Community, Diversity, Sustainability and other Overused Words
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Space X has successfully launched the Starship Heavy rocket on a suborbital flight, which will one day take colonists to Mars in Elon Musk's vision. They held it to the 8:25 Central Time launch time. Third Stage separation was acheived a few minutes later, followed by a de-orbit burn. Less than an hour later, Starship landed in a field of Plasma. The third test flight of Starship Heavy is historic, since the first two blew up shortly after launch. If they get it off the ground, Musk Tweeted, Sta...
In a press release, the operator of Pacific Park on the Santa Monica Pier, has announced that they have sold the park to an investment firm called SC Holdings. The firms website is at www.sc.holdings. The two managing partners are identified as Jason Stein and Daniel Haimovic. It is unclear what the new operators intend to do with Pacific Park. The Pier of course is owned by a public corporation controlled by the City of Santa Monica. The Pier itself was not sold. The press release follows:...
It looks like the staff at El Torito have poured their final Margarita. The manager of the El Torito Restaurant at 3360 Ocean Park Blvd told a customer that the restaurant will close permanently on Sunday, March 10, 2024. He did not give a reason for the closure, but said the staff had been informed by corporate that the location was closing permanently. He said that they were shocked and saddened. "El Torito is a Mexican chain featuring burritos, fajitas and classic cocktails in an informal...
Sudden storms brought Thunder, lightning and even hail to the Westside on Wednesday and Thursday. The National Weather Service (NWS) issued a severe thunderstorm warning and also a flash flood alert for Western Los Angeles County. This at 4:33 pm PST on March 6, 2024. The alert reads as follows: "Flash Flood Warning in effect for Western Los Angeles County until 10:00PM. Dangerous street flooding is possible. Avoid non-essential travel. DO NOT walk, swim or drive your vehicle through flood...
In what the progressive LA Times called "a referendum on a more rehabilitative, less punitive approach to criminal justice," George Gascon won the primary election for Los Angeles County DA. However, he appears to have received only 24% of the vote, a record low for an incumbent D.A. He will face Republican Nathan Hochman in November, who received about 17% of the vote in the field of 11 candidates. Newcomer Jonathan Hatami finished third with around 14% of the vote, vowing to run for public...
A proposed ballot initiative that would reverse California's Prop. 47, has gathered 400,000 signatures, about 2/3rds of the number needed to put it on the ballot. "Proposition 47, was passed by tragically misinformed voters in 2014, and flagrantly titled "The Safe Neighborhoods and Schools Act" by then Attorney General Kamala Harris," say the measures proponents. "It reduced a host of serious felonies to misdemeanors, including drug crimes, date rape, and all thefts under $950, even for repeat...
The National has issued a flash flood alert for Western Los Angeles County. This at 5:53 pm PST on March 6, 2024. The alert reads as follows: "Flash Flood Warning in effect for Western Los Angeles County until 10:00PM. Dangerous street flooding is possible. Avoid non-essential travel. DO NOT walk, swim or drive your vehicle through flood waters." Over an inch of rain fell Wednesday....
City Councilmember Lana Negrete has announced that she has breast cancer. “I was diagnosed with cancer 14 days ago.... it's Estrogen positive HER2 Negative breast cancer in my right breast and in 2 of my lymph nodes in that breast,” she wrote. Negrete, one of 7 City Councilmembers, was appointed to the council in 2021 and elected to a 4 year term in 2022. She also runs a music store in Santa Monica, and is married with children. She is also Mayor Pro Tem. Her Facebook post reads as follows:...
An old rusting sculpture on Venice Beach has a Notice of Pending Demolition Permit on it. The Notice was issued by the Cal. Coastal Commission, which wants to replace the artwork with other art. Some would probably prefer open space at the intersection of Windward and Ocean Front Walk in Venice. The applicant for the permit is "LA Louver," which is a closed corporation. So no one is sure who's actually behind the move or what would follow it. According to the California Secretary of State, the...
A photo of Sam Bankman Fried in jail, with other inmates has surfaced on Social Media. The photo was released not by the New York Men's Department of Corrections, but my social media influencer Tiffany Fong who is on Twitter as @tiffanyfong_ . SBF basically used client deposits to back his company's own proprietary crypto currency, FTX. It is interesting to note that due to the increase in the value of crypto currencies such as FTX and Bitcoin, SBF's "victims" may recover all their lost money...
By David Ganezer, Observer Staff Writer You may have noticed the new vegan Deli in the 900 block of Montana Avenue. By opening the Deli, Brittany and Terrence Caldwell are completing their heroes' journey, and beginning where they started. "The hero's journey is to end up where you started," says Caldwell. "I never thought I would come back to this, but at the same time, I thought opening a small restaurant was what I was meant to do." B&T's Deli offers vegetarian sandwiches and other fares to...
2.9.24: The most powerful earthquake in years hit the Westside on Friday afternoon. Magnitude 4.7 earthquake, 7 miles from Thousand Oaks, in the sea off of Malibu ·hit at 1:47 PM. In some homes dishes fell off the shelves. The ground was still shaking a minute later. Cats and dogs ran to hide under beds. By coincidence, the quake fell on the 53rd anniversary of the 1971 Northridge earthquake....
