News / Santa Monica
Sorted by date Results 51 - 75 of 305
Paris Parties on Pier
By David Ganezer Paris Hilton celebrated her wedding with a few lucky guests on the Santa Monica Pier Friday night, 11/12/21. I asked the young handsome actor type guy what folks were waiting for at...
Pico Branch Library Reopens
The Pico Branch Library will reopen for in-person services beginning Wednesday, December 1, city officials announced this week. "We couldn't be more thrilled to reopen our beloved branch in the Pico...
Santa Monica Seeking Volunteers to Count the Homeless in January
By Jack Simon Santa Monica is looking for a few hundred volunteers to count the homeless people in their city. City officials announced this week that the annual Santa Monica homeless count will be held on January 26, 2022, after a one-year hiatus...
Santa Monica Council to Adopt Anti-Nepotism Policy Next Week
Santa Monica City Councilmembers will no longer consider appointing family members to city boards, commissions or task forces. The City Council is expected to approve at its upcoming Tuesday meeting an anti-nepotism policy which would ban...
SM Extends Local Emergency to 1/31
By Jack Simon, Observer Staff Writer The city of Santa Monica has extended its remaining local emergency orders to January 31, 2022, including tenant protections against eviction. The 41st Emergency Supplement, signed October 29, protects the...
SMC Compete for College Prize
By Jack Simon, Observer Staff Writer SMC was among 150 institutions selected by the Aspen Institute this week to compete for the $1 million Aspen Prize for Community College Excellence, a recognition of high achievement and performance among...
New Lion in Town
A female mountain lion captured by biologists last month is the 99th to be tracked as part of a landmark study of the puma population in the Santa Monica Mountains, officials announced Sunday. P-99 wa...
SM City Council Approves New Organics Recycling Mandate
By Jack Simon, Observer Staff Writer In an effort to achieve Santa Monica’s “zero waste goal by 2030,” the City Council this week adopted a new mandatory recycling ordinance for organic materials. The new ordinance fulfils the city’s require...
Upbeat Report on SM Fiscal Health
By Jack Simon, Observer Staff Writer The Santa Monica City Council this week received an upbeat update on the city’s fiscal health and made small revisions to the 2021-2022 budget to reflect increases in revenues. The 2020-21 year-end budget r...
Ramon Batista Named SMPD Chief
By Jack Simon, Observer Staff Writer Ramon Batista, Jr., a 35-year law enforcement veteran, has been appointed as the new Santa Monica Police Chief, city officials announced on Thursday. He starts his...
Housing Element Update
By Jack Simon, Observer Staff Writer The Santa Monica City Council this week adopted the revised 2021-2029 Housing Element Update, which "prioritizes 100% affordable housing in city-owned land" and...
City Attorney Shakes Down E-bikes
By Sarah Storkin, Observer Staff Writer Santa Monica and Los Angeles has settled a jointly-filed, consumer protection lawsuit with Wheels Labs, a shared mobility company that operates a fleet of e-bikes. Wheels Labs agreed to pay $300,000, with a...
Columbus Day -- Indigenous People's Day
By Stan Greene. "On September 28th, City Council moved forward on assigning the Landmarks Commission the responsibility of interpreting and contextualizing the City Hall murals, supported by an ad...
City Garages Not Up to Code
By Alyssa Erdley News with Attitude 10/8: The city-owned garages in downtown Santa Monica are missing basic fire-safety equipment, lack lights, and use elevators with expired permits. During a...
Riot Analysts Named Head of SMPD Civilian Oversight Panel
By Jack Simon, Observer Staff Writer The OIR Group, the consulting firm that analyzed and issued a detailed report on the events connected to the civil unrest in Santa Monica, of May 31, 2020, will...
City Sues Landlord On Rent Control
By Jack Simon, Observer Staff Writer The city of Santa Monica has sued a local landlord for allegedly converting a rent-controlled apartment building on 10th Street into a complex mostly used for “unlawful vacation rentals,” thereby violating the Ell...
Thunder ,Lightning Over SM Bay
By David Ganezer, photo by SMPD CSO Edward Burns 10/4 The day grew dark very quickly, and no rain had been predicted by the National Weather Service as late as 2 pm. Santa Monica was treated to a rare...
Prostitutes in DTSM
. By Alyssa Erdley, News with Attitude Prostitution is now an ongoing operation in the alleys behind the Third Street Promenade. Another set of prostitutes operate on Broadway between Ocean Avenue and...
Council Upzones Promenade
By Jack Simon, Observer Staff Writer Hoping to revitalize its world-renowned, open-air shopping center, the Santa Monica City Council this week unanimously approved zoning changes for the Third...
Mayor Snubs Meeting Sheriff Villanueva on Homelessness
By Alyssa Erdley, News with Attitude Santa Monica’s Mayor refused to attend a public forum on homelessness where she could not control the microphone. Nor did she reply to our request for a statement regarding her refusal to come discuss a problem t...
Local Gal to Present at Duluth Film Fest
Santa Monica Content Creator Clea DeCrane Selected to Showcase Story at Catalyst Content Festival in Duluth Minnesota The Catalyst Content Festival will be held September 29th – October 3rd, 2021 i...
SM Business Executive Pleads Guilty in Conduit Campaign Contribution Case
A Santa Monica business executive pleaded guilty on Thursday to a federal charge of conspiring to make and conceal conduit and excessive campaign contributions during the U.S. presidential election in 2016 and thereafter, court officials said....
Joseph Lawrence Appointed City Attorney
By Jack Simon Santa Monica will soon have a new interim City Attorney but a familiar face to local city government. The City Council is expected to appoint Joseph P. Lawrence as Interim City Attorney at its next meeting on September 28, according to...
Red Skies Over SM
by David Ganezer Smoke Turns Sun and Moon Red Over Santa Monica From Fires in N. and Central California Photo: Orange moon over First United Methodist Church Spire. Smoke can travel hundreds of miles...
Beach-Going Sex Offender Charged with Rape Attempt
By Alyssa Erdley, Observer Staff Writer 9/21/21 - A registered sex offender who was preying on homeless women on the Santa Monica beach was charged yesterday with one count of Assault to commit rape and 1 count of Sexual Battery for two incidents...
