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WHAT’S UP WESTSIDE ..................PAGE 2 EVENTS AT THE LIBRARY ............PAGE 3 KNOW BEFORE YOU GO ................PAGE 5 CRIME WATCH ..................................PAGE 6 MYSTERY REVEALED ....................PAGE 9
MONDAY
02.27.17 Volume 16 Issue 91
@smdailypress
@smdailypress
Santa Monica Daily Press
smdp.com
POLICE:
Wells Fargo: Santa Monica divestment will not impact Dakota Access Pipeline BY KATE CAGLE Daily Press Staff Writer
Divesting millions of dollars from Wells Fargo will take Santa Monica more than a year, according to a new report from the City’s director of finance. Less than two weeks after the
City Council endorsed a plan to break ties with the bank over past fraud scandals and the financing of the Dakota Access Pipeline, the City’s finance department is working diligently to withdraw funds, terminate contracts and sell investments. Yearly transactions with the banking behemoth tally around $1
billion including deposits and payments, according to the City’s public information officer. The finance department has already begun drafting a new request for proposal, or RFP, to recruit a different bank and expects to issue the request as early as next month. Once a new bank is select-
Man tried to set person on fire inside Starbucks
ed, the City will have to transfer funds and make changes to direct deposit accounts that flow in and out of the City’s massive account. The City has already stopped using Wells Fargo as a broker for investments. Immediately selling SEE DIVESTMENT PAGE 7
City leaders to move forward with plans to shut down Santa Monica Airport this week BY KATE CAGLE
DICKSON
Daily Press Staff Writer
BY KATE CAGLE The Airport Commission will meet Monday for the first time since the City and the FAA formed an agreement to shorten the runway and eventually allow Santa Monica Airport to close for good. Much has changed since the Commission last met on Jan. 23, less than a week before the City Council approved a secret Consent Decree that put an end to the legal fight to shut down SMO. The Commission will now review plans to shorten the runway from 5,000 feet to 3,500 feet as part of an effort to curb air traffic in the coming years. The shortened runway will cut jet traffic by about 40 percent, according to City estimates. The National Business Aviation Association (NBAA) has petitioned the U.S. Court of Appeals to review the Decree, saying the FAA bowed to a “vocal minority” who wish to close the historic airport. According to the Decree that was approved by a federal judge, all
Daily Press Staff Writer
A homeless man is facing attempted murder charges after a fight inside the Starbucks on Ocean Avenue near City Hall got out of control. Police say Paul Dickson, 41, became upset with another customer around 10:25 a.m. on Monday, Feb. 20. Dickson is accused of throwing an unknown flammable liquid onto the victim who is also homeless. Once the person’s clothes were wet, Dickson allegedly tried to set the victim on fire with a cigarette lighter, according to Lt. Saul Rodriguez with the Santa Monica Police Department. The victim was not hurt and no fire was set. With the police station just one block away, officers arrived quickly and took Dickson into custody. The coffee shop was shut down after it became a crime scene. A look at Dickson’s criminal hisMatthew Hall
SEE SMO PAGE 4
AIRPORT: The City Council and Airport Commission will both discuss closure of the airport this week.
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