CITY TO PLANT 2,000 NEW TREES

PROFILE
Vol. 41 · No. 1 FEBRUARY 2014
CITY COUNCIL
Mayor Brent A. Tercero
Mayor Pro Tem Gregory Salcido
Councilmembers Bob J. Archuleta · David W. Armenta · Gustavo V. Camacho
CITY TO PLANT 2,000 NEW TREES
Volunteers invited to help at Community Planting Day
T
he City will be planting two thousand new trees throughout the city over
the next few months thanks to a “Green Trees for the Golden State”
grant from the California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection.
The City applied for the grant last year and was awarded $100,000 to purchase
and plant 2,000 trees along residential and commercial streets. Planting trees
in urban areas has a number of positive impacts, including the reduction of
noise and air pollution as well as beautifying the community.
One of the requirements of the grant is that the City utilize community volunteers and non-profit organizations to help plant the trees. A Community Planting Day is scheduled for Saturday, February 8 from 8:00 a.m. to noon. Volunteers will meet at Streamland Park, 3539 Durfee Avenue, and be assigned to
tree planting zones within walking distance of the park. Volunteers are encouraged to bring their own shovels and gloves.
Residents interested in having a tree planted in their parkway are encouraged
to request one in advance by contacting the City’s Public Works Department at
562.801.4415. Requests should be submitted as soon as possible as the number
of trees is limited.
For more information or to volunteer for the Community Planting Day, you
may call 562.801.4430. Volunteer applications are also available on the City’s
website at www.pico-rivera.org.
CITY TO RECEIVE THIRD
KaBOOM! PLAYGROUND
Park Build Day set for February 13
NEW CHAPTER
INSIDE
THIS ISSUE
The City’s new state-of-the-art Library is now open to the public. The new library has over
16,000 square feet of space with an expanded book collection, additional meeting rooms and an
increase in the availability of public computers with internet access. The Pico Rivera Library is
open Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday from 10:00 a.m. to 8:00 p.m., and Saturday from 8:00
a.m. to 6:00 p.m. The Pico Rivera Library is closed on Friday, Sunday and Monday.
PUBLIC WORKS
HONORED
SPRING TRAINING
CAMP FOR KIDS
Department awarded for
Rivera Park and Passons
Underpass Projects.
Sports, cooking and arts
& crafts to be offered for
youth in grades K-8.
p2
p3
MIDGET DONS WIN
CONFERENCE TITLE
Conference Championship is
the first for the group since
2002,
The City is proud to receive its third
KaBOOM! playground, this time at
Pio Pico Elementary school. Volunteers are being sought to help build
the playground at a park Build Day
on Thursday, February 13 from 9:30
a.m. to 3:30 p.m. The school is located at 4211 Columbia Avenue.
Like all KaBOOM! playgrounds,
this playground’s design is based
on ideas generated by area children
during a Design Day, where the children took markers in hand and put
their ideas for an ideal playground
on paper. KaBOOM! staff then took
the kids’ ideas, combined them with
input provided by local adults during
their own workshop and came up with
designs for the playground.
No experience is necessary to assist
with the Build Day, and volunteers are
encouraged to bring their own gloves,
rakes, brooms and shovels. Breakfast
and lunch will be provided.
Funding for the project is being
provided by Avery-Dennison, which is
partnering with KaBOOM!, a national
non-profit organization, and the City
to build the playground.
Over the past 15 years, KaBOOM!
has built more than 2,000 playgrounds across the country, including two playgrounds here in Pico
Rivera. Their mission is to participate
with communities to create great
play spaces, with the ultimate goal of
having places to play within walking
distance of every child in America.
For more information, or to volunteer for the Build Day event, call
562.801.4430.
PROFILE
PRSRT STD
U.S. POSTAGE
PAID
PERMIT NO. 2244
SANTA FE SPRINGS, CA
P. O. Box 1016 · 6615 Passons Blvd. ·
Pico Rivera, CA · 90660-1016
POSTAL PATRON
PICO RIVERA, CA 90660
p4
Distributed to Pico Rivera residents and businesses as an educational service. For information, contact Public
Information at 562.801.4217.
City of Pico Rivera to Assume Local Control
for Sewer Maintenance from LA County
City-requested transfer ensures local control and accountability of
City’s taxpayer funds, with no increase in rates.
City Public Works
Projects Honored
The Passons Boulevard Underpass Project and
the Rivera Park Renovation Project have been
selected as 2013 Projects of the Year by the
American Public Works Association Southern
California Chapter.
