A water main broke on December 22,2008, creating a large sinkhole on Orange Grove Avenue, just west of Santa Anita Avenue, near the intersection with Hyland Avenue. The rupture opened a hole about 25 to 30 feet across and 5 feet deep.
Arcadia City Council unanimously approved a plan to let the city of El Monte annex 5.19 acres of vacant land near Durfee Avenue and Clark Street. The plan is to have 34 units of homes developed there. Next, the matter goes to Los Angeles County Local Agency Formation Commission (LAFCO).
Dr. Charles H. Strub brought horse racing back to Arcadia. After the state made it legal again in 1930, Anita Baldwin tried to revive her father, Elias J. "Lucky" Baldwin's dream of a Santa Anita Racetrack. She worked with Joe Smoot but he couldn't achieve this, even though Arcadia City Council licensed his Santa Anita Jockey Club. San Francisco dentist Charles H. Strub (pronounced Stroob), owner of the San Francisco Seals baseball team, got a license for the Los Angeles Turf Club and founded Santa Anita Park with Hal Roach and other promoters. The track was designed by Gordon Kaufman and opened December 25, 1934.
Arcadia-based J. Foley Enterprises, owner of Clearman's Village shopping center at Huntington Drive and Rosemead Boulevard, has proposed building a Kohl's Department Store and refurbishing the Galley Restaurant (The Boat). Residents have complained to the County Planning Commission about the potential blocked view of the San Gabriel Mountains and increased traffic.
A home built by the Barker family of Barker Brothers fame will be the Pasadena Showcase House of Design. Designed by architect Roland Coate in the early 1940's, the house sits on a large corner lot in the Upper Rancho area of Arcadia.
Police identified the partially clothed body of a woman found in alley near First Avenue and Alice Street as Nancy Christina Sanchez of Baldwin Park. The cause of death is unknown at this time.
Residents of Santa Anita Village will get a chance to register their opinions on limiting the size of new houses in their area. Homeowners are asking for a 35 percent floor area ratio rule to be in place.
The proposed site for Arcadia's Gold Line station is just east of Santa Anita Avenue, at the First Avenue/Santa Clara intersection. City leaders want to separate the railroad tracks from the street.
Congressman David Dreier was made an honorary member of the Arcadia Rotary Club. Dreier, chair of the House Rules Committee, commended the Rotarians for a service project underway in Uganda that will bring water to a village.
Arcadia Rotary Club and other clubs in the United States raised $30,000, which was matched by the Rotary Foundation to total $330,000. The money will go to college loans for students in a southwest Ugandan village.
Arcadia Methodist Hospital celebrates its centennial. There were 30 invited guests and local dignitaries, including past chiefs of staff. The hospital began in 1903 in a 2-story house on Hewitt Street in downtown Los Angeles. It was founded by the Women's Home Missionary Society and had 5 beds.