SALINAS, CA – CSUMB @ Salinas City Center located at One Main Street in Downtown Salinas will be the location for the 10th Annual “Tree For Peace” Dedication and Lighting Ceremony.

The event is free and open to the public. Salinas Mayor Joe Gunter and representatives of the City of Salinas will dedicate the Salinas Christmas Tree on the steps of CSUMB @ Salinas City Center.

The event begins at 4:30 p.m. with an impressive collection of live children’s performances hosted by the Arts Council for Monterey County and the Alisal Center for the Fine Arts. There will be a special visit with Santa made possible thanks to the Salinas City Center Improvement Association. The formal program will start at 5:15 p.m. and include the Salinas High School FFA, Hot cider presented by the Food Bank of Monterey County, and an inspirational message led by Cris Rury of Compass Church Salinas.

The event will feature white ribbons passed out by the San Andreas Region Center. Members of the community will be invited to write messages for peace on the ribbons. The messages will be tied into bows and installed on the tree. The tree is from Christmas Hills Tree Farm in Mossy Rock, Washington and has been shipped & installed fresh courtesy of McShane’s Landscape Supply.

For more information or questions, please contact Steve McShane at (831) 970-4141 or steve@mcshanenursery.com

The Salinas Valley Food & Wine Festival is ready for year ten after postponing the 2020 event due to Covid.

The celebration of the bounty of the Salinas Valley will take place in the heart of Salinas City Center from Noon – 3 p.m. on August 7, 2021.

The 2021 Salinas Valley Food & Wine Festival committee invites you to join them for this annual celebration of the Salinas Valley lifestyle and local agriculture. Sample world class wines, beer, and food as you mingle with familiar faces, reconnect with people and places you have missed, and make new friends at this fun event. There will even be live music filling the streets of Oldtown to add to the festivities.

Admission to the festival is free and all ages are welcome, however, to participate in wine and beer tasting you must be over age 21 and purchase a wristband which are available for purchase online now.

Tickets are available now but are in limited supply so do not wait to get yours! Tickets are $55 in advance or can be purchased at the event on August 7, 2021 for $65. Military discount tickets available for $45 with Military ID.

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About the Salinas Valley Food & Wine Festival:
The Salinas Valley Food & Wine Festival is dedicated to increasing awareness of local wine, beer and food. A portion of the proceeds from each year’s festival is donated to local charities. For more information about participating as an event sponsor, being a vendor, to purchase tickets or to volunteer, CLICK HERE.

This Veteran’s Day, Monday, November 11th, from 2 PM to 4 PM, come honor our Military and our Veterans with us at the 9th Annual Veteran’s Day Parade.

One of her design concepts for the back wall of the Fox Theater on Main Street is an angular fox, and that’s the concept that the Salinas City Center Improvement Association and the property owner selected. It took Haas and a team about two weeks to complete the project, after they started with 60-foot-tall lifts that turned out to be too short—she had to try again with 85-foot lifts. 

“Looking at a giant wall can seem intimidating,” says Haas, a Monterey-based decorative painter and muralist. “But once you get into it, it’s not.”

Read More at Monterey County Weekly

https://www.montereycountynow.com/blogs/arts_culture_blog/a-giant-fox-mural-now-graces-the-fox-theater-part-of-a-salinas-city-center/article_3222fa4b-4b48-4724-b6fc-0bee355dcaaa.html

Dear Property Owners, Businesses, and Non-Profit Organizations in Downtown Salinas:

We’re all worried about the future of Downtown Salinas right now. Instead of advancing the Downtown Vibrancy Plan, many of us are concerned about the threat of economic stagnation, blight, and even possible bankruptcy. We also recognize that desperate homeless people have migrated into Downtown as commercial and government activity has waned. We share this difficult time together.

What leadership role is the Salinas City Center Improvement Association (SCCIA) taking during this crisis? Obviously our power is limited against a pandemic, but we have taken steps available to us.

1. Conditions in the Downtown While Many Businesses Are Closed

SCCIA’s Sidewalk Operation, Beautification and Order (SOBO) Committee, charged with managing security, is revising patrol hours to better monitor activities in the District. With many businesses shuttered or with limited operations, our patrol focus has shifted to continue to provide an increased sense of security during the early morning and afternoon daylight hours.

