Two musical events this week will help rock downtown Pomona

Published Saturday, March 4, 2011

By Monica Rodriguez and Wes Woods II, Staff Writers

POMONA - The streets of Pomona's Arts Colony will be awash in music this weekend with back-to-back festivals bringing a variety of rock performers and aficionados to the area.

The first event - the Scion Rock Fest - starts at 4 p.m. today.

Tickets to the event, which wraps up at 12:30 a.m., have sold out.

The third annual Scion Rock Fest will primarily feature death metal acts, including genre pioneers Morbid Angel from Tampa, Fla. Other notable acts include Obituary, Death Angel and Immolation.

Scion Rock Fest is a promotional festival sponsored by Toyota Motor Sales. Company officials distributed tickets to Scion car owners and those interested in Scion products, said Jerry Tessier, Fox Theater manager and an organizer of the event.

The auto manufacturer carries out festivals such as today's in different parts of the country, and, this year, was in search of location in the Los Angeles area for the event, Tessier said.

It just so happens Tessier and others downtown had developed a plan for such an event.

"Our goal is to do festivals a couple times a year," Tessier said.

The event will have three stages.

Audiences will be able to see performers at a stage set up at Thomas Plaza.

More performers will be on a stage set up on Thomas Street between Second and Third streets.

The third stage featuring the headliners will be at the Fox Theater, Tessier said.

Having a large corporation like Toyota bring in a major event such as this one is significant, Tessier said.

The event is also noteworthy because it says something about downtown, based on the demographics of Scion customers, which attracts younger drivers, he said.

"It's says we're the up and coming, hip, young scene," Tessier said.

On Sunday, the March Madness Music Festival will use the same three-stage format used today.

The festival is expected to draw between 5,000 and 7,000 people to see an eclectic mix of music that will appeal to a wide range of tastes and age groups, said John Pena, organizer and downtown business owner.

"We went for the young families between the ages of 23 and 40 for (the) musical format," Pena said. "We went with 1980s bands for Stage 1. Stage 2 is more like house and top 40 hits, and inside the Fox Theater, it's more house and electro for ages 12 to 21."

March Madness will begin at noon and concludes at 8 p.m. During that time, guests will be able listen to music, purchase arts and crafts and have a bite to eat in a family-friendly environment, Pena said.

Pena also has plans to organize addition music festivals this year with the next coming as early as June.

Having such an event shines a spotlight on all that Pomona has to offer visitors, including entertainment, art and a diverse cultural, he said.

"We need to showcase how beautiful Pomona really is," Pena said.

Larry Egan, executive director of the Downtown Pomona Owners Association, said business people in the area embraced this weekend's activities early on.

"It's really kind of an honor (Toyota) picked Pomona," Egan said. "We're delighted to have them."

Some street closures will be required for the two events, said Pomona police Corporal Ryan Rodriguez who handles special events.

Second Street will be closed between Garey Avenue and Main Street.

Thomas Street will be closed between Second and Fourth streets.

Third Street will have crossing guards in the area west of Garey and east of Thomas.

Streets will close today at noon and re-open after midnight.

Sunday streets will close at 10 a.m. and open about 10:30p.m.