beable to protest Ras that Quilizapasaid “are not justified by the actualreplenishment needs of the basin.”She said Ra payments make up onaverage about 40 percent of thewater bills that are paid by residentsand businesses.

“the objective is to reduce ourresidents’ water costs through an openand transparent process,” she said.“Other water districts, such as pajarovalley Water Management agencyand Santa Clara valley Water District,have complied with the law andadopted proportional pumping fees.it is time for WRD to do the same.”

RA payments owed to WRD (now part of refund claim):Cerritos: $4,908,733.32Downey: $9,018,781.65Signal Hill: $1,160,205.72

DeCeMBeR 27, 2013 SIgNAL TRIBUNe 13NeWS

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EYE ON CRIMECrimes reported by LBPDCouncil Districts 6, 7 & 8

Thursday, Dec. 19Grand theft auto2am– 4600 block Falcon ave.

Friday, Dec. 20 Aggravated assault5;02pm– 3400 block pacific ave.

Residential burglary8:32pm– 3300 block San Fran-cisco ave.

Saturday, Dec. 21Grand theft auto12pm– e. 45th St./Cherry ave.

Sunday, Dec. 22Battery5:50am– 200 block e. Willow St.

Grand theft auto11pm– 2500 block Olive ave.

Monday, Dec. 23Robbery of person3am– e. 36th St./Olive ave.

Grand theft auto6:43am– 1100 block e. 45th Way

Robbery of inhabited dwelling,common carrier

6:28pm– 3700 block Cerritosave.

Tuesday, Dec. 24Robbery of person1:32am– atlantic ave./e. Roo-sevelt Rd.

Commercial robbery6:40pm– 1900 block pacific ave.

Crimes reported by SHPDCitywide

Thursday, Dec. 19Attempted residential burglary7am– 1800 block Junipero ave.

Residential burglary8am– 2700 Wall St.

Auto burglary12pm– 900 block e. 33rd St.

Battery2:19pm– 1900 block Cherry ave.

Stolen vehicle2:51pm– 2300 block e. Spring St.

Friday, Dec. 20DUI 1:09am– 2300 block Walnut ave.

Assault with firearm

9:36pm– 700 block e. Spring St.

Saturday, Dec. 21Auto burglary7:55am– 2100 block Gaviota ave.

Commercial burglary5pm– 900 block e. 33rd St.

Under the influence of alcohol,drugs5:56pm– e. Crescent HeightsSt./Rose ave.

Sunday, Dec. 22DUI 2:46am– panorama Dr./Ohio ave.

Manufacturing, selling counter-feit trade mark10:06am– 3100 block e. pCH

Unauthorized use of ID to obtaincredit or goods12pm– 2500 block Cherry ave.

Monday, Dec. 23Commercial burglary10:04am– 2400 block Cherryave.

Stolen vehicle11:58am– 2500 block Orangeave.

www.signaltribune.com

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ST3530 - Dec. 27_Layout 1 12/27/13 12:00 PM Page 13

