Sierra Madre and Arcadia: A Tale of Two Cities

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A fairly short tale actually because it is late and I am a little exhausted from all of this stuff right now. More on that in a minute. But here is the first half of the story.

It used to be that Sierra Madre was the lawless lands when it came to politics. There were more wild and crazy controversies, fights, feuds, and general mayhem found in The Foothill Village than just about anywhere else on the planet. It was from those days that The Tattler first found its place in our little world, and all of that controversy had sustained this blog for nearly a decade. Trust me, I was always very grateful. There was a lot to write about.

But obviously those days are now in the past. Last night Denise Delmar was made the Mayor of Sierra Madre in about as peaceful and untroubled a manner as you would ever hope to see. The only thing that was even close to a controversy was who would become the next Mayor Pro Tem, with JohnHarabedian and John Capoccia struggling over who could hand the honor to the other guy the most. Eventually Capoccia won and Harabedian was convinced to accept the honor.

After which everyone went out into the City Hall foyer to enjoy some cake and soda.

Things were the very opposite last night in Arcadia where no Mayor was chosen at all, and won't be until after a 45 day "cooling off period" has taken place. The problem being that the current Mayor Pro Tem, the eminently unqualified though next in line Sho Tay, is now faced with both the potential consequences of a rather unfortunate Brown Act situation, plus an ongoing two count FPPC investigation into his having possibly run a crooked political campaign.

This in front of a seething packed house as 35 residents angrily spoke to both sides of the issues during public comment, and mostly in no uncertain terms. According to the majority of these speakers you apparently are either a racist who has serious problems with Asian folks, or someone who countenances unchecked corruption in a city government lacking for all ethical values. There appeared to be little middle ground between the two sides as each persuasion seemed quite convinced that they alone were occupying the moral apex.

The current Mayor of Arcadia, Peter Amundson, will now remain in that office for an additional month and a half, which hopefully will be enough time for Sho Tay's guilt or innocence to be clearly established by these ongoing investigations. If it turns out that he actually is a crook, then the gig will fall to councilmember April Verlato, who would then become Arcadia's first woman mayor in quite some time.

There is also the matter of what could have been wide ranging voter fraud in District 5, something calling into question the legitimacy of Roger Chandler's election to yet another term. Something that will also be closely looked into during that now momentous 45 day cooling off period.

Oh, and there was no cake afterwards. Anywhere. Like I said, a tale of two cities.

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