Trees’ High Noon Is Delayed

According to TreeSaver-in-Chief Jerry Rubin, the courtroom confrontation that was supposed to take place today, between the people who oppose the City’s plan to remove some 50 healthy palm and ficus trees and the City has been called off. For the moment. On the eve of the trees’ removal, TreeSavers went to court and got a restraining order blocking the removal on the grounds that the City had neglected to do an Environmental Impact Report on the project. The City was scheduled... Read More

Whither the Weather 10/26 – 11/1

By Ava Tramer Beaches Warm and partly cloudy Highs: 72-80; Lows: 54-61 Inland Partly cloudy and hot Highs: 80-91; Lows: 52-58 Deserts Hot and mostly sunny Highs: 85-95; Lows: 60-68 And Santa Monica… With slightly cooling temperatures ahead of us this week, hopefully Southern California’s vicious fires, the biggest natural disaster to hit the United States since Hurricane Katrina, will soon be calmed and extinguished. The Santa Ana winds seem to be quieter, and with less... Read More

Inexcusable Mistake

The paragraph in our account of Tuesday night’s City Council meeting (“City Council Meeting – Annotated” below) about proposed Police and Fire Department’ storage facilities is inaccurate. It’s inaccurate because we were absent for a portion of the discussion and relied on the Council wrap-up. But the more we thought about it, the less sense it made. So we did some checking, and found that the wrap-up itself was inaccurate. It has since been corrected. And herewith... Read More

To the City Council

October 25, 2007 Dear City Council, As our own estimable Police Chief, Tim Jackman, remarked in a recent interview, “We’ve had several fatal accidents Downtown. The traffic issues are huge. Congestion is a big deal . . . .” He’s right and you have the opportunity to do something about it. Our city does not have an accurate measure of our existing traffic congestion or an accurate measure of future congestion based on all of the ongoing and proposed development... Read More

Red Cross Seeks Volunteers for Fire Duty

The Santa Monica chapter of the American Red Cross is seeking volunteers to serve in evacuation centers/shelters at the sites of the fires now burning all over Southern California. While officials expect the Malibu fire to be totally contained by Friday, they believe that some of the larger fires won’t be extinguished for ten days, so the need for volunteers will continue for some time. People who wish to volunteer should contact Beverly Holms at bholm@redcrossofsantamonica.org... Read More

City Council Meeting – Annotated

During the 2006 election campaign, incumbent City Council member Kevin McKeown who was running for re-election was the target of a costly negative campaign that was largely financed by the non-resident owners of Casa del Mae and Shutters hotels. Residents demonstrated at the hotels to express their objections to the attacks and McKeown was the top vote getter in the election. At McKeown’s behest, the City Council held a study session at last night’s City Council meeting... Read More

Overkill: City Hall Style

To: Mayor and City Council From: Barbara Stinchfield, Community and Cultural Services Director Jim Hone, Fire Chief Subject: Information Regarding the Impacts of Fireworks Displays and Recommendation to Deny the Pending Request for Fireworks on Santa Monica State Beach for a Private Event Recommended Action Staff recommends that due to noise impacts, public safety and environmental concerns, the City Council deny a request for a fireworks display at a private event at the... Read More

Historic and Sustainable

Addressing the growing interest in sustainable living and green buildings, the Santa Monica Conservancy has organized a house and garden tour to demonstrate how sustainable principles can be incorporated in older and historic homes. The focus of the tour on Sunday, October 28th at 2 p.m., will be the home of John and Susan Zinner. The tour will explore the ways in which the Zinners have compatibly combined their interests in historic preservation and environmentally sensitive... Read More

California Burning

With the addition of a fire in Acton Tuesday afternoon, there are now 20 fires raging in Southern California. The Malibu firestorm has consumed 4,400 acres, but County firefighters say it has been 75 percent contained and estimate that it will be totally contained by Friday, when the fierce Santa Ana winds are replaced by cooler, more stable onshore winds. Santa Monica Fire Chief Jim Hone told the City Council last night that three SMFD fire trucks and crews were dispatched... Read More

Santa Anas Still Rule in Malibu

By today, the Malibu firestorm had more than doubled in size — to over 3,000 acres, and, according to some reports, the number of houses destroyed had tripled – to 15, but the 1452 firefighters deployed in Malibu had achieved 10 percent containment. Weather forecasts indicate that Tuesday and Wednesday will be at least as dry and several degrees hotter than today, and the Santa Anas will continue to drive the firestorms until Wednesday afternoon. SHARETHIS.addEntry({... Read More