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Winner of Fourteen LA Press Club Awards from 2012-2018. Serving Cerritos and ten other surrounding communities • December 24, 2021 • Vol. 36, No. 3 • loscerritosnews.net
Lakewood Council Approves Pedestrian Safety Project By Brian Hews At their regular Tuesday meeting, the Lakewood City Council approved a pedestrian safety project that will look at a variety of safety enhancements that could be used at crosswalks in the city. The project will utilize funds provided to the city recently by the federal American Rescue Plan Act. The project will study 28 crosswalks that currently do not include a traffic signal or stop sign. Traffic engineers will determine if adding features such as flashing pedestrian signs, stop signs or traffic signals will improve safety at the locations and take appropriate actions. At the meeting, council also reviewed the city’s 2021 Annual Comprehensive Financial Report (ACFR).
See LAKEWOOD page 12
Montebello City Council Acting Like Cerritos Council Council not following regular rotation protocol, nominates Kimberly Ann
MEGATAXERS Shackle Whittier Union High School District to a $416 Million Bond By Brian Hews and the Irishman As the noted and most distinguished Armenian lawyer the world has ever known says, "The more the money, the less the argument." Karabian always had his jeb filled with pearls of wisdom. He occasionally quoted Balzac: "Behind every great fortune lies a crime." Thus far, our Megataxer series has proven Karabian was right. Inglewood Unified accessed $240 million in funds with projected costs at $469 million, a 95% markup in costs. Bassett Unified was right behind getting $50 million at a cost of $96 million, a 92% mark-up. Duarte Unified was next, accessing $79 million at a projected cost of $147 million, or 86% in costs. Citrus College, $298 million costing $503 million, a 69% mark-up. LAUSD, where it paid to have a finance guy running the Empire of Ethnic Studies, accessed $7 Billion in funds at a projected cost of $11 Billion in taxes, or 57% in costs. (No wonder the Board let Buetner leave.) Pasadena
Unified accessed $516 million in funds at a projected cost of $798 million in taxes, or 55% in costs, Pasadena Unified beating out LAUSD in savings. We waited to report on Whittier Union
High School District because they are the champs when it comes to stiffing taxpayers. In 2020, the WUHSD Board of Education and Superintendent gained access to $183 million in funds at a projected cost to taxpayers of $416.3 million, inking a staggering 121% in costs. Well over more than twice the price. Who on earth is teaching math there? Mephistopheles. Much like trading coal for
Cerritos' Distinguished Young Women Scholarship Winners
Cobos-Cawthorne to a second term. By Brian Hews
Montebello city council unanimously reappointed Kimberly Ann Cobos-Cawthorne to a second term as mayor even though the past three years have been fraught with arguments over the position of mayor and mayor pro tem. In a reorganization meeting that took place December 8, the entire City Council reaffirmed their support for colleague for Cawthorne. The council was without a mayor for seven months in 2018, and another disagreement over the mayor pro tem position in December 2020. Councilman David Torres was voted to be removed in October and the fighting continued until the reorganization December 8, 2021. Torres, who was displaced by Councilwoman Angie Jimenez, and Councilwoman Scarlet Peralta, cast the only vote in support of Torres in October, argued
See MONTEBELLO page 13
diamonds with a mythic lesson on the virtue of patience. Over the Megataxer series, the bond-passage learning curve has ramped up. School district resolutions have been examined, along with the tax measures themselves and the ballot questions put to voters. And, of course, the tax rate statement. But who reads these things? We have shown that no one does. Witness Whittier Union. On June 9, 2020, the Board passed the Resolution, Full Text of the Measure, and the Ballot Label giving birth to a tax measure for the residents of the WUHSD to authorize the issuance of $183.5 million in public school bonds at a tremendous cost of $416.3 million. As Deputy District Attorney Alan Yochelson said, "We don't prosecute bad business decisions." If so, he would be way too busy. Just ask his former boss, Arnold Glassman, Esq. We also pointed out that L.A. County Counsel Mary Wickham, did not scrutinize any of the resolutions, measures, ballot labels, or tax rate statements. They were all approved to move forward into the voter information guides and onto the actual ballots used at the time of voting even though every resolution, measure, and ballot label violated California law, specifically Education Code section 15272. But no one in the Los Angeles mainstream news hemisphere has picked up our exposé. Back to WUHSD. From June through July of 2020, the WUHSD bond measure was slithering its way onto the ballot. The
See WHITTIER page 12
Pico Rivera to Honor Vicente Fernández by Naming Street DISTINGUISHED YOUNG WOMEN scholarship recipients of 2020 from Cerritos. To qualify for any of the scholarships offered, you must participate in a program for your area. Cash tuition scholarships, and college-granted scholarships are available. By Tammye McDuff Distinguished Young Women is a national scholarship program that inspires high school girls to develop their full, individual potential through a transformative experience.
The program culminates in a showcase of accomplishments, giving young women the opportunity to further their education and prepare for a successful future. Distinguished Young Women is the oldest and largest scholarship program
See DIY page 14
By John Terlouse The city of Pico Rivera wants to honor legendary singer Vicente Fernández by naming a street after the beloved musician. Fernández died on Dec. 12 at the age of 81 -- after years of health issues. Pico Rivera is looking into the possibility of renaming Sports Arena Road to "Avenida Vicente Fernández."
See FERNÁNDEZ page 12