Arcadia's new city government first formed in 1903 and its first meeting took place at Elias J. "Lucky" Baldwin's Oakwood Hotel, located at First Avenue and Santa Clara Road. Baldwin's hotel featured gambling and fine dining along with city government. The Oakwood Hotel burned down in 1911, and the city government moved to the McCoy Building at First Avenue and St. Joseph Street. Two years later, City Hall moved across the street to the Hibbard Building. In 1917, the first building was constructed as a City Hall at Huntington Drive and Second Avenue (?). A two-story colonial building was built for $18,000. This City Hall opened on July 13, 1918. City Hall moved in 1949 to a 13-acre parcel between Huntington Drive and the Pacific Electric railroad tracks.
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.
Who was Clara Baldwin Stocker? Elias J. "Lucky" Baldwin's eldest daughter lived lavishly at her home Twin Oaks in Arcadia. See hard copy in VF Baldwin, Clara.
Projected Marriott hotel development breaks ground in 2018; Seqoia trees already down (on site of Santa Anita Inn). The developer did try to save some redwood trees on the site.
TV's Mario Lopez to host Lucky Baldwin Poker Tournament on June 10. It is a fundraiser to preserve the 1880s architecture of Elias J. "Lucky" Baldwin's home at the site of Los Angeles County Arboretum and Botanic Garden.
Arcadia Historical Society dedicates its 9th "History Lives Here" historical marker at the Los Angeles County Arboretum, once the home of Arcadia founder, Elias J. "Lucky" Baldwin, on October 2, near the front entrance.
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.
The history of the peafowl from Indian and Java that live in Arcadia is presented. Elias J. "Lucky" Baldwin imported three pairs from India in the 1880s. His daughter Anita Baldwin added some birds from Java. The peacock is official bird of Arcadia, is protected, and should not be fed. See also VF "Peacocks" for copy of article.
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.
Fall of the House of Baldwin. Part 1 of a 6 part series about Elias J. "Lucky" Baldwin's younger daughter Anita Baldwin. By Galen Patterson. See hard copy in VF Baldwin, Anita
Writer Charles Cooper recounts the history of the Los Angeles County Arboretum, including previous landowners Hugo Reid and Elias J. ("Lucky") Baldwin.
Finalists have been determined in the 2001 City of Arcadia Mayor's Spelling Bee. Competition will be held at the Lucky Baldwin Day Community Picnic on October 28.
Anoakia Estates model homes to open for viewing by this spring. The community is made up of 31 luxury homes. Developer is Tom Hover. The homes were constructed on the site of Anoakia, an estate owned by Anita Baldwin, daughter of Arcadia city founder, Elias J. "Lucky" Baldwin, at Foothill Boulevard and Baldwin Avenue. The homes will be 2-stories, and 5,000-6,000 square feet.
Arcadia Seabiscuit Pacifica Project-Phase 2 calls for revised mixed-use project. Arcadia City Council decided on July 3 they want to see more artists' renderings of what Phase 2 will ultimately look like, before going ahead with the $300 million hotel project on the former Santa Anita inn site. The applicant Chateau Group is also requesting to merge the two abutting properties a 100 and 180 West Huntington Drive into the Specific Plan area and change the General Plan Land use Designation from "Commercial with Downtown Overlay" to "Downtown Mixed Use," to revise the General Plan Land Use Map to reflect the changes, rezone the properties from "General Commercial with Downtown Overlay" to "Seabiscuit Pacifica Specific Plan," and include a Height Overlay of H8 on 180 West Huntington Drive to allow a portion of the mixed-use building on that property. The Santa Anita Inn was a 2-story hotel comprised of 6 buildings, 110 rooms, 34,775 s.f., that was originally constructed in 1955 and remodeled in 1985.
In keeping with the theme of "The Year of Community and Communication," the City of Arcadia will host the first Lucky Baldwin Day Community Picnic on Sunday, October 28, 2001, at Arcadia County Park.
Construction begins on Anoakia luxury housing development, on the former site of Anoakia, Anita Baldwin's mansion, on the corner of Baldwin Avenue and Foothill Boulevard in Arcadia. The Anoakia Mansion was demolished last August to make way for 31 homes to be built by Hover Development Inc. of Newport Beach. Anita Baldwin, daughter of Lucky Baldwin, lived there until her death in 1939. It was used as a girls' school from 1941 to the late 1970s. The new housing development is 19 acres.