PACOIMA : Swap Meet Offers Treats for Halloween

Steve Brown has tried just about everything to get a crowd into his Pacoima swap meet. This weekend, candy will be the lure.

Vendors in the cavernous Fiesta Plaza swap meet building at Arroyo Avenue and Foothill Boulevard will be dishing out candy and treats to costumed kids all weekend, in what Brown bills as a clean, safe and secure trick-or-treat environment.

The weekend festivities come as part of Brown’s 18-month struggle to make the swap meet viable. He has invested more than $1 million. Earlier this month, he held a grand opening that included visits from local politicians, games and bands.

Brown’s master plan would make the facility a shopping center not only for budget items but for social services for the area’s residents.

That plan may get a small boost from WIC, a nutrition program that is considering leasing 8,000 square feet, said Brown.

There still is plenty of empty space in the swap meet. “That’s because we want to target certain items and we haven’t found them yet,” said Brown, who said he is focusing on tennis shoes and electronics.