by TImothy Rutt

 A woman fatally shot on a busy Minnesota freeway by a police officer Thursday afternoon has been identified as Katherine Marie Gordon of Altadena.

 According to the Associated Press, Gordon, 58,  was shot to death on Highway 394 by a police officer from Golden Valley, a Twin Cities suburb.

• 
  Not so much green: The economic downturn is hitting local golf courses. PSN”s Kevin Smith looks at the issue, including an interview with Doug Colliflower, Altadena town councilman and manager of the Altadena and Eaton Canyon golf courses.
• Can this marriage be saved? This may be a little “inside baseball,” but we found it amusing: Dan Evans, editor of the Times Community Newspaper Group (which is our media partner),  writes a story on a tense family outing —

Sheriff’s Dept. at Hotchkin Memorial Training Center
The Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department is inviting the public to join fire, law enforcement, and military agencies for a “9/11 Remembrance Ceremony” dedicated to those who perished on September 11, 2001. Speakers will include Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa, Fire Chief of the Los Angeles Fire Department, Brian L. Cummings, Fire Chief of the Los Angeles County Fire Department,

Some remembrance events are scheduled this weekend, but there are lots of other activities, too, including the Abundant Harvest outreach on Saturday.  There's something for everybody!

Fri., Sept. 9

• It's Fancy Food Truck Friday at the Webster's parking lot, 2450 N. Lake Avenue, from 5-9 PM.  This month's event features The Grilled Cheese Truck, 

The Altadena Historical Society’s next outing will be Sun., Oct. 23, as it hosts a walking tour of the 900 block of Mariposa St.. east of Lake to Maiden Lane.

It includes a docent-led tour of this magnificent, fully-restored craftsman house, pictured in the photo as it appeared in 1913:

The architect is unknown, however, based on some similarities in the design, there is speculation that it may have been designed by one of the numerous architects who apprenticed under Charles and Henry Greene —

Our weekly column is up at the Pasadena Sun.  We mulled over two problem neighborhoods to write about.  We chose that one.

The Sheriff Department said:

On December 29, 2010, during a severe winter storm with wind gusts over 60 miles per hour, Sergeant Joseph Fender and Deputies Jonathan Boden and Marco Grajales responded to an emergency call of a structure fire in the city of Lancaster.

Everyone lines up for the Grilled Cheese Truck and others, but county regulations may put an end to the event

Pictured: the crowds came for Fancy Food Truck Friday last night in the Webster’s parking lot.

by Timothy Rutt

Last night’s monthly Food Truck Friday at the Webster’s parking lot was the place to meet,

The Altadena City-Wide Outreach and Festival is going on today from 11 AM-5 PM.  Mariposa and Marcheta Streets will be closed from Lake Avenue to North El Molino Avenue during that time.  Sponsored by the Abudant Harvest Christian Center, It’s got something for everybody:  lead coordinator Phlunte Riddle estimates that there will be 2.500 people attending throughout the day, and gave us a list of some of the activities:

Health Pavilion Screening:  Diabetes,

by Timothy Rutt

The Abundant Harvest-sponsored City-Wide Outreach Festival has just closed down, and it looks like a good time was had by all.  There were three levels of activities, from the information and goods booths on Mariposa to health screening to food and kid fun on the lower level.

by Timothy Rutt

The Beach Toys wrapped up the Sheriff Support Group’s summer concert season in Farnsworth Park Saturday night by bringing back that great surfin’ music by the Beach Boys, Dick Dale, and others. It was a night that was by turns fun and poignant, and we have it all for you after the jump.

Poetry Correspondent Gloriana Casey strikes again with another timely verse:

" Dear County: About those .." Huddled Masses Yearning To Breathe Free!"

 from gloriana casey  9-11-11

We HUNGER for a place to meet,
all of Altadena!
So let's all join to make it work.
 In  rhyming scheme,

by Bill Westphal

A stretch of New York Drive in Pasadena was dedicated as a memorial to the victims of 9/11 on Sunday, the tenth anniversary of the tragic event.  The dedication was well attended.  Numerous police,

The Altadena Chamber of Commerce monthly mixer will be Thurs. Sept. 29 at Body Freedom, Tarnie Fulloon's therapy practice, 1270 Morada Pl., from 5:30-7:30 PM.  Members are $5, and guests $7.  Bring a raffle prize and receive commercial time to promote your business.

The hearings will be:

Wed., Oct. 5, 6:30-8:30 PM at the Rose Bowl Stadium Visitor’s Locker Room, 1001 Rose Bowl Dr. (Park in Lot F, enter at Gate A).

