Downtown Arcadia hosts Patriotic Festival in honor of America's 243rd birthday. It takes place June 29, 5:00-9:30 PM on First Avenue, south of Huntington Drive, with live music, food, entertainment, and fireworks.
Arcadia imports Monrovia Street Fair patriotic kick-off event set for July 3. It will happen weekly on Friday nights in Arcadia's downtown area, on First Avenue between Huntington Drive and Santa Clara Street.
Arcadia Downtown Street Market now on Saturdays, 5-9 PM. It is run by Green Leaf Events on First Avenue between Santa Clara Street and Huntington Drive.
4th Annual Downtown Arcadia Patriotic Festival, an Independence Day celebration, takes place on First Avenue between Bonita Street and Diamond Street, Sunday, July 1, 5-9 PM.
Major changes on tap for Arcadia in the new year. Delta Marriott Hotel slated for the old Santa Anita Inn; Arcadia's tallest building, currently housing Bank of America at 150 N. Santa Anita Avenue, has gone up for sale. The current Arcadia Self Storage at 35 W. Huntington Drive is proposed to become a modern food vendor location, reminiscent of the Grand Central Market in Downtown Los Angeles or the Anaheim Packing House.
Inaugural Winterfest in Arcadia debuts November 23. It’ll be a veritable winter wonderland at Santa Anita Park race track’s infield, with ice skating, a Christmas tree lot, Santa’s Village, carolers, pony rides, 80 pop-up vendors, seasonal foods and more.
City of Arcadia kicks off holiday season with second annual tree lighting celebration on December 2, 5-8 PM at Arcadia Transit Plaza, at the corner of Santa Clara Street and North First Avenue.
Arcadia Chamber of Commerce launches new networking campaign. Pop-Up mixers are held monthly at Arcadia bars whose owners are Chamber members. The first one was at Monkey Bar at Westfield Santa Anita mall, January 9. Pop-Up mixers are not advertised in advance, instead information is posted through social media within days of the event. RSVPs are not necessary.
Santa Anita Park race track gets into the holiday spirit. The park’s inaugural Winterfest, which launched over the weekend, continues through December 23. The park has transformed into a winter wonderland, giving people the chance to ice skate beneath towering pine trees and dance in snowfall amid 70-degree temperatures. Other activities include holiday movies, a giant snow globe photo booth, a petting zoo, food, shopping, an obstacle course and other rides.
After two weeks of delays, construction work has resumed along the downtown stretch of Huntington Drive and First Ave. City officials have hired a new contractor.
Arcadia launches the new Arcadia Downtown Business Association, with plans to revitalize the downtown district. Matt McSweeney is the association's chairperson and owner of Matt Denny's Ale House Restaurant on East Huntington Drive. City officials will spend about $90,000 on a parking study and about $18,000 in redevelopment funds to get Arcadia Downtown Business Association off the ground. The revitalization plans should work nicely with the slated opening of the Gold Line station at the northwest corner of North First Avenue and East Santa Clara Street by 2014.
The urban design team of Freedman, Tung, and Bottomley made its first recommendations to develop the city's Downtown Revitalization Plan. Ideas included removing parallel street parking along Huntington Drive and adding eight pedestrian crosswalks, as well as creating themes based on Santa Anita Park.
Arcadia City Council declared its intention to provide seed redevelopment money--provided a state Supreme Court ruling in January frees up such funding--to help the Arcadia Downtown Business Association breathe new life into the city's traditional downtown, by establishing a property-based business improvement district.
Arcadia hosts inaugural holiday tree lighting and dedication on Saturday, December 5 at 5:00 PM at Arcadia Transit Plaza at corner of Santa Clara Street and North First Avenue. Features the dedication of the Deodar Cedar as the official Holiday Tree by the Arcadia City Council and the Arcadia Beautiful Commission.
Downtown 2000, the $4 million revitalization project, will primarily affect Huntington Drive and First Ave. Huntington Drive will have more landscaping and lighting, while First Ave. will have angled parking and landscaping to be more pedestrian oriented.