Both projects were recognized for their innovative features, positive impacts on quality of
life and outstanding project performance and
execution. The Underpass Project received the
award in the Transportation category while the
Rivera Park project won in the Recreation and
Athletic Facilities category. Pico Rivera competed against other agencies serving populations of
50,001 to 100,000 people.
While innovation and project performance
were important factors in evaluating these
projects, City officials believe the quality of
life criteria are the most significant in terms of
the projects’ overall impact on the community.
Receiving these awards validates the City’s
efforts to improve the quality of life for all City
residents through high quality capital improvement projects.
Benefits of the Passons Underpass include
making the railroad crossing much safer for
pedestrians and motorists, improving traffic
flow and reducing noise and air pollution in the
area. Landscaped slopes, using drought tolerant
plants and new trees, along with the use of a
rock and leaf design in the fencing, significantly
improve the look of the neighborhood as well
as provide a historical connection to the City’s
agricultural history. Total cost of the project was
$43 million, all of which was provided through
state and federal funding sources.
Improvements to Rivera Park have resulted in
a facility that meets the needs of the wide range
of park users—from sports groups to casual
visitors—while making better use of the available space. The Rivera Park Renovation Project
was part of the City’s Parks Master Plan, an
extensive effort to renovate aging park facilities throughout the community. Total cost of the
project was $6.7 million with funding coming
from the Vital Services Bond.
PROFILE
Editor
Mike Matsumoto
Layout & Design
Gabriel Daigle
Staff Writers
Gabriel Castorena
Michael Maxfield
Photographer
Oscar Castillo
The Pico Rivera Profile is produced by the City of Pico
Rivera and is distributed to Pico Rivera residents and
businesses as an educational service. For information
about the Pico Rivera Profile contact Public Information at 562.801.4217.
Sign up for City e-mails
Page 2 February 2014 PROFILE
To ensure local control and fiscal accountability
over local taxpayer funds currently collected by
Los Angeles County for sewer maintenance in the
City of Pico Rivera, the City is proceeding with
its efforts to assume responsibility for all sewer
service from the County, said City Manager Ron
Bates.
“Proper sewer maintenance is vital in ensuring
the health and safety of the Pico Rivera community,” said Public Works Director Art Cervantes.
“We seek to ensure that all taxpayer funds paid
by our residents for local sewer maintenance,
upgrades and improvements are controlled locally
and not by an outside agency,” said Cervantes.
“Doing so will ensure the highest standards of
fiscal accountability and transparency as all fees
paid for by our residents would be guaranteed to
be spent locally to protect our residents’ health
and safety - not those of another community.”
Transfer of sewer maintenance to Pico Rivera
would allow existing funds for sewer system main-
tenance to be spent locally solely for the benefit
of Pico Rivera residents. Transfer of maintenance
would simply ensure existing sewer maintenance
funds are spent locally--it would not increase rates.
Transfer of sewer maintenance is subject to a
Proposition 218 sewer fee process and is expected to be completed by early July 2014. For more
information, visit www.pico-rivera.org.
Community Emergency Response
Team Program Offered
Residents interested in being certified as a Community Emergency Response Team (CERT) member are
encouraged to enroll in the next training session, which
starts in mid-February.
CERT members learn how to assist their families
and neighbors during emergencies and disasters such
as earthquakes, fires and floods. Topics covered during
the multi-week training program include fire safety,
basic medical/first aid, home preparation and methods of communication. Skills learned in the program
prepare residents to deal with situations that may occur
in their neighborhoods while fire and law enforcement
personnel are working elsewhere during the critical
hours immediately following a disaster.
Los Angeles County Supervisor Gloria Molina is
pleased to be working in partnership with the Los
Angeles County Fire Department and the Pico Rivera
City Hall Closed:
Fri, Feb. 14; Mon, Feb. 17 and Fri, Feb. 28
Upcoming City Hall Meetings
City Council Meeting - Tu, Feb. 11 & 25, 6 p.m.
Planning Commission - Mon, Feb. 3 & 17, 6 p.m.
Sister City Commission - Mon, Feb. 17, 6 p.m.
Parks & Recreation Commission - Th, Feb. 13, 6 p.m. at
the Parks and Recreation Building, 6767 Passons Blvd.
Neighborhood Watch to provide the CERT program
to Pico Rivera residents.
