Brentwood News May 28, 2021

LOCAL SUMMER FUN SERIES 2021

May 28 – June 24, 2021

Brentwood’s Rabbi Morley Feinstein Passes Away

University Synagogue rabbi passes away at his Brentwood home April 25

By Sam Catanzaro

Rabbi Morley T. Feinstein of University Synagogue passed away recently after battling illness for several years.

Rabbi Feinstein, who served as the Senior Rabbi for University Synagogue from 20022019, passed away at his home in Brentwood on April 25 after suffering for several years from multiple myeloma, the Jewish Journal reports.

Rabbi Feinstein, born on May 26, 1954, grew up on the Westside, attending Beverly Hills High School before going onto UC Berkeley where he graduated Phi Beta Kappa with highest honors.

Before coming to University Synagogue Feinstein served as senior rabbi of Temple Beth-El in South Bend, Indiana. University Synagogue, 11960 Sunset Blvd, is now called Wilshire Boulevard Temple University Campus after a merger earlier this year.

“Our community mourns the loss of our beloved Rabbi Emeritus, Morley T. Feinstein,” Wilshire Bouelarvd Temple said. “Rabbi Feinstein’s memory is an enduring blessing to our community and beyond. Zecher tzadik livracha”.

Over the course of his career, he was named Senior Rabbinic Fellow of Jerusalem’s Shalom Hartman Institute. In addition, he devoted time for 34 summers teaching at the camps of the Union for Reform Judaism and served on the Los Angeles Council of Religious Leaders, was the Treasurer of the Central Conference of American Rabbis, and was past president of the Board of Rabbis of Southern California.

In the wake of Rabbi Feinstein’s death, the Brentwood community shared their condolences.

“Our sincerest sympathies to the University

Synagogue community on the passing of Rabbi Morley Feinstein. May his memory be blessing,” the Brentwood Community Council said.

“Heartbroken this morning to learn of the untimely passing of Rabbi Morley T. Feinstein, whose warm smile, big heart and steady hand led the congregation at University Synagogue in Brentwood for nearly 20 years,” said Councilmember Mike Bonin. “Rabbi Feinstein was a warm, and wonderful man, whose humility, quiet strength, in spirituality, inspired and guided so many. He was a giant.

My deep condolences to his wife, his children, his grandchildren, and his giant network of friends, coworkers, and congregants.”

Rabbi Feinstein is survued by his wife Dr. Margarete Myers Feinstein, a historian and professor at Loyola Marymount University, two sons, Aaron, a physician; Ari, a Jewish Educator; twin daughters, Eliana and Renata, juniors at Pali High; and two grandchildren.

Private funeral services were held April 28 at Hillside Memorial.

Photos: Wilshire Boulevard Temple

Rabbi Morley T. Feinstein.

Arson-Induced Palisades Fire Leaves Over 1,000 Acres Burned

LAFD battle fire for a week

By Sam Catanzaro

The Los Angeles Fire Department has demobilized its Palisades Fire command post at Will Rogers State Beach as firefighters transition to patrol status and carry out environmental suppression repair efforts.

Last Friday the LAFD released its final incident update for the Palisades Fire, reporting containment at 84 percent and acreage at 1,202 for the blaze. The Incident Management Team based at Will Rogers State Beach demobilized Friday night as well.

According to the LAFD, firefighters are now on Patrol Status to assure there are no flare-ups, and that the fire remains within the current burn footprint. In addition, environmental suppression repair efforts are well underway. See above and

Photos: LAFD

below videos to hear the LAFD describe these efforts.

According to the Los Angeles Fire Department (LAFD), the fire was reported May 14 at 10:02

p.m. at 1807 N Michael Lane in Pacific Palisades in the area near the Trailer Canyon.

“When the first responding engines from the Los Angeles Fire Department (LAFD) arrived,

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Annual Brentwood Coral Tree Fundraising Campaign Brentwood Coral Tree Endowment Fund annual fundraiser underway

By Sam Catanzaro The Brentwood Coral Tree Endowment Fund, a local non-profit, is holding their annual fundraising campaign to help preserve the iconic yet fragile trees lining San Vicente Boulevard.

In a May 6 newsletter, the Brentwood Community Council (BCC) announced that the Brentwood Coral Tree Endowment Fund is holding its annual fundraising campaign.

