Yo! Venice 9.30.22

Coastal Commission Extends Review Period for Venice Median Project

Project would bring 141 units of affordable housing to Canals

By Dolores Quintana

The California Coastal Commission has approved an extension for the review period for the 103,957 square foot Venice Median Project that would bring 141 units of affordable housing to the Venice Canals.

The Venice Dell Affordable Housing development has long been in the works. It was in December of 2016 when the City approved the Venice-Dell-Pacific site to be included in its Affordable Housing Opportunity Sites Program. The City then approved Venice Community Housing (VCH) and Hollywood Community Housing Corp. (HCHC) to pursue an affordable and permanent supportive housing development on the site.

On July 8, 2022, the City of Los Angeles submitted a request to amend its certified Venice Land Use Plan (LUP) for the Venice Dell Project to the California Coastal Commission for approval. Under normal

circumstances, The CCC has 90 days to complete the filing of the request according to Section 30512 of the Coastal Act.

The amendment to the project is described in the filing and says, “The LUP would be amended to establish a new subarea with modified development standards for 40 lots located between Pacific Avenue, Dell Avenue, North Venice Boulevard, and South Venice Boulevard in Venice. The proposed amendment will allow the parcels to be developed with the Venice Dell Community Project, a mixed-use, affordable housing development.”

The CCC returned the application to the developers last month citing the need for more information about 20 items in the application that were deemed critical issues. Those items included the issues of groundwater use, access for the public, issues of parking, sea level rise and more detail about the financial agreements between the two developers.

On August 18, the CCC staff recommended that the deadline for the LUP amendment be extended. The CCC is allowed to ask for an extension for good cause. The 90-day period would expire on November 15 of 2022 and this request asks that the period be extended to November 15 of 2023. The extension filing explains the need for a delay and says, “Due to the coastal development permit application and local action CDP appeal associated with the

amendment (i.e. the Venice Dell Community Project), a time extension is necessary to allow staff to conduct a comprehensive analysis of the proposed project and any potential impacts to coastal resources resulting from a change to development standards. Thus, the staff recommends that the Commission extend the time limit for review of LCP Amendment.”

The CCC staff recommendation includes the

admission that it is far more likely that their review will be completed in advance of the extended due date in 2023 but that they may not know the full extent of the time that will be needed to complete the review.

On Thursday, September 8, following their staff recommendation, California Coastal Commission (CCC) granted the extension to the Venice Dell Project.

Hollywood’s NeueHouse Opening Venice Beach

Rooftop Restaurant and Bar

Market Street space set to open this fall

By Dolores Quintana

Hollywood’s NeueHouse will be opening a new restaurant and bar in Venice Beach as reported by What Now Los Angeles. The NeueHouse site describes the restaurant as being within a new cultural and co-working space in Venice and the restaurant and bar is dubbed Reunion at 73 Market Street.

The NeueHouse website describes the restaurant and bar and says, “Something new is coming to the Venice scene. Perched on the second-floor rooftop, Reunion is our new restaurant and bar offering a special destination for members and locals alike to

gather and connect. With indoor and outdoor seating, a crescent bar, and views of Venice as the backdrop, Reunion will offer exceptional food, creative recharges, cocktails, and so much more.”

Neuehouse requires membership, so you do have to become a member to join in the fun.

The website also talks about the historical significance of the site and says, “In the mid-70s, Academy Award-winning director/ producer Tony Bill purchased 73 Market, where he created a haven for artists, writers, filmmakers, and creators of all kinds to come together, collaborate, and collide. This colorful, inventive tradition is the inspiration and backdrop for NeueHouse Venice Beach.”

This new space is slated to open sometime in the fall of this year.

Credit: Eric Owen Moss Architects A rendering of the proposed Venice Median Project.

Rendering: Official

Glencoe Avenue development set to span three acres

By Dolores Quintana

Developer Mass Equities bought the site in 2019 with the plan to use the site to fulfill the off-site affordable housing requirements at two of their other market rate planned projects in the area.

The property at 4204 through 4230 Glencoe Avenue in Del Rey, which is owned by the Bramore Group, has had the commercial buildings on the site demolished recently to make way for an office building campus as reported by Urbanize Los Angeles. The former buildings were originally built in the 1920s and 1950s.

This new office campus would be composed of three office buildings that would come with a central courtyard and a number of paseos. The plans for the campus have already been approved and would be composed of almost 122,000 square feet of office space and, as a mixed-use campus, 1,500 square feet of retail business space along with a parking lot that is required by the current city codes.

