The Argonaut Newspaper — April 23, 2020

Music for The Gram The Westchester Arts & Music Block Party connects artists to audiences through Instagram Live

L E T T E R S

An Open Letter to LA Mayor Eric Garcetti: Tell “vacationers” to be “staycationers” I wrote to your office about a month ago when this stay at home order first began. Your office has been handling this pandemic issue promptly and thank goodness the flattening of the curve has begun. However, I’m afraid that this good news has prompted people to feel secure that this pandemic is over when it is not.

This false security is creating a problem once again with the tourists and inland visitors flooding Venice. Last weekend, Friday and Saturday (April 11 & 12) were quite sunny and brought tourists out in hoards as if there is no health threat.

I’m hoping that at your next press conference you can remind

people of the following: That a bright sunny day is not a vacation day during this pandemic.

That bringing their children who, like the aged are more vulnerable and susceptible to this virus, creates a true health hazard when crowding the beach communities.

That there is still a stay at home order.

That we must still follow the six foot distancing advice, which seems not to be followed when people think they’re on vacation.

Please let them know that tourist destinations and their residents are also following this protocol.

That staying at home flattens the curve and it’s because of the stay at home order that this flattening is occurring.

We have elderly people in our community worried about the crowds, and worried about lack of parking spaces due to these “vacationers” not taking this pandemic seriously. They are putting our community at risk and their irresponsible behavior could mean death to someone else.

Sincerely, Eva Greene Venice Resident

PHOTO BY LINDA FELDMAN

Thanks So Much for the Magazine! … Even though we’re not in it this month, it’s a lifeline for us Westsiders. A real upper in these uncharted waters. Stay well, safe, happy. See you when it’s safe to dock. ‘Ahoy’ till then!

Carolyn Allport Education & PR Chair Women’s Sailing Association of Santa Monica Bay

Isolating on the Water in Marina del Rey We decided to go for a ride on the boat to get away from everybody and catch some sun.

Linda Feldman and her dog Bella Krissel Marina del Rey An Open Letter to Santa Monica City Mayor Kevin McKeown and the Santa Monica City Council: First, let us thank you as well as our dedicated Santa Monica city manager and city staff for all

your hard work during these very stressful times.

We are very well aware of the budget challenges and likely deep cuts that will be needed in Santa Monica during and following this coronavirus pandemic.

Many concerned Santa Monica residents will certainly be urging you at your upcoming May 5 city council online public meeting to please protect many important services.

Police, fire fighters, educators, art and culture advocates, youth, seniors, people with disabilities, advocates for our homeless, renters, and city employees, just to name a few will likely all be speaking up.

We would strongly urge you… implore you... to please continue to give our environment and our urban forest the high priority you have always given them here in Santa Monica.

It’s been 50 years since the first Earth Day. Climate change will remain a life-threatening concern even after we get through this devastating pandemic.

Santa Monica has always said our trees, next to our people, are our most important resource.

I don’t have to explain to you just how valuable they are

We do understand that many across-the-board budget cuts will be necessary and that we all must be prepared for budget cuts.

But we must not now…not ever… put our trees and our environment on anything less than a very high priority.

Again, thank you! Our entire Santa Monica community must work together…with respect, love, patience and positive energy… especially now!

Peace and gratitude, Jerry and Marissa Rubin Tree Hugging Friends facebook.com/TreeHuggingFriends From the web Re: Cover Story: “Seams of Innovation: With needles, 3D printers & thread, Westsiders arm the front against COVID-19,” April 9, 2020 Mask making is a lot of work :) I broke two sewing needles. @w.tuberose via Instagram

We Want to Hear from You! Being in print is a lot more meaningful than grouching on Facebook.

Send compliments, complaints and

insights about local issues to christinac@argonautnews.com.

ON THE COVER: Mentored by John Legend, former “Voice” contestant Mendeleyev Allan-Blitz brings his deep and soothing sound to the Westchester Arts & Music Block Party’s virtual concert series on Friday, May 1.

Photo courtesy of the artist. Design by Arman Olivares.

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Editor: Christina Campodonico (310) 574-7654 Contributing Writers: Amy Alkon, Lisa Beebe, Bliss Bowen, Kellie Chudzinski, Shanee Edwards, Jacqueline Fitzgerald, Jason Hill, Danny Karel, Jessica Koslow, Angela Matano, Brian Marks, Colin Newton, Jennifer Pellerito, Audrey Cleo Yap, Lawrence Yee Editorial Interns: Sofia Alfaro, Stephanie Bell, Anthony Torrise ART Graphic Designers: Arman Olivares (310) 574-7656 Kate Doll (310) 574-7653 Contributing Photographers: Mia Duncans, Maria Martin, Shilah Montiel, Ashley Randall, Courtnay Robbins, Jason Ryan, Ted Soqui, Zsuzsi Steiner

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N E W S

Signs of Hope Health experts are optimistic during LA Councilman Mike Bonin’s telephone town hall on coronavirus

By Danny Karel The daily death toll of the novel coronavirus continues to rise across Los Angeles — 600 fatalities and 12,341 cases have been confirmed as of this writing.

Yet, despite these grim statistics, Dr. Jan King of the LA County Department of Public Health, had reasons to be optimistic.

“The situation is currently looking pretty hopeful,” King said during a telephone town hall meeting Saturday morning hosted by District 11 LA City Councilman Mike Bonin, featuring King and four other county representatives and medical experts.

Citing the increasing availability of testing for those experiencing COVID-19 symptoms, King said it’s now possible to book an appointment and receive a test the same day or the day after, and the plateauing

Bonin’s teleconference featured health and policy experts such as Louise McCarthy, MPP, and Dr. Dan Ruderman of USC In order to sustain this progress number of hospitalizations looking growth, it’s now toward containing the virus, suggests that the Safer at Home transitioned to a very different those who are exhibiting ordinance is working. phase. It shows the importance symptoms — fever, fatigue, dry Dr. Dan Ruderman, an assistant of physical distancing.” cough — should get tested as professor of research medicine at Ruderman also noted that in soon as possible.

USC, echoed King’s optimism.

Bonin’s district the spread of Louise McCarthy, who heads “In the data I’ve seen this the infection has been signifithe Community Clinic Associacantly slower than the rest of tremendous effect,” Ruderman tion of LA County, urged said. “While it started off as this Los Angeles by a factor of people to call their regular about half. exponential, very frightening

health care providers before turning to clinics and county resources for testing.