“Brentwood Coral Trees are Citydesignated Historic Monuments that have defined the community for decades and are a joy to behold when driving along San Vicente or when their orange flowers bloom each year,” the BCC wrote. “Too much water, such as heavy rain, can lead to branch failure and gophers are currently damaging the trees East of the Bundy/San Vicente intersection. The Coral Tree Foundation meets these challenges to care every year with professional pruning, arborist assessments and, now, commercial

gopher control.”

The Brentwood Coral Tree Endowment Fund, a project of Friends of Brentwood Inc. (a 501(c)3 nonprofit) was established to promote the long-term health and beauty of Brentwood’s coral trees. On its website, the organization provides a history of how these trees came to be a part of Brentwood.

“After the red car line running along the Brentwood median was removed in the 1940s, our community resolved to plant trees where the tracks once lay. In 1976, the City of Los Angeles designated the Coral Trees that line San Vicente in Brentwood as a Historic Cultural Monument- Monument 148,” the organization writes.

Without regular care, these beautiful but fragile trees–that began as rooted cuttings from the well-known Evans and Reeves Nursery on Barrington Avenue–are subject to wind and water damage that can threaten pedestrians and joggers.

“Due to budgetary constraints, the city has cut all funding for their maintenance and care, however, experts agree, that oncea-year pruning will ensure their health and longevity, and mitigate limb breakage. With another $200,000 in donations, the fund will be sufficient to care for the trees in perpetuity,” the organization writes, adding on its website they have reached 80 percent of their fundraising goal.

Photo: brentwoodcoraltrees.com

There is some good nows, however, about the trees. The Brentwood Coral Tree Endowment Fund noted online that the City of LA is refining the sprinklers so that the proper amount of water is delivered to each tree and a green carpet can grow on the median.

In addition, this past year gophers have been running rampant, but service to control them from 26th Street Brigham Avenue has

begun.

“Since the City’s budget is stretched indefinitely, this urgent work is being paid for at community expense from our fund,” the Fund writes.

Finally, 15 “babies” with single trunks are being grown from seed to be planted in 3-4 years and will fill in gaps where older trees have fallen.

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Rosti Tuscan Kitchen and Brentwood Fine Wines planned for San Vicente Plaza

By Kerry Slater

San Vicente Plaza in Brentwood will soon be home to a popular Italian restaurant and new wine shop.

Rosti Tuscan Kitchen recently announced on its website that it will be opening a Brentwood location. As reported by Jeff Hall, the restaurant will open in Suite 104 of San Vicente Plaza. The restaurant, with locations on Montana Avenue in Santa Monica and Calabasas, is self-described as “a transplant of simple Tuscan countryside cooking where fresh herbs and wholesome ingredients marry one another and create a delightful experience.”

“Our trained chefs start with Sage, Rosemary, Thyme, Sweet Basil, Garlic and Marjoram as our star ingredients and then add the finest Meats, Seafood, Pasta and Cheeses to complete the dish,” the restaurant adds.

An opening date has yet to be announced for the Brentwood location.

In addition to Rosti, San Vicente Plaza will also be getting a new wine shop.

Photo: Rosti Tuscan Kitchen (Facebook)

Smith Cho, under company name The Menacing Beagle, has applied for a permit for a liquor license to open Brentwood Fine Wines in San Vicente Plaza. Located in what used to be Moe’s Fine Wines, at 11740 San Vicente Blvd Suite 11, Cho says she plans for a wine and liquor shop to offer premium quality alcohol selections from all over the world.

“Brentwood Fine Wines was chosen because Brentwood and the surrounding area (Pacific Palisades) is desperately in need of its own wine shop,” Cho told Brentwood News. “The Brentwood community (and by proxy, Palisades) deserves a proper wine shop. A place for you to pop into on your way to a dinner party, a local place for residents to gather for tastings and to feel like they have their own wine+spirits shop that caters to them and for them.”

Cho expects the shop to open in early summer 2021.

Column: Malibu is Poison Free, Are You?