“I am proud of Pico Rivera’s first CERT class, which
graduated in 2013, and look forward to more residents
becoming CERT trained,” said Molina. “Being trained
on how to respond to emergency situations in our own
communities is one of the most important things residents can do.”
Sheriff ’s from the Pico Rivera Station who assist
locally with the CERT program, encourage Pico Rivera residents and all Neighborhood Watch Captains to
participate in this lifesaving program.
For more information or to enroll, contact Suzanne
Manriquez at 626.350.4500 or email the Pico Rivera
CERT Class at 2014prcert@gmail.com.
This month on CTV3
Watch this month’s Pico Rivera News. February
also brings the LA County News, the Vintage
Vehicle Show and Live at the Ford - Traditional
Dance of Korea. Finally, watch live coverage of
the Pico Rivera City Council meeting on Tuesday,
Feb. 11 & Feb. 25 at 6:00 p.m. Complete schedule
at www.pico-rivera.org.
Time Warner Cable, Channel 3
Verizon FioS, Channel 33
AT&T U-Verse, Channel 99
Now you can receive important City news, information and updates directly by email by subscribing to the City’s e-newsletter service. The e-newsletter service is designed
to keep you up to speed on all city events, activities and issues with special email messages and alerts. To subscribe, simply email us at gcastorena@pico-rivera.org.
Holiday Decorating Contest Winners
1st Place
Duran Family
2nd Place
Scianni Family
3rd Place
Mendoza Family
Once again Pico Rivera residents proved to have plenty of holiday spirit - and creativity - as evidenced by the
outstanding job they did decorating their homes and businesses for the season.
While their creativity made it fun for residents to see, the members of the Parks and Recreation Commission
had a difficult time determining the winners of the 2013 Home Holiday Decorating Contest. However, after
careful consideration of all the entries and several trips around the city, the commission reached a decision.
The winners are pictured. Congratulations to them all!
Sweepstakes Winner
Lopez Family
Frosty’s Favorite
TELACU
Fun Run to Support High
School Track Program
Elf ’s Excellent Decorations
Collaro Apartments
Join Us For Hassle Free
TRIPS & TOURS
Take you and your family on fun local trips without the hassle of driving, fighting for parking or
wasting gas by traveling with the City’s Parks and
Recreation Department.
“My Fair Lady” at the Candlelight Pavilion
Date & Time: Saturday, March 15; 10:00 a.m. to
4:00 p.m.
Fee: $65 for ages 13 & up and $38 for ages 12 &
under
Deadline to Register: Saturday, February 22
“Book of Mormon” at the Pantages Theater
Date & Time: Thursday, February 27; 5:00 to
11:30 p.m.
Fee: $72 for ages 6 & up
EXTENDED Deadline to Register: Saturday,
February 22
Runners, joggers and walkers are invited to participate in the 5th Annual Pico Rivera Fun Run on
the morning of Saturday, February 22. Proceeds
from the event go to benefit the El Rancho High
School Track and Field program.
The event gets under way with pre-race registration at 6:00 a.m., followed by the 5K Run, Jog
and Walk for all ages at 7:30 a.m. A special 1K
Kids Run for children age 12 and under starts at
8:30 a.m.
In addition to the races, there will be refreshments, awards and a raffle immediately following
the 5K event. Medals will be presented to the top
two male and female finishers in each division of
the 5K race. The top 100 1K runners will receive a
medal.
You can register at the Parks and Recreation
Department Office, 6767 Passons Boulevard, or
online at www.bit.ly/PRreg. Early Bird registration fees are $10 for the Kids Run and $20 for the
5K race. Fees increase by $5 on February 10 and
by $10 if you register the day of the event. All preregistered runners will receive a Fun Run tee-shirt.
Those who do not wish to run but would still
like to support the Track and Field program are
welcome to make a donation.
For information on registration and event
information, including the Fun Run route,
call 562.801.5355 ext. 171 or send an email to
selliot@erusd.k12.ca.us.
All trips depart from and return to the Pico Rivera Senior Center, 9200 Mines Ave. Registration
is accepted at all City park sites, the Parks and
Recreation Department Office at 6767 Passons
Blvd. and online at pico-rivera.org. Register early
to reserve your seat on one or all of these trips.
For more information, please call the Department of Parks and Recreation at 562.801.4430.
Free Tax Assistance
The Pico Rivera Senior Center and AARP are once
again partnering to provide free state and federal
income tax preparation assistance for residents age 50
years and older.
