Hotel workers at the Hilton Pasadena and Hyatt Place Pasadena walked off the job on Sunday, Dec. 31, hours before the city’s defining event, the Rose Parade, was set to drew the eyes of the world.

Knott’s Berry Farm showed off the multimillion-dollar renovation of the Knott’s Hotel lobby, restaurant, bar, coffee shop, gift shop and guest rooms during a media preview on Thursday, Feb. 29.

The Broken Spell Lounge in the Disneyland Hotel lobby will be open daily from 4 p.m. to midnight starting on Tuesday, Oct. 22.

The buzzy AC Hotel Pasadena celebrated its grand opening Wednesday, April 16, with a ribbon cutting and reception, after softly opening its doors to the public at the beginning of the month.

Pasadena Councilmember Rick Cole, who served as the city’s mayor from 1992-94, began his rousing speech by informing demonstrators that his daughters had been arrested at the downtown L.A. protest.

Superficially, the hotel lobby contains the ingredients of a third place—it’s free, it’s temperate, you can stay as long as you want. But its true nature is the polar opposite.