14 SIgNAL TRIBUNe DeCeMBeR 27, 2013PUBLIC NOTICeSTST4524

TSG No.: 6673159 TS No.: CA1200244243FHA/vA/PMI No.: APN: 7217-015-077 PropertyAddress: 2075 FREEMAN AvENUE SIGNALHILL, CA 90755 NOTICE OF TRUSTEE'SSALE YOU ARE IN DEFAULT UNDER A DEEDOF TRUST, DATED 10/07/2005. UNLESS YOUTAKE ACTION TO PROTECT YOUR PROP-ERTY, IT MAY BE SOLD AT A PUBLIC SALE.IF YOU NEED AN EXPLANATION OF THENATURE OF THE PROCEEDING AGAINSTYOU, YOU SHOULD CONTACT A LAWYER.On 01/16/2014 at 10:00 A.M., First AmericanTitle Insurance Company, as duly appointedTrustee under and pursuant to Deed of Trustrecorded 10/19/2005, as Instrument No. 052516418, in book , page , , of OfficialRecords in the office of the County Recorderof LOS ANGELES County, State of Califor-nia. Executed by: ANDREW MAGGIOTTOAND JANINE MAGGIOTTO, HUSBAND ANDWIFE, WILL SELL AT PUBLIC AUCTION TOHIGHEST BIDDER FOR CASH, CASHIER'SCHECK/CASH EQUIvALENT or other form ofpayment authorized by 2924h(b), (Payable att ime of sale in lawful money of the UnitedStates) Behind the fountain located in CivicCenter Plaza, 400 Civic Center Plaza,Pomona CA All r ight, t i t le and interest con-veyed to and now held by it under said Deedof Trust in the property situated in saidCounty and State described as: AS MOREFULLY DESCRIBED IN THE ABOvE MEN-TIONED DEED OF TRUST APN# 7217-015-077 The street address and other commondesignation, i f any, of the real propertydescribed above is purported to be: 2075FREEMAN AvENUE, SIGNAL HILL, CA 90755he undersigned Trustee disclaims any liabilityfor any incorrectness of the street addressand other common designation, if any, shownherein. Said sale wil l be made, but withoutcovenant or warranty, expressed or implied,regarding t i t le, possession, or encum-brances, to pay the remaining principal sumof the note(s) secured by said Deed of Trust,with interest thereon, as provided in saidnote(s), advances, under the terms of saidDeed of Trust, fees, charges and expenses ofthe Trustee and of the trusts created by saidDeed of Trust. The total amount of the unpaidbalance of the obligation secured by theproperty to be sold and reasonable esti-mated costs, expenses and advances at thetime of the initial publication of the Notice ofSale is $1,045,434.14. The beneficiary undersaid Deed of Trust has deposited all docu-ments evidencing the obligations secured bythe Deed of Trust and has declared all sumssecured thereby immediately due andpayable, and has caused a written Notice ofDefault and Election to Sell to be executed.The undersigned caused said Notice ofDefault and Election to Sell to be recorded inthe County where the real property is located.NOTICE TO POTENTIAL BIDDERS: If youare considering bidding on this property lien,you should understand that there are risksinvolved in bidding at a trustee auction. Youwill be bidding on a lien, not on the propertyitself. Placing the highest bid at a trusteeauction does not automatically entitle you tofree and clear ownership of the property. Youshould also be aware that the lien being auc-tioned off may be a junior lien. If you are thehighest bidder at the auction, you are or maybe responsible for paying off all liens seniorto the lien being auctioned off, before you canreceive clear t i t le to the property. You areencouraged to investigate the existence, pri-ority, and size of outstanding liens that mayexist on this property by contacting thecounty recorder’s office or a title insurancecompany, either of which may charge you afee for this information. If you consult eitherof these resources, you should be aware thatthe same lender may hold more than onemortgage or deed of trust on the property.NOTICE TO PROPERTY OWNER: The saledate shown on this not ice of sale may bepostponed one or more t imes by the mort-gagee, beneficiary, trustee, or a court, pur-suant to Section 2924g of the California CivilCode. The law requires that informationabout trustee sale postponements be madeavailable to you and to the public, as a cour-tesy to those not present at the sale. If youwish to learn whether your sale date hasbeen postponed, and i f appl icable, therescheduled t ime and date for the sale ofthis property, you may call (916)939-0772 orvisit this Internet Web http://search.nation-wideposting.com/propertySearchTerms.aspx,using the fi le number assigned to this caseCA1200244243 Information about postpone-ments that are very short in duration or thatoccur close in t ime to the scheduled salemay not immediately be ref lected in thetelephone information or on the Internet Website. The best way to veri fy postponementinformation is to attend the scheduled sale.I f the sale is set aside for any reason, thePurchaser at the sale shall be entit led onlyto a return of the deposit paid. The Pur-chaser shal l have no further recourseagainst the Mortgagor, the Mortgagee or theMortgagee’s attorney. Date: First AmericanTitle Insurance Company 6 Campus Circle,2nd Floor Westlake, TX 76262 First Ameri-can Title Insurance Company MAY BE ACT-ING AS A DEBT COLLECTOR ATTEMPTINGTO COLLECT A DEBT. ANY INFORMATIONOBTAINED MAY BE USED FOR THAT PUR-POSE FOR TRUSTEES SALE INFORMA-TION PLEASE CALL(916)939-0772NPP0224934 To: SIGNALTRIBUNE 12/27/2013, 01/03/2014,01/10/2014