At a time when nonprofit clinics are attempting to increase their capacity to serve patients, she said, in-person visits, the basis on which they receive funding, have fallen by 40 to 70%.

For those exhibiting symptoms, the quickest way to access testing is to call 211, which offers clear information about community health resources, or by visiting coronavirus.LA, a website established by the mayor’s office. Through this website, individuals can register for testing, find community health resources, access a wealth of helpful information about the virus, and learn about the actions being taken by the city.

Members of the panel expressed hope that testing will soon be expanded to those who aren’t

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experiencing symptoms. This step, along with antibody testing, a separate process that aims to identify individual immunity to COVID-19, will play key roles in determining when and how society will reopen.

Meanwhile, Bonin focused on the socioeconomic impacts of the virus, mentioning his plans to use part of the city’s portion of the federal bailout fund to address the homelessness crisis and create more affordable housing by buying “hotels that go belly-up, or use that to buy the distressed properties that are absolutely going to be on the market at cheaper prices after the crisis is over…”

This comment drew the ire of at least some local landlords on social media and in letters to The Argonaut, who hoped that bailout funds would be redirected to help them weather the financial predicament of being asked to pay property taxes and mortgages while their tenants are temporarily exempt from paying rent as a result of the city’s eviction moratorium. The distressed properties Bonin alluded to, they feared, might

“In the data I’ve seen this tremendous effect.

While it started off as this exponential, very frightening looking growth, it’s now transitioned to a very different phase. It shows the importance of physical distancing.”

— Dr. Dan Ruderman, Keck School of Medicine of USC be their own.

Responding to an elderly caller from Westchester who was concerned about contracting the virus while shopping for groceries and collecting her mail, King emphasized the effectiveness of regular hand washing and social distancing.

King also cited a study, which found that the virus can live on metal or plastic for up to three days, and on cardboard or paper for a day or slightly longer.

So far, there have been no documented cases of individuals contracting the virus from picking up their mail, but caution would dictate letting mail sit for a day or two.

While at grocery stores, King

advised people to avoid touching items they don’t plan to buy, and when ordering takeout, she suggested they remove their food from the carton, dispose of the carton, and wash their hands immediately afterward.

However, because the odds of contracting the virus from takeout and food delivery remains low, Bonin encouraged residents to patronize their local restaurants.

“If you can afford it, call one of your local restaurants and order delivery, because those places are really hurting,” he said.

Bonin also outlined other steps the district is considering, like closing certain residential streets to vehicle traffic and

opening them up to pedestrians, which would make it easier for walkers and cyclists to practice social distancing. On April 13, Bonin asked the Los Angeles Department of Transportation to consider this measure after receiving formal requests from the Del Rey Neighborhood Council and West LA residents who have proposed creating “slow zones” for motorists, some of whom have “taken advantage of congestion-free streets to speed recklessly,” according to Bonin.

Bonin also used the opportunity to praise front-line workers keeping society running, and various volunteer groups that have sprung up across the city,

among them Westside Friends (westsidefriends.com), where volunteers can sign up to make grocery and pharmacy runs for their neighbors; Westside Pacific Villages (thewpv.org), which organizes a senior support network; Mutual Aid LA (mutualaidla.org), which connects people with financial aid and other services; and Project Mask, whose volunteers sew and distribute masks to hospitals, nursing homes, and people in need. It’s also possible to order masks for individuals and essential businesses through a city website, laprotects.org.

Town halls over the next few weeks will focus on renter and small business issues. Information about future telephone town halls is available on 11thdistrict.com.

“This is not forever,” said Greg Good, a member of Mayor Eric Garcetti’s senior leadership team, in his final remarks to the town hall. “We’ll get through this, but we have to make sure we stay together.”

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APRIL 23, 2020 THE ARGONAUT PAGE 5

N E W S

A Hero’s Send-Off & A Call for Armor LAPD Detective released from St. John’s after COVID-19 recovery amid health care worker protest for more PPE PHOTOS BY LIUIS CHAVEZ

By Kellie Chudzinski Last week, Michael Chang was fighting for his life against the novel coronavirus.

But on April 17, the LAPD detective was released from Providence Saint John’s Health Center in Santa Monica and ready to continue his recovery at home.

Cheers from dozens of LAPD officers and hospital staff greeted Chang as he was wheeled out of the hospital.

Following signs of illness beginning on March 26, Chang initially began COVID-19 treatment in Orange County, then was transported to Saint John’s on April 7 in “extremely critical condition,” where he went on to participate in a clinical drug trial.

When asked what got him through his difficult time in the hospital, Chang, wearing a face mask as news crews gathered around him at a safe distance, simply pointed to his wife and sons standing behind him.

“You never know if it’s the last time you’ll see [your] loved ones.

You’re on your own,” he said.

With visitation to COVID-19 patients limited in hospitals, he was able to stay connected to his family members through

LAPD Det. Michael Chang credited his family and St. John’s for helping him survive COVID-19 frequent video chats.

“I would truly, truly, truly want to thank the nurses and all the staff upstairs,” Chang added. “I sat there for I don’t know how many days watching them come in, and they have the greatest attitudes in the world. And they’re coming here every day for people like me.”

A team of doctors, including Dr. Raymond Lee and Dr. Terese Hammond, treated Chang. Both doctors explained that he was given a variety of treatments, including the use of a ventilator.

Chang was also placed on an ECMO (extracorporeal mem-

brane oxygenation) machine, which oxygenates the blood outside of the body, acting as a set of external lungs, and a promising drug, Sarilumab, which is typically used to fight cancer and works to reduce organ inflammation.

“The ECMO takes over the function of the lung and allows him to come down on the high ventilator settings, which can become harmful to the lungs itself and buys us time to let all those drugs start to work,” Hammond said.

“My heart breaks every time we lose a patient,” Lee said, after

elbow bumping with Chang outside of the hospital. “Every time we save a patient during this crisis, it reminds me why we take this job and why we do what we do.”

Of the detective, Hammond added that he would need oxygen at home and that recovery from COVID-19 is uncertain.

“There’s going to be a new normal” as patients recover, he said, adding, “we have to respect this virus.”

Before Chang’s release, nurses protested outside Saint John’s in solidarity with colleagues who had spoken out about the

hospital’s lack of personal protective equipment, PPE, specifically N95 masks that block out 95 percent of airborne particles, for nurses on the medical center’s COVID-19 ward. The protest came days after 10 nurses were suspended from the hospital when they refused to treat patients without the high-grade medical masks. One Saint John’s nurse, speaking to local broadcast news outlets on Friday, alleged that she had contracted the virus while treating patients at the hospital.

