Arcadia Mayor Paul Cheng proclaimed April 2 Education and Sharing Day calling for renewed focus on moral and ethical education. Mayor Cheng presented the proclamation to representatives of Chabad of Arcadia and the greater San Gabriel Valley. Chabad of Arcadia offers Jewish education, community and social service programming for families of all ages, backgrounds and affiliations.
The fight over affirmative action arrives in Arcadia. Arcadia Mayor Roger Chandler and Councilmember Paul Cheng will participate in a demonstration to protest Proposition 16 on Saturday at Arcadia County Park. Proposition 16 is a constitutional amendment that would repeal Proposition 206, which banned the use of affirmative action involving race-based or sex-based preferences in California, from the state constitution.
Arcadia Living celebrates grand opening of assisted living community. Located in the previous
location of Vista Cove, 601 Sunset Boulevard, Arcadia Living provides assisted living services,
hospice care, respite care, and adult day programs. Arcadia Mayor Sho Tay (in photo), Mayor Pro
Tem Paul Cheng, and Council member Tom Beck attended.
Arcadia kicks off 2020 City Council election. Final candidates in District 1 are Mayor April Verlato running for reelection and newcomer Yuli J. Sira. Verlato is currently on the last year of her first term on city council and she as elected mayor her last year. She is an attorney with Verlato and Roberts law firm in Arcadia. She is a native of Arcadia, with a long list of endorsements, including former mayors of Arcadia. Sira is a real estate agent with Coldwell Banker. District 4 has two candidates--longstanding council member and former mayor Peter Amundson and newcomer Paul Cheng. Amundson has completed three terms on City Council and served twice as mayor. He is an Arcadia native, with a long list of endorsements. Paul P. Cheng is a highly publicized attorney specializing in business operations and commercial realty transactions. He previously ran for Arcadia City Council in 2010. Also up for reelection is City Clerk Gene Glasco. He is running unopposed.
Officials offer words of condolence for Monterey Park shooting victims. As Monterey Park grieves lives of 11 victims of a mass shooter who shot people at Star Dance Studio on Saturday, January 21, the Lunar New Year eve (Chinese New Year eve), President Joe Biden, Governor Gavin Newsom, and local officials such as Arcadia Mayor Paul Cheng, Rosemead Mayor Sean Dang, Duarte City officials, Los Angeles City Council, among others, offered condolences.
First phase of Le Meridien Hotel taking shape across from Santa Anita Park. Ground broke more than two years ago. The five-story building, on the site formerly occupied by the Santa Anita Inn (its address was 130 West Huntington Drive), was set to open first quarter of 2020, but it has been delayed. It will have a combination of Art Deco elements, inspired by nearby Santa Anita Park, with Modernist features. Architecture firm Architects Orange, interior design firm Linda Snyder Associates, and Snyder Langston is the construction team building the Le Meridien development that spans 6.5 acres.
Drive-through Christmas light show at Santa Anita Park, 285 West Huntington Drive, called Reindeer Road, produced by World of Illumination. Tickets available. The event started November 11, 2021 and runs through January 2, 2022.
Breeders' Cup: Derby winner horse named Practical Move dies. Another horse, Geaux Rocket Ride, that was scheduled to run in next weekend's Breeders' Cup classic was seriously injured during a workout at Santa Anita Park.
Obituary/death notice. Family, friends mourn loss of Arcadia resident Arekel Carranco after fatal hit-and-run on Huntington Drive on June 30, by a 17-year-old driver.
City of Arcadia continuing Concerts and Movies in the Park Series with an event every Thursday from June 23 through August 4 at 240 West Huntington Drive, on the lawn between Arcadia City Hall and Arcadia Police Department. This Thursday's concert will be performed by The Smokin' Cobras, followed by the movie Mulan.
Anita Baldwin statue to be unveiled at Le Méridien Hotel in Arcadia
The Anita May Baldwin statue at the Le Méridien Hotel will be unveiled on Monday, Oct. 25, 2021 at 11 a.m. Anita is the daughter of city founder, Elias Jackson "Lucky" Baldwin. The statue will be featured on the opposite end of the Huntington Drive islands’ hotel property.
“We are very excited to be bringing Anita back to Arcadia,” said Mayor Sho Tay in a statement released by the city. “I would like to thank the Shen, Liu and Chen Families, Jeff Lee, the Dextra Baldwin McGonagle Foundation, Heather D. Gibson and Margaux L. Gibson, and the Arcadia Historical Society, for their generous donations.”
“On behalf of the Baldwin family, I would like to express my deepest gratitude to the Arcadia City Council, the Arcadia Historical Society, the Le Méridien Hotel and all those who have supported this effort to pay homage to my great-great grandmother, Anita May Baldwin,” said Margaux Gibson. “This magnificent statue of Anita will showcase a strong woman who was ahead of her time. I am proud to call Anita May Baldwin my great-great grandmother, and I am truly proud to be a part of this historic project.”
The Anita statue was sculpted by local artist and southern California native Alfred Paredes — who created the Lucky Baldwin statue on the corner of Huntington Drive and Holly Avenue — and is aptly named, “A Legacy of Charity” in honor of Anita’s contributions to life in early Arcadia and throughout California.
Hunt continues for gunman in Arcadia car-to-car shooting on the 210 Freeway near Baldwin Avenue which left a woman named Betty Hernandez, 36, of Monrovia, dead. This shut down the freeway for several hours on September 4. On September 5, two people were found dead, in the block of 600 West Huntington Drive, an apparent murder-suicide. Both victims were in their 50s.
City of Arcadia to implement two new restrictions on plastic waste in 2022. Phase One will restrict the distribution of disposable food service ware items such as utensils, napkins and condiment packets to by-request only, beginning February 3. Phase Two will prohibit the use of polystyrene containers for prepared food and beverages and will require the containers be made from alternative materials, beginning December 3.
Locally oned Chick-Fil-A to open in Westfield Santa Anita today. Restaurant will employ upwards of 50 team members. The owner of this franchise location at Westfield Santa Anita mall, in the food court, is Zach Zimmerman. He was born in Mission Viejo and graduated with a business economics degree with a minor in education from University of California Irvine.
Le Meridien hotel by Marriott in Arcadia is taking shape. Photo. The site of the former Santa Anita Inn, now razed, is the site for an ambitious new $300 million hotel and mixed-use condominium project opposite the Santa Anita Park racetrack. Contruction has been swift, but delayed a bit this week due to the rain. Developer Chateau Group USA held a ceremonial groundbreaking for the project on June 27, 2018.
Facing COVID-19 fines, some restaurants say the punishment does not fit the crime, as restaurant owners have found it hard to keep track of the county and state mandate changes. Closures, new protocols, and restrictions in the face of COVID-19 have caused the restaurant industry to suffer. The cities of Monrovia, Arcadia, Pasadena and Sierra Madre have stepped up to help the ailing restaurant businesses by either waiving fees or offering outdoor dining expansion opportunities, such as using parking lots as dining areas.
Gusty Santa Ana winds wreak havoc to local business and residents in Arcadia. The patio outside the restaurant Matt Denny's Ale House was destroyed by the heavy winds.