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Hawthorne Press Tribune Herald Publications - Inglewood, Hawthorne, Lawndale, El Segundo, Torrance & Manhattan Beach Community Newspapers Since 1911 - Circulation 30,000 - Readership 60,000 (310) 322-1830 - March 26, 2015 Seven-year-old Inglewood triplets who have been homeless and living in a shelter for a year were given a princess-themed birthday party by Cause for Celebration, a non-profit dedicated to creating birthday parties for children residing in homeless shelters or in the foster care system. The event was held February 28th at Rogers Park in Inglewood. The girls’ mother, Denise, said that the birthday party helped her daughters by putting a smile on their faces and giving them hope that the future will be brighter. Pictured: The birthday girls were overjoyed to see two of their favorite characters come to life: the Snow Queen, played by Ali Williams, and the Ice Princess, played by Madeline Masquerade, both volunteers from Princess and Me Parties. Photo provided by Cause for Celebration. Lawndale City Council Adds Possession of Illegal Fireworks to City Code By Nancy Peters Members of the Inglewood City Council aAt the Lawndale City Council meeting on Monday evening, March 16, the hot topic on the agenda was one that was stricken from the items to be considered. The next best consideration was the approval of the first reading of a new ordinance that will become part of the record after the second reading on April 6. Every year the sale of safe and sane fireworks is allowed in the city until 12 Noon of July 4 and the discharge of those fireworks is allowed until 1 a.m. on July 5th. However, discharging any other fireworks is a misdemeanor and subject to a citation, fine, arrest, or all three punishments, if the Sheriff’s Department shows up. This July 4, when the Sheriff’s Deputies are patrolling the city, any possession of other than safe and sane fireworks will result in a citation and fine up to $1,000. Arrest and a charge with a misdemeanor, which could lead to jail time, will also now be part of the City of Lawndale Municipal Code. Also part of the Monday evening actions was the resolution approval to oppose the installation of the monopole for cell phone usage at the 147th Street Los Angeles County Fire Station No. 21. The vote has put a halt on the installation for a short time, however Los Angeles Regional Interoperable Communications System (LA-RICS) Authority does not require the approval of the city to build the 70-foot pole and the 11-foot lightning rod. The only concession made to date is moving the structure to the back of the parking lot, not ten feet from the private residence that borders the parking lot, but nevertheless essentially where LARICS wants the monopole to be installed for reasons that are not totally proven to be necessary or efficient. The resolution will be amended to include that staff may send a letter to the Los Angeles County Supervisor Mark Ridley-Thomas requesting that the project be abandoned in its entirety. It was learned that the firefighters at the 147th Street (Lawndale) Fire Station 21 are also opposed to the monopole installation in view of the radiation levels to which they could be exposed over time. A request will also be made for a representative of LA-RICS to attend the next Lawndale City Council meeting. The Municipal Code is updated with provisions of the business license sections updated by approval of the first reading of the required ordinance. The amendments pertain to the appeals process when a license has been denied, revoked, or suspended; the licensing of vendors for community events; exemption requirements; and charitable vendors who wish to carry on business in the city. Also affected by the amendments are auctions, secondhand goods businesses, and business conducted by anyone under the age of 18 years. These amendments, once enacted and included in the code, will bring the Lawndale Municipal Code for business licenses into compliance with State codes for these specific provisions, as well. The Larch Avenue Park Project was reviewed with the specifications of the layout, décor, lighting, and special features of the design presented prior to the groundbreaking and construction bids request. The park is the first new park to be built in more than 20 years. The graffiti-proof mosaic designs, the climbing wall, the steel umbrellas providing shade in many areas of the 1.5 acres, all contribute to the unique park. An amphitheater is part of the footprint, for use by anyone in the community for outdoor concerts, movies, or stage presentations. There is a fitness loop with equipment and a walking path, measuring one-eighth of a mile. Motion sensor lights allow for safe use after sundown. There is no parking available at the park. A citizen who lives adjacent to the property that will be the park requested that the design include a retaining, sound barrier wall and that the sand box somehow be redesigned so that it does not become the neighborhood litter box for stray cats. The park is scheduled to be completed in April 2016. During the public safety report, Lt. John Hocking warned about the use of social media as a means to make threats, legitimate or not, which resulted in arrests of students who posted that shootings would take place at Lawndale High School, Jane Addams Middle School, and at the Environmental Charter High School all within two days. The warnings were posted anonymously, using an application that is available on the Internet. However, after several hours of exhaustive and expensive investigation by the Hawthorne Police Department cooperating with the Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department, identifications were made, search warrants were obtained, and arrests of a 16 year old at Leuzinger High School and a 14 year old at the middle school in Lawndale. As Hocking pointed out, these types of threats are serious and quick action on the part of law enforcement is crucial. The incident threatening Lawndale High School students took 16 deputies many hours and $7,000 to resolve, with deputies off the streets and patrol. Every incident involving students and school threats require immediate resolution and no glossing over. The arrests made will result in felony records for the two juveniles, with the possibility of no expunging of the charges. Although the item was pulled from the agenda many citizens spoke to the issue of the Del Aire neighborhood, which belongs to the county and not to either Hawthorne or Lawndale, being able to have students attend schools in the Wiseburn Unified School District. The City Council emphasized that any community issue involving an entity within Lawndale, and in this case the Lawndale Elementary School District, is within their purview to comment, support, oppose, or otherwise be involved. The next meeting of the Lawndale City Council will be held on Monday, April 6 at 6:30 p.m. • Inside This Issue Certified & Licensed Professionals.......................2 Classifieds............................3 Community Briefs...............2 Finance..................................6 Food.......................................8 Hawthorne Happenings....3 Legals............................... 4, 6 Obituaries.............................2 Pets........................................7 Police Reports.....................3 Seniors..................................4 Sports....................................5 Tech Talk...............................2 Weekend Forecast Birthday in Triplicate for Homeless Youth Friday Sunny 81˚/61˚ Saturday Sunny 75˚/59 Sunday Sunny 73˚/59 The Weekly Newspaper of Hawthorne


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