Get your sandbags

Free sandbags are available at Claremont's 3 fire stations. The city is handing them out to residents in anticipation of heavy rains next week. The fire stations are located at 606 W. Bonita Ave., 4370 Sumner Ave and 3710 N. Mills Ave.

Mark McGwire apologizes for steroid use

Most of you have heard by now about how baseball slugger Mark McGwire has come clean on his use of steroids.

McGwire grew up in Claremont and Pomona and, according to the COURIER Almanac from last year, still holds the Claremont Little League record for home runs. He once played baseball for Claremont High School before transferring to Damien High School.

The COURIER has put a poll on our homepage, asking readers if you think he still deserves a place in the Baseball Hall of Fame. Be sure to cast your vote.

Here's a clip of a teary McGwire discussing his steroid use in an interview with the Associated Press.

Happy Birthday COURIER City Beat!

I've been blogging now for one whole year. I've managed a total of 145 posts over the course of the year. Not too shabby.

I've tried to bring a variety of news to the blog: crime, city council news and announcements about upcoming events.

With the paper coming out just twice a week, one great things about having a blog is the speed I can get news out. When there's breaking news, like the Metrolink crash or election results, residents can get the information right away.

It also allows me to give some background information or opinion on stories that I've written for the paper. At times, I've had to deal with angry phone calls, emails or comments after writing some posts like Claremont swap meet? or Pit bull shooting.

The blog also lets me have some fun, like with my Halloween piece or publishing old photos of the Mayor. I'm happy he's been a really good sport about it.

I hope readers out there have enjoyed reading the CCB so far. I've enjoyed writing it. Of course, I'm always open to suggestions on how to make it better. What would you like to read about?

Southard spending habits back under scrutiny

The COURIER has been getting calls about some news reports surfacing in the Desert Sun involving former Claremont city manager Glenn Southard.

Southard, who is now city manager of Indio, has come under fire after it was revealed that Indio city staff charged over $805,000 since January 2008 using 62 staff-issued credit cards. According to this article, some of the expenses were for tickets to professional sporting events, lavish dinners and travel expenses for Southard's wife.

Southard was also questioned about his spending habits during his time in Claremont. He clashed with former city councilmember Jackie McHenry after she began asking to see receipts for his expenses. He left Claremont in 2005.

With Indio facing a $9 million budget deficit, Southard's time in Indio may be up soon. The Indio city council will meet in closed session today to discuss offering "golden handshake" retirement packages to city employees. According to this article, Southard would be eligible for early retirement if he opts to take it.

Museum troubles

The COURIER put out an article in today's paper examining the financial problems that led to the closure of the Claremont Museum of Art. The article also touched on some plans for the museum's future.

Last night I received a call from Janet Myhre, a CMA board member who was instrumental in finding donors from the museum. By the time we spoke, it was well past deadline and her comments couldn't be included in the article.

She spoke about the museum's major donor, a Los Angeles resident who's been the largest financial backer of the museum. Today's article notes that the donor "cut off her steady stream of funding to the museum, sending museum officials scrambling to find other funding sources."

The statement may be somewhat misleading, according to Myhre. The donor, who wants to remain anonymous, has given over one million dollars to support the museum over the last 3 years. She has also pledged $10 million in assets to the museum as a deferred gift upon her death.

The donor did not abruptly stop giving but offered to match funds raised by the museum in order to see that it was somewhat financially stable. Myhre was critical of those who tried to place blame the donor for the museum's failure as she's seen some negative comments from former staff or board members in newspaper articles.

"How can you blame a donor who'd already given so much and been so generous to the museum?" Myhre said.

In any case, the CMA is not the only museum with financial hardships. The Fresno Metropolitan Museum announced this week it was closing after 26 years in operation.

According to this article from KMPH, the museum had mounting debts, a declining endowment and was heavily subsidized by the city of Fresno.

Accident victim released from hospital

The 54-year-old man struck by a motorist on Saturday afternoon was released from the hospital yesterday with no broken bones or serious injuries.

The man was walking in a crosswalk at Indian Hill Boulevard and San Jose Avenue around 4:20 p.m. when the accident occurred. A 55-year-old woman turning southbound onto Indian Hill caused the accident.

After the crash, a helicopter landing at Larkin Park airlifted the man to USC Medical Center. Police do not believe drugs or alcohol were involved but continue to investigate the crash.

Accident on San Jose and Indian Hill

A man in his 50s is in the hospital after a vehicle struck him at Indian Hill Boulevard and San Jose Avenue.

Around 4:20 p.m., the Claremont resident was walking in the crosswalk at the intersection, Claremont Police Seargant John Costa said. Driving a Kia Spectra, another Claremont resident in his 50s was turning south on Indian Hill from San Jose when the collission occurred.

The man suffered injuries to his head and arm and was airlifted to UCLA Medical Center for treatment. Police are still investigating the matter.