Community Craft Fair On Saturday, October 24, 300 individuals attended the Annual Community Craft Fair. Handmade art, crafts, and seasonal items were available for purchase. The event included live music by guitarist Mina Boktar and raffle drawings for prizes made by the crafters.

Fit & Talk - On Thursday, October 22, 25 seniors participated in the weekly Fit & Talk program, a mix of movement, fun, and social connection. This week participants followed a Halloween themed 30-minute seated Zumba video.

After several years of false starts and discussions, on Nov. 5 AT&T will be officially abandoning copper phone line telephone services. All land line phones will either use fiber optic cables or coaxial cables to communicate. The downside is that those systems require dedicated power at the phone point, whereas the old copper lines worked even when the power was out. The City has a number of copper service lines we use for redundant backups and emergency situations, including

COPPER THEIVES DISRUPT STREETLIGHTS ON FIRST AVE. This week, Arcadia received work order requests for streetlights that are out on First Ave., between St. Joseph St. and Colorado Blvd. Our street lighting technicians inspected the issue and discovered that we had been hit with copper theft. We will get things repaired as soon as possible, which should be fairly quickly, since these aren’t the problematic lights we have been discussing at City Council Meetings.

For Immediate Release Homicide October 22, 2026, at 2:30 PM On Thursday, October 22, 2026, at about 11:00 a.m., Arcadia Police Officers responded to the 800 block of West Huntington Drive regarding a disturbance. The caller advised a man was inside the residence and fired a gun. When officers arrived, the man had fled the scene, and officers discovered a juvenile female suffering from a gunshot wound. The female was pronounced deceased. The name of the victim is being withhel

By Arcadia’s Best News Arcadia residents deserve a City Council focused on public safety, responsible spending, infrastructure and the everyday work of governing. Instead, the October 20 meeting became another lengthy spectacle centered on Councilmember Sharon Kwan. This time, Kwan requested an opportunity to explain her relationship with American subsidiaries of a Chinese publicly traded energy company. Her colleagues asked straightforward questions: Who recruited her? Why d

Brandon Karmann Returns to Arcadia as Chief of Police (ARCADIA, CA) – The City of Arcadia is proud to announce Brandon Karmann has been selected to serve as Chief of Police. A 24-year law enforcement veteran, Chief Karmann returns to the Arcadia Police Department, where he first served in 2002. “Returning to Arcadia as Chief of Police is deeply meaningful to me. This is where my law enforcement career began, and I’m honored to return and serve the department, the City, an

On Thursday, October 8, 52 individuals enjoyed the annual Cultural Day Camp excursion. This year highlighted the culture of Italy. Participants started the day at the Community Center with goodie bags and Italian breakfast treats from Claro’s Italian Market. Participants then traveled to the Italian American Museum of Los Angeles for a guided tour, followed by lunch at Andre’s Italian Restaurant. The day concluded with an interactive lesson on the Italian language and culture

New World International (NWI) owns the former Vons Headquarters building that sits in the arc between Sunset and Michillinda north of Huntington Dr. The site, which was originally constructed as a luxury department store, has been vacant for many years and has had many issues with break-ins, vandalism, and attempted squatting. NWI has plans for a residential redevelopment of the site, which is making its way through the Planning review and entitlement process. While we normal

Opinion | Arcadia's Best News For those who did not grow up in Arcadia, there is a phrase worth understanding: “The Arcadia Manner.” It may not appear in any official city document, but it captures something longtime residents understand. Arcadia has always taken pride in being a community with certain standards. There is an expectation of how people conduct themselves, how neighbors treat one another, and how disagreements are handled. You can disagree with someone without h

ARCADIA, Calif. | ARCADIA'S BEST NEWS Arcadia's District 3 election has been relatively quiet, but the responsibilities of its next councilmember are substantial. Financial oversight, public safety, neighborhood preservation and long-term planning require informed decisions, often made away from the attention of social media. Incumbent John Han was appointed on June 16 following Eileen Wang's resignation. Importantly, his selection was not merely a decision made by a council

You will recall that the City has been a part of several lawsuits – both individually and as part of a Class – related to per- and/or polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) contamination in our groundwater. Known colloquially as “forever chemicals”, this contamination is becoming pervasive nationwide. Previous settlements are being used to add treatment to our water wells to remove these and other harmful contaminants. There is now another group of settlements being proposed with

Earlier this year, the City Council and community reacted to the proposed conversion of the existing Extended Stay America hotel at 401 E. Santa Clara St. into a drug and alcohol rehabilitation center. We have recently received word that CRI-HELP has withdrawn their proposal and that the property is back on the market. We have been approached by a different affordable housing developer, who is interested in converting the building into 100% affordable housing for seniors age

THE $49,000 QUESTION: WHY IS A FORMER AAA CEO SPENDING THIS MUCH TO DEFEAT ONE ARCADIA COUNCILMEMBER? By Arcadia’s Best News Something unusual is happening in Arcadia’s District 5 election, and voters should be paying attention. A September 28 campaign filing shows Thomas McKernan contributed $49,000 to a political committee called “Arcadia Deserves Better – Opposing Michael Cao for City Council 2026.” Not $4,900. $49,000. One donor. One opposition committee. One candidate. O

On Saturday, September 26, the City of Arcadia held the annual Moon Festival at City Hall Lawn. Over 2,000 people celebrated under the mid-autumn moon, gathering with friends and family. Attendees enjoyed a variety of entertainment including dancing, singing, storytelling, vendor booths, mooncake making, and raffles. This annual event was provided in collaboration with the Arcadia Chinese Association and the Arcadia Chamber of Commerce and was sponsored by Lexus. Coffee was d

By Arcadia’s Best News Editorial Board After a year of bitter City Hall disputes, a formal censure, an outside harassment investigation and an increasingly personal District 2 campaign, Arcadia is confronting a problem larger than any single controversy: whether accountability has become a principle applied consistently, or a weapon applied selectively. The contest between incumbent Sharon Kwan and challenger Burton Brink is unfolding in a political environment where accusati

We received approval from Metro this week to install the 100-Year Anniversary decal on the Route 66 Bridge in Arcadia. On November 11, 2026, Route 66 will officially be 100 years, and a celebratory decal was designed by City staff to celebrate this historic roadway. Installation is planned before the 100-year anniversary and will remain in place for approximately one year. Public Works crews are working with Metro on installation, which shouldn’t require more than a few hours

On Thursday, September 17, 17 seniors participated in the monthly Taste the Town excursion, a popular program that invites guests to experience some of Arcadia’s vibrant local dining. This month, the group visited Shwe Taung @ 305 N. Santa Anita Ave., A, Arcadia to experience authentic Burmese cuisine. This Cozy Burmese eatery offers coconut chicken noodles and Tea leaf salad.

Election signs are a common feature of election seasons, as are questions and complaints regarding their placement. This year, the City has received an increased number of complaints concerning campaign signs in residential areas, resulting in additional enforcement activity by the Code Enforcement team. When Code Enforcement responds to a complaint, staff also reviews the surrounding area for similar violations. As a result, addressing a single reported violation may lead to