La Mirada Blog
Articles by Tony Aiello
It’s CIF Week at La Mirada High School
La Mirada~The Matadores of La Mirada will be competing in four CIF playoff games this week with three scheduled to be played at home.
Thursday, The La Mirada girls soccer squad will take on Culver City (Ocean League) in the first round of Division 4 after finishing first in the Suburban League.
The Lady Mats finished with a 21-2 record overall and a perfect 12-0 in league action.
Game time is 7:00 at Goodman Stadium.
Friday will feature a double-header at La Mirada High.
At 5:00 p.m. the boys soccer team will play Laguna Beach (Orange Coast) in the first round of Division 4 action.
The Matadores finished 11-8-1 overall and 9-3 in league play, good for second place.
At 7:00 p.m. the boys basketball team will take on West Covina (Hacienda) in first round action.
The Matadores are ranked number one in Division 2A.
Bryce Jones’ squad finished 24-3 overall and 12-1 in the Suburban League, winning their first outright league title since 1982.
Wrapping up the week, the girls basketball team will travel Saturday to play San Jacinto (Mountain Pass) in the first round of Division 2A play.
Led by first-year coach Billl Nuanez, the Lady Mats finished fourth in the Suburban League with a 6-6 record.
Game time is 7:00 p.m.
A Night of Entertainment to Benefit La Mirada Meals on Wheels
La Mirada~The annual Lou Piltz Memorial Spaghetti Dinner Fundraiser will take place Friday January 30th from 5:00 to 8:00 p.m. at the La Mirada Activity Center.
The event benefits the La Mirada Meals on Wheels-providing hot, nutritious meals to the elderly and disabled in the La Mirada area since 1975.
The dinner is named after the late Lou Piltz who served on the Board of Directors and also served as President and Treasurer of Meals On Wheels La Mirada. The dinner will include, spaghetti, meat sauce, salad and garlic bread.
Entertainment will be provided by students of the Visual and Performing Arts Academy of La Mirada High School.
There will be a 50/50 contest and two raffles with various prizes.
Desserts will be provided by the La Mirada Ebell Club for a nominal donation.
Editor of the La Mirada Blog, Tony Aiello will be the Master of Ceremonies for the evening.
For tickets or for more information, please contact Meals On Wheels at 562-943-0037.
Carriage Update: “Ball in McDonald’s Court”
La Mirada~The fate of the fabled Carriage Restaurant in La Mirada is still up in the air as McDonald’s now has to decide if they still want to build after the completion of a recent traffic study has called for a new traffic signal.
Owner of the property Rich Development Co. of Santa Ana wants to replace the coffee shop with a McDonald’s restaurant.
After waiting months for the completion of the study from the County of Los Angeles Department of Public Works Traffic Division, La Mirada City Planner Gabriel Bautista told the La Mirada Blog it indicates a traffic signal would have to be installed at Wicker Drive and Telegraph Road; which is just north of the site.
Bautista said the cost of the new signal is estimated to be $250,000-$300,000 and McDonald’s would be responsible for a significant part of that cost.
The city as well as other tenants of the Crossroads Center would chip in for the new signal as well.
However, McDonald’s is now deciding if they still want to go through with the project and the “ball is in their court,” said Bautista.
If they do decide to move forward, the next step would be an approval from the La Mirada Planning Commission. The commission would only be approving the proposed drive-thru by McDonalds; the Carriage site is already zoned for restaurant use.
Bautista said he does not expect to hear from McDonalds until perhaps March, but that could change.
The Carriage has been closed since December 2nd when an early morning fire ripped through the eatery’s kitchen, destroying it.
It is still unclear if owner Louis Liu will be able to fund a rebuild if the McDonald’s deal falls through.
Two Killed in Collision on First Avenue
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| Fire department personnel cut the victims out of both vehicles but both died at the scene. Photo courtesy Bayli Zaharis |
Whittier~Two people died in a head-on collision early New Years Day at First Avenue and Candlelight Drive just outside of the La Mirada city limits.
The accident occurred about 1:30 a.m. in the unincorporated area of Whittier.
An unidentified woman in her forties and and a man in his twenties died at the scene.
The cause of the violent crash is still unknown as officials investigate.
Matadores Advance to Orange Final
BOYS BASKETBALL
Orange~The Matadores of La Mirada outscored Canyon 21-11 in the second half Monday night to advance to the finals in the 50th annual Orange Holiday Classic, winning 61-56.
The Matadores beat OL earlier this month in the Diablo Inferno 70-61 and it is also the former school/team of LM star Kendall Lauderdale.
123115 UPDATE: The Mats fell to Orange Lutheran in the championship game, 57-43 making their record 11-3 for the season. They open up Suburban League play at John Glenn Wednesday, January 7th at 6:30 p.m.
La Mirada has their final non-league game against Brea on January 9th and then return to league play for the rest of the season at Cerritos on the 12th.
Christmas Crime Hits La Mirada
Two separate incidents including one involving the World Cup House
La Mirada~Sometime this past Saturday night or early Sunday morning a Christmas display was vandalized at the World Cup House on Alondra Boulevard in La Mirada.
La Mirada Blog fan Stacey Brooks told us via Facebook. “Last night someone came by and trashed one of our Christmas displays. It was a ramp that my husband Josh spent a lot of time making. On Christmas Eve we buy ice and pack it on there so the neighborhood kids can go sledding. The children love it. It brings a sense of community that is hard to find in this day and age. This is a photo of an officer helping us flip it over. We are going to see if we can fix it, but the damage is done. Our family, including our two very young sons, is heartbroken.”