“I believe that I contracted COVID-19 while I was at work because I did not have enough protection,” nurse Angela Gatdula told ABC 7 Los Angeles via video chat from home.

After Chang was driven off by his wife Dana, Hammond thanked the hospital’s nurses, two of whom were outside for the send-off.

In a statement, the hospital said it was providing N95 masks to nurses caring for COVID-19 patients as well as those awaiting test results.

STAY...

• LOCALLY UPDATED • PROPERLY INFORMED • SAFE At a time when the entire world is in an ever-changing state, and health concerns are paramount, you can continue to rely on The Argonaut to keep you informed on how the COVID-19 virus is affecting your local community. We appreciate the trust placed in us as the news and voice of the community.

Being good stewards of that trust means we are here for you, especially in difficult times.

ArgonautNews.com PAGE 6 THE ARGONAUT APRIL 23, 2020

I N

T H E

C O M M U N I T Y

We’re All in this Together, Apart From grab-and-go meals to online magic shows, LAUSD is here for West LA

By Nick Melvoin Melvoin represents District 4 on the school board of the Los Angeles Unified School District.

At 8 a.m. on Monday, I was at Webster Middle School in West LA, but not, of course, to check-in on classes or students.

Although it’s only been five weeks since we closed schools, the world, and LA Unified, look a whole lot different. But our core mission of educating kids and supporting our community remains unchanged. And that’s why I was at Webster, visiting one of our Grab & Go food centers to see how things were going for the volunteers and families they’re serving.

Our first priority when schools closed was getting 63 Grab & Go food centers up and running — including at Marina del Rey Middle School in your area — that have served over 10 million meals and counting; LA Unified is running the largest food bank in the country. All of our Grab & Go centers are open Monday through Friday, 8 a.m. to 11 a.m., with meals available to anyone in need, no questions asked.

From there, I joined a Zoom call with parents from Coeur d’Alene in Venice to discuss the transition to distance learning. In order to ensure every student had equitable access to the materials needed to connect and continue learning, we made an emergency investment of $100 million in devices and mobile hotspots.

Luckily, some of our schools had less of a hurdle getting devices into kids’ hands because my office funded new instructional

School board member Nick Melvoin hands out packaged meals to local students and we’re doing our best to technology through our bond provide needed resources to kids grant program over the past two and families. You can visit years — including Chromebook achieve.lausd.net/resources or carts at Mar Vista Elementary, call our COVID-19 family Grand View Elementary, and hotline (213) 443-1300 to view a Katherine Johnson STEM full list of resources and services Academy, and new iPads at available for students, families, Cowan Elementary. and employees during this time.

But this crisis has exposed And if you want to help our more than just the digital divide

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efforts, consider donating at LAStudentsMostinNeed.org. The district has also launched a mental health hotline, so anyone can call (213) 241-3840 for help.

I also have been hosting regular virtual conversations with leaders, experts, and parents, and so far we have had conversations about fostering resilience and well-being and how to support our earliest learners, plus a magic show for kids and families. Join us every Wednesday at 4:30 p.m. live at facebook.com/nick.melvoin.

Every family should have access to a great education — even while staying home. And you don’t have to look further than your own neighborhoods to know it’s possible. We’ve seen the teachers and staff at Beethoven Elementary meeting on Zoom to share best practices, learn from each other, and develop learning plans. Mark Twain Middle School’s staff, on top of transitioning to online learning, have

been creating videos to lift their students’ spirits. And we helped coordinate and distribute 400 donated headphones, in partnership with One Family LA, to students who needed them to minimize distractions while learning at home. We also worked with the Del Rey Neighborhood Council to set up local meal delivery from our Grab & Go sites. And when I was at Webster this morning, I also was able to thank our construction teams who are diligently, and safely, continuing to make needed facilities repairs and improvements. The work goes on.

We are all doing our best to adapt to an ever-evolving situation. No amount of technology can match a “typical” day at school, but we will continue working tirelessly, thinking creatively, and providing support to get our kids, families and school communities through this crisis together, but apart.

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I N T E R V I E W

Santa Monica City Manager Rick Cole Steps Down His exit interview looks ahead to the state of cities during and after COVID-19

By Planning Report Staff A version of this story originally appeared on The Planning Report. Visit planningreport.com to learn more.

On April 17, Rick Cole announced his resignation as Santa Monica’s City Manager. City Attorney Lane Dilg has been appointed as his interim replacement through a unanimous vote by the city council.

Citing the city’s immediate need to deal with a projected $300 million shortfall over the next 26 months, Cole’s resignation letter asserts he stepped down “to facilitate the restructuring that must take place” for staff reductions at every level of the city’s workforce.

“The global pandemic has drastically changed our prospects,” wrote Cole in his letter posted to the city of Santa Monica’s website. “All this has forced us to consider dire and immediate budget reductions. …

Never one to turn my back on a challenge, I was prepared to persevere in the face of this daunting battle and lead our organization through this crisis. … On reflection, however, there comes a time to recognize one’s limits. … The capable staff that remain will carry on the mission and pursue the vision of a city that works for everyone.”

Shared here is The Planning Report’s weekend conversation with Cole in which he elaborates on the navigational challenges 21st-century cities now face — including the sacrifices that remain as the challenges of COVID-19 grow in magnitude.

You were quoted in the LA Times story on your departure as City Manager of Santa Monica that, “If I have to be the scapegoat for this, if I have to be the teller of bad news, I am prepared to do that, because that’s my job under the charter. That’s what you hired me to do.” How will courageous leaders be able to navigate the coming crippling impacts to local government budgets?

Rick Cole: First, those crippling impacts are already here.

Santa Monica will fall $72 million short of our revenue estimates this fiscal year, with no

Rick Cole sees COVID-19 as an opportunity for cities to radically shift into the 21st century time to make it up. Our Chief Financial Officer’s best projection was a $154 million shortfall in the new fiscal year starting July 1. That’s a 38% hit. No amount of state or federal aid can solve that gap — and they have their own problems. While Santa Monica’s drop is greater because our sales, business and hotel revenues were stronger than most cities, all cites were already struggling with pension obligations. More than a quarter of LA County cities asked for tax increases in the March election. Many of them fell short. Long Beach won by just 16 votes out of 100,000 cast.