TST4521NOTICE OF TRUSTEE'S SALE TS No. 12-0080507 Doc ID #000144460582005N TitleOrder No. 12-0144187 Investor/Insurer No.4000486999 APN No. 7215-026-053 YOUARE IN DEFAULT UNDER A DEED OFTRUST, DATED 01/18/2006. UNLESS YOUTAKE ACTION TO PROTECT YOUR PROP-ERTY, IT MAY BE SOLD AT A PUBLIC SALE.IF YOU NEED AN EXPLANATION OF THENATURE OF THE PROCEEDING AGAINSTYOU, YOU SHOULD CONTACT A LAWYER.Notice is hereby given that RECONTRUSTCOMPANY, N.A., as duly appointed trusteepursuant to the Deed of Trust executed byANGEL PULEX AN UNMARRIED MAN.,dated 01/18/2006 and recorded 2/3/2006, asInstrument No. 06 0261893, in Book N/A,Page N/A, of Official Records in the office ofthe County Recorder of Los Angeles County,State of California, will sell on 01/14/2014 at11:00AM, By the fountain located at 400Civic Center Plaza, Pomona, CA 91766 atpublic auction, to the highest bidder for cashor check as described below, payable in fullat t ime of sale, al l r ight, t i t le, and interestconveyed to and now held by i t under saidDeed of Trust, in the property si tuated insaid County and State and as more ful lydescribed in the above referenced Deed ofTrust. The street address and other common

designat ion, i f any, of the real propertydescribed above is purported to be: 2218OHIO AvE, SIGNAL HILL, CA, 90755. Theundersigned Trustee disclaims any l iabi l i tyfor any incorrectness of the street addressand other common designat ion, i f any,shown herein. The total amount of theunpaid balance with interest thereon of theobligation secured by the property to be soldplus reasonable estimated costs, expensesand advances at the time of the initial publi-cation of the Notice of Sale is $935,776.42.I t is possib le that at the t ime of sale theopening b id may be less than the tota lindebtedness due. In addit ion to cash, theTrustee wil l accept cashier's checks drawnon a state or national bank, a check drawnby a state or federal credi t union, or acheck drawn by a state or federal savingsand loan association, savings association,or savings bank specified in Section 5102 ofthe Financia l Code and author ized to dobusiness in th is state. Said sale wi l l bemade, in an ' 'AS IS' ' condit ion, but withoutcovenant or warranty, express or impl ied,regarding t i t le , possession or encum-brances, to sat is fy the indebtednesssecured by said Deed of Trust , advancesthereunder, with interest as provided, andthe unpaid principal of the Note secured bysaid Deed of Trust with interest thereon asprovided in said Note, plus fees, charges andexpenses of the Trustee and of the trusts cre-ated by said Deed of Trust. NOTICE TOPOTENTIAL BIDDERS If you are consideringbidding on this property l ien, you shouldunderstand that there are risks involved inbidding at a trustee auction. You will be bid-ding on a lien, not on a property itself. Plac-ing the highest bid at a trustee auction doesnot automatically entitle you to free and clearownership of the property. You should also beaware that the lien being auctioned off maybe a junior lien. If you are the highest bidderat the auction, you are or may be responsiblefor paying off all liens senior to the lien beingauctioned off, before you can receive cleartit le to the property. You are encouraged toinvestigate the existence, priority, and size ofoutstanding liens that may exist on this prop-erty by contacting the county recorder's officeor a title insurance company, either of whichmay charge you a fee for this information. Ifyou consult either of these resources, youshould be aware that the lender may holdmore than one mortgage or deed of trust onthe property. NOTICE TO PROPERTYOWNER The sale date shown on this noticeof sale may be postponed one or more timesby the mortgagee, beneficiary, trustee, or acourt, pursuant to Section 2924g of the Cali-fornia Civil Code. The law requires that infor-mation about trustee sale postponements bemade available to you and to the public, as acourtesy to those not present at the sale. Ifyou wish to learn whether your sale date hasbeen postponed, and, i f applicable, therescheduled time and date for the sale of thisproperty, you may call 1-800-281-8219 orvisit this Internet Web site www.recon-trustco.com, using the file number assignedto this case TS No. 12-0080507. Informationabout postponements that are very short induration or that occur close in t ime to thescheduled sale may not immediately bereflected in the telephone information or onthe Internet Web site. The best way to verifypostponement information is to attend thescheduled sale. DATED: 12/28/2012 RECON-TRUST COMPANY, N.A. 1800 Tapo CanyonRd., CA6-914-01-94 SIMI vALLEY, CA 93063Phone: (800) 281 8219, Sale Information(626) 927-4399 By: Trustee's Sale OfficerRECONTRUST COMPANY, N.A. is a debt col-lector attempting to collect a debt. Any infor-mation obtained will be used for that purpose.A-4432477 12/20/2013, 12/27/2013,01/03/2014

