Monrovia Old Town Report (Issue 2/22/18)

Old Town Monrovia. – Courtesy photo / Monrovia Public Library (CC By 2.0)

By Pam Fitzpatrick

I’ll start off this week by correcting an error I made last week. Let’s just say I’m glad I wasn’t at Jake’s Roadhouse last Friday when Julie Soldo, the Queen of Taste of Old Town and long-time loyal Kiwanian, was shown my column confidently announcing that “Taste” would be sometime in August. Not correct, Pam – you know better: Taste of Old Town is always in October. Sorry, Julie … but now I even know the actual date, which is Sunday, October 21st. I’m forgiven on that one, but let me tell you about another (really bad) mistake I almost made THIS week…

There has been an open space for about a year on E. Colorado next to Monrovia Lock Shop. I’ve been watching that space like a hawk, and yes, there were renovations going on inside, but the space remained empty. Then, early this week I drove by and saw a sign that said “Paw Palette,” and was totally convinced Old Town was getting a new doggie bakery. Let’s just say, thank you Google. Not a dog bakery at all, but a make-up related shop. The Paw Palette website, which bears the same logo on display in the window, says “…Paw Palette is a makeup artist’s best friend.” Check it out – it’s a business that sells make-up palettes (vs. wood pallet vs. taste palate). I’m still confused…

I see two items on the City Council agenda for Tuesday this week that will affect Old Town. One of the listed items concerns the on-going discussions about whether or not to allow tattooing as an ancillary service within the Historic Commercial District (HCD). From what I’ve heard, the general consensus is favorable, so we’ll see how the council wants to proceed. The second issue is consideration of the proposed new Old Town logo which has received a lot of negative comments on social media since it was unveiled to the public via the online news Monrovia Now. The logo was being “updated” to make it less historic and more appealing to millennials, looking to the future. Again, we’ll see what the Council says and report back to you next week.

If you take a walk down S. Myrtle to the 500 block west side and peek in the window at 521, you’ll see more activity inside “Frooza.” The space now has tables and chairs so maybe we can taste their new frozen desserts soon. The old 4th Dimension building in the 300 block of S. Myrtle is looking good: windows are in, plywood is gone, and yes, the walkway that leads back to the parking lot is now open – finally!

Bank of America at the corner of Myrtle and Lime is getting a much-needed face lift. The aged wooden façade is being updated and right now the sidewalk is blocked off on both sides. Then there’s the Citibank time and temperature sign. Sigh…. I never realized how many times a week I would purposely drive by that sign to see the “official” Monrovia temperature. Please, Citibank, give us back our sign…

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