This pandemic exponentially compounds the existing crisis in local government finance.

Second, this is a time when we actually need an expanded and more dynamic role for local government. For years, we’ve seen ourselves as the provider of a set of legacy services: police, fire, libraries, parks, land use planning etc. We forgot that all those services were actually invented to respond to the challenge of industrializing America a century ago. We continue to provide them without adequately re-examining their fit for the world we live in today. If we were starting from scratch today, we would design a government that looked more like the iPhone than the rotary phone. But of course we can’t start from scratch – we have tens of thousands of dedicated people in public service trying to use

PAGE 8 THE ARGONAUT APRIL 23, 2020

rotary phone government to meet 21st century needs.

So, what does that mean for courageous leaders? I think it means doing what courageous leaders did a century ago. In the face of the disorder, disease, illiteracy and land use chaos of America’s cities, the Progressive Era ushered in a period of historic reform, innovation and institutional change. It sure wasn’t easy then. It sure won’t be easy now. But I can’t believe we are any less far-sighted or courageous than the leaders of 100 years ago.

What does 21st century government look like – besides an iPhone?

Cole: First, it is focused not around providing services, but around producing outcomes.

Let’s take homelessness. The 20th century response would be to create a Homelessness Department to battle homelessness, just like we created fire departments to battle fires. But here’s what we learned from history about fires. It’s not because firefighters got really good at responding to fires that today we have only a fraction of the fires we did 100 years ago.

It’s because we got really good at preventing them — with rigorous building codes that require sprinklers and firewalls enforced with annual inspections. It also helps that people no longer smoke in bed. A couple of years ago, we had exactly 47 structure

fires in Santa Monica. That’s less than one a week. That’s a spectacular public policy success. But it came from mobilizing intelligent, long-term preventative strategies while continuing to have top-notch response capability for the few fires that still break out. We need to apply that lesson to homelessness and get really smart about preventing it, not only responding to it.

Second, we can learn from the private sector without copying the private sector. People who say government can – or should – be run like a business are delusional. But market competition has produced some valuable lessons from the best companies – and those are the ones we should pay attention to. First, the supreme value of talent.

Our human resources model in Santa Monica is embedded in a charter adopted in 1947. Back then, the criteria for being a clerk typist was how fast you could type. A 21st century government focuses more on attracting people with potential, not screening for credentials – and develops them to be nimble, creative, independent thinkers to collaborate with the community, non-profits and the private sector to solve problems.

We need to be smarter about using data to measure and improve our performance just as businesses use metrics to sharpen their competitive edge.

Another best practice is the smart use of technology. Every day in Santa Monica, we encountered homeless people in the course of our duties. At dawn, a public works crew might encounter someone sleeping in the park. Later, a fire engine or police car might be summoned because that person is now sleeping on a sidewalk.

Meanwhile, our homeless outreach team might make contact. Later, they might be sleeping in our library, which is against the rules. But none of those contacts was known or shared across our departments.

We partnered with a start-up out of the Digital Health Lab at USC to develop a phone app that could securely record those encounters with appropriate privacy constraints. It also links our data with the system social

service agencies use to share information on their clients. So a police officer could text a social worker about a client that missed their last appointment. That’s what I mean by the comparison to the iPhone.

Will this crisis hasten or delay a shift to 21st century government?

Cole: Well, that’s in our hands. As Cassius told Brutus in another memorable crisis, if we don’t act, “the fault is not in our stars, but in ourselves.” As Rahm Emmanuel famously said, “never let a good crisis go to waste.” That is not an invitation to opportunism — that is a call to be equal to the challenge. We are hunkered down in our homes now. But when we emerge from them, we can’t hunker down in obsolete formulas of outmoded government bureaucracy. No one knows when or how this will end, but it will end. Our job in the public sector is to lay the foundation for a more equitable, more sustainable and more resilient life in the cities of the future. For the last five thousand years, despite periodic plagues and pestilences, cities have been the source of our civilization and extraordinary economic progress. I heard recently that it took 400 years for the population of Europe to recover from the Black Plague. Yet because of that catastrophic disruption of feudal stagnation, the plague opened the path to the Renaissance. I’m not saying the plague created the Renaissance. I’m saying visionaries seized the opportunity for change. They created vibrant new ways of living as the old ways were dying.

In just eight years, Los Angeles will welcome the world with the Olympics. We won’t be able to hide our problems away for two weeks. We will have to use this time to solve them. Let’s remember and act on the words of Lincoln: “The dogmas of the quiet past are inadequate to the stormy present. The occasion is piled high with difficulty and we must rise with the occasion. As our case is new, we must think and act anew. We must disenthrall ourselves and then we shall save our country.”

S T O R Y

Music for The Gram this is the first time he’ll be doing a live show on Instagram. He’s not sure what to expect from the experience, but plans to “improvise” a lot and maybe even bring in a percussionist or two — from a safe social distance of course.

While his touring gig as Ben Harper’s opener is on pause for now, he’s enjoyed the unfettered time to plunge into his creativity during self-isolation — and the limits it provides.

“I think the only way to stay sane in this wacky time is to stay creative,” says Mendeleyev.

“It’s been an absolute blessing to be able to do it. Even though the computer is difficult and there’s other difficulties about being homebound, I’ve just been really stoked to be able to stay in that intense, hyper-creative space. … I have albums of recordings and so many videos. … Creativity can be really enhanced through limitations, and especially in a time like this of forced confinement.

“There are definitely ways in which I’m losing my sanity from being cooped up,” he continues.

“But staying creative seems to be the only way right now.”

Pop artist Colton Avery headlines the April 24 Friday Night Live, followed by singer-songwriter Nico Franc on May 8.

Friday Night Live starts at 6 p.m. on Fridays and continues through May 15. Watch @wamblockparty on Instagram (instagram.com/wamblockparty) or visit wamblockparty.org/ live-stream to learn more.

Illustration by Cristin Lim

donations. One out of three people is pitching in for talent,” says Sharpe, adding that so far each artist has walked away with a couple hundred dollars per show and that all donations go directly to the artist. “It’s not huge money, but if you do enough of those you can actually pay your rent.”

Americana artist Leeann Skoda, who did her first Friday Night Live show last weekend, misses being able to read a room during a gig and is still getting used to the technological aspects of doing a live show from her home — finding a nice backdrop for her set and making sure she’s close enough to the internet router for optimal connectivity — but appreciates being able to interact with audiences in a new way.

