HomeMy WebLinkAboutCORRESPONDENCE - 65Bllll
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Item No. 65B COMMUNITY BRANDING UPDATE AND APPROVE PLATFORM STATEMENT
Date of
Correspondence
8/15/2017 Sandra "Pocha" Pena Art Commissioner Yes
Wednesday, August 16, 201.7 Page 1 of 1
Alcala, Abigail
From: Pocha Pena <pocha@pocharte.com>
Sent: Tuesday, August 15, 2017 7:59 PM
To: eComment
Cc: Garcia, Jorge (CMO); Jessica B. Cha; Marytza Rubio; Huizar, Maria
Subject: 8/16/17 CC MTG: Agenda Item 65B
Dear Mayor and City Councilmembers,
I am writing to offer comment on item 65B on tonight's City Council agenda - Santa Ana Community Branding and
Strategy Presentation.
To the proposed statement and foundational branding, I feel we should add some words relating to our local History.
Santa Ana and San Juan Capistrano are the two oldest cities in Orange County and share a rich history that stretches
back hundreds of years.
As an Art Commissioner I think it's great that our foundational branding will spotlight our Art, Culture and Diversity, but
we are missing a reference to our regional History. Without rooting Art, Culture and Diversity to our Local History, our
branding will ring hollow and gimmicky in the creative phase to come.
Santa Ana has been an Arts & Culture destination for over 200 years:
-- 1700's -The Yorbas started hosting the first regional fandangos at their hacienda, "El Refugio," located near Bristol &
1st street. These events brought Californio land barons together from all over So Cal to visit Santa Ana (grand families
like the Sepulvedas, Avilas, Bandinis, etc). This is when we emerged as a cultural hub.
-- 1800's - Madame Modjesca put us on the national cultural map by inaugurating our first OC opera house, buying
property and moving here. As a world-famous Shakespearean actress, she kept Santa Ana in the global headlines and
inspired a whole theater district on North Main.
-- 1900's - Prohibition era jazz clubs opened, bringing music legends, artists and movie stars to downtown Santa Ana.
Charlie Chaplin, Bebe Daniels, Pepito, Rita Hayworth, Ricardo Montalban, Lucille Ball, Pedro Infante, Bogart & Bacall and
many others loved spending time here. In the 1940's Marlon Brando attended Lathrop Jr High, in the 1950's Dianne
Keaton went to Santa Ana High and in the 1960's the Righteous Brothers built a whole music scene & West Coast sound
in a nightclub called the Black Derby on South Main.
There are many more examples I can cite, but I know your time is limited.
It's important to emphasize with this new civic branding that Santa Ana is not jumping onto the bandwagon of hip urban
cities to become something it is not. To the contrary, in branding our city as a center for Arts, Culture & Diversity, Santa
Ana is re -embracing centuries of already being this.
Let's honor Santa Ana's rich cultural legacy with a clear reference to our Historic presence as a regional Arts, Culture and
Diversity leader. This heritage makes us special and deserves a mention in our foundational branding vision statement.
Sincerely ,
Sandra "Pocha" Pena