Posts by Ryan McDonald
Hermosa Beach About Town
Implications of legal marijuana Hermosa Beach will host a “parent chat” next week devoted to the implications of marijuana legalization for teenagers. The event, organized by the Southern California nonprofit Behavioral Health Services, will feature a panel including: Brian Hurley, an assistant professor of addiction medicine at UCLA; Dr. Nikki Wesley, director of student services…
Read MoreCommissioners reject Skechers building, but project likely to return
The Manhattan Beach Planning Commission approved one of the buildings in a proposed Skechers office complex on Sepulveda Boulevard but temporarily rejected another, citing concerns about truck access to the building. Commissioners voted 3-0 to certify necessary approvals for an office building at 330 S. Sepulveda, on the east side of the street but declined…
Read MoreKeeping new oil rigs off of coast won’t be easy, officials say
Three years ago, keeping oil out of Hermosa Beach required a monumental effort from the community. A similar effort may be needed, all across California, to make sure new drilling stays out. That was the conclusion of local elected officials who joined representatives from state land use agencies and environmental groups at the…
Read MoreHermosa Beach Police Beat
Property crime rose in 2017 Property crime in Hermosa Beach rose in 2017 over the previous year, driven by a sharp spike in burglaries and auto thefts, but violent crime declined compared to 2016. According to figures provided by HBPD, Hermosa recorded 116 burglaries and 48 stolen cars in 2017, up from 85 and 30,…
Read MoreOn the job for less than a year, Hermosa’s city manager to exit
Hermosa Beach City Manager Sergio Gonzalez, hired last May to replace former City Manager Tom Bakaly, will resign next month. Gonzalez’s last day with the city will be March 22. He is leaving for a job in the San Gabriel Valley, closer to the his home and family, according to a statement from the…
Read MoreLocal pols hit waves to push surfing as state sport
Bob Hurley, CEO of surfing apparel brand Hurley, has seen surfing evolve during his 40-odd years in the industry: not just in the maneuvers and the equipment, but in how it is perceived by landlocked society. “Surfing went from counterculture to subculture, to action sport, to extreme sport. And now it’s just a sport,” Hurley…
Read MoreChamber gets Fiesta Hermosa contract again, council expects improvements
Fiesta Hermosa will return on Memorial Day and Labor Day weekends this year, but Hermosa Beach will be expecting tweaks to minimize its impact on locals and enhance the artistic resonance of the three-day events. The City Council unanimously approved a contract Tuesday night that enables the Hermosa Beach Chamber of Commerce and Visitors Bureau…
Read MoreSigns of the times for Hermosa Beach as city mulls tweaks to brand
In Paul Beatty’s National Book Award-winning 2015 novel “The Sellout,” the narrator breaks down towns throughout Southern California by the color scheme of their street signs. The signs of Hawthorne, Torrance, and South Gate are of a “working-class cactus green” he writes, while Manhattan Beach’s “sky blue” totems signified a general lack of things to…
Read MoreHermosa Beach About Town
Oil Drilling town hall Assemblymember Al Muratsuchi (D-Torrance) will host a “Protect the Coast” town hall Friday night devoted to a recently announced Trump Administration initiative that could open California to new offshore oil drilling for the first time in decades. Last month, President Donald Trump announced a new, proposed leasing program for offshore oil…
Read MoreSkechers project gets OK from Planning
A proposed development from shoe manufacturer Skechers that would transform the northern edge of Pacific Coast Highway in Hermosa Beach received tentative approval from the city’s Planning Commission last week, clearing a major hurdle in the project’s multi-year development saga. In a pair of 3-2 votes, the commission bestowed a series of discretionary permits needed…
Read MoreSouth Bay Jam takes root at Standing Room in Hermosa Beach
Every Thursday, Barclay Roach plays a variety of music that is as head-spinning as it is head-bobbing. From punk to jazz, the South Bay Jam has evolved over the past year to incorporate a rotating crew of dozens of musicians and hundreds of songs.
Read MoreHermosa Beach About Town
Legislator hosts chat Assemblymember Al Muratsuchi will host a Q&A over coffee this Saturday morning. “Ask Al” will take place at City Council Chambers from 10 a.m. to 11:30 a.m. The discussion will focus on state legislative issues affecting Hermosa and the South Bay, and attendees are urged to bring questions. To RSVP, visit asmdc.org/muratsuchi.…
Read MoreBody painter Paul Roustan upcoming show
About 10 years ago, Paul Roustan was at a party in Boston hosted by Boink, an erotic magazine started by a student at Boston University. Unlike most of the attendees, Roustan was on the job. Boink threw wild issue-release parties, and the magazine hired him to paint the bodies of guests who wished to…
Read MoreCommission rejects Ramsay’s redesign of Patrick Molloy’s
When famed British chef Gordon Ramsay doesn’t like what he sees in a restaurant, he’s apt to unload a profanity-laced string of insults at whoever is in earshot. The Hermosa Beach Planning Commission has subtler ways of expressing their displeasure. The commission voted 4-1 earlier this month to reject a retroactive application for a floor…
Read MoreHermosa Beach Police Beat
Apartment burglary A thief broke into an apartment in South Hermosa earlier this month and stole thousands of dollars worth of goods while its tenant was on vacation. The theft occurred at an apartment complex in the 400 block of Monterey Boulevard, sometime between Jan. 11 and Jan. 14, police said. The victim, a woman,…
Read More‘Tribes of Palos Verdes’ is a beautiful but flawed take on the Peninsula
Brendan and Emmet Malloy’s latest film, “The Tribes of Palos Verdes,” had a high bar to clear, and the fault is their own. As far as cinematic takes on surfing localism go, it would be hard to top a four-minute deleted scene from “Fair Bits,” the Malloy Brothers’ Taj Burrow-centered surf movie from 2005. The…
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