Since then, with the help of neighbors the display has been fixed.
The home was the source of a bit of controversy this past summer when the city ordered Josh to take down his World Cup display which included large flags representing each country.
This caused an outrage on this websites Facebook page and the city allowed the Brooks to reconstruct their display.
MORE CRIME: On Monday night, a thief broke into a car in the vicinity of Biola/Mansa/Bora and stole over $200 worth of Christmas gifts.
Blog fan Melaina Edgemon said “sometime between 10:00 p.m. Monday and 7:00 a.m. Tuesday, someone broke into my car and stole all the holiday gifts I had purchased for my family,” that included toys, slippers, slippers and movies.
17:08 12/24/14 STILL MORE CRIME: On Wednesday afternoon, Christmas Eve Day, Blog fan Laura Barba said her youngest son's bike was stolen outside CVS on Rosecrans, "They cut the lock and stole the bike within the five minutes-the time he was in the store. It's a neon green fixie with white tires and black rims. If anyone sees it please message us with info."
Fire Destroys Carriage Kitchen
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| Area firefighters knocked out the blaze at La Mirada's most famous and last, coffee shop within two hours. Photo courtesy Randy Duarte. |
La Mirada~A fire broke out in the early morning hours at The Carriage Coffee Shop at 14871 Imperial Highway.
Nobody was hurt and the building was unoccupied when the fire started in the kitchen of the 49-year-old eatery about 3:30 a.m.
The first reader on our La Mirada Blog Facebook page reported the incident live at 4:15 a.m.
Later in the morning, owner Louis Liu told the La Mirada Blog he doesn’t know how the fire started as he allowed us inside to snap a few photos.
The kitchen appears to be destroyed. Cost estimates are in the hundreds of thousands of dollars to repair.
Officials continue to investigate the incident.
Residents who consider the diner a cultural icon stormed city hall this past March to protest a decision by the owners of the property, Rich Development Co., to
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| The kitchen of the fabled eatery seems destroyed. Photo (c)La Mirada Blog 2014 |
replace the diner with a McDonald’s.
Because of the traffic concerns expressed by residents at that meeting in the form of a petition, the La Mirada Planning Commission suggested a traffic study be executed to address these potential issues.
The final draft of the study has been completed since August and has been sent to the County of Los Angeles Department of Public Works Traffic Division for final approval.
That final approval has still not come however and the decision on the fate of The Carriage has been delayed–not appearing on either the October or November commission agendas.
The next meeting is scheduled for December 18th.
Annual Alumni Game Signals Start of La Mirada High Basketball
14:04 11/24/14: Admission is $5.00 but you can get in for FREE by participating in the programs canned food drive by contributing one or more of the following: can food (vegetables, soup, yams, etc.); pumpkin pies; salad dressing; bag potatoes; bag carrots; stuffing; apples and other fruit.
La Mirada~The annual Alumni Game will launch the 2014-15 campaign for the La Mirada High School Boys Basketball program Tuesday November 25th at 6:30 p.m.
The stars of yesterday play against the stars of today in the fundraising game and the fans get a sneak peek at this year’s Matadore squad.
Bryce Jones begins his fourth year as head coach with Charlie Torres and Shea Frazee returning as assistants.
The Mats advanced to the Division 3AAA semifinals last season before bowing to Santa Margarita.
Varsity players from years past are invited to come by and participate.
The Matadores open the season December 1st in the Mission Viejo Tournament vs. Saddleback Valley Christian beginning at 6:30 p.m.
Associated Students of Cerritos College Hosting Veterans Event
Norwalk~The Associated Students of Cerritos College will honor and show gratitude to the men and women who sacfrifce so much for our country by hosting a Veterans Day Ceremony Monday, November 10th at 11:00 a.m.
The event will take place on the steps of the Burnight Theater on the school campus.
Speaking at the ceremony will be Congresswoman Linda Sanchez, Cerritos College Board of Trustee President Carmen Avalos, Associated Students of Cerritos College President Miles Aiello, and many student Veterans.
Additionally, there will be life performances by the Cerritos College Concert band and a silent auction by the Artist Society of Cerritos College.
Afterwards, visitors are invited to stop by the Veterans Resource Center for an open house from 12:30-1:30.
For more information contact Cynthia Chavez at cchavez@cerritos.edu.
Area Residents Invited to Participate in Free Tire Recycling Event
La Mirada~The cities of Cerritos, Downey, La Mirada, Norwalk, Pico Rivera, and Santa Fe Springs are hosting a FREE used tire collection event this Saturday November 8th from 9am-1pm at La Mirada Community Gym Parking Lot.
All residents of these cities are welcome with proof of residency required.
You can help ensure that all used tires are collected safely and recycled. Residents can transport up to 9 tires maximum per trip and multiple trips are okay. Please bring passenger and light truck tires only. NO semi-truck, construction equipment or agricultural tractor tires are accepted.
Tires from businesses and non-profits will not be accepted. ALL tires must be removed from the rims.
Help keep our cities clean and green. For more information about this event please call 562-902-2385 or 562-944-4766.
The La Mirada Community Gym is located at 15105 Alicante Road in La Mirada.
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