The campus has been dubbed 42XX and is

being designed by Rios in partnership with Holmes Structures. The entire project site would cover three acres total and would be built with mass timber, steel and concrete. The design calls for half of the campus’ footprint to be open to the sky and come with full-grown trees to shade the outside areas.

The offices are expected to have private entries for each business with outside stairwells and corridors, open-air parking and restrooms that operate through a touchless system. The area in which this project will be built used to be industrial but has since been redeveloped into a residential neighborhood with condominiums and loft apartments throughout the last twenty years.

The Venice Twins and has been listed for sale at the price of $5.25 million

By Dolores Quintana

One of Venice’s coolest homes has now hit the market as reported by Beaumont Enterprise. The structure has the nickname The Venice Twins and has been listed for sale at the price of $5.25 million.

Listing agent, Jesper Inglis with Coldwell Banker Realty said, as quoted by Beaumont Enterprise, “This is a mostly concrete house. We’ve also got the huge beautiful sheets of glass in the front. They’re architecturally cool and also bring in so much light and visibility.’

With 3,586 square feet of space, the home is located at 533 Grand Blvd and is five blocks from the beach. It has four bedrooms and a grand total of seven bathrooms. As stated by the listing’s website, the home was “Innovatively designed by noted architects Nicholas Hopson and Klara Rodstrom, the MODERN home exhibits thoughtful, relevant and impactful livable design, flexible for any lifestyle.”

The estate is brand new. Inglis stated, as quoted by Beaumont Enterprise, “The ground floor has a theater room, a guest bedroom with its own bathroom, a powder room, the laundry, and garage.”

Most of the home’s best features are

actually located on the upper levels to highlight their presence in a reverse floor plan created by the architects. The listing goes on to state that the structure has a “dreamy rooftop deck to catch those stunning sunsets, installed elevator, 2 additional “viewing” decks, bbq deck and sun deck, soaring 14-foot ceilings. Floor-to-ceiling glass on kitchen/ great room level. Wide-plank light, French Oak flooring, polished concrete floors, MGS hardware, stainless steel Wolf/Sub-Zero kitchen wrapped in sleek Italian cabinetry, built-in Wolf “luxury coffee system.” The kitchen comes with a “Custom stainless steelclad island, natural stone granite.”

The listing goes on to say that the bathrooms are a “must-see: large, beautiful, top-of-the-line finishes. The owner’s Suite Bath has a soaking tub and a Mr. Steam Shower system. Expansive glass on all floors provides all-day light. LED Lutron lighting system, motorized blinds.” and that the home has a “covered BBQ deck with a full kitchen accounts for 308 of the listed sq ft. Sundeck is an additional 319 sq ft with fire pit and seating area.” The front door is custom built out of steel and the Interior doors are pivothinged.

The estate has a radiant heating/cooling system, conventional HVAC for the owner’s suite and Media Room, an elevator that goes to all four floors of the structure including the rooftop deck which is comprised of 1,056 sq ft of usable deck space with a 360-degree view from horizon to DTLA.

Concrete and Glass Venice

Venice Surf Shop Reportedly Burglarized on Camera

Footage posted on social media over the weekend documents burglary at Mami Wata on Abbot Kinney

By Dolores Quintana

Video footage posted on social media shows a Venice surf shop being burglarized September 17.

A video from the Instagram account PPV-Tahoe reportedly shows a smash and grab robbery taking place at the Mami Wata Surf during the beginning of their offseason last month.

A man was climbing through the surf shop’s smashed front window and entered the store repeatedly, removing surfboards and merchandise from the store and loading them up into a waiting BMW. The man

wore an orange hat, grey sweatshirt, blue jeans and white shoes. When the person filming the cell phone video approached the man’s car, he warned the witness that they should not touch his car. The account quoted a witness who said, “I was sitting outside African surfboards last night on Abbott Kinney, and some guy shattered the window behind me with a crow bar then stole a bunch of stuff.”

The Los Angeles Police Department and Mami Wata Surf have not responded to requests for comment by press time.

Venice’s Baby Blues BBQ Seeking New Location Following Fire

Fire end of last month damages Lincoln Boulevard restaurant

By Dolores Quintana

Baby Blues BBQ in Venice has unfortunately closed due to a fire that damaged the restaurant.

On the restaurant’s website, there is a notice that the location at 444 Lincoln Boulevard will remain closed until the restaurant owners can find a new location while the restaurant is being rebuilt.

Baby Baby Blues BBQ is a southern style BBQ restaurant from based in Los Angeles with two other locations in San Francisco and Philadelphia. The restaurant has been featured on Diners, Drive-Ins & Dives, The Travel Channel and The Food Network.

