Record Crowd at Planning Conference

The 84 attendees (last year’s 55 was the previous record high) featured comments by Arcadia Mayor Gary Kovacic and the first-ever tag team State of the City address. – Courtesy Photo

Arcadia Chamber Hosts Annual Event That Applauds City Planning

“Arcadia Works!” That was the message of the State of the City address in front of the biggest crowd ever at the Arcadia Chamber of Commerce’s annual Planning Conference (Jan. 28) at host sponsor Embassy Suites by Hilton Arcadia, 211 Huntington Drive. The 84 attendees (last year’s 55 was the previous record high) featured comments by Arcadia Mayor Gary Kovacic and the first-ever tag team State of the City address by assistant city manager, Development Services Director Jason Kruckeberg, Police Chief Robert Guthrie, Fire Chief Kurt Norwood, Public Works Services Director Tom Tait, and Administrative Services Director Hue Quach.

Various departments gave reports and answered questions on the state of last year’s performance and upcoming projects related to the development of Arcadia. Proceedings began with Assistant City Manager Jason Kruckeberg, who condensed the upcoming information by stating the theme of, “Arcadia Works.” The notion of the theme entails that Arcadia as a city has done very well in fitting the many growing and ever-changing needs of its population and has bright expectations for the upcoming year.

Ambassador of the Year 2015 Sho Tay. – Courtesy Photo

When it comes to city planning, Kruckberg states that a mix of residential, business, and industrial elements are vital. In addition to this, he understands that there are issues with zoning codes meeting the current needs of new businesses and, because of this his department is focusing its efforts to address all business concerns.

L.A. County Metropolitan Transportation Authority Community Relations Manager Lilian De Loza-Gutierrez also provided information and answered questions about the upcoming March 5 start of the Gold Line light rail through Arcadia. Free rides will be offered on opening day starting at 12 p.m. noon. During peak hours of operation, trains will be running through Arcadia at 55 mph every six minutes. About 200 trains will run each day.

At the conclusion of the Planning Conference, honorees of the upcoming Installation Dinner on March 31 at the DoubleTree by Hilton were announced. Bruce McCallum was named Citizen of the Year and Matt Denny’s Ale House was named Corporate Community Contributor of the Year. Andrew Gregson, outgoing president, closed the event by announcing the first-ever recipients of the new Arcadia Chamber of Commerce Ambassador of the Year Award. President-Elect Vicki Knight and Councilmember Sho Tay were recognized for their commitment to furthering the prosperity of the business community as Arcadia Chamber of Commerce leaders.

Ambassador of the Year 2015 Vicki Knight. – Courtesy Photo

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