Local Briefs

 

August 19, 2021

Elliot Ganezer

New facade on Westside Pavilion.

LA Times Endorses Kevin Falconer for Gov.

The Los Angeles Times has endorsed former San Diego Mayor Kevin Falconer for governor, in the Sept. 14th recall election.

The paper first tells people to vote No on question one, "Should Cal. Gov. Gavin Newsom be recalled from office?" "What is at stake is no less than our liberal values and beliefs," writes LA's decidedly Democrat newspaper.

It then characterizes the candidates in question two as mostly unpalatable. They "run the gamut from ridiculous to qualified, " writes the newspaper, before endorsing Falconer.

The State's Republican party declined to endorse a candidate for governor. Instead, it said four candidates qualified for endorsement -- radio talk show host Larry Elder, former San Diego Mayor Kevin Faulconer, Assemblyman Kevin Kiley and former Rep. Doug Ose -- but delegates voted 671 to 77 to make no endorsement.


Bacteria Warning in Effect

8/13: Bacteria levels exceed California standards at several Los Angeles County beaches. Santa Monica State Beach is on the list public health officials released Thursday.

The Los Angeles County Department of Public Health warned people swimming, surfing and playing in the ocean around discharging storm drains, creeks, and rivers.

The following beaches are under warning as of Thursday:

• Malibu Lagoon at Surfrider Beach.

• Santa Monica Pier in Santa Monica.

• Mother's Beach in Marina Del Rey.

• Avalon Beach at Catalina Island, 50 feet west of the pier.

LA County has released daily warnings about the water quality following a 17-million gallon sewage spill last month in the Pacific Ocean from Hyperion Water Reclamation Plant in Playa Vista. Several Los Angeles beaches were cautioned in the days after the spill, including Malibu, San Pedro, Catalina, Marina del Rey, Pacific Palisades and the El Segundo and Dockweiler Beach areas.


Along with the bacteria warning, the spill has reduced the region's water recycling ability and has forced officials to divert clean drinking water. This all occurred of course, amidst a drought and pandemic, forcing people to adapt.

Google Center Nears Completion

8/13: The Google Center in West Los Angeles is nearing completion. The project refurbished the Westside Pavilion, built in 1987, and replaced the shopping center with office space for the tech giant.


Retail shopping malls across the US face declining occupancy rates, a result of online competition.

The iconic Westside Pavilion,1980s-era mall that appeared in Clueless and the music video for "Free Fallin'" did not seem like a candidate to be converted to office space. But after it lost its Nordstrom's and its Macy's stores, the writing was on the wall.

In 2018, Hudson Pacific Properties announced that it had acquired majority ownership of the mall from Santa Monica based Macerich, and that it would convert the 600,000 square feet shopping center into "state-of-the-art creative office space." About 100,000 square feet will remain as "entertainment retail space" with a movie theater, a restaurant, and some shops.


High Holiday Services for JAMS

KM Synagogue will conduct its High Holidays services at John Adams Middle School's newly built auditorium. This according to an email from the synagogue.

Located at 2425 16th Street, "the facility is state-of-the-art, with 750 comfortable seats, an extraordinary sound system, and an enhanced climate control and ventilation unit," writes Kate Flanagan, Executive Director of the synagogue in an email to congregants.

"Please note further, we will maintain appropriate COVID safety protocols. For those who wish to worship from home, we will provide a live-stream of every service, similar to last year's format. Information about service times, tickets, parking, and other holiday-related details will be sent to each of you in the days ahead.


Rosh Hashanah this year starts the evening of September 6th, 2021, and lasts two days. Yom Kippur is one full day, beginning the evening of September 14th.

 

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