THE ORIGINAL BIKE SHOPS

Photo: Facebook (@babybluesbbq).

Mar Vista Chamber of Commerce Merges With Venice Chamber of Commerce

Merger will give members greater opportunities to network

The Venice Chamber of Commerce is pleased to welcome members of the Mar Vista Chamber of Commerce to its Chamber community. Established in 2014 by founding team members Sarah Auerswald, David Kent, Staci Boggeri, and Elaine Wood, the Mar Vista Chamber of Commerce was created to support and promote the evolving and thriving small business community.

With all the challenges that accompany a completely volunteer-operated organization, the Mar Vista Chamber board of directors decided that joining a larger and more established Chamber would provide its members with greater opportunities to network and would elevate advocacy for their growing business community.

“Our Chamber has always been about our

Mar Vista community and pushing to further the success of Mar Vista professionals and business owners, but over the past few years, from COVID-caused membership falloff to insufficient staffing to run the organization, we haven’t been able to provide the benefits and resources that you expected. This merger of community interests will allow our members to take advantage of the Venice Chamber’s wider reach and larger member base and help our community’s members meet other likeminded business professionals in our area,” the Mar Vista Chamber of Commerce said in a press release. “Our board of Directors, David, Allison, Eric, Staci and Cynthia, will still be involved in the combined Chamber, while all-new committees (for us) will provide lots of opportunities for community involvement at all levels, from participation in chamber events, to educational workshops, to input into city policy initiatives.”

As a neighboring Chamber with compatible interests, the Venice Chamber was the ideal choice.

“The Venice Chamber of Commerce is a strong voice for our small business corridors

and we are happy to expand our service area to welcome and represent the community of small businesses in Mar Vista,” said VCC president Sunny Bak. “We look forward to

hosting events and advocating on their behalf.”

As a part of this merger, all active Mar Vista Chamber members will receive complimentary one-year memberships.

Coast Guard Terminates the Voyage of an Illegal Charter Vessel in Marina Del Rey

having Coast Guard licensed Captain

• Violation of 46 C.F.R. 67.323 for operating in coastwise trade without the appropriate Certificate of Documentation endorsement.

• Violation of 46 C.F.R. 16.201 for failure to have a random drug testing program.

the dock. Ask your Captain if they are in compliance with Coast Guard regulations.”

The captain of the charter was not reachable for comment at the time of publication.

By Dolores Quintana

While patrolling the waters off Marina Del Rey on Saturday, September 3, the United States Coast Guard in tandem with the Marina Del Rey Sheriffs terminated an illegal charter boat voyage in the harbor. The Coast Guard and Marina Sheriffs patrolled the bay to ensure the public’s safety during the long Labor Day weekend festivities.

A 58-foot pleasure craft named Beirut was boarded by the joint task force while it was cruising in the waters with 15 passengers aboard. Coast Guard officers suspected that the boat was conducting business illegally and violated no less than four regulations named as follows:

• Violation of 46 C.F.R. 176.100 (a) for not having a valid Certificate of Inspection

• Violation of 46 C.F.R 15.805(a)(4) for not

During the operation, the Coast Guard issued Beirut’s captain a cease operations order until these violations could be rectified. However, on Sunday, law enforcement officers boarded Beirut again and found it to be operating in violation of the stated regulations and the warning that the vessel’s captain had been issued the previous day. 14 passengers were found to be on board. The Coast Guard added the charge that the vessel was in violation of the terms of the captain of the port order, a violation of 33 CFR 160.105 on top of the previous violations.

Lt. Brett Losey, investigations officer, Coast Guard Sector Los Angeles-Long Beach said, via a press release, “Illegal passenger operations pose a significant safety concern to the public. Coast Guard safety regulations require any captain operating a boat carrying more than six paying passengers to hold a Coast Guard license. Per the regulation, captains are required to have their merchant mariner credentials on board at all times when paying passengers are on board. Coast Guard urges passengers to ask to see their captain’s merchant mariner credential before leaving

Illegal charters are a hazard to maritime safety and to passengers on board all boats in the harbor. The Coast Guard’s rules state that owners and operators of illegal charter boats can face civil penalties for unlawful charter operations. Some potential civil penalties for unlawful charters are:

• Up to $5,254 for not having a valid Coast Guard Certificate of Inspection for vessels carrying more than six passengers as per 46 U.S.C. 3318(j).

• Up to $20,719 for failure to operate a passenger vessel without a Coast Guard license as per 46 U.S.C. 8101(g).

