EXCLUSIVE: City of La Mirada Chosen as Host Town for 2015 Special Olympics World Summer Games in Los Angeles
La Mirada~The City of La Mirada has been officially chosen to be one of the Host Towns for the 2015 Special Olympics World Summer Games coming to Los Angeles in July of next year, the La Mirada Blog has learned.
It will be the first Special Olympics World Summer Games held in the U.S. in 16 years and the “LA2015” event marks the second time that the World Games will be hosted in Los Angeles. The Summer Olympic Games in 1932 and 1984 were also hosted in L.A.
Community Services Director Lori Thompson told the LM Blog that this will be the” largest event in Los Angeles since the 1984 Summer Olympic Games.”
The Host Town Program is a special 3-day program that takes place prior to the Opening Ceremony. At their Host Towns, athletic delegations from around the world will be welcomed and celebrated.
As a Host Town, La Mirada’s schedule of events for the athletes will include meeting community members, taking part in unique cultural activities, and practicing for the games, all while making friends for life.
Thompson said the city partnered with Biola University and this endeavor could not have been accomplished otherwise, “They will provide much-needed services including housing and food for the athletes.”
There will be a special announcement ceremony at one of the city’s upcoming outdoor summer concerts, with the exact date still to be determined.
With 7,000 athletes representing more than 170 countries, along with 3,000 coaches, 30,000 volunteers and an anticipated 500,000 spectators, the 2015 Special Olympics World Summer Games, running July 25–August 2, 2015 will be the largest sports-and-humanitarian event anywhere in the world next year.
Valley View Grade Separation Project Continues to Move Forward Ahead of Schedule
|
| The northbound lanes of Valley View will be open soon and will be used for both directions of traffic while the southbound lanes are completed and the detour road is demolished. photo Tony Aiello |
Originally slated to be completed in early 2015, lack of rain provides for an Autumn 2014 complete opening
La Mirada~The Valley View Grade Separation Project continues to make steady progress and is on track to be completed by early September.
With the railroad tracks successfully installed on the new bridge structure crossing over Valley View Avenue, crews have been busy completing excavation work to create the underpass. More than 103,000 cubic yards of dirt have been excavated from the site. The excavated dirt was transported and used as fill material on a separate construction project at the Port of Los Angeles.
Construction of the roadway has begun and will occur in two phases. The first phase will see construction of the northbound lanes. Once that is complete, phase two construction of the southbound lanes will begin. During this time, all traffic will be moved onto the newly built northbound lanes, with two lanes in each direction, and the current temporary detour road will be closed for removal.
See all of our photos from this story on our Flickr feed here.
Local Resident Picked for U.S. Paralympic National Team
Buena Park~Local resident Shea Cassidy was recently selected to represent the United States on the U.S. Paralympic National Soccer Team.
The U.S. Paralympic Soccer Team is an elite level program that selects players from across the United States in preparation for International standard competition.
The 22-year old Shea has TBI (Traumatic Brain Injury), and was only given a 5% chance of living after a skateboard accident a few years ago.
Not only did he obviously survive, he will now travel around the world to represent the United States.
To qualify to be on the team, players must have had a Stroke, have Cerebral Palsy or have had a Traumatic Brain Injury/Acquired Brain Injury.
Team USA trains at the Olympic Training Center in Chula Vista and the StubHub Center in Carson.
In addition to friendly matches and invitational tournaments, the National Team competes in the following events: the Intercontinental Cup, Copa America, the World Championships, Parapan American Games and the Paralympic Games
The La Mirada Blog and the La Mirada Chamber of Commerce would like to congratulate Shea and the Cassidy family on this accomplishment and wish him the very best while he travels around the world representing the United States of America. Way to Go Shea!
La Mirada Kiwanis Scholarships Available
La Mirada~The Kiwanis Club of La Mirada is now accepting applications for scholarships. Graduating high school students must be residents of the City of La Mirada and be pursuing an education at a college, university or accredited trade school. Applicants will be required to provide documentation prior to the deadline and will then participate in an interview with the Kiwanis Scholarship Committee members. Awards will be based on grades, merit, civic involvement, and financial need.
Application forms may be obtained at the high schools, on the Kiwanis website, or by emailing to info@lamiradakiwanis.org. They may also be obtained by request to Kiwanis Club of La Mirada, P.O. Box 116, La Mirada, CA, 90637. All applications must be returned to the P.O. address by Monday, April 21, 2014, or they are scanned and emailed to the address indicated above.
Interviews will be conducted on Saturday, May 3, 2014. Applicants will be contacted the week prior to schedule an interview hour. Results will be sent by mail approximately one week after the interview, and award presentations will be coordinated with the school event schedule.
Fire Destroys Vehicles at Mattress Factory
La Mirada~Residents were awakened in La Mirada to the sound of sirens early this morning around 3:00 a.m. after a fire erupted at the Ortho Mattress Factory Showroom at Valley View Avenue and Artesia Boulevard along the Cerritos border.
When firefighters arrived on the scene they were greeted by three bobtail trucks fully engulfed in the parking area of the building. The three trucks and two private vehicles appeared to have been destroyed.