TST4520APN: 7216-017-016 TS No: CA08000815-13-1 TO No: 1470214 NOTICE OF TRUSTEE'SSALE  YOU ARE IN DEFAULT UNDER ADEED OF TRUST DATED April 27, 2004.UNLESS YOU TAKE ACTION TO PROTECTYOUR PROPERTY, IT MAY BE SOLD AT APUBLIC SALE. IF YOU NEED AN EXPLANA-TION OF THE NATURE OF THE PROCEED-INGS AGAINST YOU, YOU SHOULDCONTACT A LAWYER.  On January 7, 2014 at09:00 AM, behind the fountain located in CivicCenter Plaza, 400 Civic Center Plaza,Pomona CA 91766, MTC Financial Inc. dbaTrustee Corps, as the duly Appointed Trustee,under and pursuant to the power of sale con-tained in that certain Deed of Trust Recordedon May 7, 2004 as Instrument No. 04 1153794of official records in the Office of the Recorderof Los Angeles County, California, executedby JUAN M. GOMEZ, JR AND CORINNAGOMEZ, HUSBAND AND WIFE AS COMMU-NITY PROPERTY WITH RIGHT OF SUR-vIvORSHIP, as Trustor(s), in favor ofMORTGAGE ELECTRONIC REGISTRATIONSYSTEMS, INC. as nominee for AMERICORPCREDIT CORP as Beneficiary, WILL SELL ATPUBLIC AUCTION TO THE HIGHEST BID-DER, in lawful money of the United States, allpayable at the time of sale, that certain prop-erty situated in said County, Californiadescribing the land therein as: AS MOREFULLY DESCRIBED IN SAID DEED OFTRUST  The property heretofore described isbeing sold “as is”. The street address andother common designation, if any, of the realproperty described above is purported to be:2315-2317 EAST 19TH STREET, SIGNALHILL, CA 90755   The undersigned Trusteedisclaims any liability for any incorrectness ofthe street address and other common desig-nation, if any, shown herein.  Said sale will bemade without covenant or warranty, expressor implied, regarding tit le, possession, orencumbrances, to pay the remaining principalsum of the Note(s) secured by said Deed ofTrust, with interest thereon, as provided insaid Note(s), advances if any, under the termsof the Deed of Trust, estimated fees, chargesand expenses of the Trustee and of the trustscreated by said Deed of Trust.    The totalamount of the unpaid balance of the obliga-tions secured by the property to be sold andreasonable estimated costs, expenses andadvances at the time of the initial publicationof this Notice of Trustee’s Sale is estimatedto be $378,936.21 (Est imated). However,prepayment premiums, accrued interest andadvances wi l l increase this f igure pr ior tosale. Benefic iary’s bid at said sale mayinclude all or part of said amount. In addi-t ion to cash, the Trustee wi l l accept acashier’s check drawn on a state or nationalbank, a check drawn by a state or federalcredit union or a check drawn by a state orfederal savings and loan associat ion, sav-ings association or savings bank specified inSect ion 5102 of the Cal i fornia FinancialCode and authorized to do business in Cali-fornia, or other such funds as may beacceptable to the Trustee. In the event ten-