The City of Santa Monica appears to have incurred little damage from 6.63 inches of rain in an event weathermen are calling “an atmospheric river.” The 6.63 inch total is the highest two day total in the City of Santa Monica’s 150 year history. "We are experiencing minor issues but nothing of consequence,” wrote Mayor Phil Brock early Monday afternoon. "Our emergency management center is activated, and we continue to monitor weather developments constantly.” On Wilshire Blvd and...
On Sunday evening February 4th 2024, the following e mail went to SMMUSD, affirming that school will not be cancelled despite heavy rain. **Email on behalf of Superintendent Dr. Antonio Shelton** Santa Monica schools expected to be open Monday, Feb. 5, 2024 Dear Santa Monica Staff and Families, We are monitoring weather conditions in the area and at this time we are planning for all Santa Monica schools to be in session tomorrow, Mon, Feb. 5. If this plan changes, we will notify you by 6:30...
If you live here as I do, you probably already received a flash flood warning for Western LA County on your phone. That's common in the canyons, such as Topanga. But it's a little unusual for the Santa Monica area. Santa Monica is projected to receive 5 inches of rain in a 24 hour period, while DTLA is supposed to receive 6 inches in 24 hours. In a typical year, LA County gets about 14 inches of rain. So these are surprising totals for the area. Northern Topanga Canyon was ordered evacuated, as...
Two Eucalyptus trees fell yesterday during a storm that caused 7 inches of rain to fall over a 48 hour period. The tree fall caused an extensive power outage. Over 6600 customers of the LA Department of Water and Power (DWP) were without electricity starting at 6 am and lasting almost until 5 pm. Some units are reportedly still out The location of the tree fall was on Bundy Drive north of Sunset, an area sometimes called Brentwood Heights. Several power poles had to be replaced by DWP crews....
1.29.24: The United States Air Force has sent bombers and refueling planes to the middle east, from March AFB in California. This 4 days after a suicide drone strike in far North Easter Jordan killed 3 US servicemen and injured 25. In the past, the death of a US soldier anywhere in the world has been seen as a redline. The drone was reportedly launched by an Iranian proxy in Syria, at Tower 22, a US base intended to stop ISIS. "At least 6 U.S. Air Force KC-135 Aerial-Refueling Tankers, most...
The Los Angeles Superior Court Compton Courthouse has been closed due to flooding, according to a press release from LASC. Los Angeles County is the nation’s largest county by population, with more than 10 million residents. LASC operates 25 or so courthouses. On February 1, 2024, the Superior Court announced that the Courthouse would reopen on Friday, February 2, 2024. The press release is below. The Compton Courthouse, located at 200 W. Compton Blvd., Compton, will close until further...
UPDATED 5:00 pm 1.31.24 The Santa Monica Fire Department says a structure fire was reported by multiple callers at 6:58 am on Wednesday morning. The fire was on the first floor of 2925 Main Street, a two-story commercial building. SMFD responded with a "full assignment," which consists of 4 engines, one truck company, and a battalion chief. Engine 2 arrives on the scene within 4 minutes. Firemen made a forced entry into the first floor business, "Free People Clothing Company," and extinguished...
Veo scooter company has paused operations in Los Angeles as of January 27, 2024. Santa Monica is unaffected. “Heads up: Veo will pause operations in the City of LA for a month starting on 1/27. We apologize for the inconvenience, and we will see you soon!” said the company in a text message sent to riders. "Veo experienced some operational challenges that delayed our required response time with 311 inquiries as outlined in our contract with the City of Los Angeles,” explained Paige...
A private automobile struck and killed A homeless woman pushing a cart on Lincoln Blvd Saturday morning, Santa Monica police said. The press release, as it appeared on Twitter, is below. Fatal Traffic Collision-Auto v. Pedestrian On January 13, 2024, at approximately 1:50 am, Santa Monica Police Department officers responded to the scene of a fatal traffic collision in the 2900 block of Lincoln Boulevard. A vehicle was heading southbound on Lincoln Boulevard in the number one lane when it...
Have you ever noticed the men in blue with yellow vests, opening fire hydrants, so that perfectly good water flows into the Santa Monica streets? Well, we were curious, and there is in fact, a good reason. So we asked one of the workmen. “We test the valves every three months by opening them, and allowing water in the system to flow out,” John Ramirez of Santa Monica Public Works explains. "The valves are 100 years old in Santa Monica, and it’s essential that we know before the fire depart...
The body of a man was found in Palisades Park just North of the Santa Monica Pier. This on Saturday morning, January 13, 2024. Santa Monica Police are investigating and released no further information at this time. About 2 or 3 deceased homeless people are found in Santa Monica every week. Santa Monica has a homeless population of around 3000 at any given day....
Anti-Israel protesters spray painted a U.S. military cemetery where 85 000 soldiers from WW1, WW2, Korea, Vietnam and other wars are laid to rest. Marchers in Westwood spray painted the signs at the entrance to the Veterans Administration cemetery in Westwood Sunday afternoon with slogans including "Free Gaza" and "intifada." The Los Angeles National Cemetery was defaced after hundreds of protesters gathered. They also shut down Wilshire Blvd, a main East West boulevard in Los...
Sweet Lady Jane bakery closed all 7 of its locations on Sunday December 31, including it’s location at 17th Street and Montana Avenue in Santa Monica. The chain issued a press release that said: "We did not come to this decision lightly nor quickly. While the support and loyalty of our customers has been strong, sales are not enough to continue doing business in the state of California, allowing us to service our lease obligations and pay our treasured employees a living wage without passing...