By Andy Lopez

I tell folks that I heal the soil. Healing the soil is really an art that has to be developed over time much like a doctor gains experience over time. I started early in my life healing the soil but I did not realize that is what I was doing until 1970 ( I started in 6th grade around 1966), however, I knew then that using chemical fertilizers was bad for the soil and in turn bad for the plants. My relationships with the plants and the soil started early in my life. I would see healthy plants or healthy trees and I would also see unhealthy plants and healthy trees and would wonder what was wrong with the sick ones. It didn’t take me long to realize that it all came down to what they were eating or rather what they weren’t eating.

At that time, I didn’t know about compost or about the little invisible army of the soil. I never used chemical fertilizers or any of those things. I was always natural and organic. So I began to look for the best sources of organic fertilizers. What really helped me in this search was a farmer I ran into one day. My dad would always take me to the local farmers market because I was organic fruit and vegetables instead of the store bought junk. I knew that you are what you eat and figured it has to be the same with plants. One day on the way

to the farmers market, I noticed a farmers stand selling organic produce, fruit and organic fertilizer. So I had my dad stop and check it out. He gave me a piece of fruit that tasted so amazing I had to have more.

I bought a lot from him that day (rather my dad did). I also asked him about what organic fertilizer he was selling. Turns out it was rock dust! That changed my life. The name is a general term for rocks that have been crushed into fine powder. Not just any rock, but rocks that are rich in minerals. We all need minerals but have you tried eating rocks?

The living soil is very good at turning rocks into a source of food for plants. That is why we eat plants and animals, for the minerals. The microbes in the soil have evolved over time to take rocks and convert them into an available source of food for the plants. It is important that all life gets the minerals they need to be healthy. We and the plants all need the identical trace minerals to be healthy. All plant and human diseases start in the soil. It is the microbes that control these diseases. Kill off these microbes and they will not be there to make the food that plants and us in turn need.

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May 28 – June 24, 2021 | 7

Summer Fun

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Summer A Yacht Experience Beach Safety Like No Other

Photo: LA County Lifeguards (Facebook).

An umbrella is essential to a safe beach day, providing valuable sun protection.

LA County lifeguards share tips to get the most out of the beach this summer

By Sam Catanzaro Few things can top a sunny beach day, whether in Santa Monica, Venice, Malibu or the Palisades, but like all outdoor activities there are risks involved, whether from the ocean,, sand or sun. Luckily LA County boasts some of the world’s finest lifeguards helping keep the beach safe.

This past week, with summer right around the corner, the Los Angeles County Fire

Department Lifeguard Division took part in National Beach Safety Week.

“Along with other lifeguard agencies around the state and nation, we will be sharing a number of beach safety tips in an attempt to get beachgoers informed and ready for what is characteristically one of our busiest holiday weekends of the year,” the Department said.

While National Beach Safety Week will come and go, these tips remain invaluable for any beach outing.

Sun Safety

To begin National Beach Safety Week, LA County Lifeguards explained the importance

Beach Safety, see page 8 & 9

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Check with the lifeguard to ask about any inshore holes.

Beach Safety, from page 7 of sun safety “For today’s tip we will talk about the importance of Sun Safety as it is equally important for both lifeguards and beachgoers alike. Protect yourself from the sun by wearing protective clothing, applying and reapplying sunscreen throughout the day, using a hat, drinking plenty of fluids, and seeking shade when possible. If you are bringing your own shade in the form of an umbrella or E-Z up please be mindful of where you set up so that Lifeguards will be able to continue to supervise the water unobstructed around you,” the Department wrote.

Rip Currents

Rip currents can be hard to spot and can be a hazard even on calm-looking days.

According to LA County Lifeguards, they are one of the leading factors behind ocean rescues in Santa Monica Bay. “Rip currents are one of the leading causes of ocean rescues in Los Angeles County.

Spotting a rip current can be difficult for

most beach goers which is why we always recommend checking in with the Lifeguard BEFORE getting in the water. Lifeguards are the experts on ocean and beach conditions for their area and will be able to provide beachgoers information regarding the safest places to swim and any existing hazards!”

LA County Lifeguards said.

Inshore Holes

Inshore Holes, like rip currents, are often a hidden danger, another good reason to check with the lifeguard before entering the ocean.