der other than cash is accepted, the Trusteemay withhold the issuance of the Trustee’sDeed Upon Sale unt i l funds become avai l -able to the payee or endorsee as a matter ofright. The property offered for sale excludesal l funds held on account by the propertyreceiver, i f appl icable.    I f the Trustee isunable to convey t i t le for any reason, thesuccessful bidder’s sole and exclusive rem-edy shall be the return of monies paid to theTrustee and the successful bidder shall haveno further recourse.  Notice to Potential Bid-ders    If you are considering bidding on thisproperty l ien, you should understand thatthere are r isks involved in bidding at aTrustee auct ion. You wi l l be bidding on alien, not on the property itself. Placing thehighest bid at a Trustee auct ion does notautomatical ly ent i t le you to free and clearownership of the property. You should alsobe aware that the l ien being auct ioned offmay be a junior lien. If you are the highestbidder at the auct ion, you are or may beresponsible for paying off all l iens senior tothe lien being auctioned off, before you canreceive clear t i t le to the property. You areencouraged to investigate the existence, pri-ority, and size of outstanding liens that mayexist on this property by contacting the countyrecorder's office or a title insurance company,either of which may charge you a fee for thisinformation. If you consult either of theseresources, you should be aware that thesame Lender may hold more than one mort-gage or Deed of Trust on theproperty.  Notice to Property Owner  The saledate shown on this Notice of Sale may bepostponed one or more t imes by the Mort-gagee, Beneficiary, Trustee, or a court, pur-suant to Section 2924g of the California CivilCode. The law requires that informationabout Trustee Sale postponements be madeavailable to you and to the public, as a cour-tesy to those not present at the sale. If youwish to learn whether your sale date hasbeen postponed, and, i f appl icable, therescheduled time and date for the sale of thisproperty, you may call Priority Posting andPublishing at 714-573-1965 for informationregarding the Trustee's Sale or visit the Inter-net Web site address listed below for infor-mation regarding the sale of this property,using the file number assigned to this case,CA08000815-13-1. Information about post-ponements that are very short in duration orthat occur close in time to the scheduled salemay not immediately be reflected in the tele-phone information or on the Internet Website. The best way to verify postponementinformation is to attend the scheduledsale.    Date: December 4, 2013  TRUSTEECORPS  TS No. CA08000815-13-1  17100Gil lette Ave  Irvine, CA 92614  949-252-8300   Joseph Barragan, Authorized Signa-tory    SALE INFORMATION CAN BEOBTAINED ON LINE ATwww.priorityposting.com  FOR AUTOMATEDSALES INFORMATION PLEASE CALL: PriorityPosting and Publishing at 714-573-1965  TRUSTEE CORPS MAY BE ACTING ASA DEBT COLLECTOR ATTEMPTING TO COL-LECT A DEBT. ANY INFORMATION OBTAINEDMAY BE USED FOR THATPURPOSE.  P1073584 12/13, 12/20,12/27/2013 

