Eagle Rock Day at Los Angeles City Hall

Eagle Rock has passed the century mark, and community members celebrated their neighborhood’s three digit birthday with a party at Los Angeles City Hall March 4. Local Councilmember Jose Huizar and his colleagues officially proclaimed the day “Eagle Rock Day in Los Angeles.”
Children from Dahlia Heights Elementary School enlightened City Councilmembers on the history of their community. There were remarks by Bob Gotham, President of The Eagle Rock Association (TERA); by resident since 1939, John Miller; by city historian, Councilmember Tom LaBonge and by Council President Eric Garcetti whose grandfather was from Eagle Rock and who once taught at Occidental College. Candles were blown out on a birthday cake as Eagle Rock Elementary School Students sang “Happy Birthday to You—cha cha cha.”
Then everyone was ushered up to the City Hall’s 27th-floor Tom Bradley Room where they were serenaded by the Eagle Rock Junior/Senior High School Latin Jazz Band and enjoyed cake amidst a 360-degree view of the City.
The Dahlia Heights students put on a play, “The Adventures of Eagle Rock, Then and Now,” taking the audience through the history of the community—the native Tongva, strawberry and dahlia farming, author John Steinbeck (who was informed that no one would ever buy a book about angry grapes), trolley cars, Occidental College, Barack Obama and the rock itself.
In addition to large contingents of Dahlia Heights and Eagle Rock students, TERA, the Latin Jazz Band and Huizar’s staff, representatives of The Eagle Rock Chamber of Commerce, Center for the Arts Eagle Rock, Collaborative Eagle Rock Beautiful (CERB), B.L.E.N.D., Eagle Rock Valley Historical Society, Women’s Twentieth Century Club and the Kiwanis and Lions were in attendance..
The community’s official birthday was March 1, marking the 1911 date when Eagle Rock was incorporated as a city.
“And since then it’s kept its small town feel in this large metropolitan area,” said Huizar, “where neighbors know neighbors, and you can find anything you need in our beautiful local community of Eagle Rock.”
A full year of centennial events is planned.