A few hundred people, including more than a handful of Biolans, gathered at La Mirada’s City Hall Tuesday to commemorate the city’s 50th anniversary for what city council members are calling a thrifty celebration.

Following an evening city council meeting, La Mirada residents and council members remained in City Hall’s lobby to socialize amid balloons, banners and posters saluting the city’s 50-year presence in Southern California. In a room adjacent to the lobby, large photographs and text alongside it detailed La Mirada’s history.

Biola students played a special role in the anniversary event by overseeing the exhibits displaying historic memorabilia such as newspapers, photographs and plaques. It was their job to make sure no one stole any of City Hall’s artifacts.

“We have 15 or 16 students here,” said David Peters, a political science professor at Biola who attended Tuesday’s festivities. “Biola is well represented.”

Peters, who is also member of La Mirada’s historical preservation council, helped plan the event by coming up with ideas for the displays honoring the city’s history.

Guests walked freely among the displays as they enjoyed chocolate cake and spoke with city council members. The event, which was neither expensive nor highly publicized, was attended mainly by council members, civic center staff and local officials.

“When we’re looking at the possibility of pay cuts and possible furloughs, this is not the time to spend money on things that aren’t needed,” said Hal Malkin, a member of the La Mirada city council.

When discussing how to celebrate the anniversary, city council members decided it would be better to host a meaningful, inexpensive event. Civic center staff members donated their time and talent to host the celebration, which cost the city close to nothing.

“Our staff does everything … we decided for our anniversary we would not be wasteful [but] we would stay true to our principles and be frugal,” said Susan Tripp, former mayor and current council member of La Mirada.

Though more than $100,000 has been spent on previous celebrations for La Mirada, such as the city’s 40th anniversary, La Mirada’s 50th anniversary is focusing on the entire year rather than a single event.

“It’s a very frugal celebration,” said Tom Robinson, city manager. “We bought a cake and that’s it … We didn’t feel it was the time to go out and spend a lot of money giving ourselves a birthday party [but] we’ll be talking about the 50th anniversary at events through the year.”

“It’s a special night,” said Mayor Peter Dames. “You can still make it good and it doesn’t have to be grandiose.”