Santa Monica Mirror: Apr 05 - Apr 11, 2024

The Initiative Aims to Connect Communities and Promote Sustainable Transportation Options

On Sunday, April 21 from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m., 5.75 miles of car-free streets connecting Palms, Mar Vista, and Venice Beach will be filled by a unique pop-up park experience including walking, jogging, biking, roller skating, or spectating. Participants of all ages and abilities can explore the temporary park along the Venice Blvd corridor, with free admission.

CicLAvia – Venice Blvd will feature four hubs along the route: Venice Beach Hub at Windward Circle, Mar Vista Hub near Beethoven St, Palms Hub near Huron Ave, and the National Hub west of National Blvd on Venice Blvd. These hubs offer family-

friendly activities, restrooms, free water refilling stations, basic bike repair, bike parking, and first aid services. Free pedicab rides are available at each information booth.

Inspired by Bogotá’s weekly ciclovía, CicLAvia aims to temporarily close streets to car traffic and transform them into public parks. The initiative, which started in 2010, aims to connect communities and promote sustainable transportation options, healthier lifestyles, and closer connections to communities.

Only people-powered vehicles are permitted at CicLAvia. Electric scooters, electric skateboards, hoverboards, electric unicycles, motorcycles, and other nonpeople-powered vehicles are prohibited. Class 1 e-bike pedal-assist is allowed, while Class 2 and Class 3 e-bikes are permitted with certain restrictions. Motorized wheelchairs are allowed.

The 2024 CicLAvia schedule includes events on May 19 (CicLAmini–Wilmington), June 23 (CicLAvia–South LA/Western Ave), August 18 (CicLAvia–Meet the Hollywoods), September 15 (CicLAmini–Lincoln Heights), October 13 (CicLAvia–Heart of LA), and December 8 (CicLAvia–The Valley/Ventura Blvd).

Over Five Miles of Venice Blvd. to Temporarily Close, Become Public Park Homeless Man Sentenced to State Prison for Crimes Against Homeless Women

Man Pleads No Contest to Series of Sexual Assaults

Anthony Pittman, currently homeless, has pled no contest to a series of sexual assaults committed between August and September 2022, according to authorities.

The incidents, which targeted homeless female adults, occurred in various locations across Los Angeles, including the LAPD’s Northeast and Wilshire Divisions.

One assault took place near the Santa Monica Library on September 27, 2022, around 4:00 a.m. The victim, a homeless woman, reported waking up to find a male suspect attempting to remove her blankets. She tried to flee but was tackled to the ground and sexually assaulted. She later walked to the Santa Monica Police Station to file an official report.

Authorities linked Pittman to the crimes through DNA evidence. Pittman, a previously convicted sex offender, has been sentenced to eight years in state prison for Forced Sodomy and Assault with Intent to Commit a Felony.

The Santa Monica Police Department encourages anyone with information related to Pittman to contact Detective Sergeant Goodwin at Chad.Goodwin@santamonica. gov, or the Watch Commander (24 hours) at 310-458-8427.

Upcoming SMC Student Art Exhibition to Run Through June

The Gallery Will Feature Both InPerson and Online Displays

The Santa Monica College Emeritus Art Gallery will host the SMC Emeritus Annual Student Art Exhibition 2024 — Part 1 from April 18 to June 7.

This year’s exhibition is split into two parts. Part 1 showcases over 60 artworks by 38 student artists from SMC’s noncredit Emeritus program for older adults. The gallery, situated at the SMC Emeritus Campus on 1227 Second Street, Santa Monica, will feature both in-person and online displays. Gallery hours can be found at smc.edu/emeritusgallery.

A live Zoom Virtual Launch Event for Part 1 will occur on April 18 from 5 p.m. to 6:30 p.m. Guests can access the event via a link available at smc.edu/emeritusgallery. The artworks from Part 1 will be available for online viewing 24/7 on the Emeritus Student Art Exhibition 2024 Part 1 Facebook page, accessible through smc. edu/emeritusgallery.

