Hello Downey!  

Spring is officially here and April has been an exciting month for our community — highlighted by the success of several community events. The City of Downey has long been known as a great place to live, work and play. This sense of community is evident in the many events that bring us and our neighbors together.

First off, the Downey Street Faire once again drew thousands of people to come out and enjoy great food, carnival games, entertainment, community booths and lots more. Our City looks forward to this event every year and the Downey Chamber of Commerce does an excellent job in putting this on for our community. It’s definitely one of my favorite events here in town.

The 3rd annual Healthy Downey 5K for TLC event was held last Saturday, April 18th and hundreds participated to help support our local TLC Family Resource Center. TLC is part of the Downey Unified School District and it provides valuable resources to our Downey families. I’m glad that so many people came out to show their support, while promoting our other community initiative – Healthy Downey. Thank you to all who were involved in putting together this great event.

Help support the upcoming Special Olympics World Games this summer by purchasing our official Downey Host Town fundraising merchandise, now on sale! We have a variety of items including tote bags, I love Downey pins, shirts, water bottles, hats, and more. All proceeds go toward supporting the Special Olympics athletes’ visit to Downey before they head over to compete in the actual Special Olympics L.A. 2015. Merchandise is available at the Parks & Recreation Office and at major upcoming City events. To view the merchandise, log-on to our City website or City Facebook page. The actual Host Town program will take place July 21-24, 2015.

Did you know our City Library now has a coffee cart? Coffee is now available for sale at our Library. You can’t miss the coffee cart as soon as you walk in. Stop by to visit our Library sometime soon and make sure you get your java fix while you’re there!

The City of STEM event was a great hit at our Columbia Memorial Space Center during this past Spring break. Many of you came out to explore our Space Center and learn about the world of STEM. This weeklong event featured several activities that focused on engaging students and their families through Science, Technology, Engineering and Math. This was the first ever City of STEM event and we’re glad that our community got to experience this science festival through our very own Space Center. A special thanks to Aerojet Rocketdyne for helping sponsor this event and to our Space Center staff for all of their hard work!

At our last City Council meeting, we approved the purchase of two new Fire Engines for our Fire Department. These Engines will replace two older Fire Engines that have reached their projected end-of-service life. Our City has always expressed great support for public safety and we feel that both our Police and Fire departments need nothing but the best resources and equipment to protect and serve our community. Our Fire Department was in need of these two engines and without hesitation, my Council colleagues and I approved to provide them with the funding needed to purchase these vehicles.

Speaking of public safety, our Downey Police Department will be holding their annual “Tip a Cop” event on Thursday, April 30th from 5-9pm, at Johnny Carino’s. Our Police Officers will serve as hosts and waiters that evening and will be accepting tips from dinner patrons to benefit local Special Olympics athletes. Come out and support our officers in such a great cause and enjoy great food from Johnny Carino’s Italian Restaurant!

Just around the corner is one of our City’s biggest events – Kids Day! Mark your calendars for Saturday, May 9th. As always, the event will feature many great activities for the entire family to enjoy. Hope to see you there!

As for the Promenade project, construction is underway and the majority of tenants are expected to open before Thanksgiving 2015. The rest of the shopping center will be open by April 2016.

For those of you not familiar with this project, this will be a new, 1.5 million square foot development that will feature an assortment of premiere retailers, restaurants and cafes, a 14-screen cinema, and office space. It is currently being built on the former Downey Studios lot, right next to the Columbia Memorial Space Center. I’m happy to announce that the following tenants have been confirmed:

• Benihana Japanese Restaurant
• Lazy Dog Café
• Jersey Mikes
• Rock & Brews Restaurant
• Pick-Up Stix
• Five Guys
• Gaucho Grill
• Fresh Griller
• Mod Pizza
• CineMark Theaters
• 24 Hour Fitness
• ULTA
• Carters/Oshkosh
• Layne Bryant

Last but not least, guess what’s happening next month!? You will now be able to pay your water bill online! In May, we’re launching our online water bill pay system, which means you can pay your water bill from the convenience of your own computer. No more trips to City Hall or stamps to mail in your water bill. Stay tuned for more info. You will be receiving notices in the next few days and you’ll also find more details on our City’s website and Facebook page.

As always, the City Council welcomes your comments, concerns, or questions. You can reach me or any other Council Member by calling 562-904-7274, or by using the links to our email addresses located on the “Mayor & City Council” page of the City website at www.downeyca.org.

 

Until next month,

Mayor Luis H. Marquez

 

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Published: April 23, 2015 - Volume 14 - Issue 02