TS-T4515 / 2013 247745FICTITIoUS BUSINESS NAME

STATEMENTThe following person is doing business as:MOONLIGHTNING MOTORIZED &PEDAL BIKES, 150 W. Lomita Blvd., Wilm-ington, CA 90744. Registrant: CARL BAL-LANTYNE, 150 W. Lomita Blvd.,Wilmington, CA 90744. This business isconducted by: an Individual. I declare thatall information in this statement is true andcorrect. Signed: Carl Ballantyne. The reg-istrant has begun to transact business

under the fictitious business name ornames listed herein. The registrant beganusing this fictitious business name inDecember, 2012. This statement was filedwith the county clerk of Los AngelesCounty on December 3, 2013. NOTICE:This fictitious business name statementexpires five years from the date it was filedin the office of the county clerk. A new fic-titious business name statement must befiled prior to that date. The filing of thisstatement does not of itself authorize theuse in this state of a fictitious businessname in violation of the rights of anotherunder federal, state, or common law (seesection 14411 et seq., Business and Pro-fessions Code). Pub. The Signal Tribune:December 6, 13, 20, 27, 2013.

TST4519 / 2013 252169FICTITIoUS BUSINESS NAME

STATEMENTThe following persons are doing businessas: OLYMPIC CLEANERS, 2063 PacificAve., Long Beach, CA 90806. Registrant:1. JAE SIK KIM, 2. KYUNG JA KIM, 19506Fagian Way, Cerritos, CA 90703. This busi-ness is conducted by: a General Partner-ship. I declare that all information in thisstatement is true and correct. Signed: JaeSik Kim. The registrant has begun totransact business under the fictitiousbusiness name or names listed herein.The registrant began using this fictitiousbusiness name on March 15, 1990. Thisstatement was filed with the county clerkof Los Angeles County on December 10,2013. NOTICE: This fictitious businessname statement expires five years fromthe date it was filed in the office of thecounty clerk. A new fictitious businessname statement must be filed prior to thatdate. The filing of this statement does notof itself authorize the use in this state ofa fictitious business name in violation ofthe rights of another under federal, state,or common law (see section 14411 etseq., Business and Professions Code).Pub. The Signal Tribune: December 13,20, 27, 2013 & January 3, 2014.

TST4523 / 2013 256272FICTITIoUS BUSINESS NAME

STATEMENTThe following person is doing businessas: GREAT COMMISSION BAPTIST MIS-SIONS, 3332 Magnolia Ave., LongBeach, CA 90806. Registrant: PACIFICBAPTIST CHURCH, 3332 Magnolia Ave.,Long Beach, CA 90806. This business isconducted by: a Corporation. I declarethat all information in this statement istrue and correct. Signed: Steve Meyers,President. The registrant has begun totransact business under the fictitiousbusiness name or names listed herein.The registrant began using this fictitiousbusiness name on November 5, 2013.This statement was filed with the countyclerk of Los Angeles County on Decem-ber 16, 2013. NOTICE: This fictitiousbusiness name statement expires fiveyears from the date it was filed in theoffice of the county clerk. A new fictitiousbusiness name statement must be filedprior to that date. The filing of this state-ment does not of itself authorize the usein this state of a fictitious business namein violation of the rights of another underfederal, state, or common law (see sec-tion 14411 et seq., Business and Profes-sions Code). Pub. The Signal Tribune:December 20, 27, 2013 & January 3, 10,2014.