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The opening reception, hosted by Emeritus Associate Dean (interim) Guadalupe Salgado and Emeritus Gallery Curator Jesse

Benson, will feature discussions about select artworks by exhibiting artists. For more information and gallery hours,

One Person Killed After Car Goes Over Embankment

One person was killed in a deadly accident after a vehicle veered off a cliffside in Malibu on Wednesday evening. The incident occurred around 5:30 p.m. near the intersection of Pacific Coast Highway and Malibu Canyon Road, as reported by the Los Angeles County Fire Department.

According to authorities, the vehicle plunged approximately 150 feet below the main road, landing on its side and becoming lodged deep within a brush area. The driver, identified as the sole occupant of the vehicle, was tragically killed in the crash. The identity of the victim has not been released.

THE MUSIC MINUTE Fatal Accident in Malibu as Vehicle Plunges off Cliff Max to Host Special 626 Night Market PopUp for HBO’s “The Sympathizer”

Free Event Celebrates Culture, Cuisine, and the Highly Anticipated Series Debut

Max is ready to celebrate the highly anticipated debut of the HBO Original limited series “The Sympathizer” with a special 626 Night Market pop-up experience in Santa Monica.

The event, which will take place on Saturday, April 13, and Sunday, April 14, will be free and open to the public. Inspired by the series’ themes and narrative, which premieres Sunday, April 14, at 9:00 p.m. ET/PT, the event aims to celebrate the intersection of culture, community, and storytelling.

Guests attending the event, which runs from 1:00 p.m. to 10:00 p.m. on both days, will have the opportunity to immerse themselves in the vibrant world of Vietnamese cuisine, art, and entertainment.

Live sounds by Vietnamese-American DJs Demonslayer and Annalog will accompany a special performance by VietnameseAmerican artist Dolly Ave from 7 p.m. to

The Lost Hills Sheriff Station reported that Malibu Canyon Road was subsequently closed from Piuma to Civic Center Way due to the incident. The California Highway Patrol’s West Valley division took charge of handling the situation, with deputies and the Malibu Search and Rescue Team (Malibu SAR) from the Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department providing assistance on the scene.

Efforts to clear the roadway and investigate the incident continued into the evening. By 10:26 p.m., authorities had reopened Malibu Canyon Road to traffic.

10 p.m. on Saturday, April 13.

“The Sympathizer,” based on Viet Thanh Nguyen’s Pulitzer Prize-winning novel, is an espionage thriller and cross-cultural satire about the struggles of a half-French, half-Vietnamese communist spy during the final days of the Vietnam War and his new life as a refugee in Los Angeles.

The night market will feature a variety of Vietnamese food vendors, including All Dat Dumpling, All Dat Noodle, Café 949, Ridges Churro Bar, and The Ugly Bao, as well as merchandise vendors such as Steve Minty. Attendees can also expect HBO x THE SYMPATHIZER-branded elements and photo opportunities inspired by the series and traditional night markets in Asia.

“The Sympathizer” will debut on HBO on Sunday, April 14, and will be available to stream on Max. For more information on the series, including resources and organizations that uplift, celebrate, and serve the Vietnamese community, visit the official Max website.

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SMa.r.t.

Santa Monica Architects for a Responsible Tomorrow

Nine years ago, I wrote a column for SMa.r.t. titled SANTA MONICA: BEACH TOWN OR ‘DINGBAT’ CITY? (https:// smdp.com/2015/05/09/santa-monicabeach-town-dingbat-city/)

Here is the first paragraph from that column.

“In the late 1950s, ’60s, and into the ’70s, there was an architect in Los Angeles that picked up the sobriquet of ‘Crammin’ Jack. This architect seemingly could cram one unit more than anyone else into any apartment project he was asked to maximize. And he designed a lot of them, two stories, open parking under the second floor, often open to the street. Sometimes, some stone or brick element would be stuck on the stucco facade, or maybe a big starburst or palm tree and emblazoned with a name like “Riviera” or ‘The Palms’ to create a hoped for illusion of the Southern California dream. Small units, with one or two bedrooms, one bath, small kitchen open

to the living room, and often not more than four to eight units per building.

These apartments came to be known years later, as they began to deteriorate, as “dingbats.”