AARP tax-aide volunteers, trained in cooperation
with the IRS, will be available at the Pico Rivera Senior
Center every Monday and Wednesday from noon to
4 p.m. beginning February 4 and continuing through
April 14.
Residents who wish to take advantage of this free
service should bring a copy of last year’s tax returns,
copies of all W-2 and 1099 forms, and the 2013 preparation booklet. Appointments are required, and assistance is provided on a first-come, first-served basis.
For more information, call the Senior Center at
562.948.4844.
Kids’ Spring Training
Camp
The City will offer a Spring Training Camp
Program over the school spring break for grades
Kindergarten through 8th Grade. The camp
runs from Monday, April 14 through Friday,
April 18. Camp will be held at Pico Park, 9528
Beverly Boulevard, from 7:00 a.m. to 6:00 p.m.
Campers will participate in sports such as
baseball, basketball and soccer. Other daily
activities include arts & crafts, cooking and
indoor/outdoor play. Also scheduled is a field
trip to Dodger Stadium to take a tour of the
home of the Los Angeles Dodgers. (Field trip
subject to change.)
Fee for the camp is $99. Campers are required
to wear a camp T-shirt every day, which can
be purchased for $6 at the time of registration.
Morning and afternoon snacks are provided,
however campers must bring a bag lunch daily.
Registration packets are available at all
park sites, the Recreation Department at 6767
Passons Boulevard and online at www.picorivera.org. All registration will be done on a
walk-in basis beginning Monday, March 3 at
the Recreation Department. Space is limited, so
register early.
For more information, call 562.801.4430.
Indoor Soccer comes
to Pico Rivera
The Pico Rivera Youth Sports Program is offering a new indoor soccer (Futsal) program beginning Monday, March 17. The 11-week program
meets at the Pico Park gymnasium and will
emphasize soccer fundamentals, teamwork,
sportsmanship, safety and fun. Volunteer
coaches will concentrate on basic techniques in
passing, dribbling and kicking.
Registrations are being accepted through
Friday, February 14 in four age divisions:
Under 8, Under 10, Under 12 and Under 14.
Participants who register after the deadline
will be placed on a standby list. Participants
must provide a copy of their birth certificate
at time of registration. Practice schedules are
determined by volunteer coach availability.
For more information, call 562.801.4430.
PROFILE
February 2014 Page 3
PICO RIVERA GOING G
PICO RIVERA GOING GREEN
Household Hazardous Waste Collection Event
Congratulations to the Pico Rivera Dons
Midget Division for winning the 2013 San
Gabriel Valley Jr. All American Football
Conference Championship. This is the
team’s first Conference Championship since
2002. The team also won the So Cal Best of
the Best football tournament in Fontana.
This team scored an average of 38 points
per game while scoring a Conferenceleading season total of 376 points.
City and School
District working
together for Safe
Routes to School
The City of Pico Rivera and the El Rancho Unified
School District began to coordinate the Safe
Routes to School Program this past fall. The Pico
Rivera Safe Routes to School project serves all eight
elementary schools and three middle schools in the
District.
Safe Routes to School is a national movement that
supports children and families in walking and bicycling to school by creating safer traffic conditions
around schools, reducing traffic congestion during
drop-off and pick-up times, educating parents
about safe driving behaviors and improving the
health of students through increased physical activity.
Currently, the City is looking for volunteers interested in serving on program teams at each participating school. They will assist the City in developing and implementing efforts focusing on the
program’s four different components: education,
encouragement, enforcement and evaluation.
The education component will teach parents and
children how to bike and walk to school safely
through skills trainings, brochures and maps.
Encouragement programs will promote biking
and walking using incentive campaigns. The Los
Angeles Sheriff ’s Department will lead enforcement efforts by focusing on behaviors that make it
unsafe for students to bike and walk, such as speeding and failing to yield to pedestrians. Success of
the program will be determined through the evaluation component, which will measure changes in
student biking and walking rates.
An interactive web map has been set up to solicit input about recommended walking routes to
school, and traffic hazards and barriers near schools.
We invite parents and community members to view
the map and add their thoughts at this website:
http://picoriverasaferoutes.org/.
If you are interested in being a part of this effort to
improve biking and walking around your school,
please contact the Safe Routes to School Coordinator, Jessie Holzer, via email at PicoRiveraSRTS@
gmail.com or phone at 949.292.2615.
