News
What’s Happened to Our Beloved Drive-In/La Mirada Woman Stabbed to Death in Dispute Over Parking
Santa Fe Springs~The former La Mirada Drive-In, once a community treasure filled with countless memories for La Mirada residents, now bears the Santa Fe Springs name and is for the most part a swap meet-and has been since the early 70's.
The complex was built in a orange grove adjacent to the brand-new, budding Interstate 5 freeway in the early 1950's and was originally called the La Mirada Drive-In because it was the closest named-area or town.
Movies are no longer shown and many would argue the swap-meet, once a teenagers dream for that first job, has become somewhat unstable since it instilled its Friday night version of the flea market.
The latest incident occurred this past Friday.
Elizabeth Yanez, 43, was stabbed in front of her adult children in a dispute over a parking space at the historic venue as reported by Brian Day of the Whittier Daily News here.
We normally don't refer our readers to other media outlets or the competition but we believe in some instances it is appropriate for the community to be informed.
Grade Separation Project Completed
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| Representatives from the Cities of La Mirada, Santa Fe Springs, Caltrans, LA Metro, and California State Assembly at the Valley View Avenue Grade Separation ribbon cutting ceremony. |
Santa Fe Springs~Stage Road is now open for traffic as the the Valley View Grade Separation Project is now complete after a little over two years of work.
Partners in the project, the City of La Mirada, the City of Santa Fe Springs, BNSF Railway and Caltrans participated in a brief ceremony at the site this morning along with Santa Fe springs Mayor Jaunita Trujillo and La Mirada Mayor Larry Mowles.
Construction on the $65 million endeavor began in the summer of 2010.
THE CARRIAGE: Decision Could Come in November for Fate of Cultural Diner
La Mirada~The La Mirada Planning Commission may be deciding the fate of the Carriage Coffee Shop at its regular meeting next month.
City Planner Gabriel Bautista told the La Mirada Blog the process is taking longer than he prefers, but hopes it will be on the agenda for the November 21st meeting.
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, to replace the 49-year-old diner with a McDonald’s.
Because of the traffic concerns expressed by residents at that meeting, the commission suggested a traffic study be executed to address these potential issues.
The final draft of the study has been completed and has been sent to the County of Los Angeles Department of Public Works Traffic Division for final approval, Bautista told us.
The commission will then decide whether or not to grant McDonald’s a conditional use permit to construct a drive-thru at the new restaurant; paving the way for the apparent demolition of The Carriage.
Lewis Supporters Gather for Meet-and-Greet Fundraiser
SOCIAL SCENE
La Mirada~Friends and family gathered at the home of Hal and Barbara Malkin this past Thursday in support of La Mirada resident Zurich Lewis who is running for a seat
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| Hal Malkin and Zurich Lewis |
as Governing Board Member/Trustee for the Cerritos College Community District-Area Seven.
A beautiful array of food and refreshments was offered by the host Mrs. Malkin as guests mingled and discussed current news and events.
Lewis, a lifetime La Mirada resident is a Biola University student and sits as a Community Services Commissioner for the city.
Area seven for the district includes portions of the cities of La Mirada, Cerritos, Norwalk, Santa Fe Springs, and North Whittier.
For more photos visit the La Mirada Blog Back Page here.
Senate Candidate Mario Guerra to Speak at Chamber Breakfast
La Mirada~State Senate candidate Mario Guerra will be a guest speaker at the La Mirada Chamber of Commerce monthly Tuesday Breakfast at the Holiday Inn, 14299 Firestone Boulevard.
Guerra, 55, a Republican and a member of the Downey City Council will go up against Democrat Tony Mendoza for the 32nd state Senate District seat in the November 4th statewide general election.
Included in the district are the cities of Artesia, Bellflower, Buena Park, Cerritos, Commerce, Downey, Hawaiian Gardens, La Habra Heights, La Mirada, Lakewood, Montebello, Norwalk, Pico Rivera, Santa Fe Springs and Whittier along with unincorporated areas of Hacienda Heights, Los Nietos and South Whittier
Guerra came from Cuba at the age of six and was raised locally. After majoring in economics he co-founded Scanlon-Guerra-Burke Insurance Brokers and has been serving as president. His firm was recently named one of the Top 10 largest brokerage firms in Southern California by the Los Angeles Business Journal..
The breakfast is open to the public and the cost is $15. For more information contact the La Mirada Chamber of Commerce at (562) 902-1970, visit the chamber website at http://www.lamiradachamber.org/ or email the chamber at info@lamiradachamber.org
Jersey Mike’s Opening October 8th in La Mirada
La Mirada~Jersey Mike's is the latest eatery to open at the Croosroads Center and will open for business Wednesday, October 8th.