The column goes on to describe that while the architect was perhaps successfully serving his client by ‘cramming in that one more unit, thereby being more profitable for the developer, the real cost was a diminishing quality of life for both the occupants and the surrounding neighborhood environment. The column then went on to say, “But if the design criteria are expanded even a little, to include such desirable elements as light and air, scale and proportion, sustainability and energy efficiency, privacy, and sound separation, then maybe the “dingbats” were not such good designs. In fact, pretty poor on the scale of most people’s sensibilities.” and “Don’t most people want and need to live in a healthy environment that includes the elements missing from the “dingbats?” Shouldn’t light, openness, blue sky, scale and proportion, privacy, sustainability, and amenities such as courtyards, with trees and landscaping that enhance one’s quality of life, be included in any client’s project?” Apparently, neither the state nor past city

councils and planning commissions have thought so, considering the devolution of those quality of life issues that have become less and less required in any residential development currently being proposed and built. We even have an ARB (Architectural Review Board) that is charged with seeing that such basic qualities are an integral part of any design submission, multi-residential or commercial, but they, too, have been eviscerated and seem fearful to speak truth to power. First by previous ideologically driven city councils, planning staff, and planning commissions that never seemed to hear residents concerns about over development and loss of quality of life, and then their reluctance to push back against creeping state housing density regulations promulgated, one suspects, by developer interests and their profitability. It certainly

could not be motivated by a desire to increase the occupants quality of life, given the recent housing projects submitted.

That column was an attempt to point out what seemed to be an obvious concern about the direction our beachfront town was heading in hopes that those driving the critical planning decisions would actually realize they were pushing closer to a precipice. Unfortunately, to little avail, and obvious deaf ears, as the planning decision makers continued to careen seemingly out of control toward that cliff. There were already signs, several years ago, of the state stepping up their housing bills, always using words like ‘critical housing crisis,’ but basically pandering to market rate building and profitability rather than to the factual need for only low/moderate income housing affordability. And no push back from our city when it may have done some good in helping to curtail the predictable state onslaught.

Almost four years ago, the city was required to prepare and submit to the State HCD (Housing and Community Development) a new General Plan Housing Element (HE). Committees were formed of community members under the control

of the city planning staff, and workshops were conducted to discuss and ‘suggest’ zoning changes to accommodate new state mandated housing numbers known as RHNA (Regional Housing Needs Assessment) that had been foisted upon our town. Again, with little to no push back about requiring us to provide for about 9000 new units by 2028. That was one opportunity for the city to push back, and the HE, while more limited, was another and another failure. There were vested interests involved in the proposed changes that may have influenced, in some cases, specific projects they were apparently engaged in, that provided those projects additional benefits if adopted in the code. While there may be nothing illegal about that sort of conflict of interest, it is against the AIA Code of Ethics & Professional Conduct if such an action was taken by an architect member of the AIA.

So, with little to no pushback and projects now submitted that make Crammin’ Jack look like a piker two years ago, I followed up with another column about crammin’. In this case, more than just one more unit, and titled “CRAMMIN’ JACK IS BACK! ‘DINGBAT’ CITY IS HERE!” (https:// smmirror.com/2022/02/crammin-jack-isback-dingbat-city-is-here/).

Part of that column states, “Well, it appears that massive negative development has arrived, in vivid form, reflecting the community risks that arise from development that seemingly unrestrained profit driven densification produces. Just imagine how excited Crammin’ Jack’s clients would have been had their projects not been limited to two stories but instead have been allowed six or more. Like many of the new projects seen throughout downtown Santa Monica and other current ‘in the works’ projects, such as at Ocean Park and Lincoln Blvd. and other locations throughout what used to be our low-rise beach town, with heights in the 65 to 80 ft range. And why worry about designs that would be family-friendly, just unleash designs predicated on housing only one or two occupants, thereby crammin’ mostly single- and one bedroom units into the developments. More ROI per sq. ft. of building.” (Return On Investment)

Crammin’ Jack’s projects pale in comparison to the current rash of projects such as the Gelson’s at Ocean Park Bl and Lincoln Bl, where twelve structures up to almost 80ft tall are squeezed together

with balconies about 13-14ft apart, and with minimal open space it will be lucky if sunlight ever hits the lower levels and ground. Reminiscent of the old New York tenement buildings that were known as “dumbbell” apartments due to their configuration and minimum light and natural ventilation, they were ultimately outlawed and demolished. Not expecting that to happen here, but in the case of the Gelson’s project, the ARB didn’t have the courage to speak truth to power, telling it like it is, how unlivable that project will be. Even knowing their hands may have been tied, why could they not have put staff and the city on notice that they know bad when they see it. Some may remember the POW in Vietnam, forced on TV to say they were treated well, had the courage to blink his eyes in Morse code stating “torture.” Won’t someone in this city blink a message to the ‘powers that be’ to just stop.