Page 4 February 2014 PROFILE
Pico Rivera reminds residents to properly dispose of used Household
Hazardous Waste (HHW) and electronic waste (e-waste). To provide
a convenient way to properly recycle HHW and e-waste, the City and
County Department of Public works are partnering to host a local
HHW/e-waste collection event on Saturday, March 8 at the Southern
California Gas Company, 8101 Rosemead Boulevard, from 9:00 a.m.
to 3:00 p.m.
All HHW/e-waste collection events hosted by the County are free of
charge.
HHW is any leftover product labeled toxic, poison, corrosive, flammable, combustible or irritant that you want to discard. This includes
used motor oil and filters, paint and thinners, pesticides, household cleaners, and expired or unused
medications. E-waste includes batteries, cell phones, computers, fluorescent light bulbs, monitors and
most other types of electronics. For more information, call 562.801.4961.
Green Waste Recycling Program
Free mulch available
NASA now accepting E-Waste
for proper disposal
Millions of tons of electronic waste (e-waste), including outdated and unwanted TVs, computers and cell
phones, end up in American landfills or incinerators
every year. Electronics are made with a sizable amount
of lead, cadmium and other materials that can leak
toxins into the environment, making the proper collection and recycling of e-waste a priority for everyone.
The good news is awareness of the potential ecological impact of e-waste is rising, and there are ways to
make a difference, especially at the end of these products’ usefulness.
NASA Services, Inc., and the City of Pico Rivera
have teamed up to help residents responsibly collect
and recycle e-waste. Here are a few ways you can
prevent e-waste from being improperly disposed.
Curbside Collection for Residents: Residents can
place all acceptable E-waste at the curb as part of each
household’s 10 free annual bulky item pick-ups. To
schedule an e-waste or bulky item pick up, please call
NASA Services at 1-888-888-0388 one day prior to
your collection day.
Drop-off for Residents and Businesses: Residential and commercial clients can drop-off all acceptable e-waste free of charge at the NASA Services,
Inc. service yard located at 1100 S Maple Avenue in
Montebello.
Participate in a local HHW/E-waste Collection Event: For a complete listing of acceptable
items or information on upcoming events, contact
1-888-CLEAN-LA or visit www.CLEAN-LA.com.
Spring is almost here and composted mulch is a
great way to improve the fertility and health of
the soil, protect plants from heat exhaustion and
reduce weed growth.
Residents can receive one 33-gallon container of
mulch, free of charge, on Saturday, February 15
from 8:00 a.m. to 1:00 p.m. at the Whittier Fertilizer Company, 9441 Kruse Road in Pico Rivera.
Additional containers are available for $1 each.
Residents must bring their own containers as
there will be none available at the site.
Mulch distribution events are a part of the City’s
green waste recycling program. It is important to
remember that these events are directly related
to the amount and quality of the green waste our
residents produce. If a residents’ green waste
is contaminated with trash and other items it
cannot be used for our mulch distribution events.
Green waste bin inspections
To help increase the effectiveness of the green
waste recycling effort, the City is conducting
random inspections to ensure residents are recycling correctly. Green bins should contain the
following in order for the contents to be properly
recycled: garden trimmings, flowers, weeds, grass
clippings, leaves and small branches.
These items should not be placed in green
bins: palm branches, yucca trees, ice plant clusters, dirt, rock, sod, concrete, treated or painted
wood, animal waste, large tree stumps more than
4 inches in diameter or 2 inches in length, glass,
metal, plastic bags or household garbage.
If a green bin is found to contain debris other
than what should be inside, that bin will not be
picked up.
Please remember to recycle correctly. More
information on what can go into each container
and how to properly recycle is available on the
City’s webpage at www.pico-rivera.org.
For more information about the recycling program
as well as mulch distributions, call 562.801.4961.
Upcoming Chamber Event
Mark your calendars for this upcoming event from
the Pico Rivera Chamber of Commerce
Thursday, February 13 Valentine Casino Night & $10,000 Raffle A Mi Hacienda, 9613 Whittier Boulevard
Join the Pico Rivera Chamber and friends from 5:00 to 9:00 p.m. for a
great evening of Casino Games, Food and Fun. Partial proceeds to benefit
the Pico Rivera Sheriff’s P.R.I.D.E. Program. Call the Chamber office for more
information regarding sponsor opportunities or to purchase a Raffle Ticket. Purchase of a raffle ticket
includes entrance into event, casino money and one drink ticket.
For more information about this and other Chamber events throughout the year, call the Chamber at
562.949.2473 or email mbakotich@picoriverachamber.org.