Posts by Robb Fulcher

A sweeping remodel of the Lighthouse Café, once a seminal West Coast jazz venue, was within days of Planning Commission approval when it was discovered that the city officially considers the venerable brick building a potential historic resource. George Kelly, owner of the Los Angeles firm Kelly Architects, credited City Attorney Michael Jenkins with the…

A 58-year-old resident thanked Hermosa Beach firefighter-paramedics for restarting his heart and saving his life, exchanging handshakes and hugs with them during a brief ceremony honoring the firefighters at City Hall. “It is with gratitude that I am here with these fellows,” said the man, who did not offer his name, referring to Capt. James…

by Jayna Elce It was the first time I had been bar-hopping on a bicycle built for 17. We hopped aboard the Beach Barcycle, which looks like a trolley with two rows of pedalers and a driver, and traveled smoothly down Hermosa Avenue. From my perch on one of the comfortable barstools – I mean,…

The little service club that thought it could, apparently can. Hermosa Beach Rotary was named the top “Club of Excellence” for its size in a Rotary district stretching from San Pedro and Palos Verdes to Malibu and Vernon. “We’re small, but we’re mighty,” Angela Peterson, Hermosa Rotary’s executive secretary, told her fellow club members on…

Toyota and the Wyland Foundation have formally presented Hermosa Beach environmental activist Dency Nelson with the top prize in a countywide “Earth Month Heroes” contest, earning a $1,000 donation to PlugInAmerica, a nonprofit coalition of electric car drivers and advocates of energy independence and clean air. Word of the announcement leaked out last week. For…

In memoriam In memory of Art Rutherford, the first of 10 defibrillators donated by his widow, Kathy Rutherford, was installed, at the Hermosa Beach Community Center. The defibrillator is located outside the HB 50 Senior Center. Art Rutherford was the founder of the Emergency Operations Commission. Beach cleaning The Keller Williams Beach Cities realty firm…

The Hermosa Beach City Council has moved to allow sidewalk dining in most restaurant areas, following al fresco eating on a trial basis. The council also agreed to study allowing sidewalk signs and other displays in front of retail stores, which now is mostly banned. The move to allow tables on the city-owned sidewalks was…

Restaurateur Paul Hennessey wants to revamp the landmark Lighthouse Café on the Pier Plaza, without disturbing the Spirit of Jazz Past. Hennessey’s plans, now in a germinal form, would include converting what has been one of the West Coast’s seminal jazz spots from a “bar-nightclub” to a restaurant, and creating a partially open-air second floor…

Chef Sean Chaney teamed up with Walk With Sally to offer a cooking lesson and an early lunch party at Hot’s Kitchen for more than 20 kids affected by cancer. At the “Friendship in the Kitchen” event, the kids toured the kitchen with Chaney and learned about professional food preparation equipment and the day of…

  Green hero Tireless environmental activist Dency Nelson of Hermosa has won the top prize in a countywide “Earth Month Heroes” contest by KCBS-TV, earning a $1,000 donation to PlugInAmerica, a nonprofit coalition of electric car drivers and advocates of energy independence and clean air. Nelson said we “can keep both us and the planet…

by Jeff Grotenhuis I recently was invited out for a drink with a gentleman I gave a ride to. He told me he was meeting his “girlfriend” at the Salt Creek Grill. When I sat down with Bill Baxter and his gal, the waiter asked if Bill wanted his usual. He responded affirmatively and later…