Pasadena Ca

The half-century battle to complete the 710 Freeway through Pasadena and South Pasadena using a surface route could come to an end as early as today if Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger signs legislation that would bar aboveground construction on a route that has long been considered the missing link in L.A.'s highway system. The bill would eliminate the possibility of completing the final leg of the 710 Freeway from where it ends at Valley Boulevard at the edge of Alhambra to Pasadena using a surface route.

Frank Lloyd Wright had a radical idea for low-cost construction when Alice Millard, a rare-book dealer and antiques collector, commissioned him to design a house in Pasadena. He would use concrete blocks, "the cheapest (and ugliest) thing in the building world," the architect wrote in his autobiography. "Why not see what could be done with that gutter-rat?"

A Middle East conference scheduled to be held next week at a prominent Pasadena church has sparked tensions between local Christians and Jews. But those involved say they hope to use the episode as a chance for increased dialogue and, perhaps, a deeper understanding of the sensitive issues surrounding the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. Several Los Angeles rabbis and others in the Jewish community have criticized a decision by All Saints Episcopal Church to allow its facilities to be used Feb.

A Pasadena school student was arrested Friday on suspicion of bringing a gun to campus, police said. The arrest occurred Friday afternoon, hours after a student reported that a classmate had brought a weapon to Blair International Baccalaureate School. Police and administrators ordered a lockdown of the 1,200-student campus shortly before 9:30 a.m. The lockdown continued through most of the day.

THE MOSAIC on the ceiling looks as old as the 1921 house. Actually, older. Griffins guard one side, twin phoenixes another. Grapevines coil across a trellis. The motifs are ancient. But the artwork? Completed last month. It took a house painter from Sierra Madre to propose the idea. The son of one of Mexico's most prominent muralists to guide the execution. A researcher at the Boston Public Library to keep it historically accurate.

An ambitious development project that included hundreds of condominiums, apartments and a senior housing complex on the former Ambassador College campus has been foreclosed, Pasadena officials said Tuesday. The foreclosure encompassed most of the project's 20 acres, one of the prime parcels of land in the city. The project had the support of historical preservationists and was viewed as a key component in the development of a long dormant section of Old Town Pasadena.

A band of walkers gathered Saturday at Pasadena Presbyterian Church with a mission: Give pedestrians in this city their rightful place on the sidewalk. Reduce auto vs. pedestrian conflicts. Add some more shade trees. "Make it enjoyable to walk," said Nancy Nelson, a Pasadena resident. Nelson was one of about 40 people who came to hear the conclusions from the city's first "walkabout," which was held on a foggy morning in March.

Andrew Cherng remembers pacing through his Chinese restaurant in Pasadena wondering whether any customers would show. It was a difficult time. He had borrowed from family members and the Small Business Administration to open the eatery and had debts to pay. "People would stick their heads in and leave," Cherng recalled. His mother went out and sprinkled the sidewalk with salt, a Chinese custom to expel negative energy. It worked.

The weekend football game between UCLA and Fresno State at the Rose Bowl was by no means the hottest on record. But Pasadena fire officials said Monday that nearly 1,000 people sought medical attention for heat-related medical issues -- the most in recent memory. Nearly 74,000 people attended Saturday's game between the Bruins and the Bulldogs, and forecasters said the weather was no hotter than usual for a mid-September football contest.

There was no snow at the Huntington Library in Pasadena, but the four sled dogs tethered there seemed acclimated enough. One amiably licked the face of a child in a stroller. The hubbub wasn't much like the Yukon, but the dogs were there to excite interest in Jack London's "The Call of the Wild." This was a far cry from a quiet conversation around a library table -- a series of which are being held in West Hollywood to discuss Rudolfo Anaya's "Bless Me, Ultima."