Franchise owner Alvaro Garcia will hold a grand opening and free sub fundraiser through Sunday October 12th to support various community schools and organizations including: Eastwood Elementary PTA; Heights Christian Schools; the La Mirada Soccer Association; Los Coyotes Middle School, and Biola University.
The new restaurant, located at 14873 Telegraph Road, is circulating 30,000 flyers throughout the community containing various coupons. For each coupon that is 
redeemed, Jersey Mike’s will donate $3 to the respective beneficiary. Customers must have a coupon to be eligible.
“Working with a variety of local organizations for our grand opening fundraiser is an opportunity to raise money and invite customers to try Jersey Mike’s highly authentic product,” said Garcia.
Started in 1956, Jersey Mike’s now has 1,300 restaurants open and under development nationwide. In just three years, the company has nearly doubled in size.
The La Mirada store hours are 10 a.m. to 9 p.m., seven days a week. You can contact the location directly at (562) 944-2088.
RIBBON CUTTING
The La Mirada Chamber of Commerce will host an official ribbon cutting for the new Jersey Mike’s/La Mirada Tuesday, October 7th at 11:45 a.m.
Expected to attend are chamber members, the La Mirada City Council & staff, members of the local police and fire departments and Jersey Mike’s officials.
Fire Erupts at Santa Fe Springs Warehouse Filling La Mirada Skies With Smoke
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| Smoke fills La Mirada skies at 5:09 p.m. an hour after a Santa Fe Springs fire began as seen in this photo sent in by LM Blog fan @behindthelens5 |
Santa Fe Springs~A huge fire broke out earlier this afternoon at a small warehouse, apparently storing paint, located at 12927 Sunshine Avenue in Santa Fe Springs filling La Mirada skies with thick smoke for several hours.
Santa Fe Springs fire officials say dispatch received the call shortly after 4:00 p.m. The department was joined by other neighboring fire agencies as the blaze eventually became a 4-alarm call.
As the fire roared, many small explosions were reported being heard near the scene including by the editor of this website on our Twitter feed.
La Mirada Blog fan @ClarissaAlcala1 reported the fire at 4:17 p.m. followed by fan @Usc_MahBoy at 4:18 p.m.
We reported the incident at 4:30 p.m. and you can read the posts as the event unfolded at twitter.com/lamiradablog.
No injuries were reported and the cause is under investigation.
Many streets were closed in the adjacent Sunshine Acres neighborhood of South Whittier.
Female Pedestrian Killed While Crossing Rosecrans
La Mirada~An 86 year-old La Mirada woman was killed this morning while attempting to cross Rosecrans Avenue.
Amparo Garcia was struck by a pickup truck driven by a 40-year-old male traveling eastbound.
She was attempting to walk north across the street from Jacana Drive, according to Sgt. Anthony Fernandez of the Norwalk Sheriff's Station.
The incident occurred around 7 a.m. and the driver stayed at the scene. He was not detained and has been cooperating with authorities while an investigation continues.
We received numerous reports from our Twitter followers with the first coming at 7:12 a.m. from @iqmet and 12 minutes later @mandibeezkneez reported the accident.
Catch up with people are saying about the unfortunate incident on our Facebook feed here.
New La Mirada Starbucks Celebrating With Grand Opening Ceremony
La Mirada~The new Starbucks in La Mirada will be hosting a grand opening celebration Wednesday September 17th from 3:00-7:00 p.m. at the company’s new store located at the southeast corner of La Mirada Boulevard and Imperial Highway in La Mirada.
There will be a ribbon cutting and ceremony for the new La Mirada Chamber of Commerce member beginning at 3:00 p.m. and will include La Mirada Mayor Larry Mowles.
The store will be offering customers and guests free samples of snacks and treats.
Live entertainment will be provided in the parking lot during the event.
OBITUARY: Beloved La Mirada Community Figure
Longtime La Mirada resident Vivian Waples passed away peacefully surrounded by her family on Friday August 22, 2014. Vivian lived in La Mirada since 1956; she was a retired school teacher who spent much of her time helping others. Vivian taught and volunteered at both Foster Road and Escalona schools. She helped Escalona’s PTA and their reading for success program-reading to students five days a week. She also tutored students at Windermere’s after school program.
She was very active in her church and was a member of several La Mirada organizations such as the Volunteer Center Board of Directors, the Historical Heritage Commission, Friends of McNally Ranch, Meals on Wheels, and the Neighborhood Watch.
She enjoyed working with children and giving tours of the Neff house for the many student field trips. She volunteered at the sheriff's station twice a week and went door to door passing out the Neighborhood Watch Newsletters.
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