“It’s a way you can see your audience. You’re not seeing their faces, but you can see the emojis and the comments,” she says.

“It’s really fun and encouraging.”

Venice multi-genre folk artist/ producer Mendeleyev Galileo Einstein Pythagoras Darwin Euclid Leonardo Allan-Blitz, who goes simply by Mendeleyev or “Lev” for short, competed on season 17 of “The Voice” for Team John Legend and is “excited” to share his music with the WAM online community on Friday, May 1.

The multi-instrumentalist with a husky voice that Kelly Clarkson likened to “the best glass of pinot noir ever” has posted plenty of videos of his deep, sonorous vocals animated by talking animal heads, or animojis. But

PHOTOS COURTESY OF THE ARTISTS

By Christina Campodonico For some musicians, Instagram is familiar territory. For others, it’s a brave new world of musical experimentation. For John Sharpe, the organizer of the annual Westchester Arts & Music Block Party (aka WAM), the platform is an opportunity to help local musicians maintain their livelihoods as COVID-19 ravages LA and much of the world’s live music scenes.

Since early April — following city orders shutting down bars, nightclubs and many restaurants where local musicians would normally gig — Sharpe has hosted solo acts that have played at WAM or his Westchester home for house shows on WAM’s Instagram (@wamblockparty).

The online music festival leading up to (hopefully) WAM’s block party in the fall is called Friday Night Live.

The intimate, live-streamed shows, which start at 6 p.m. every Friday night, appear in the account’s Instagram Live feed and last only 24 hours before disappearing. For 50 minutes or so, a singer-songwriter croons into the camera of a smart-device connecting with audiences online through song. Viewers can actively comment throughout the set, sending hearts, clapping emojis — even song requests and questions — to the performer through the app. Sharpe also pins the handle for the musician’s Venmo or PayPal account to the live video feed — think of it like a virtual tip jar.

“We’re getting really strong

The Westchester Arts & Music Block Party brings virtual concerts to Instagram Live

Photos by Luis Chavez

C O V E R

Multi-genre folk musician Mendeleyev, Americana artist Leeann Skoda and soul singer-songwriter Nico Franc are all part of WAM’s inaugural online music festival APRIL 23, 2020 THE ARGONAUT PAGE 9

F I R S T

P E R S O N :

O N

T H E

W A T E R

Strolling in the Marina During COVID-19 Enjoy the ocean breeze, but put that face mask on tight PHOTOS BY PAUL M. J. SUCHECKI

By Paul M. J. Suchecki The Argonaut recently received an email from Summer Kjenstad, a Vista del Mar skipper, complaining that he was scared that most people on the marina promenade were not employing face masks or social distancing to prevent the spread of COVID-19. He was also worried that with beaches closed, more people were taking their seaside walks through the marina. In 40 years of sailing out of Marina del Rey, I have yet to hear anybody say, “Let’s take a postprandial stroll on the promenade,” so I had to investigate. Here is what I learned: The one in the marina officially starts behind the Marina City Club and runs in both directions along the docks.

Unlike the Venice boardwalk, pier and beach, it is officially still open, as long as people keep six feet apart and do not congregate. Remember that the land in the marina falls exclusively under LA County jurisdiction, not the city.

According to the county, through May 15, all non-essential workers are required to stay at home unless they are going to essential businesses. There, both customers and workers must wear masks, a rule similar to that in the city of Los Angeles. Beverly Hills and Glendale are stricter, requiring facial coverings whenever people leave home, including local walks. But we’re not under complete lockdown; law enforcement and local governments recognize that with gyms closed,

people do need to get outside for exercise. LA City has encouraged residents to wear face masks while exercising on its coronavirus FAQ webpage; the county does not require residents to wear face masks on solitary runs or walks.

But are locals being careful enough on their seaside strolls?

Most people I witnessed on the promenade last Sunday afternoon were wearing masks, although couples had a hard time keeping six feet apart, possibly because it’s harder to

hear somebody wearing a mask.

(Also, couples cohabitating already may not be so worried about swapping germs.)

Foot traffic appeared higher than usual, but most strollers seemed local, many walking their dogs.

Most of the people who didn’t wear masks spoke foreign languages. Russian dominated followed closely by Spanish.

Perhaps these communities could benefit from more outreach.

Many joggers and cyclists went mask free, which is

short-sighted given the fact that wearing a mask is as much a tool for stopping the spread of infection by the virus as getting infected. Pushing one’s breath out hard and fast with aerobic exercise is great for the participant, less so for the person in a cyclist’s path confronting head-on those supercharged water droplets in human breaths that carry the virus.

I noticed one peculiarity about three men wearing masks. They seemed to treat wearing them as

a fashion statement rather than true prophylactic gear. At first glance, this gentleman with gloves, a windbreaker, hat, and mask seems well prepared, but if you look at the mask, it has already slipped off his nose and is about to leave the bottom half of his mouth uncovered.

Contrast that mask with this one, used in dirt biking, and as the owner proudly boasted, “guaranteed to stop 99% of whatever reaches it from getting through.”

So what should a visitor to the marina promenade do? Recognize the reality of confronting a virus that, as of this writing, has infected 2.5 million people, killing at least 170,000 of them.

To battle this silent assassin, LA County is asking people to “wear a face covering when they are interacting with others who are not members of their household in public and private spaces” while practicing social distancing.

As Captain Kjenstad, put it, “I hope everyone will just be safe and care and have compassion for others. This is no time to be selfish.”

PAGE 10 THE ARGONAUT APRIL 23, 2020

F O O D

&

D R I N K

Groceries On the Go Take out from these pop-up marts when the grocery store is just too much PHOTO BY LINDSEY HUTTRER

By Anthony Torrise As of March 31, it’s legal for LA County restaurants to sell their pantry and produce items as groceries for delivery, pickup or to-go. So skip the lines at the grocery store and stock up at these local restaurants opening up their pantries to Westsiders now.

The Butcher’s Daughter is Now Butcher’s Bodega The Abbot Kinney eatery known for plant-based eats is now offering gourmet pantry items like walnut mushroom pate and cashew ricotta for takeout, pickup or delivery. Pair a coconut yogurt pint with one of Butcher’s healthful smoothie elixirs or 40 ounces of adaptogenic vegan collegen or tumeric, and you’ll have a fierce breakfast ready to battle COVID-19 right in your refrigerator. Delivery is available through Uber Eats, Postmates, Grubhub and Caviar.