TST4519 / 2013 252169FICTITIoUS BUSINESS NAME STATE-

MENTThe following persons are doing businessas: OLYMPIC CLEANERS, 2063 PacificAve., Long Beach, CA 90806. Registrant:1. JAE SIK KIM, 2. KYUNG JA KIM, 19506Fagian Way, Cerritos, CA 90703. Thisbusiness is conducted by: a General Part-nership. I declare that all information inthis statement is true and correct. Signed:Jae Sik Kim. The registrant has begun totransact business under the fictitious busi-ness name or names listed herein. Theregistrant began using this fictitious busi-ness name on March 15, 1990. This state-ment was filed with the county clerk of LosAngeles County on December 10, 2013.NOTICE: This fictitious business namestatement expires five years from the dateit was filed in the office of the countyclerk. A new fictitious business namestatement must be filed prior to that date.The filing of this statement does not ofitself authorize the use in this state of afictitious business name in violation of therights of another under federal, state, orcommon law (see section 14411 et seq.,Business and Professions Code). Pub.The Signal Tribune: December 13, 20, 27,2013 & January 3, 2014.

TST4525 / 2013 258402FICTITIoUS BUSINESS NAME STATE-

MENTThe following person is doing businessas: vIvA vERDE WORDS, 220 TerminoAve., Long Beach, CA 90803. Registrant:HAROLD HERNANDEZ, 220 TerminoAve., Long Beach, CA 90803. This busi-ness is conducted by: an Individual. Ideclare that all information in this state-ment is true and correct. Signed: HaroldHernandez. The registrant has not begunto transact business under the fictitiousbusiness name or names listed herein.This statement was filed with the countyclerk of Los Angeles County on December18, 2013. NOTICE: This fictitious busi-ness name statement expires five yearsfrom the date it was filed in the office ofthe county clerk. A new fictitious busi-ness name statement must be filed priorto that date. The filing of this statementdoes not of itself authorize the use inthis state of a fictitious business name inviolation of the rights of another underfede ral, state, or common law (see sec-tion 14411 et seq., Business and Profes-sions Code). Pub. The Signal Tribune:December 27, 2013 & January 3, 10, 17,2014.

CITY OF SIgNAL HILLTST4526

NoTICE oF INTE-NT To ADoPTA NEGATIVE DEClARATIoN

In compliance with section 15072 of the California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA) Guidelinesnotification is hereby given to responsible agencies, trustee agencies, interest groups and the gen-eral public that the City of Signal Hill, having completed an Initial Study and finding no significantenvironmental impacts associated with the project, shall adopt Negative Declaration 12/27/13(1).

PROJECT DESCRIPTIONTo satisfy State requirements, the City of Signal Hill has prepared a draft Housing Element Update

for the planning period of 2014-2021 that includes six major components:

An assessment of the Signal Hill housing needs including existing and projected needs.

An inventory of sites to accommodate the City’s Regional Housing Need Allocation (RHNA) of 169housing units.

An analysis of housing market and governmental constraints that impede public and private sectorefforts to meet the need.

A progress report describing actions taken to implement the 2008-2014 Housing Element.

A statement of the City’s goals, quantified objectives and policies relative to the construction, reha-bilitation, conservation and preservation of housing for the period 2014-2021.

An implementation program which sets forth a schedule of actions which the City is undertaking orintends to undertake to implement the policies and achieve the stated goals and objectives of the

Housing Element.

PROJECT LOCATIONCitywide - City of Signal Hill

PUBLIC REvIEWThe proposed Negative Declaration is being circulated for public review. The dates of this review

are from December 27, 2013 to January 20, 2014. The Negative Declaration and supporting mate-rials relevant to the CEQA finding are available in the Community Development Department

located at City Hall, 2175 Cherry Avenue during the hours of 7:30 am to 5:30 pm Monday throughThursday and 7:30 am to 4:30 pm Friday.

Run your fictitious

business names with us!

Call Steve: 562-595-7900

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Cory BilickoManaging Editor

In 100 words or less, what do youdo as an artist?i work in ceramics and mosaics. inmy ceramic work, i prefer to hand-build my pieces. the free-flowingaspect of this process appeals tome. With my mosaics, i like towork with glass. Being able to cutand then grind each piece to theexact size and shape i need enablesme to have a precision in my workthat then allows me to play. it’s atime-consuming process– one pieceof glass can take five minutes ormore– but the results are wellworth the time and effort.

