A first-of-its-kind New Year’s Eve celebration in Old Town Temecula may have helped poise the $73 million civic center complex to become the heart of the city’s historic business district.

The event, which attracted 1,000 people or more, culminated a two-week stint of ice skating at the doorstep of a sprawling facility that once drew pointed questions from city watchdogs over its cost and location.

Several onlookers said the popularity of the Town Square venue should ease any lingering doubts over the cultural and economic benefits to be gained from the still-under-construction City Hall, parking garage and outdoor plaza.

Darrell Farnbach, a local historical preservationist, predicted the civic center and its fountain, mosaic art piece and plaza setting will complement Old Town’s community theater and historical and children’s museums.

"The City Council has put together a jigsaw puzzle from all kinds of pieces," Farnbach said moments before the first of two ceremonies began that marked the arrival of 2010. "It’s awesome."

City officials predicted those feelings will intensify when the parking garage opens in February and the rest of the complex follows suit near the end of the year.

"It’s beautiful," City Manager Shawn Nelson said as he sized up the complex that is taking shape at Main and Mercedes streets.

At one point in the evening, Nelson huddled with incoming Mayor Jeff Comerchero and other city officials to assess the turnout and the amenities at the event that featured children’s activities, a concert, ice skating and a pair of 62-foot "grape drops" that marked the arrival of 2010 on both coasts.

"It’s New Year’s Eve Temecula style," Comerchero said. "I love it."

Nelson said he was pleased with the visitor turnout, which he estimated at 1,000 people or more. Using Temecula’s Christmas parade as a yardstick, Nelson predicted that the popularity of an annual New Year’s Eve event would also mushroom over time.

Santa’s Electric Light Parade featured about 10 entries and attracted a few hundred onlookers its first year, Nelson recalled. The 17th annual parade held Dec. 4 attracted about 90 entries and an estimated 30,000 onlookers.

"This is not bad for our first year," Nelson said of Advertisement

[ Chatton and Associates ] the New Year’s fete. "I know how Temecula is. I can see this becoming a lot bigger as time goes on. I think this could be something pretty significant."

Many of the event participants wore party hats, Mardi Gras-style beads and sunglasses molded into the shape of 2010 to help usher in the new decade.

Several Old Town stores and restaurants that are normally closed on New Year’s Eve stayed open to take advantage of the festivities. Nelson said the owners of one Old Town restaurant reported that their sales had tripled over the previous year’s receipts.

"They said it exceeded all expectations," Nelson said.

In their brief conversation, Nelson and Comerchero discussed changes that could be made next year. Those improvements could include a larger ice rink and expanded children’s activities.

The 2,400-square-foot ice rink, which cost the city $71,530 to sponsor, was a magnet for area youths and families.

On average, the rink attracted about 500 skaters a day, and all the New Year’s Eve sessions were sold out in advance, said Brian Jackson, owner of Studio 33, a city vendor that operated the rink and provided skates and other services.

The rink was crafted out of large cooling plates placed on top of wood platforms. A mini-Zamboni was used to resurface the ice after each skating session. Six to eight workers were typically on duty selling tickets, monitoring skating, distributing skates and playing recorded music.

"This has definitely classified as a successful place," said Jackson, who lives in San Bernardino. "It has that winter village feel to it, which makes it one of our classiest venues. People seem to be having a real good time here. There’re a lot of happy people."

The McClellan family of Murrieta fit that description.

"This is a hit," Susanne McClellan said after their skating session. It was the first time her husband, Joe, and their 4-year-old daughter had been ice skating. Susanne grew up in Michigan, so whizzing around the ice was second nature to her, she said.

Other than long lines at the face painting booth and other children’s activities, the outing was a solid success and she recommended that the city hold the event annually.

"It was really nice – a great New Year’s Eve," she said