NBC4 is reporting that fire officials are saying the incident is suspicious, yet they are are still calling it accidental at this time, as arson officials continue their investigation.
Fire units quickly doused the flames and no structural damage was reported.
City Receives Grant for Noise Study Along Railway Corridor
La Mirada~The City of La Mirada has received a $100,000 grant from the Los Angeles County Metropolitan Transportation Authority (Metro) to conduct a noise study in residential neighborhoods along Stage Road located near a 1.8 mile segment of the BNSF Railway tracks.
At a recent board meeting, Metro approved the funding for the study. The funds will come from LA County’s 2008 Measure R..
The action was spurred by the organization of a group of residents, led by former Norwalk-La Mirada School Board Member Nancy Jenkins, who live in the Neff Park area that is adjacent to the railroad tracks.
It was reported first on this website in August of 2012.
The group had become growingly concerned about the increase in noise associated with the operations of BNSF Railway and its auxiliary tracks that run parallel to Stage Road.
On October 23, 2012 City Council received a petition with more than 700 signatures submitted by the group expressing their concerns with future and current impacts from the BNSF tracks located near their homes.
Lady Matadores Finish Second at Woodbridge Tournament
 |
| After beating some of Orange County's top-rated teams in the Woodbridge Softball Classic, the Lady Matadores of La Mirada High are all smiles showing off their second-place plaque last night in Irvine. |
Irvine~The La Mirada High Softball team lost last night 9-0 to M.L. King of Riverside finishing in second place after an exciting run in the annual Woodbridge Softball Classic at Bill Barber Park in Irvine.
The Lady Matadores won their previous four games in the tournament including a 1-0 win over No. 4 Marina High and a 4-0 victory over Edison High, along with victories over Capistrano Valley and Fountain Valley.
Valerie Alvarado, Stephanie Baro and Jaslin Rivas earned all-tournament honors for La Mirada.
The next game for the Mats is against league rival John Glenn on April 15th. The game will be played at La Mirada High beginning at 3:15 p.m.
 |
| Valerie Alvarado, Stephanie Baro and Jaslin Rivas of La Mirada were chosen for the all-tournament team. |
Lady Matadores Take Two in Irvine
UPDATE: 04/01/14 06:30-Valerie Alvarado pitched a no-hitter as the Mats continued their winning ways by beating Marina 1-0 as pool play continued. La Mirada will play Edison in the semifinals Saturday April 5th at 3:00 p.m.
Irvine~The La Mirada High Softball team won two games in pool play action Saturday at the Woodbridge Tournament at Bill Barber Park.
In the first game, The Lady Mats beat Fountain Valley 2-1. Starting pitcher Val Alvarado had eight strikeouts and Jaslin Rivas drove in both runs including the game-winning homer in the sixth inning.
In the second game, the Lady Mats won 3-2 over Capistrano Valley. All three runs for La Mirada (7-5, 2-0), were scored in the first inning behind back-to-back-to-back RBI’s by Rain Vega, Stephanie Baro and Jessica Gutierrez.
Pool play continues tomorrow (Monday) as the Lady Mats go up against Marina High beginning at 5:30 p.m. The finals of the tournament will take place Saturday, April 5th.
League play continues Wednesday for La Mirada as they travel to Artesia with game time at 3:00 p.m.
BREAKING: Two Lanes Remain Closed on NB I-5 at this Hour After Truck Fire
|
| A big rig rests in the northbound lanes of Interstate 5 in La Mirada early Sunday morning shortly after firefighters extinguished it. The blaze closed the freeway for an hour. Photo Dennis Simms |
Only two lanes remain open at this hour just east of Valley View Avenue as authorities clean up mess
La Mirada~A big rig caught on fire early this morning in La Mirada and temporarily closed Interstate 5 as fire crews battled the blaze.
The incident occurred in the northbound lanes just east of Valley View Avenue.
The truck laid to rest directly in front of the Dale Tiffany Outlet Center on Firestone Boulevard.
According to La Mirada Blog social media reports, the incident occurred at around 3:00 a.m.
Firefighter Joel Entreken from Los Angeles County Fire Station 49 in La Mirada told the La Mirada Blog that when they arrived the tractor/cab was “fully involved” and about three-fourths of the trailer was on fire.
Entreken said the driver was the only occupant of the truck and he escaped unharmed.
The driver said he hit an object on the freeway, rupturing his fuel pump, causing it to drag and catch on fire, according to Entreken.
Entreken said the freeway was fully closed for about an hour and it took firefighters about 30 minutes to knock out the fire.
About 100 feet of the guardrail along the freeway was very badly damaged.
LA County Fire Station 35 from Cerritos also responded to the scene along with units from the Orange County Fire Authority and two units from the Anaheim Fire Department.
Earthquake Centered in La Habra Shakes Area
La Mirada~A large earthquake has just hit the La Mirada area.
The preliminary report indicates a 5.3 mag centered in La Habra.
This follows two quakes earlier centered in La Habra at 8:03 and 8:16 p.m. as reported on our Twitter feed.
Follow the latest on our Facebook and Twitter feeds