What motivates you to createart?My inspiration comes from manythings. i like to incorporate a senseof movement in my work. the spinof the galaxies, the dance of sea tur-tles as they swim, water weavingitself as it flows, how the vines inmy garden twist as they grow.

How has your practice changedover time?i originally worked with glass inthe more traditional medium ofleaded or foiled glass windows.While this process was gratifying, ifind incorporating the glass intomosaic pieces much more pleasing

and fun.

Do you ever get artist’s block? Ifso, how do you combat it?Occasionally, but when i do, i findthat i get my best ideas whileswimming, which i do regularly forboth exercise and enjoyment. also,i’ll go out to the studio and justlook around at all the glass and sup-plies. Something will spark an idea!

What do you think your lifewould be like if, for some reason,you could no longer create art?that’s just not possible! art iseverywhere and in everything andeveryone. if one medium is takenfrom you, you find another,whether it’s music, dance, or justhow you present yourself to theworld.

What role does the artist have insociety?More roles than one! Some artistsare able to show how we appear toother cultures, both within andwithout the boundaries of our coun-try and our many societies. Someshow the beauty of the naturalworld, some the beauty of the innerspirit. i believe our role is to show

the myriad aspects of human exis-tence.

How do you feel when people askyou to explain the meaning ofyour art?i’m always happy to talk about myart and the process i use to createit– what inspired me and why ichose the materials in a particularpiece. i love to talk about thedetails!

Have you ever been banned orcensored to any degree as anartist? If so, how did you react?If not, how do you think youwould react in that situation?i’ve never been in that situation;my work is not very controversial.i believe it’s important to embracecontroversy in art as a way to begina conversation that can lead tounderstanding other cultures, otherideas, other realities.

Does your artistic life ever getlonely? If so, what do you do tocounteract it?no, many of my friends are artists,as well. and when i’m working, idon’t feel lonely at all!

What do you hope to achievewith your art?i hope to bring a sense of playful-ness and whimsy to the world. Weall need to have some fun!

What are one or two primaryareas of fear for you as an artist?that i won’t be taken seriously;that my work will be regarded as“fluff” and not worthwhile.

What are one or two factors that,when they’re in place, enable youto really flourish artistically?it may seem counterintuitive, but ilike having a deadline.

What jobs have you had otherthan being an artist?i worked in telephony for over 20years, “troubleshooting” in differ-ent capacities. i’ve also worked asan office manager.

What’s your favorite color?Royal blue, but i’ve recentlybecome enamored of orange’smany wonderful hues.

To see more of Burnight’s work,visit burnight-art.com .

Imitating LifePosing questions to local artist Tina Burnight

Genfodelse (Rebirth),” tile mosaic on planter

“RenOlive,” glass mosaic on wooden lazy susan

“Matt's Uke” glass mosaic on wood

Tina Burnight

For more information, call the Water Conservation Hotline:562-989-7350

Approved Watering ScheduleWatering is approved on the following days:

Monday, Thursday, and Saturdaybefore 9:00 am and after 4:00 pm

Disney On ice presents Rockin’ Ever After holiday showDisney On Ice is presenting its Rockin’ ever after show, which features world-classskaters bringing together moments from Disney Pixar’s Brave, tangled, the little Mer-maid and Beauty and the Beast movies. During the show, a group of royal contendersfrom Brave perform a Scottish jig and compete to win the heart of adventurous, sharp-shooting Merida, who makes her on-ice debut. Disney On Ice, which is produced by FieldEntertainment, is being performed in Los Angeles, Orange County, the Inland Empireand Long Beach. Performances at the Long Beach Arena are from Jan. 1 to Jan. 5. Ticketprices range from $22 to $55. Opening-night tickets are $15 each for select seats.

MORe inFORMatiOndisneyonice.com(800) 745-3000

15 SIgNAL TRIBUNe DeCeMBeR 27, 2013CULTURe

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