Rod's Grill, Arcadia's beloved classic diner, announces its closure after nearly 70 years. Closing date will be Sunday, February 12, 2023. It is located at 41 West Huntington Drive, along Historic Route 66. The diner began as a small chain of restaurants in 1946, with the Arcadia location opening in 1957.
Diners line up to get last meal at Rod's Grill in Arcadia. Restaurant that has served generations of people closes on Sunday (yesterday). Hundreds of diners made a final pilgrimage to Rod's Grill in Arcadia at 41 W. Huntington Drive, along Historic Route 66. Rod Wellman started the restaurant in 1946 in Alhambra. The Arcadia location opened in 1957 offering 10 cent coffees and 40 cent slices of pie a la mode. Wellman's sons Barry and Brian took over years later, then Manny Romero bought it about 25 years ago and kept its vintage vibe. Romero was an immigrant from Mexico. He died in 2021. Television shows such as This is Us, Mad Men, Last Man Standing, and Luck, had filmed episodes there. See hard copy in VF. See also Pasadena Star News, p. A3, A4, February 9, 2023.
High school track and field notes. Local athletes starting to leave an impression. The Covina Invitational takes places March 29-30, Arcadia Invitational takes place April 5-6, and Mt. SAC Relays on April 18-20, but there are some standout competitors such as Reena Hsieh of Arcadia and Arcadia juniorLayla Roslan.
Popular "Star Wars" talents to head fundraiser on May 4 at Chalice Collectibles at The Shops at Santa Anita mall in Arcadia, 400 South Baldwin Avenue. All proceeds go to the Make-A-Wish Foundation and Starlight Foundation. Pictured is Kat Cressida, the voice of Princess Leia in popular video games. See also Arcadia Weekly, pp. 1, 15, March 28, 2024.
Damage saps fun from Angeles forest. Angeles National Forest's Chantry Flat Road remains closed after suffering damage from the 2020 Bobcat fire and subsequent fires. Storms and fires force closure of trails, roads and campgrounds, some for years. The forest's second-most visited area, Chantry Flat, in the section north of Arcadia, Monrovia and Sierra Madre, has been closed since the start of the pandemic in March 2020. A sign in Arcadia (photo) advises motorists of the Chantry Flat Road closure.
Return engagements for marching bands. All but one band scheduled for the 2021 Pasadena Tournament of Roses Parade, which was canceled, has agreed to perform in 2022. The Arcadia Apache Marching Band and Color Guard will march in January 2022.
Back on track. Santa Anita Park resumes racing today, still minus spectators and with several precautions. The last time there was racing was March 27, when the track was shut down by Los Angeles County Health Department to slow the spread of coronavirus. Some of the most important protocols include: restricted zone that will house jockeys, valets and essential personnel, all trainers, employees and essential racing personnel must wear face cloths covering their nose and mouth and practice social distancing, all trainers, employees and essential racing personnel must wear a race-day wristband signifying they passed the daily health screening.
Two related stories.
Early to the party - Voting: Poll workers say regional centers are swamped on first day of in-person balloting.
Scattered paper jams, tech glitches don’t spoil first in-person day at the polls. many of 2020’s early voters showed up to voting centers before they even opened on Saturday, Oct. 24, the first day of in-person balloting in Los Angeles County.
But much to the relief of voters and elections officials, the kind of polling-place meltdowns that left voters angered and election officials worried back in March, when the county debuted its $300 million network of vote centers, did not repeat. Back in March, for the primary, many voters were left seething after tech glitches delayed the opening of some sites and even forced the Hollywood site to close down.
But Saturday’s voting played out much more smoothly. And when issues did pop up, they appeared to have been resolved quickly in most cases.
Behind the scenes, poll workers reported paper jams and other tech issues, some of which caused short delays.
Many voters were certainly eager to cast their ballots. Several voting centers saw a line wrapped around the building before they opened. Such hubs included large polling locations, such as the Arboretum and Botanical Gardens in Arcadia, stocked with 45 of the county’s new voting devices.
The Marching bands in the 2021 Tournament of Roses Parade have been announced. Arcadia High School's Apache Marching Band and Color Guard will participate in the 2021 Rose Parade. See also Mountain Views News, p. 3, March 7, 2020.
Tough task for no. 15 for Rio Hondo Prep's Kares football team. Rio Hondo Prep has 66 boys on its campus in Arcadia. Top-seeded Rio Hond Prep (12-2) will travel to take on no. 3 seed Santa Monica (9-4) on Friday in the CIF Southern Section Divion 9 championship. Pictures of the Kares players at a luncheon.
Arcadia High School baseball team postpones games due to COVID-19 virus protocols and will remain in quarantine until at least Monday, according to Arcadia athletic director Milicia Protic.
Cooling centers open for relief from heat wave. Arcadia Public Library is one of 165 Los Angeles County cooling centers, meant to help prevent heat-related illnesses. Until Sunday, high temperatures are expected to reach triple digits.
CDC optimism is a shot in the arm. New guidelines ease restrictions on vaccinated people. On Saturday, March 13, Maitely Weissman, cofounder of Essential Caregivers Coalition, and other grassroots activists will be marching at 1:00 PM at Arcadia Community Regional Park, while socially distanced, to honor those who have died in long-term care facilities since the March 13, 2020 visitation ban and those who are isolated inside. The "honor walk" in Arcadia is part of a series of coordinated events across 17 states in commemoration of the anniversary of the ban.