TUESDAY, JUNE 7, 2005
Volume 4, Issue 177
FR EE
Santa Monica Daily Press A newspaper with issues
DAILY LOTTERY
Common threads in visions for mall
Better put a coat on
SUPER LOTTO 14 15 39 42 45 Meganumber: 11 Jackpot: $44 Million
FANTASY 5 4 8 20 31 37
DAILY 3 Daytime: Evening:
788 576
DAILY DERBY 1st: 2nd: 3rd:
11 Money Bags 07 Eureka! 01 Gold Rush
RACE TIME:
1:49.23
NEWS OF THE WEIRD BY
CHUCK
BY RYAN HYATT
SHEPARD
Daily Press Staff Writer ■ In a February report to the U.S. Department of Education, the District of Columbia public school system revealed a chronic-truancy rate of 23 percent (15,000 of its 65,000 students absent without excuse at least 15 days a year), many times higher than the rate for adjacent or comparable jurisdictions. (However, a March report of the D.C. Inspector General partially undermined that number, pointing out that the schools’ $4.5 million computer system was incapable of identifying which students are at which schools.) ■ In February, the Washington, D.C., Department of Health chose an elementary school cafeteria as the site for a weekend sterilization/vaccination program for stray and feral cats. Although workers put down plastic sheets and towels, when students and teachers arrived the next school day, they were overwhelmed with odors of ether and cat urine. Only then did officials decide to cancel lunch, and classes, for a complete cleaning and disinfecting.
TODAY IN HISTORY Today is the 158th day of 2005. There are 207 days left in the year. On June 7, 1776, Richard Henry Lee of Virginia proposed to the Continental Congress a resolution calling for a Declaration of Independence.
QUOTE OF THE DAY “The slight that can be conveyed in a glance, in a gracious smile, in a wave of the hand, is often the ne plus ultra of art. What insult is so keen or so keenly felt, as the polite insult which it is impossible to resent?”
JULIA KAVANAGH
IRISH NOVELIST (1824-1877)
INDEX Horoscopes Your treat tonight, Taurus
2
Surf Report Water temperature: 61°
3
Opinion Partners in crime
4
Commentary Barking up the palm tree
5
SM Parenting Keep your pants on
8
State Golden State with reddish tint
10
International Saddam suits up
12
People in the News Touch-tone trouble
16
The Playland Arcade is the oldest continuously operating business on the Santa Monica Pier, employing as many as 30 people during the peak summer months. Gordon is survived by his wife,
DOWNTOWN — Those boldly envisioning what Santa Monica Place might become are starting to get a dose of reality. A consultant issued a report last Thursday detailing the common themes that emerged from a series of four public workshops held in March intended for residents to “reimagine” what Santa Monica Place Mall might become. More than 300 residents took part in the gatherings to determine what should be done about the downtown indoor shopping mall between Broadway and Colorado Avenue, and Second and Fourth streets. The report said many wanted to see an extension of the Third Street Promenade continue to Main Street, a modest level of building height, and design schemes that incorporate cultural and open space — as well as providing a variety of commercial opportunities for the area. Workshop participants used scaled blocks and maps to generate ideas about what features any revitalization of Santa Monica Place should include. Their discussions were the basis for the June 2 report published by Moore Iacofono and Goltsman, Inc., the consultant firm hired by the city of Santa Monica to facilitate the design process. MIG has also received more than 2,000 comments from residents regarding the redevelopment of the mall from those who did not attend the workshops. These comments, along with some taken from a recent citywide survey, will be discussed in a future report. How to go about redeveloping Santa Monica Place is something
See GORDON, page 6
See SM PLACE, page 6
Fabian Lewkowicz/Special to the Daily Press Volunteers from Santa Monica High School’s Pep Squad paint the pool in the outdoor theatre over the weekend in anticipation of the Jackson Browne fund-raiser concert performed there on Sunday.
Original pier player Gordon, 91, dies BY RYAN HYATT Daily Press Staff Writer
George Gordon, who co-founded the Playland Arcade located on the Santa Monica Pier, died on April 13. He was 91. Gordon was born in Philadelphia on October 15, 1913. He moved out to California in 1941, serving in the United States Navy during the Second World War. After the war, he operated a route owning and servicing pinball machines located in bars and arcades. Gordon, his father, Morris, and his late brother, Gene, opened the Playland Arcade in 1952. Four generations of the Gordon family have since owned and operated amusements located on the Santa Monica Pier, including the Carousel, children’s rides, a shooting gallery, a billiard parlor and an archery range. Gordon was known as a champion who was always prepared to confront the unsteady political climates, fierce storms and constant wear that has threatened the Santa Monica Pier in the past.
Photos courtesy George Gordon and his wife June (at left) enjoy a day at the Santa Monica beach in 1945. (right) Gordon speaks during the re-opening of the Playland Arcade.
Santa Monica City Councilman Ken Genser said his passing marks the end of an era. “It’s very sad to hear about George’s passing,” Genser said. “We have not only lost a unique individual, but we are also losing a link to our past.”
GABY SCHKUD
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