Ready-to-Go BiiBiip Mediterranean Meals For those seeking groceries with ease, BiiBiip has got you covered. From fruits to meats to rice to salad, you can order an assortment of items through their website or you can skip cooking all together by ordering from their menu of freshly prepapred on-demand meals made with seasonal, organic and locally farmed ingredients.

9622 Venice Blvd., Culver City | (424) 603-4402 | biibiip.com

Arm Yourself Against Bacteria at Bacari PDR Bacari’s pop-up market offers same-day delivery and pickup for produce, breads, meat, dairy and sought-after sanitary supplies like wipes, paper towels and bleach. Delivery is available through Postmates.

6805 Vista Del Mar Lane, Playa del Rey | (310) 439-2100 | bacaripdr.com Satisfy Your Sweet Tooth with Huckleberry This beloved Santa Monica bakery and café known for its pastries is offering produce boxes and pantry essentials as well as family-size takeout meals and home baking kits that are sure to sweeten up your day. Delivery is offered through Chownow, Postmates, Uber Eats, Doordash, Grubhub and Caviar.

1014 Wilshire Blvd., Santa Monica. | (310) 451-2311 | huckleberrycafe.com

PHOTO BY LINDSEY HUTTRER

Make your own gourmet sandwich with Birdie G’s deli meats bread, pastries and a selection 1205 Abbot Kinney Blvd, of prepared foods. Make sure to Venice | (310) 981-3004 | keep an eye out for their salty thebutchersdaughter.com and sweet chocolate chip cookies! Order online for Rockin’ Selections at Röckpickup or delivery. enwagner 12835 Washington Blvd., Family-owned bakery, market Culver City | (310) 577-0747 | and café Röckenwagner is rockenwagnermarket.com offering fresh produce like eggs, milk, pasta and cheese as Bountiful Boxes from Lady well as boxes from County Line & Larder Harvest. You can also pick up Known for its delectable cheese and charcuterie boards, Lady & Larder has partnered with local growers County Line Harvest, Schaner Farms and Windrose and Mudcreek Ranch farms to offer no-contact, pickup produce boxes with the perfect arrangement of fruits and vegetables.

L&L also offers DIY pizza kits from Lupacotta Pizza & Dough.

Visit the website for ordering instructions and pickup times for each box.

In addition to fresh readymade meals, BiipBiip now offers 3759 Sawtelle Blvd.| (310) grocery delivery 313-4719 | ladyandlarder.com

Birdie G’s Takes Flight With Flavor Chef Jeremy Fox has opened up his larder, offering deli meats, a large selection of dry goods, sauces, pickled items and fermented goods as well as family-size takeaway meals and Girl & Dug produce boxes.

Delivery is available through Doordash, Uber Eats, Postmates, Chownow and Tock for family meals.

2421 Michigan Ave., Santa Monica. | (310) 310-3616 | birdiegsla.com

Make & savor Huckleberry’s famous sweets at home

N E W S

Corona by the Numbers & Local Updates: COVID-19 Cases Top 15,000 in LA County Reported Cases by Neighborhood as of Tuesday, April 21 Culver City: 44; Del Rey: 43; El Segundo: 21; Marina del Rey: 9; Mar Vista: 45; Playa Vista: 16; Playa del Rey: None reported; Santa Monica: 135; Venice: 40; Westchester: 53 Total Confirmed Cases in LA County: 15,147 Total Deaths: 663 • In his Tuesday night briefing, LA Mayor Eric Garcetti said the spike in numbers was due to a

backlog of 734 cases that had just cleared, and urged Angelenos to take care of their mental health during this time: “I know that the isolation is real. But whatever you’re feeling know that you’re not alone,” he said.

• The County’s 24-hour mental health line is available at (800) 854-7771; LAUSD’s mental health line is open from 6 a.m. to 6 p.m. at (213) 241-3840; and anyone can text 741741 to the Crisis Text Line for mental

health support anytime.

• Additional LA County COVID-19 testing centers can be found at: The Forum (3900 W. Manchester Blvd., Inglewood), Harbor-UCLA Medical Center (1000 W. Carson St. Torrance), Cedars-Sinai Medical Center (8700 Beverly Blvd., Los Angeles) and Crenshaw Christian Center (7901 Vermont Ave., Los Angeles).

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APRIL 23, 2020 THE ARGONAUT PAGE 11

LOS ANGELES TIMES SUNDAY CROSSWORD PUZZLE “TRADE SCHOOL” By PAUL COULTER

ADVICE GODDESS I’m a single woman. I’d love to get into a relationship. Often, when I’m at a bar, I see a guy I’d like to chat up, but I won’t even approach because I don’t know what to say. Are there some pickup lines men love to hear?

—Looking There are a number of lines men would love to hear from a woman — among them, “I’ve really enjoyed my drink, and now I’d like to enjoy you” and, “Don’t you have a tattoo I should be licking?”

However, there’s what men love to hear, and there’s what’s actually effective when you’re seeking a relationship that lasts long enough for you to learn to pronounce the guy’s name: “Is that Fred, like ‘Fred’?”

Evolutionary psychologist Maryanne Fisher and her colleagues researched which pickup lines, used by women on men, are most effective. “Effectiveness,” Fisher writes, “was defined as success in securing a phone number or agreeing to meet again.”

Pickup lines fall into three categories: “direct,” “innocuous,” and “flippant.”

“Direct lines clearly convey interest” through unambiguous requests and flattering remarks, explains Fisher — for example: “Want to have a drink together?” “You have really nice eyes,” and “Can I have your number?”

Innocuous lines, on the other hand, “hide the intention of the speaker and act more as conversation starters.”

Examples include: “Can you recommend a good drink?” “I’ve seen you before; do you work here?” and “Where did you get that tattoo? Did it hurt?”

Flippant lines involve humor — or, um, attempts at it, like an example Fisher references from previous research: “Can I get a picture of you so I can show Santa what I want for Christmas?”

Another flippant charmer: “Is that really your hair?”

Fisher explains that, like innocuous lines, “flippant lines are theorized to protect the user from rejection, as they can disguise a failed attempt as a simple question or a joke.” Unfortunately, both flippant and innocuous lines also seem to “protect” the user’s target from knowing that the purveyor is interested.