“At certain times of the year, especially during or after periods of large surf, the ocean bottom can be very uneven. Waves break in shallow water and displace the sand on the ocean floor. Ocean patrons may notice this condition while walking through the water close to shore, when just one step sends you from ankle-deep to waist-deep water. These areas may be somewhat difficult to identify.

Consult the lifeguard prior to entering the water to get a report of the conditions,” LA County lifeguards say.

Jellyfish and Stingrays

It is always best to swim near a lifeguard tower.

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May 28 – June 24, 2021 | 9

Beach Safety, from page 7 Santa Monica Bay is home to all types of creatures. Some are cute and docile, like dolphins and seals. Others, however, can be dangerous, including jellyfish and stingrays.

Luckily LA County Lifeguards are well prepared to come to the rescue if an unlucky beach patron gets stung.

So what to do if you get stung by a jellyfish?

“First of all, try not to touch the site where you came in contact with the jellyfish.

Consult the nearest lifeguard and he or she will treat you appropriately. Usually, treating the sting with a mixture of vinegar and saline water will alleviate the pain,” lifeguards said.

And what about stingrays?

“Go straight to a lifeguard for treatment.

The venom from the sting ray barb will cause intense pain, so getting to a lifeguard for treatment is imperative.

There is, however, a literal step one can take to minimize the risk of stingrays: The Stingray Shuffle.

“Stingrays are docile creatures that avoid humans. Stingrays can be avoided by shuffling one’s feet along the sandy bottom, giving time for the stingray to move away,” lifeguards said.

Visit Fire.LAcounty.gov/Lifeguard-FAQs for more information.

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Brentwood Beat: Mad as Hell and Not Going to Take It Anymore

Photo: Juliet Lemar

The homeless encampment alongside the West Los Angeles VA.

Founding Publisher On May 4, I wrote an article that appeared in the Brentwood News (and BrentwoodNewsLA.com) entitled, “A 22-Point Plan to Deal with LA’s Homelessness Situation.”

If you didn’t catch it, here’s a link: https://brentwoodnewsla.com/a-22point-plan-to-deal-with-las-homelessnesssituation/ It’s a long article that will take you five or ten minutes to read. Here are the highlights: 1) We need to build, on a massive scale, tiny homes, tent villages and other very inexpensive structures on the outskirts of town and start moving LA’s homeless population into them, starting voluntarily.

2) At these shelters we will provide all the services (food, showers, mental health, medical, dental, job training, etc.) needed to get these folks back on their feet.

3) Three key reasons to do this on the

outskirts of town: a) the land is much cheaper; b) we want to make it difficult for homeless individuals to have access to drugs and booze (too readily available in our urban areas); and c) a little peace and quiet will contribute to these individuals’ recovery, with the opportunity for mutually supportive community-building.

4) Give those in these temporary shelters job training – and jobs to do. That’s how we’ll truly reintegrate them into society. People need a purpose; work provides purpose. Shelters in LA’s urban areas should be reserved for those in good shape, with jobs (or ready to enter the workforce).

5) We want to make these villages so positive and attractive that homeless individuals will want to voluntarily check themselves in. Over time, once the first wave is housed, those who don’t check themselves in will be offered housing, and if they don’t take it, a police officer, accompanied by a social worker, will involuntarily check these individuals in.

6) For those homeless who are so

psychologically damaged they will likely never be able to reintegrate, we need to keep them in a place separate from everyday citizens and keep them as happy and comfortable as possible – indefinitely.

This is a “tough love” approach, to be sure. But I think our current approach actually represents the cruelest policy of all. Many homeless will die as they wait for their $650K condo to get built. And they might never get that turn, because at $650K a pop, there just won’t be that many condos to go around.

Since the 22-point plan got published, I have heard an earful. I’ve received about 100 emails and I understand the article is being shared widely on NextDoor. I estimate 98% of the emails I have received are highly favorable.

Some very smart individuals who have experience working with the homeless – law, mental health, housing construction, government administration, real estate, finance – have offered many excellent ideas that will surely make the initial plan better; instead of a 22-point plan, we might need to make this a 32-point or 42-point plan.

Then again, one individual, a retired educator, wants to take all this and boil it all down into a 10-point plan – much simpler, she said.

While most who contacted me were very favorable toward what I proposed, one writer in particular, in multiple emails, said every aspect of the plan was perfectly repugnant, along the lines of Nazi concentration camps.

