Opinion
Sorted by date Results 26 - 50 of 820
SM Resident Says Staff Misconduct Obstructs Housing Commission
The following is public input offered by Ann Thanawalla, before the City Council on April 12, 2022 By now you've received time sensitive notice of misconduct by City staff. I am here to amplify that notice. For months, staff in several offices have...
By 
Santa Monica is Indeed Unsafe
By John Alle, Local Business Owner I am responding to the Opinion piece co-authored by City Manager David White and Police Chief Ramon Batista. They responded to the "recent local and regional news...
Sacramento Democrats kill gas tax relief, transparency
By Jon Coupal As a participant in capital politics for more than 30 years, I’ve observed many abuses of power. Corruption, pettiness, gross narcissism, and dirty tricks have all increased in recent years both in terms of frequency and shock value....
DA Gascon Gets Sued by His Own Staff
Opinion by Corva Corvax The reform-minded district attorney no longer holds a plurality of voters in his camp March 24, 2022 - A poll commissioned by the Los Angeles Police Protective League shows a plurality of voters would vote to recall...
Property Tax Levies Increase 6% Statewide
The California State Board of Equalization (BOE) released its Fiscal Year (FY) 2020-21 Annual Report, which reported that the total net statewide county-assessed property value was $7.1 trillion,...
Municidal City Council Demolishes Parking Structure
Melissa Toomim, Candidate for Congress On Monday, March 14, 2022, the City of Santa Monica began the process of tearing down Parking Structure 3 in downtown Santa Monica. Santa Monica Bayside Owners A...
Parking Structure 3 Haunts City
By Alyssa Erdley, Observer Staff Writer Photo: Santa Monica Bayside Owners Association is appealing the decision to close and demolish the garage 3.18.22: The City of Santa Monica prevailed against local business owners in its goal to demolish...
Americans Would Pay a Heavy Price for Amnesty
By Mark Thies Democratic leaders on Capitol Hill are scrambling to find a way to amnesty illegal immigrants in their nearly $2 trillion budget bill. The Senate parliamentarian, who decides what...
Calls Russian Invaders War Criminals
Editor, It’s the same old theme since 1916. In your head, in your head, they’re still fighting. With their tanks, and their bombs, And their bombs, and their guns, In your head, in your head,...
California Supreme Court Limits Early Release of Violent Felons Under Proposition 57
By David E. Mastagni and Taylor Davies-Mahaffey In 2019, a California appeals court held that Proposition 57 allowed those convicted of multiple violent and nonviolent crimes to qualify for early rele...
Build More Culver City Housing
Dear Editor, When we purchased our home in Culver City in 2015 there were many reasons why: proximity to work and family, a location that afforded a walkable lifestyle with plenty of parks and very...
Death of a Property Owner
By Jeff Prang Los Angeles County Assessor This month I’m going to share information about a delicate subject, but also a very important one---dealing with property taxes and what should be done...
Highschool-Like Cliques, Gossip, Racial Grouping And Bullying
By Amber Jackson, Lucky Lifer As the days go by, I never cease to be fascinated by the dynamics of prison staff behavior. I've learned so much about the psychology of human behaviors. And the more I learn, the more I want to know. I've become a bit...
How do we find a way to stay unique? Distinct. Santa Monica!
Stanley Dunn Special to the Observer Think back for a moment to the place you grew up. You may be living elsewhere now yet when you go back to where you are from, a rush of memories spring about. A...
DTSM Seeks PR Agency
By Alyssa Erdley, Observer Staff Writer 2/15/22: At their meeting tomorrow, the Audit and Finance Committee for Downtown Santa Monica, Inc. will discuss hiring a "communication firm to handle board communication and crisis management." DTSM is the qu...
Imposter Claims to be Local Man During Town Meeting on Lincoln Center
2/18/22: Last evening I listened to a City commission zoom meeting, then tuned in 20 minutes late to the "Developer-hosted zoom meeting" regarding the large development proposed for Ocean Park and...
"Aggressive Hostility?" Boo-hoo, Mayor Himmelrich!
Mayor Sheds Crocodile Tears While Ruining Santa Monica Permanently for Residents: Letter from Santa Monica Voter Boo-hoo-boo, Mayor Himmelrich. Cry me a river with your comments. If you and this City...
Process for Lincoln Project Not Fair
As background, I have lived in Santa Monica for almost 50 years and served on the Board of Friends of Sunset Park neighborhood group for over 10 years in the 1990’s and 2000’s. Back then, we felt that developers might overrun the city with...
Low Income Residents Depend on City WiFi
Our city wifi has been off in the Sunset Park area between 21st and 26th Streets on Ocean Park Boulevard, the Pico corridor and the Montana Avenue areas since May 26, 2021. this is a valuable service...
Promenade Belongs to the Homeless
By Alyssa Erdley Observer Staff 2/2/22 - Squalid conditions downtown and on the Third Street Promenade appear to be causing much of the vacancies in retail spaces visible there today. The downtown and Promenade area were already ailing before the...
Dear Council Members,
I was unable to speak tonight after taking the time to log onto the meeting, I want to list the items that need to be addressed. 1. How does the Culver City Council intend to pay for the...
Watching Politicians Dismantle Culver City
Letter to the Editor, Culver City’s Proposed Housing Element Upzoning Perhaps future historians will, with the advantage of hindsight, be able to look back and dissect how a small group of clever,...
Lack of accessibility
Hello Council, I have to chime in on the lack of accessibility of these ongoing online Council meetings. I’ve lost count of how many of these e-mails we’ve received at Protect Culver City...
Supreme Court Again Clarifies Qualified Immunity Protection for Peace Officers
By David E. Mastagni and Taylor Davies-Mahaffey In the recent City of Tahlequah v. Bond decision, the United States Supreme Court revisited the protections officers should receive through qualified...
City Council meeting
Dear City Council: Last night’s City Council meeting was an atrocious embarrassing mess. I have lived in Culver City all of my life, and never have I been so embarrassed by such a kangaroo Council....
