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Lawndale City Council reopens 2000 time capsule, selects items for 2025 capsule and plans 2050 opening
Summary
At a special Lawndale City Council meeting, officials opened a time capsule buried on 12/20/2000, reviewed historical documents and commemoratives including budgets, dedication materials and pins, and announced a new capsule to be sealed for opening in 2050.
The Lawndale City Council met in a special session to open a time capsule placed on Dec. 20, 2000, review its contents and collect selected items for a new capsule to be sealed in 2025 and opened in 2050.
The presiding officer called the meeting to order and asked the city clerk to call roll; all members were present except Councilmember Suarez. After a brief video from 2000, Mayor Pauline Miles said the event brought back memories: "We had a lot of fun doing it and a lot of memories." The council then opened the capsule in the council chambers and inspected its contents.
Council members and staff displayed and identified a range of materials recovered from the capsule. Items noted included a dedication program for the City of Lawndale Sheriff's Station service building (dedicated June 1997); a 2000–2001 City of Lawndale annual budget packet; City Hall plans and a gold seal; a package of newsletters and local newspapers (including a Landau Tribune dated Dec. 30, 1999); a Hawthorne Boulevard revitalization design report prepared by Parsons Transportation Group; a "first amended agreement" for joint use of the gymnasium between the City of Lawndale and the Lawndale Elementary School District signed 07/10/2000; commemorative bronze coins and neighborhood-watch pins; a Lawndale Beat operations brochure effective 06/01/2000; and photographs and memorabilia from civic dedications such as the Hahn fire station (dedicated 06/14/1997).
Members highlighted how the items reflected local civic activity and traditions. Mayor Pro Tem Kearney read historic newsletters and planning documents, while Councilwoman Cuevas identified municipal records and the joint-use gym agreement. Councilmember Talavera recalled earlier city celebrations and pointed out the bronze anniversary coins and pins that had been preserved in good condition. The city clerk catalogued business cards and a schedule of salaries and benefits for central management employees found among the materials.
The presiding officer thanked public works, cable television staff and the renovation contractor for recovering the capsule and asked council members and the clerk to select items to be included in a new 2025 capsule that will be displayed in the foyer with a new dedication plaque. The council set the new capsule to be opened in 2050. Former city clerk Paula Hartwell and former council member Rhonda Hoffman Gorman were introduced and recognized as guests during the reception that followed.
No formal council actions or votes were taken during the session; the meeting closed after a short reception invitation and was adjourned.
The event served largely as a civic-heritage moment, documenting municipal history and giving officials an opportunity to preserve and interpret artifacts for future generations.