Sat., Oct. 15, 9 AM-11 AM at La Canada High School Cafeteria,

• Coyotes in Glendale: Mark Kellam at the Pasadena Sun has a story about a family of coyotes that has moved into a vacant, burned-out home in north Glendale.  The Brockmont Drive home has been unoccupied since November, and a coyote family has moved in and raised its pups there.  Officials are looking to trap and euthanize the creatures.
• Invasive mosquito: Officials say that the Asian tiger mosquito (Aedes albopictus) was identified in El Monte last week. 

One of our readers who lives near Ventura and Lincoln Ave.  had this encounter late Monday afternoon:

I saw a suspicious man crossing my lawn.  I just got home from the store so my door was unlocked.  I ran to the door and locked it.  He knocked.  I went to the sliding glass door in the dining room and asked if I could help him. 

by Timothy Rutt

After over a year of renovations causing inconvenience and disruption for both deputies and the public, Altadena Sheriff’s Station 7 will soon be ready for its close-up.

The 1940’s vintage building had a $1.3 million facelift that will not only give the deputies a better place to work,

Sheriffs, fire, and paramedics were called in to a crash Monday night at Lake Avenue and New York Drive.  Photo by community correspondent Bo Astrup/Altadenablog.

There was a solo car crash near the intersection of Lake Avenue and New York Drive Monday night at about 10:15.

The Los Angeles County Fire Department said they were called to a crash at the intersection where a car had rolled over on its side. 

• Fashion for the ages: Tickets are available now for the Fabulous Fall Fashion Show and Tea sponsored by the Sierra Madre Historical Preservation Society on Sat., Oct. 15. Costume designer Shon Le Blanc will narrate a fashion show based on the photographs in the award-winning book, Southern California: Seeking the Better Life in Sierra Madre, written by Altadena’s Michele Zack.

CASA of Los Angeles (Court Appointed Special Advocates) will host an information session for interested volunteers at Robinson Park in Pasadena on Tues., Sept. 20, from 6-7:30 PM. Robinson Park is located at 1081 N. Fair Oaks Ave., Pasadena, CA 91103. 

Each month in Los Angeles County, more than 800 children enter the Dependency Court, or foster care, system. These are children who have been removed from their parent’s custody because of severe abuse,

The Allan Wasserman Jazz Ensemble does Motown on Sat., Sept. 17, at Pinocchio’s Pizza, 1449 N. Lake Ave., Pasadena, starting at 8 PM.  Cover is $3.50, which is pretty reasonable for great music well-played.

The Pasadena Waldorf School (which is in Altadena, but you knew that)  is sponsoring a talk by Douglas Gerwin, Ph.D.,  "Turning Education on Its Head: What Modern Brain Research Says About How Children and Young Adults Learn" on Fri. Sept. 30:

Recent neuro-scientific research shows that the brain behaves less like a “hard-wired” computer,

Sheriff Lee Baca and Supervisor Michael D. Antonovich will join station Capt. Steven McLean to officially re-open the station after $1.3 million in renovations.  Click on the graphic for more information.

Elizabeth Nelson at the Christmas Tree Lane Association says it's that time of year:

This is to ask you to please join your neighbors and friends beginning Oct. 8 from 9 AM to 12 PM for “Lights Up”. As long as the weather permits,

We received this note from LaTanya Anthony about the recent fundraiser for the Marcus Jones burial, and directed at all those who helped out:

This is just a small note to show my appreciation, and to say thank you for all you have done.

Thurs., Sept. 15

• Coffee Gallery, 2029 N. Lake; front stage, open mic night, starts 8 PM, free; backstage, The Salty Suites, with special guests The Wimberley Bluegrass Band (folk/country/bluegrass)  8 PM.  Tickets: $15. Reservations:  (626) 798-6236.

Fri., Sept. 16

• Teen Flick at the Altadena Main Library, 600 E. Mariposa St., 3:30 PM Movie: Thor (rated PG-13);  

The Social Media Club of San Gabriel Valley (SMC SGV) and the LA County Business Technology Center (BTC) are hosting a Social Media Week event on Thurs., Sept. 22, that will cover new tools that can be used to do a social media audit and extract business intelligence from the online conversations 

The council’s land use committee turned down the request in a packed, emotional meeting Sept. 6, and expect more of the same Tuesday.

There will also be some discussion of a roadway project along several Altadena streets, and two possible candidates to fill a vacancy in Census Tract 4603.01 will introduce themselves.  

from the Arroyos & Foothills Conservancy

Meet at Pleasantridge Drive and Rubio Vista Drive in Altadena at 9 a.m. Sat., Sept. 17 for a hike along the former route of the Mount Lowe Railway in Rubio Canyon. Learn about the history of the railway, which brought Angelenos to popular resorts on Mount Lowe and Echo Mountain at the turn of the 19th century. 

We're sharing this video of the rescue of one of last weekend's errant hikers, taken from inside the sheriff's Air 5 rescue helicopter.  What a bunch of pros they are (they've had a lot of practice lately!)

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