BHCourier E-edition 110317

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NUMBER 44

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SINCE 1965

November 3, 2017

Canon Drive Sidewalks Closed For Construction At Peril Of Pedestrians

MORE TREATS, LESS TRICKS – La Cienega Park preschoolers don’t look so scary, but they were ready for a frighteningly fun Halloween on Tuesday. Pictured, front row, from left: Shaylyn Bailey, Grayson Wall, Rhys O’Shea, Kiyona John, Adam Hussein, George Freedman, Roxi Martin and Jake Casanova. Middle row: Orie Markov, Jonah Hong, Huxley Cook, Grace Heimina, Maya Amiri, Daphne Johnson, Harmon Floresy, Farah Rosenthal and Knox Smith. Back row: Tiarra Warner, Nik Orr, Chris Best and Laura Briceno.

Daylight Saving Time Daylight Saving Time ends at 2 a.m. on Nov. 5 – don't forget to "fall back" by setting your clocks back one hour before going to bed on Saturday night.

THIS ISSUE

Three-year-old Sampson is this issue’s Adoptable Pet of the Week. 4

The Beverly Hills Planning Commission OK’d a new basement ordinance. 12 •Health & Wellness •Birthdays •Letters to the Editor

8 22 31

George Christy, Page 6 It Appears That Prince Harry May Have Proposed To Meghan Markle. Queen Elizabeth II Has Asked Her Etiquette Drill Masters To Begin Guiding Meghan Into The Lifestlye Of The Brit Royal World

CLASSIFIEDS

25

LADBS Orders Removal Of Furniture, Lighting Inside Hadid’s 901 Strada Vecchia By Matt Lopez While Los Angeles Department of Building & Safety (LADBS) employees were apparently busy preparing their Halloween costumes, developer Mohamed Hadid has allegedly been adding more unpermitted work to his 901 Strada Vecchia megamansion in Bel-Air. Residents who live nearby the almost 30,000-square-foot estate received quite a scare this week when they noticed lighting had been installed inside the home, along with furniture and paintings hanging on the wall. Only one problem: the project had all its permits revoked in 2015 due to illegal, unpermitted con-

struction that had occurred at the site. At that time, no lighting, art or furniture had been installed in the property. That means that since the city of Los Angeles pulled permits, construction inside the home has continued. Hadid pled no contest in July to misdemeanor charges of illegal, unpermitted construction at the megamansion. When confronted with photographic evidence of the lighting inside the home, LADBS Assistant Bureau Chief Eric Jakeman appeared to be in the dark on the matter. In an e-mail obtained by the Courier, Jakeman claimed (see ‘HADID HOME’ page 23)

Eataly L.A. Opens Tonight At Westfield Century City By Laura Coleman If you close your eyes to bite into the melted fresh mozzarella sinking into tangy tomato sauce against the crispy-yet-chewy pizza crust that has just emerged from one of two wood-fired ovens at Rossopomodoro Pizzeria Napoletana inside Eataly L.A., you may just for one moment believe that you’re actually in the South of Italy, rather than inside a shopping mall on the Westside of L.A. And why not? Chances are your pizza was crafted by a championship winning pizzaiolo. Starting tonight at 6 p.m., Eataly, the authentic Italian marketplace that boasts some 6 mil-

lion visitors annually at its most successful American location in Manhattan, officially opens its first West Coast location at Westfield Century City. Eataly L.A. marks the company’s fifth U.S. location and 39th location worldwide. To celebrate the opening, the first 100 guests to come through the doors this evening will receive complementary mozzarella. Founded in Turin, Italy in 2007 by Oscar Farinetti with the philosophy "Eat. Shop. Learn," the 67,000-square-foot Los Angeles location continues the company’s unique brand of offering diners delicious dishes in the restaurants (see ‘EATALY L.A.’ page 19)

By Victoria Talbot North Canon Drive is humming with pedestrian activity from Santa Monica Boulevard – where literally thousands of tourists a day take their first look at the City – to Wilshire Boulevard, where a booming restaurant culture, supported by the Beverly Canon Gardens and the Montage Hotel, sees hundreds of patrons every day and evening. Nonetheless, the City's best efforts to deal with the construction on both ends of Canon Drive leads pedestrians to either walk out of their way to cross the street to get to their destinations - or to walk perilously into the street, creating traffic hazards that could be life-threatening. At the Courier, our observations demonstrate that compliance is the exception rather

than the rule, and that closing the sidewalk has resulted in dangerous conditions for pedestrian and vehicle traffic. Similarly, construction at 257 N. Canon Drive is progressing slowly, and, according to sources, developer Stephen Bohbot is a year behind schedule. But until October, at least the construction included a Krail route around the project for pedestrian safety. Now, signs at the north and south of the project proclaim "Sidewalk Closed" with a sawhorse and cones. Construction activity has enclosed the sidewalk with Krails and fencing, where, according to City officials, the developer is "re-doing" the sidewalk and has been for weeks. With no explanation except a lot of pointing fingers, (see ‘SIDEWALKS’ page 19)

Beverly Hills Goes BOLD For The Holidays By Matt Lopez Beverly Hills is set to come alive for the Holiday season, with several “BOLD" events on the docket. The festivities begin on Thursday, Nov. 16 with the Rodeo Drive Holiday Lighting Celebration, headlined by a special performance from Billboard Music Award winner Robin Thicke. Vanessa Lachey hosts the event, which will cap off with a fireworks display over Rodeo Drive. After a successful summer, Mayor Lili Bosse’s BOLD initiative forges ahead into the Holiday season. Live DJ’s will perform every Satuday night on

Rodeo Drive, where businesses will stay open later every Friday and Saturday from Nov. 16 to Dec. 23. Other Holiday offerings in Beverly Hills include: Deepak Chopra’s Gift of Meditation: Sunday, Nov. 19 at 5 p.m., Chopra will lead a free meditation session in Beverly Canon Gardens. Mayor’s Art Walk: Bosse will lead a City-wide art walk on Dec. 2, visiting many of Beverly Hills’ top art galleries from 5-7 p.m., beginning on the Crescent Drive side of City Hall. (see ‘BOLD HOLIDAYS’ page 23)

COCKTAIL PARTY JAZZ — The Ivy’s Lynn von Kersting has produced her first album, Summer Nights On The Rocks. She sings favorites by Steeley Dan and others. The album was recoreded at her Luxe estate, Villa Abbondaza, in West Hollywood that formerly belonged to director George Cukor. For more photos, see George Christy’s column on page 6.


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