Fisher’s research, like previous research, found that men preferred direct pickup lines to the innocuous and flippant ones. This isn’t surprising. Men tend to be bad at picking up hints, and many are terrified of overestimating a woman’s interest and waking up to their name

hashtagged with #MeToo. When a woman uses a direct pickup line, and especially when she spreads additional direct lines around in conversation, she’s telling a guy she’s interested in seeing more of him, as opposed to seeing whether she should Mace him.

Unfortunately, there’s some nuance to the Fisher team’s findings — what might be called (sorry!) beauty inequality.

Direct pickup lines were preferred by men when the women using them were really attractive. Direct lines were less effective for less attractive women — except when they were scantily clad.

Also, men will tell you they love when women ask them out. (Of course they do. It’s like they’re standing on a dock fishing when, out of nowhere, a plate of perfectly cooked salmon flies out of the water and lands on the bench beside them.) Unfortunately, evolutionary psychology research suggests that for women, overt pursuit of men, like asking them out, is a risky strategy.

The research comes out of what evolutionary biologist Robert Trivers, in 1972, called “parental investment theory”: Because women have a high potential cost from any sex act — pregnancy and a kid to feed — they evolved to be the choosier sex, and men coevolved to expect female aloofness, especially from women with high “mate value.” When women seem too eager, men tend to devalue them, seeing them as desperate or just hookup material.

Synthesizing Fisher and Trivers, my takeaway is that you should be unambiguous in showing interest in a guy — and ideally, repeatedly unambiguous. Use flattering remarks to make your interest plain, but stop short of highly sexual remarks, which are likely to mark you as hookup fodder, or asking a guy out. Your goal should be flattering a guy into understanding that you’re interested in him. This allows you to see whether he’s got real interest in you — enough for him to lay his ego on the line and hit you up for your number.

Do this regularly — being flirtatiously forward — and you should come to understand that you have the power to summon men into your life. Maybe not all the men you want, but more than you would have thought. This, in turn, should keep you from going all desperate — to the point where you seek out men you’d previously, um, overlooked... like that construction worker: “Hey, you!

You in the hard hat! You had me at ‘Those boobs real?’”

GOT A PROBLEM? Write to Amy Alkon at 171 Pier Ave, Ste. 280, Santa Monica, CA 90405, or email her at AdviceAmy@aol.com. ©2020, Amy Alkon, all rights reserved. Alkon’s latest book is “Unf*ckology: A Field Guide to Living with Guts and Confidence.” Follow @amyalkon on Twitter or visit blogtalkradio.com/amyalkon.

PAGE 12 THE ARGONAUT APRIL 23, 2020

ACROSS 1 Noble, unselfish sort 8 Copy 14 Language of the Quran 20 Magnetite, e.g.

21 Port N of Pittsburgh 22 Examine in detail 23 This year’s hatchlings?

25 Influential groups 26 Quelques-__: a few, in French 27 One in a shell 28 ER workers 30 “Bellefleur” author 31 Half a tuba sound 32 Scrips 33 Acapulco aunt 34 Mayo is found in it 35 Quarterback Manning 37 Chopin virtuoso’s self-assurance?

45 Highland hillsides 47 Attorney general after Sessions 48 Tummy muscles 49 Coal carrier 50 Greek cross in a company logo?

54 Exist 55 Diva deliveries 56 Formally commend 57 Ancient assembly areas 58 Opinion surveys on text changes?

60 Extend People 62 Santa feature 64 Kids’ song refrain 65 Some QB protectors 68 Alpine peasant dress 70 Sealed 73 Animal house 74 Skateboarding move 76 Peak 78 Lover of Silvio in

“Pagliacci” 80 Time to honor an aircraft manufacturer?

83 Jeered 85 Buckwheat noodle 89 U.K. honors 90 Faller of 2001 91 Shark’s interim appendage?

93 Bug 94 Knock 95 Q.E.D. word 96 Hoists 97 Ripening of a Mediterranean fruit?

103 UFO crew, in theory 104 “One Mic” rapper 105 Anaheim MLB team, in crawl lines 106 Meh 108 Film buff’s channel 111 Typical hole-inone, e.g.

113 Triage ctrs.

114 Piggies’ protector 117 “... __ saw Elba” 118 White rat, e.g.

120 Pupil with a phonetic beginning that hints at what the circled letters comprise 123 Beach locales 124 Bread maker 125 Heartfelt 126 Most massive 127 Heavy hammer 128 High houses DOWN 1 Generate 2 Place to play 3 Become discouraged 4 Queen’s offspring 5 Monopolize 6 Mountain ridge 7 Strip of vegetation

8 Chipper 9 Seriously shrunken sea 10 Baptism, for one 11 Outdoor gear brand 12 Portugal’s second-largest city 13 Astringent in red wine 14 “Tarzan” critter 15 Puts in more film 16 French satellite launcher 17 Grabbed for a chat 18 “Of course” 19 Prefix with pit 24 At one time, at one time 29 Apple browser 32 Japanese soup 36 Sufferer healed by Jesus 38 Super, slangily 39 Like some artifacts, thanks to radiocarbon 40 Clear 41 French vineyard 42 “As if” 43 Border __ 44 Inventor of an early stock ticker 45 Discreetly send a dupe email to 46 “Vive le __!”

51 Eastern royal 52 New __ 53 Limo service vehicle 54 Extend 55 “... or __ thought” 58 Coastal flier 59 Await judgment 61 Sistine Chapel mural setting 63 Quaint coin-op eatery 65 Surname in a 1983 Styx hit 66 Worldwide 67 Item of camping

gear 69 Arid 71 Equal 72 Historic Icelandic work 75 “__ for Innocent”: Grafton novel 77 Sex educator Hite 79 So far 81 2008 TARP beneficiary renamed Ally Financial 82 Simple radio antenna 84 Eye opener?

86 Like garage parking 87 Modicum 88 Reply to a ques.

91 Bus. card info 92 Stat start 94 Is indignant about 98 Carousel traveler 99 Funny brothers 100 Programming language named for a mathematician 101 Bone: Pref.

102 Sounds 107 Bristlelike parts 109 Perfume, as at High Mass 110 Hands, in slang 111 Apiece 112 Baseball brother 114 Boston or Chicago 115 Blood type, briefly 116 Shrek, for one 117 “Giant” author Ferber 119 East, in Essen 121 Charlemagne’s domain: Abbr.

