INSIDE SCOOP
EDITORIAL
NATIONAL
PROTEST VIDEO HAS STAR POWER PAGE 3 KID SAFETY COMES FIRST PAGE 4 RECESSION HERE TO STAY PAGE 13
THURSDAY, DECEMBER 4, 2008
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Volume 7 Issue 329
Santa Monica Daily Press NUTTY FOR BRITTLE SEE PAGE 7
Since 2001: A news odyssey
THE TREADING LIGHTLY ISSUE
Settlement reached in housing suit BY MELODY HANATANI Daily Press Staff Writer
SAN VICENTE BLVD The once evicted tenants of a historically landmarked apartment complex have found their way back home. A group of housing discrimination lawsuits filed against the owners of the Teriton over the past two years were settled recently to allow all tenants who were evicted to reas-
sume their former leases if they wish, the City Attorney’s Office announced on Wednesday. The announcement came after a long battle between tenants and the landlord — religious group Or Khaim Hashalom (OKH) — over their plans to demolish the gardenstyle complex at 130-142 San Vicente Blvd. to construct condominiums that would house Jewish refugees from the Middle East.
The settlement requires that all tenancies be restored to their former rent-controlled rates and return to the Rent Control Board’s jurisdiction. Out of the 28 units in the building, approximately 10 are occupied by residents from the old leases, according to Rosario Perry, who is the secretary on the organization’s Board of Directors and also serves as its legal representative. Perry was also named as a defendant in the suits.
The organization will also be required to pay monetary restitution to each tenant at an undisclosed amount and keep the property on the rental market for at least three years with an additional one-year grace period for tenants to move out. “This case shows the city’s commitment to fair housing laws and keeping an open SEE SETTLEMENT PAGE 10
Brandon Wise brandonw@smdp.com
GOING UP? People work out on the popular Fourth Street stairs. The stairs, which are located in Los Angeles, often attract people who use a median on Fourth Street to exercise.
City Hall to work with Los Angeles on median issue BY MELODY HANATANI Daily Press Staff Writer
CITY HALL No stairs, no median circus. While authorities continue to patrol a grassy traffic island that has long doubled as an outdoor fitness center, city officials are learning the possible root cause of all the
problems sits outside of their jurisdiction. The City Council on Tuesday held a study session regarding the neighborhood impacts from group exercising at a popular median on the corner of Fourth Street and Adelaide Drive where unnerved residents have complained about the noise, traffic and litter left behind.
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Residents who attended the council meeting said the reason why fitness buffs converge in the neighborhood is not because of the median, but for the stairs off Fourth Street leading down to the Santa Monica Canyon. The stairs were constructed to give children living in the north end of the city direct
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access to a public school in the canyon, according to Councilmember Bob Holbrook. Children in the neighborhood now attend the Santa Monica-Malibu Unified School District. “The rationale for the (stairs) being there SEE MEDIAN PAGE 11
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