Another critic said just about everything I proposed has been proposed by someone else already and that there are other groups out there trying to accomplish similar things.

I surely don’t consider myself an expert in homelessness. I wasn’t aware of all these other plans and groups. And I do understand that much of what I’m proposing is distasteful. I also know what I can see on the streets with my own eyes, and it appears to me very little of whatever is being done is actually working. Things keep getting worse, year after year. We all know that.

So, in the last issue, I just bashed out what I thought were common-sense, costeffective ideas that could actually work.

This isn’t the first time I’ve made a “let’s end

Mad as Hell, see page 15

BRENTWOODNEWSLA.COM

Arson, from page 1 crews encountered multiple, separate, slowmoving fires in steep and remote terrain with thick understory dry and dead vegetation,” the LAFD said. “Immediately, the Department launched an all-out attack – deploying dozens of engines, aircraft, bulldozers, water tenders, and more than 100 firefighters.”

Just after midnight Friday, arson investigators were dispatched to the scene to determine the cause of the fire.

Due to the inaccessible terrain and darkness, investigators gathered preliminary information and returned the next day.

“On Saturday morning, LAFD helicopter pilots observed an adult male moving around in the brush along a steep hillside near the fire,” the Department said. “Officers from the West Los Angeles Community Police Station kept watch on the ground while the Air Support Division provided eyes in the sky. During an aerial observation, the Tactical Flight Officer witnessed

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the individual ignite multiple additional fires.”

Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department Deputies were lowered into the brush to begin a search for the man, but because the fires were growing rapidly, deputies were forced to retreat.

A little before 10 a.m. on Sunday the man emerged from the brush in the 1200 block of Palisades Drive and was recognized as a possible suspect by a private security officer. Police officers arrived and detained the suspect, Ramon Flores Rodriguez.

“After interviews from eyewitnesses, firefighters, and police officers, as well as hours of analyzing burn patterns and documenting the fire scene, arson investigators determined that the fire was incendiary,” the LAFD said.

The LAFD describes Rodriguez as only a 48-year-old transient. According to the LAFD, the arrestee has multiple name variations in law enforcement databases. He faces one felony count each of arson of a structure or forest, and arson during a state of emergency.

He has pleaded not guilty and is being held in lieu of $350,000 bail.

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Brentwood Medical Tower Lands $40+ Million Loan

$42.5 million in refinancing for Wilshire West Medical Tower

By Chad Winthrop

A commercial property capital firm has landed $40 million in refinancing for an 12-story Brentwood medical tower with a penthouse.

As announced in an April 28, press release, JLL Capital Markets recently landed $42.5 million in refinancing for Wilshire West Medical Tower in Brentwood.

Wilshire West Medical Tower, located at 11645 Wilshire Boulevard, consists of elevenstories, plus a penthouse, with panoramic views of Los Angeles. According to LoopNet, the building was built in 1978, renovated in 1999 and again in 2005.

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JLL’s Capital Markets team representing the borrower was led by Senior Managing Director Marc Schillinger and Director Keith Rosso.

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Wilshire West Medical Tower (center).

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Mad as Hell, from page 12 homelessness” proposal like this. This recent article was longer, but people definitely read it, I can tell. This article is long, too.

The response to these proposals is always very favorable. As one person put it one time, “This is all great, but it will never happen. It just makes too much common sense.”

It’s easy to be a keyboard warrior, to be sure. Actually solving the problem of homelessness is going to be very hard. I think it can be done, but a problem this huge is going to require a huge solution.

The problem isn’t a shortage of ideas – not at all. As you will see in this article, many ideas have been sent my way in recent weeks. Hang in there for the rest of this article; I predict you will be impressed with what some of your fellow citizens have to say.

What’s missing, I think, is an overarching vision and will power. If we aren’t willing to take difficult measures, the problem of homelessness will never go away.

Let me tell you what I’ve been hearing.

One person I’m in touch with, Soledad Ursua, a member of the Venice Neighborhood Council, said the reason the politicians push for the big-dollar projects (instead of tiny homes, tent village and other inexpensive shelter) is because there is so much money to be made by those who finance and build the buildings – and provide the consulting services that make these projects even more expensive.

