FRIDAY, MAY 27, 2005
Volume 4, Issue 168
FR EE
Santa Monica Daily Press A newspaper with issues
Council needs justification for hikes
DAILY LOTTERY SUPER LOTTO 4 15 23 26 47 Meganumber: 23 Jackpot: $26 Million
BY RYAN HYATT Daily Press Staff Writer
FANTASY 5 5 9 16 19 28
DAILY 3 Daytime: Evening:
846 308
DAILY DERBY 1st: 2nd: 3rd:
07 Eureka! 12 Lucky Charms 02 Lucky Star
RACE TIME:
1:46.85
NEWS OF THE WEIRD BY
CHUCK
SHEPARD
■ In 1992, News of the Weird reported that artist Janine Antoni carved huge blocks of chocolate and lard using her teeth, but at New York City’s “LMAKprojects” gallery in February, artist Emily Katrencik gnawed sections of the drywall separating the gallery’s exhibition space from the director’s office, for 30 minutes a day, five days a week. Katrencik said she concentrates on thinking of “the things in the wall that are good for me, like calcium and iron.” But, she said, “I prefer cast concrete because it has a more metallic flavor.” ■ The mother of all of those recreation-room paintings of dogs playing poker is the series of nine originals by Cassius Marcellus Coolidge in 1903, sponsored by a Minnesota advertising company, and in February, two of those masterpieces were sold by the Doyle New York auction house for a total of $590,400. Explaining the high price, Doyle’s director of paintings pointed out that the auction coincided with both New York’s Westminster Dog Show and the recent popularity of televised poker.
TODAY IN HISTORY Today is the 147th day of 2005. There are 218 days left in the year. On May 27, 1937, the newly completed Golden Gate Bridge connecting San Francisco and Marin County, Calif., was opened to the public. In 1896, 255 people were killed when a tornado struck St. Louis, Mo., and East St. Louis, Ill. In 1933, Walt Disney’s Academy Awardwinning animated short “The Three Little Pigs” was first released. In 1935, the Supreme Court struck down the National Industrial Recovery Act.
INDEX Horoscopes Be out late tonight, Taurus
2
Surf Report Water temperature: 62°
3
Opinion Knowing write from wrong
4
Local Hail to the chief
7
Entertainment Animal instincts
8
Comics Strips tease
CITY HALL — Elected officials want justification for a slew of utility hikes being proposed for Santa Monica residents. Santa Monica City Councilmembers said on Wednesday that they need more information to understand why a series of utility rate service fee increases are being
proposed, before they approve them. The request comes after a May 17 staff presentation in which the finance department proposed to dramatically increase city water, wastewater, stormwater and solid waste fees to shore up City Hall’s declining utility funds. “We are not going to raise the rates without pain, because we are going to have to go through some
12
pain, too,” said Councilman Ken Genser to Craig Perkins, director of the city’s environmental and public works management department, which oversees the city’s water and solid waste utility services. “What I want to know is, when rate payers pay their check every month, where is that money going?” The City Council has requested the information before it takes
action on the rate increases on June 14. Santa Monicans can expect sudden to gradual rate increases in water and solid-waste fees over the next few years because officials said expenditures are exceeding revenues for those services. City Hall’s report details how solid waste, water, wastewater and See UTILITIES, page 10
Bummer, dude: SM beaches fail the test BY CAROLYN SACKARIASON Daily Press Staff Writer
Santa Monica officers will be directing traffic at key intersections throughout the downtown and beach areas every weekend throughout the summer to keep vehicles and pedestrians moving safely and easily about town. Fabrega said people should expect delays with the crowds. “It’s going to be busy, so please be patient with pedestrians if you are driving,” he said. “And if you are walking, please be patient with vehicles.” The SMPD’s traffic division suggests motorists steer clear from the more well-known routes into downtown. “Lincoln Boulevard and Fifth Street are far less crowded approaches to downtown than Fourth Street,” said Lt. Clinton Muir, head of SMPD’s traffic division. “We encourage visitors to ‘take the Fifth’ toward down-
SM BEACH — All areas of the beach in Santa Monica got a failing grade this past winter by an environmental group that tracks water quality in the bay. Heal the Bay, a Santa Monica-based nonprofit group dedicated to cleaning up the bay, released its 15th annual Beach Report Card this week. In Santa Monica, Heal the Bay listed the area off of Montana Trash talk: Agencies Avenue as one of the biggest “beach bummers.” send clear message Santa Monica Beach at Montana Avenue plummeted from BY JOYCE CHANG a 2003-04 summer dry weather Special to the Daily Press grade of “A” to an “F” with bacteria levels in June of 2004 far Two public agencies are exceeding the threshold for what’s throwing millions of dollars healthy. into a campaign aimed at curb“What that means, basically, is ing storm water pollution. that bacteria densities were The “Don’t Trash Califorthrough the roof,” said Mark Gold, nia” message to be delivered executive director of Heal the Bay. throughout the state will cost That area of the beach received $6.5 million and is headed up a “D” grade for water quality durby the California Department ing the dry months, between April of Transportation and the Los and October of 2004, and an “F” Angeles County Department of between April, 2004, and March, Public Works. 2005. The 22-month campaign The city of Santa Monica is curwill run through September rently installing a diversion in the 2006. Caltrans will use $6.5 area, which should be completed million in funding from the gas soon. However, in the past year, tax portion of the state highway stormwater runoff has gone account. To help reach area resstraight into the ocean. idents, the public works depart“They haven’t finished the ment will contribute $560,000 diversion yet and they are having See TRASH TALK, page 10 flows during the summer,” Gold said. “Normally, you don’t get any flow there at all.” While five other areas along Santa Monica’s coast also received “F’s” during the wet months — when stormwater runoff pollution is at its highest — during the dry months, Santa Monica beaches varied in grades between “A” and “B.”
See SUMMER, page 11
See BUMMERS, page 10
Fabian Lewkowicz/Special to the Daily Press Crowds at the beach, like this one last weekend, are expected again over the holiday as warm temperatures are expected to continue.
Authorities gear up for summer BY CAROLYN SACKARIASON Daily Press Staff Writer
As hundreds of thousands of people are expected to head to the beach this weekend — the unofficial start of summer — local authorities are gearing up to handle the influx. There will be more lifeguards, police, trash collectors and parking officers placed throughout town and its sandy shores to be ready to deal with the increased pressure of people. Santa Monica Police Department Lt. Frank Fabrega said additional officers will be deployed in high traffic areas, as well as patrolling throughout the city. That means residents and visitors will see more uniformed cops directing traffic, patrolling the beach on ATVs and motorcycling the streets. More park rangers also will be deployed. For the fifth year in a row,
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