2. Short-Term Business Support & Long-Term Economic Recovery

Our Government Affairs Director Kevin Dayton has been collaborating with members of the Salinas City Council (especially our Downtown city councilmember Steve McShane), City of Salinas economic development staff, and the Salinas Valley Chamber of Commerce. He seeks to implement these four strategies to help small businesses (and their employees) survive the crisis and recover quickly after it is over:

1. Work with our local governments and business groups to develop coronavirus resource websites for businesses and their employees.

2. Help our local governments enact a comprehensive legislative package to help businesses and their employees

3. Track, compile, and promote widespread adoption of the best responses of more than 100 major California local governments so our local governments can help businesses now and encourage rapid economic recovery later.

4. Promote and encourage our local governments and business groups to adopt the highly-effective model of the City of Monterey “COVID-19 Business Action & Economic Recovery Team,” which activated two weeks ago.

The City of Salinas has developed and activated a new website: “COVID-19 Resources for Business.” The Salinas City Council last met on March 17 and will meet again on April 14.

3. Financial Assistance

If you need short-term loans to avoid permanent closure, you should consider applying for low-interest loans through these two government agencies:

U.S. Small Business Administration Coronavirus (COVID-19) Small Business Guidance & Loan Resources

California Governor’s Office of Business and Economic Development (GO-Biz). This agency oversees the IBank Small Business Finance Center (SBFC) Disaster Relief Loan Guarantee Program, which is administered locally through the California Coastal Rural Development Corporation (Cal Coastal), located on Main Street in Downtown Salinas.

4. Upcoming Main Street Streetscape Project

Representatives of SCCIA participated in a virtual “community meeting” for City of Salinas Public Works Department staff to explain the timeline and logistics for the Main Street Streetscape Project and answer questions about it. Nothing new was presented related to SCCIA concerns about parking availability. View the slideshow and Q & A from the March 19th Virtual Community Meeting HERE.

A showcase for the fusion cooking of co-owner and chef, Jose Aranda, the restaurant features Italian dishes—pastas, pizzas and risottos, along with a hearty selection of grilled meat and seafood, crafted with an appreciation for flavor that transcends any one cuisine.

“You will find passion and good quality ingredients in every dish,” said Aranda, whose been cooking professionally for more than 20 years.

Read More at the Californian.

https://www.thecalifornian.com/story/news/local/2025/07/23/salinas-restaurant-patria-on-main-showcases-fusion-cuisine-that-transcends/85311813007

After an “all-hands-on-deck” capital fundraising campaign and years of planning and construction, ARIEL could now call the Karen Wilson Children’s Theatre on Main Street “home.” This new reality was wonderful and exciting, but not without challenge. Earthquake retrofits, electrical and plumbing upgrades, audience seating, lighting and sound equipment, and hundreds of other projects kept the early years in the building very busy – and expensive. When one problem was solved, another would not be far behind. Most notably, in 2015 a massive fire in the neighboring building put the theatre in extreme peril and caused significant damage. In 2020, the COVID pandemic closed theatre doors around the world. ARIEL continued to endure.

What began as an idea discussed decades ago at founder Gail Higginbotham’s kitchen table, stands today as a welcoming and vibrant community gathering place where engaging programs and family-friendly entertainment are available to all. At ARIEL, young people are encouraged to make choices that will help them achieve success on stage, and more importantly, in their own lives.

Annually, approximately 500 kids perform at ARIEL, and roughly 10,000 audience members attend shows. ARIEL has seen growth and change over the years, but continues to stand firmly on its guiding foundational principles: Accountability, Respect, Integrity, Excellence and Leadership – A-R-I-E-L. Here’s to the next 25 years on Main Street!

Anniversary celebration events will be announced on the ARIEL website and through social media channels.

ARIEL is honored to acknowledge the Sally Hughes Church Foundation as the 2026 Presenting Partner. ARIEL is also grateful to local individuals and businesses for their generous support, including the 2026 Season Sponsors Taylor Farms, Hastie Financial Group, Cardinale Moving & Storage, and Aladin Properties.

For more information, visit ARIEL in the Karen Wilson Children’s Theatre, 320 Main Street, online at www.arieltheatrical.org or call 831-775-0976.