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Pomona College Magazine is published three times a year by Pomona College
550 N. College Ave, Claremont, CA 91711
Online Editor: Mark Kendall
For editorial matters:
Editor: Mark Wood
Phone: (909) 621-8158
Fax: (909) 621-8203
PCM Editorial Guidelines
Contact Alumni Records for changes of address, class notes, or notice
of births or deaths.
Phone: (909) 621-8635
Fax: (909) 621-8535
Email: alumni@pomona.edu
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Claremont/ The Village West
Expanded Possibilities
By Mary Marvin
Movie Buffs in Claremont no longer have to drive to Pasadena or Orange
County to see the latest French comedy or Wes Anderson indie. With the
July opening of the Laemmle Theatres in Claremont’s new Village West,
independent and foreign films and even a few
“Hollywood” movies are only minutes away—and, for Pomona students, just
a 10-minute walk from campus.
The 800-seat, five-screen theatre complex is one of the main attractions
in the new Village expansion west of Indian Hill Boulevard, which
includes a boutique hotel, an art museum and
a range of new shops in the renovated Packing House, and variety of
national and local retailers and restaurants. The 10th and latest
addition to the family owned chain of Southern California theatres, the
Laemmle is the first movie house in Claremont since the Village Theatre
closed its doors in
1979 after a 40-year run.
 “With the type of movies we offer,
there are clear advantages to being in
a college town,” says Greg Laemmle,
president of the art-house chain.
“Because we have no nearby competition,
we’re not limited in the types of
movies we can book. We plan on presenting
a mix of both foreign and
independent films, as well as some of
the better Hollywood movies. We
want to be the theatre for the entire
community.”
One movie fan who has enjoyed the diverse offerings is
Professor of Mathematics Sandy Grabiner. He, his wife and two
visiting children were among the first in line opening night. “We
live in Old Claremont and appreciate the opportunity to have a
theatre we can walk to,” says Grabiner. “We’ve already been to
several movies, including some that have been more widely
available like Hairspray and Becoming
Jane.”
The theatre anchors a public plaza on
the north end of the seven-acre commercial
Village expansion, which was developed
by the Tolkin Group. Scheduled for
completion this fall, the plaza will be bordered
by the 28-room hotel, called Casa
425, plus restaurants and shops, including
an upscale bakery, a French restaurant,
California Pizza Kitchen ASAP and Cold
Stone Creamery.
“We want to have an urban plaza, a
gathering place with a lot of activity in the
evening,” says Chris Veirs, senior redevelopment
planner for the city. “We’re planning
to program events there, including a
series of world music.”
Concrete slabs that mimic rock outcroppings
will be used as planters, walkways,
benches and waterfalls. A series of
about 20 bronze sculptures by Tom
Otterness also will be part of the waterfalls,
with the cartoonish figures of goldfish
and mortarboard-wearing lizards
ranging in size from six inches to just over
three feet. The city has made point of
incorporating public art in the expanded
Village, says Veirs, including “Grove,” a
Byzantine mosaic by Lynn Basa on the
exterior of the new 477-space parking
structure.
The first part of the Village expansion,
The Packing House, opened last spring.
The 1922 building was renovated by Arteco Partners, which is run by brothers
Jerry Tessier, a graduate of Claremont
McKenna, and Ed Tessier ’91. The two-story
building houses the new Claremont
Museum of Art, boutiques, restaurants
and live/work lofts.
In addition to its restaurants and
stores, the Village expansion will bring
another dimension to Claremont: latenight
hours. Two Packing House establishments—
The Hip Kitty Jazz and
Fondue Lounge and Casablanca, a
Mediterranean bar and grill, are open
until 2 a.m. And, even if all you crave is a steak or tuna pita, you
can place an order at the Pita Pit on Indian Hill until 2 a.m. on
Fridays and Saturdays.
A decade after planning began on Claremont’s new addition,
the expanded Village should be completely up and running later
this year, says Veirs, just in time for holiday shoppers.
Laemmle in Review
A Pomona student and film buff
reviews everything but the movie.
Although the five-screen Laemmle isn’t huge by
L.A. standards, it offers everything that bigger
complexes do. The lobby has a large concession
stand, with what looks like the usual movie fare
(I didn’t have time to buy anything since I was
rushing from class to get to the last matinee
showing of 3:10 to Yuma).
The seats are up to industry standards—plush
and comfortable, with armrests that flip up should
you wish to sprawl out. The screen was impressive
considering the size of the building, and, thankfully,
the projector was not the low-resolution LCD
that many newer theatres have.
The sound was the most impressive part of
the theatre. Rarely does a moviegoer encounter
well-tuned speakers—they’re either too loud or too
soft. Laemmle didn’t go cheap—whispers were
clean and crisp and gunshots (and there were a
lot of them) came through powerfully without
killing your ears.
—Alex Glassmann ’10 |
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