As so often happens in older and formerly industrial towns, Pomona real estate has recently seen a facelift thanks to the creation of the Pomona Arts Colony downtown. The title suggests a bunch of bohemian vegetarians living together in the woods, but in fact the Pomona Arts Colony is an actual neighborhood within Pomona's downtown core. Once home to factories producing cable ties and citrus products, the modern downtown core is a place that attracts art enthusiasts from all over the world.
The evolution of the Pomona Arts colony is similar to that of many arts districts in cities all over North America. Pomona grew up as a major fruit distributor, with its centers of business located downtown. As time went by, the companies began taking their industrial mixers and banking businesses to other areas, leaving behind buildings that many did not think were suitable for anything but industrial uses. The area started to become dilapidated, and became a sort of haven for starving artists looking for low rent.
As more artists began to move in, their creations began to flourish. Using used woodworking equipment, paint brushes, sculpting tools, and other craft devices, they produced their wares and the elite in the area began to take notice. Pomona's downtown core became revitalized as more and more people were attracted to the special atmosphere being created there.
In 1993 the creation of the Pomona Arts Colony was official, thanks to the efforts of Eric Tessier, a man who had never worked at a shop making fin keels. But, he did have extensive experience as an urban planner as well as the inheritance of six buildings in the downtown Pomona area. In 1993 he opened the first club and gallery in the area, and the rest is history.
Today, the Pomona Arts Colony is famous all over California for its safe, festive atmosphere. Old buildings are home to cutting edge clubs and concert halls, and everywhere creativity is in bloom. The Pomona Arts Colony is responsible for the mural Pomona Envisions the Future, a remarkable display of how paint and wall words can define the character of a town. It's a huge mural, depicting pre-contact civilization to a harmonious future, is the result of two years' worth of work by over 80 artists, and is the capstone and defining mark of this unusual and remarkable city neighborhood.
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