• Up to $17,935 for operating a coastwise trade without appropriate Certificate of Documentation endorsement as per 46 U.S.C. 12151(a)(1)

• Up to $8,433 for failure to have a random drug testing program as per 46 U.S.C. 2115

If a vessel and its captain continue to operate in violation of a Captain of the Port Order, it is a Class D felony punishable by up to six years in prison as per 18 U.S.C. 3581, and a criminal fine up to $250,000 for an individual and $500,000 for an individual organization as per 18 U.S.C. 3571. Civil penalties for violating a Captain of the Port Order can be up to $103,050 as per 46 U.S.C. 70036 (a).

If you would like more information about boating safety, please visit the Coast Guard’s Boating Safety Division (CG-BSX-2) at https://www.uscgboating.org. Anyone who has questions about passenger-for-hire regulations can contact the Sector LA/LB Investigations Division at (310) 521-3770 or email at SECLALB@uscg.mil.

If you are aware of an illegal charter operation, you can report it to the Coast Guard Sector LA/LB Command Center at (310) 5213801 or LALBCOMMANDCENTER@uscg. mil.

A 58-foot pleasure craft named Beirut was boarded by the joint task force while it was cruising September 3

Photo: Petty Officer 3rd Class Hunter Schnabel. U.S. Coast Guard members from Coast Guard Sector Los Angeles/Long Beach terminates voyage of an illegal charter vessel Beirut, near Marina Del Rey, Calif., Sept. 3, 2022.

Famous Italian Singer Zucchero to Play Beverly Hills Theatre on Sept. 30

Zucchero will play at Beverly Hills’ Saban Theatre, one of several American stops on his World Wide Tour

B y s usan P ayne

The famous Italian rock singer Zucchero Fornaciari is bringing his talents to the Los Angeles area at the end of September.

Hailed as the “father of Italian blues,” Zucchero will play at Beverly Hills’ Saban Theatre on Sept. 30, one of several American stops on his World Wide Tour that started in April.

In July, Zucchero opened for the Rolling Stones for the second time in his career in Germany, which was “a great honor for me,” the Italian singer said. Zucchero played shows in London, France, Spain, Luxembourg, Belgium, Netherlands,

Slovenia and Switzerland, before coming to the United States in September to finish out the rest of his tour.

“I have always loved Los Angeles. I have recorded many of my albums there with Don Was as my producer and used some of the best musicians in the world. The LA audiences are so great and it’s the center of the music industry,” he said.

Nicknamed “Sugar,” the artist has a 45year long career in what he calls, “blues and rock, coupled with some R&B and pop thrown in, a real mix,” he explained.

His stage name Zucchero means “sugar,” a nickname given to him in elementary school, according to the New Straits Times, an Italian newspaper in 2016.

“I have been lucky and have had a lot of success with many songs, but if I had to choose the most well-known, it would be, ‘Senza Una Donna’ (Without a Woman) that I recorded with Paul Young, ‘Miserere’ which I recorded with Luciano Pavarotti and ‘Baila’ which became a number one hit in many countries,” Zucchero said.

Zucchero’s musical career carries a wide range of influences including BB

King, John Lee Hooker, Otis Redding, The Beatles, the Rolling Stones, Ray Charles and Joe Cocker.

“They are all artists I have admired since a young age,” he said.

One of the first songs Zucchero learned to play on his guitar were the chords to “(Sitting on) The Dock of the Bay” by Otis Redding and “California Dreaming” by The Mamas & the Papas.

“Discover”, Zucchero’s most recent album released in 2021, is a compilation of songs he did not write, but wished he had written.

“I spent months listening to songs I loved before choosing the songs to record,” he said. “I then arranged them in my style.”

“Canta la Vita” on the album is a song with Italian lyrics previously written in English and called “Let your love be known” by Zucchero’s friend Bono. During the pandemic lockdown, Zucchero made a video of the song in Rome.

Another song on the album, “Amore Addeso” is the Italian version of a song by Michael Stipe.

Zucchero also sings a version of “Follow

You Follow Me” by Genesis, “Wicked Game” by Chris Isaac and a reworking of “Trouble So Hard” by Moby.

“Discover is an album I enjoyed making,” Zucchero said.

With a career that spans three decades, Zucchero has sold more than 60 million records around the world and has won over 20 music awards, including a Grammy Award nomination.

Tickets for Zucchero’s Beverly Hills stop at the Saban Theatre on Sept. 30 can be found here. The show starts at 8 p.m. The box office can be reached at 888-6455006.

Photo: Daryl Brughman. The Zucchero show in Washington DC on September 13.

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