Those who benefit from this system, in turn, make campaign contributions to the politicians who approve the projects.

Soledad calls this the “homeless-industrial complex.” Campaign finance reform is a critically important part of the solution, she said.

So yes, absolutely, campaign finance reform will get added to the plan. Now we’re up to 23 points.

A couple from Venice contacted me and told me how they have been successfully providing low-cost rental housing to the homeless for years. They have come up with a business model they say can be scaled up quickly, all across the city, using existing structures. They tried to pitch their plan to the city but got no response, I was told.

Are there existing structures out there?

One writer said there are actually quite a few city properties that currently go unused.

He also said we can all go to Apartments. com and see there are 33,000 apartments available for rent across the LA region. I just looked. That’s what the site shows: 33,000 units are available right now.

Why build expensive housing, this writer asked, when we could pay a homeless person’s rent for a fraction of the cost (and move them into housing immediately)?

Many writers agreed with my assertion that tiny homes are the way to go – we’d get much more bang for the buck.

I’m now in touch with SafeHuts (see SafeHuts.com), which can build prefab tiny homes for $10K per unit (with a big enough order). These huts are made out of fiberglass, will last 15-20 years and can be washed out and reused over and over again. They are

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fire-proof and each one can be assembled by two workers in two hours.

Shelter Palettes (see ShelterPalettes.com) makes tiny homes, made out of wood. These shelters are even less expensive – as low as $4,900 per unit. These pre-fab shelters can be snapped together in 90 minutes and are used by a program run by Hope of Valley. There are now four Hope of the Valley villages throughout the San Fernando Valley; one that just opened has 103 beds.

Ken Craft of Hope of the Valley says his team can now assemble a village with 100 beds (some units are singles, some are doubles) and get all the infrastructure (central bathrooms, water, electricity, etc.) built in 90 days. The land was donated, according to Craft, but with infrastructure and utilities, the cost is $12K per bed, “all in.” Hope of the Valley is funded by the city, by the way.

A lucky few – maybe 5,000? – will benefit from the expensive, permanent housing units. What do we say to the other 60,000+ homeless in the LA region who didn’t get one because the money ran out? Wouldn’t it be a lot more equitable to get every homeless person into far less expensive shelter – and sooner, rather than later?

One person who reached out to me said it’s best to keep people from becoming homeless in the first place – but second best thing is to get people off the streets as quickly as possible. The longer people stay on the streets, the longer and harder it is to get them rehabilitated, this individual explained. This is another argument for quickly built, inexpensive shelter.

Another reason to stick with low-cost housing is this notion that many homeless will reject housing, no matter how fancy.

This is happening in Venice already, I’m told.

Many who were given spots in a big new bridge shelter now enjoy what is being called “dual citizenship”: These individuals continue to live out on the streets, in tents, among their friends – but they also have a place to go for a shower and a meal.

So this big project didn’t do much to reduce sidewalk encampments, I was told. If anything, things are worse.

Another writer said the City of Los Angeles bought up a bunch of land in Palmdale years ago for the purpose of building an airport, but the airport never got built.

This writer said the land is paid for – and there is more than enough space to house all of the region’s homeless population. That would certainly make it easier to centralize services, reducing costs.

Another writer proposed using decommissioned military bases in the region.

Yet another writer told me about 3-D printed tiny homes being built in Austin, Texas.

I’ve been contacted by a faith-based group in Oakland that’s about to build a tiny home village in the parking lot of a church. Many churches have seen a decline in attendance over the years, I was told. They don’t need their entire parking lots anymore.

I think faith-based groups represent a potential standing army, just waiting for the order to “march.” What if each church, synagogue, temple and mosque adopted a tiny home village and helped provide

shelter, food and services? Maybe, by giving these communities of faith a leading role in this humanitarian mission, attendance would start to rise again.

High schoolers and college students could pitch in. We’re all in this together. This is our collective community service project.

One writer said building most of this shelter outside our urban core makes sense, because the land is cheaper and it’s important to put distance between the homeless and drugs, but if we go this route, this writer said, we need to build transportation into the equation.

What a person really needs in order to reintegrate into society, this writer continued, is a job. So if we house the homeless on the outskirts of town, they need to be able to get to the jobs (or we need to bring jobs to them).

