There are few things to celebrate about the impending demise of Borders Express inside Stonewood Center, but the liquidation of assets has to be one of them.Because for the first time in a long time, books were actually affordable. The bad news, I was there this weekend and, unless you're a fan of gluten-free cookbooks or are looking to stock up on "Twilight: New Moon" 2012 calendars, pickings are slim. One exception, however, was an entire shelf devoted to Arcadia Publishing and its line of local history books. Copies of the two Downey books, "Downey's Aerospace History" by Gerald Blackburn and "Images of America: Downey" by Larry Latimer and the Downey Historical Society, were still available, as were a set of 15 postcards featuring historical images from Downey's past. The books, originally $21.99, are currently 40 percent off. Never too early for Christmas shopping, right? •• Amid the demolition and construction currently underway in Downtown Downey is an upgrade not receiving nearly the attention it deserves. The office building at Downey Avenue and Firestone Boulevard, formerly the Cardono Building and now owned by the Porto family, is having its windows replaced. Gone are the awful gold panels. They have been replaced with modern glass windows that better complement Porto's Bakery next door. Intentional or not, the new windows also reduce the glare that plagued motorists every sunup and sundown. It looks great. •• Speaking of things that look great: (gulp) Lakewood Boulevard. The construction job was horrendous and incredibly disrupting to residents and business owners, but the view is 1,000 times better without the ugly phone and cable lines. Still, I'm not looking forward to the next phase of construction, from Florence Avenue to Telegraph Road.

********** Published: August 25, 2011 - Volume 10 - Issue 19