Bob Taylor, AIA for SMa.r.t.

Send comments to santamonicasmart@ gmail.com

Santa Monica Architects for a Responsible Tomorrow

Robert H. Taylor AIA, Architect; Dan Jansenson, Architect & Building and FireLife Safety Commission; Thane Roberts, Architect; Mario Fonda-Bonardi AIA, Architect; Samuel Tolkin Architect & Planning Commissioner; Michael Jolly, AIR-CRE; Marie Standing, Resident; Jack Hillbrand AIA, Architect

For previous articles, see www. santamonicaarch.wordpress.com/writing

“Enlightened Donut” Shop Coming to Montana Ave

It Is One of Several Promising Dining Spots Setting up Shop Along Montana

By Zach Armstrong

In the latest addition of unique eateries coming soon to Montana Ave., fonuts is set to establish a Santa Monica location right next to Spumoni’s Pizza Restaurant.

“Our newest shop will carry a full line of baked goods, from breads and cakes to pastries and of course, baked donuts.” the bakery chain stated on an Instagram post.

The business describes its specialty as the “enlightened donut” due to its healthconscious nature. They’re made with almond flour, rice flour, no frying oils, no artificial flavors and a lower glycemic load, while being gluten-free and offering vegan flavors. Also, whereas donuts are usually fried, fonuts are baked.

Its menu boasts an assessment of creative

flavor concepts, including but not limited to, the “pancakes & maple syrup”, “blueberry earl grey”, “vanilla latte” and “chocolate chip cookie.” Mini fonuts, bagels, cakes and a variety of drink options are also available. fonuts is one of several promising dining spots setting up shop along Montana Avenue. Several franchises including ice cream chain Van Leeuwen, Brazilian açaí company Oakberry, New York-based Modern Bread and Bagel and the plantbased B&T’s Deli all announced or opened new locations on the retail-heavy road this year alone.

The approximate location of fonuts upcoming Westside outpost is at the intersection of Montana and 7th Street.

NOTICE OF PETITION TO ADMINISTER ESTATE OF HARRY G. GRANKFURT

To all heirs, beneficiaries, creditors, contingent creditors, and persons who may otherwise be interested in the will or estate, or both, of: HARRY G. FRANKFURT

A Petition for Probate has been filed by Joan Gilbert in the Superior Court of California, County of Los Angeles, Los Angeles County Superior Court Case No. 24STPB02344

The Petition for Probate requests that JOAN GILBERT be appointed as personal representative to administer the estate of the decedent.

The petition requests the decedent’s will and codicils, if any, be admitted to probate. The will and any codicils are available for examination in the file kept by the court.

The petition requests authority to administer the estate under the Independent Administration of Estates Act. The independent administration authority will be granted unless an interested person files an objection to the petition and shows good cause why the court should not grant the authority.

A hearing on the petition will be held in Los Angeles County Superior Court as follows: Date: April 14, 2024, Time: 8:30 am. Dept.: D2 The address of the court: 111 North Hill Street, Los Angeles, CA 90012.

If you object to the granting of the petition, you should appear at the hearing and state your objections or file written objections with the court before the hearing. Your appearance may be in person or by your attorney.

If you are a creditor or a contingent creditor of the deceased, you must file your claim with the court and mail a copy to the personal representative appointed by the court within the later of either (1) four months from the date of first issuance of letters to a general personal representative, as defined in section 58(b) of the California Probate Code, or (2) 60 days from the date of mailing or personal delivery to you of a notice under section 9052 of the California Probate Code.

Other California statues and legal authority may affect your rights as a creditor. You may want to consult with an attorney knowledgeable in California law.

You may examine the file kept by the court. If you are a person interested in the estate, you may file with the court a Request for Special Notice (form DE-154) of the filing of an inventory and appraisal of estate assets or of any petition or account as provided in Probate Code section 1250. A Request for Special Notice form is available from the court clerk.

Photo by Ed Gandara