Ducking Out

[Erik Sine]

Ducking out

Bar's icon a sign of times that must go, new owner says

11:32 PM PDT on Thursday, June 22, 2006

By LAURA RICO

The Press-Enterprise

Ed Crisostomo / The Press-Enterprise

Bertha Fraire says she hopes to turn the Duck Pond lounge into a traditional Mexican restaurant that will help change the Home Gardens neighborhood's gritty image. To do so, she says, the duck sign has to come down.

HOME GARDENS - An iconic, duck-shaped sign dating back to the 1930s may soon disappear from its perch atop a Home Gardens building.

The Duck Pond Cocktail Lounge was established in 1937 on Magnolia Avenue in what is now the unincorporated enclave of Home Gardens. New owner Bertha Fraire plans to remodel the bar and open it as Maya's Café, a traditional Mexican restaurant serving regional dishes.

She wants the duck sign out.

"It (the sign) means a lot to some people. To me it's a crazy duck," Fraire said.

One person who cares about the duck is John Kane, a member of the board of the Corona Historic Preservation Society.

Kane hopes to refurbish the neon-outlined sign and display it at the Corona Heritage Park and Museum. The museum is home to artifacts reflecting the area's architectural and agricultural history.

"It's a cool sign and shouldn't end up in a landfill," he said.

Kane also has a soft spot for the building that once housed the popular neighborhood bar.

"The bar, as divey as it is, it's kind of a landmark for the area," he said.

A Temescal Canyon ranch belonging to the bar's original owner inspired the duck theme. The owner kept the ranch and a nearby pond stocked with ducks, according to former patrons.

Longtime Home Gardens resident Jerry Curtis first visited the bar in the mid-1950s. He remembers it as a fun, laid-back place to shoot pool and drink beer with locals.

"It was a great little bar, lots of families went in there," Curtis said. "Everyone understood not to yell or scream or cuss around the kids."

As time went by, the bar deteriorated into a rough spot, according to Curtis.

"It used to be a nice place, then it turned into a bar where people just got drunk," he said.

The building's transition from local tavern to Mexican restaurant reflects Home Gardens' resurging neighborhoods, Fraire said. She hopes her restaurant will help change the neighborhood's image.

Before she can do that, the sign must be removed.

"To open up this place, that sign needs to come down," Fraire said.

"It will be better off in the museum than in somebody's house," she added.

When Fraire opens the restaurant after a two-year building vacancy, she hopes to erase all signs of the Duck Pond. Bar stools and dartboards will be replaced with a dining room and two outdoor patios.

"What a difference it will be for people to come in and sit down with the whole family and have a nice meal," Fraire said.