Altadena Junction: Is anybody running for Town Council?

Town Council elections: Altadena is an unincorporated county town whose governing authority is the Los Angeles County Board of Supervisors, so we don’t have a city council like an incorporated city would. We do have the Altadena Town Council, a public sounding board with no budget and no power, except to make recommendations to county authorities. The town council includes 16 members, two from each census tract. Members serve two-year terms, with one seat from each census tract up for election each year.

The deadline for candidates to run in 2012 arrived last week, and what’s notable is that candidates emerged from only six of the eight census tracts. In each of those six tracts, only one candidate is running, and four of the six are incumbents. It won’t be an election so much as a coronation.

Outside of Census Tracts 4601 and 4611, where nobody chose to run, the candidates are: Okorie Ezieme, CT 4602; Judy Mathews, CT 4603.01; Sandra Thomas, CT 4603.02; Bernardean Broadous, CT 4610; Reginald Wilkins, CT 4612; and Diane Marcussen, CT 4613. Broadous and Wilkins are the only ones not presently on the council.

The election is Saturday, June 9, with a pre-election balloting June 5 at the Altadena Main Library. Based on the lack of interest, we predict that turnout will be below even last year’s paltry 391 votes cast.

Falling in love with Millard: The Arroyo & Foothills Conservancy, which labors to acquire local natural areas for hiking and preservation, has set its eyes on lower Millard (pronounced mill-ARD) Canyon. Ten years ago, the conservancy teamed with the Santa Monica Mountains Conservancy in an attempt to buy the 13-acre property, but the two were outbid. Now the owner has offered the land to the Arroyo & Foothills Conservancy at favorable terms, so the conservancy is trying to gin up a love affair between the public and Lower Millard, which they hope will lead to donations to acquire the property.

And what’s not to love? With a canopy of at least nine species of native trees and a year-round stream, and as a corridor for bear, mountain lions and other wildlife, the rarely-hiked canyon is a treat.

So, even if you’re not a hiker, come and be charmed as Arroyo & Foothills Conservancy Executive Officer John Howell and local historian Elizabeth Pomeroy look at the history of Millard Canyon for the Altadena Historical Society. The talk is free and starts at 7:30 p.m. Monday, May 14, at the Altadena Community Center, 730 E. Altadena Drive.

Then join the conservancy for one of four free docent-led hikes of the property on Saturday, May 19. Meet at the Altadena Community Garden at Loma Alta Park, corner of Lincoln Avenue and Palm Street, and take a shuttle to the trailhead. Each hike takes about two hours and requires some rock-hopping, so appropriate shoes are a must and hiking poles are suggested. Leave your dog at home. Hikes start at 9 a.m., 10:30 a.m., noon and 1:30 p.m. For more information, visit www.arroyosfoothills.org/millard.

Brandon Jackson Basketball Tournament: Teams are forming for the second annual Brandon Jackson Memorial Shootout. The basketball tournament raises funds for scholarships in Jackson’s name for deserving, college-bound young students.

There are three tiers: youth ages 7-12; middle school students; and high school students (including graduating seniors). The fee is $200 per team, with discounts for early registration and multiple-team registration. The event takes place Saturday, June 23, at the LaSalle High School and Victory Park gyms.

Brandon Jackson was an 18-year-old Altadena resident and John Muir High School student who was shot and killed Feb. 12, 2011, while outside a party on the 300 block of West Palm Street in Altadena. Despite a $10,000 reward offered by the Los Angeles County Board of Supervisors, the killing remains unsolved.

For more information about the tournament, visit www.bjscholarship.org.

Relay for Life: Things are gearing up for the American Cancer Society’s Altadena Relay for Life, to be held at Farnsworth Park on June 9 and 10. The annual 24-hour walk raises funds for cancer research and awareness of how cancer affects everybody. As of this writing, 11 teams have signed up to walk a path through the park beginning Saturday morning. The event includes information booths and entertainment throughout the day and a luminaria ceremony Saturday night. Organizers of this moving community event still are looking for teams, walkers, sponsors and volunteers. For more information, visit go to www.relayforlife.org/altadena.ca.

TIMOTHY RUTT is the publisher and editor of Altadenablog, found at www.altadenablog.com.