A mental healthcare professional (an M.D., now retired, who ran a major mental healthcare program for the county) said we’re trying to solve a drug addiction and mental healthcare crisis with housing.

He said we, as a society, have no idea how bad the mental healthcare problem really is and that way too little attention is being paid to this piece of the puzzle. I believe him.

Two or three writers said it’s time to open up some new form of mental institutions, replacing the ones that closed years ago.

Maybe our tiny home villages will have to do for now.

Four or five writers said they thought it was a really bad idea to park the homeless on the beach or in parking lots or public parks close to the beach.

Municipalities all across the country, these writers suggested, would give members of their homeless populations a wad of cash and a one-way bus ticket to LA, telling all takers that a spot on a warm sunny beach in LA awaits them – with three meals a day thrown in.

If you live under a bridge in Chicago and someone makes you this offer in January, how could you say “no”? Suddenly homeless from across the country would become our homeless. Are these other cities and states going to pay us to absorb their homeless?

Somehow, I doubt it.

And do we really want the homeless to occupy our beaches when so many of us – and our tourist friends – want to visit our beaches and enjoy themselves while here?

Tourism is important to the Los Angeles economy. Low-income, working people from across the LA region come to our beaches on weekends. We all like to go to the beach now and then.

It’s hard to imagine interactions between homeless individuals and beachgoers won’t pose problems. If you doubt this, just ask the residents of Venice Beach. They feel like they are now living in a war zone.

It’s not even an out-of-state issue, another wrote. Homeless individuals from all across LA might decide they’d prefer a place at the beach (as opposed to living beneath a freeway in Eagle Rock, Downtown or Pacoima).

The homeless population on the Westside could explode as a result, this writer warned.

A homeless program leader from the Palisades told me many in the Palisades have

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spent years working in a very humane way with homeless individuals who wound up on the beaches. The homeless population in the Palisades is way down as a result, she said.

Now people in the Palisades fear all this progress is about to be undone, she added.

And if we move homeless people to our beaches and parks, what comes next? How long will it take before these people get more permanent shelter elsewhere? Does anyone have real confidence this is a temporary solution?

And if these homeless are moved from Venice or elsewhere, what’s to stop other homeless from taking up the newly available spots on the sidewalks?

This is all very complicated, to be sure. I do think we can figure this out if we set our minds to it. Let’s stick with this subject for a while. Let’s figure this out together.

As part of this self-education process, I did three podcasts on the topic of homelessness in recent weeks. If you listen to podcasts, I invite you to go to TheLatestPodcast.com (https://thelatestpodcast.com/): • Podcast No. 52 is with Andy Bales, head of the Union Rescue Mission at Skid Row. It’s painful to listen to this one; the conditions Andy describes are just so perfectly wretched.

• Podcast No. 53 is with Ken Craft, CEO of Hope of the Valley (see HopeOfTheValley.org). Hope of the Valley, based out of Pacoima, is now erecting tiny home villages at a cost of just $12K per unit, “all in.”

• Podcast No. 54 is with Soledad Ursua, a member of the Venice Neighborhood Council. Soledad goes into some detail about how bad things have become in Venice – she calls it “Skid Row West.”

Soledad also discusses the politics of homelessness. “Follow the money,” she said.

By now you might be thinking I’ve become like that cranky old newscaster in the 1976 movie, “Network.” If you can remember that far back, newscaster Howard Beale urged his viewers to stick their heads out the window and start yelling, “I’m as mad as hell, and I’m not going take this anymore!”

If you’ve never seen the movie, here is the key video clip (definitely worth a watch).

And even if you did see the movie, it’s worth watching this eerily prescient segment again: https://www.youtube.com/ watch?v=MRuS3dxKK9U Anger gets things started, but I think we’re beyond that now. What needs to follow next is a widespread consensus on a logical, workable, practical plan – and a group of committed citizens willing to take this on.

Such a plan should be actionable, compassionate, cost-effective – and supported by a clear majority of citizens.

This plan should serve as many homeless individuals as possible, not just a lucky few.

If you’d like to take part in this commonsense conversation that will focus on solutions, please send me an email: jeffhall@ mirrormediagroupla.com.

Let’s finalize this plan by summer’s end and see where we go from there.

16 | May 28 – June 24, 2021

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