122 Coffee hour vessel

APRIL 23, 2020 AT HOME – THE ARGONAUT’S REAL ESTATE SECTION PAGE 13

MID CENTURY RANCH POOL HOME Large End Ties Now Available Slips 32’ and Up Water & Power Dockside Newly Remodeled Restroom/Laundry Facilities Ample Parking

5230 Senford Avenue, Ladera Heights

This three bedroom, two and a half bath home is located at the top of the hill in Upper Ladera Heights.

The large kitchen and warm family room are perfect for entertaining. The gorgeous living room offers a grand fireplace. The private master bedroom overlooks the sparkling pool. This home is ideal for hosting guests for celebrations or just relaxing. This home offers a great opportunity for you to bring your Offered at $1,285,000 decorating ideas and make this home yours.

Carla & Ray Lowe 310.435.0520 CalRE #00968665, CalRE #00942999

CLowe@coldwellbanker.com CarlaAndRay.com homecb.com/5230SenfordAvenue-LosAngeles

THE ARGONAUT PRESS RELEASES

TOP-FLOOR CONDO

“This updated two bed, two bath split level unit has most of the living space on one floor and then a loft, which is ideal for an in-home office,” say agents Debra Berman and Pat Kandel. “Hardwood floors throughout. Updated kitchen and baths. Approx. 20' Ceilings in living/dining area w/fireplace featuring Bisazzi tile. Master bedroom has in-suite bath. Huge private storage room off garage.”

Offered at $999,000 Debra Berman & Pat Kandel RE/MAX Estate Properties 310-424-5512

WINDSOR ESTATES

“Two bedroom, two bath condo located in the highly soughtafter Windsor Estates, ” says agent Jesse Weinberg. “Open floor plan boasts hardwood floors throughout, expansive living & dining areas, galley style kitchen with courtyard/ pool views. The spacious master bedroom boasts ample closet space and en-suite bath. This unit also offers rare in-unit laundry, double door entry, no shared walls, extra storage.”

Offered at $630,000 Jesse Weinberg Jesse Weinberg & Associates 800-804-9132

310-823-4644 13999 Marquesas Way, Marina del Rey • Office open 10am - 6:30pm daily

THE ARGONAUT REAL ESTATE Q&A California’s home sales volume slump settles in With shelter-in-place orders rapidly disrupting the economy, the housing market is quickly adjusting — and feeling the pain of a contracting market.

Even as new listings are becoming less common, the number of homes sitting on the market is rising, with for-sale inventory increasing:

20% in San Jose; Normally at this time of year, the 13% in Sacramento; and spring buying and selling season is 13% in San Diego. just starting to heat up. But just since March 1, the number of new listings These two factors are normally has declined, new listings decreasing: opposing movements: fewer listings 38% in San Francisco; ought to result in a lower supply 19% in Los Angeles; of homes. This has been the case 10% in San Diego; in California’s housing market 9% in Riverside; and for several years now, as home 6% in San Jose. inventory has been at crisis level

lows since the recovery from the 2008 recession. However, 2020 is already living up to its recession forecasts, and the housing market is in uncharted territory.

Optimists insist today’s tepid homebuying and selling market is but momentary, to bounce back the moment shelter-in-place orders are lifted; perhaps any day now.

But we’re realists here at first tuesday.

Even if the economy gets back to

PAGE 14 AT HOME – THE ARGONAUT’S REAL ESTATE SECTION APRIL 23, 2020

business as usual next week, renters — and mortgaged homeowners — who were unable to pay in April will need to catch up, assuming they can regain a job right away.

Worse, before the pandemic struck, the economy was already heading toward an economic recession in 2020 and thus is in no shape to handle the additional stresses of an economic shutdown.

Still, home sales volume won’t have room to recover until the pandemic response has ended.

Then, California’s housing market will begin to emerge from the underlying recession and financial market crash, a recovery not likely to begin until 2022-2023.

THIS WEEK’S QUESTION WAS ANSWERED BY

Carrie B. Reyes is Market Watch editor and project editor of the Real Estate Economics and Economic Trends in California Real Estate books. first tuesday Journal P.O. Box 5707 Riverside, CA 92517

after March 1, 2015) unless remaintain compliance throughout gistered with the Department of Inthe duration of the contract. Faildustrial Relations pursuant to ure to comply may be cause for Labor Code Section 1725.5 [with termination of the contract or initilimited exceptions from this reation of debarment proceedings. quirement for bid purposes only The contract is subject to the reunder Labor Code Section 1771.1 quirements of the County of Los (a)]. No contractor or subcontractAngeles' Defaulted Property Tax or may be awarded a contract for Reduction Program (Defaulted public work on a public works Ta x Pr o g r a m ) , L o s An g e l e s project (awarded on or after April County Code, Chapter 2.206. Bid1, 2015) unless registered with the ders should carefully read the DeDepartment of Industrial Relafaulted Tax Program. The DefaulDEADLINE: tions pursuant to Labor Code Sected Tax Program applies to both tion 1725.5. This project is subcontractors and their subcontractMonday at 11am for Thursdays ject to compliance monitoring and ors. Bidders will be required to enforcement by the Department of certify that they are in full compliCALL ANN: Industrial Relations. All persons ance with the provisions of the De626-584-8747 or performing the work shall be paid faulted Tax Program and shall maintain compliance during the not less than the General PrevailEMAIL: term of the contract, or shall certiing Wage Determination prepared fy that they are exempt from the by the Director of Industrial Relaann@argonautnews.com Defaulted Tax Program by comtions pursuant to the State Labor pleting a certification of compliCode. Copies of these wage rates ance with the County's Defaulted are available at Public Works. The Bids Property Tax Reduction Program. successful bidder must provide full In accordance with Los Angeles disclosure of False Claims Act viNOTICE INVITING BIDS County Code, Chapter 2.202, failolations, labor law/payroll violaSealed bids will be received by ure to maintain compliance with tions, debarments, and civil/crimLos Angeles County Public Works, the Defaulted Tax Program or to inal legal actions as provided in Construction Division, for the recure defects within the time spethe Instructions to Bidders. Failmoval of stumps and trees, tree cified may be cause for terminaure to complete these forms may trimming, root pruning, planting tion of the contract and/or initiresult in a determination that the trees, and the performance of othation of debarment proceedings bidder is nonresponsive and/or er incidental and appurtenant against the noncompliant contractnot responsible. The contract, if work under Project ID No. RMDor. Bids that fail to comply with the awarded, will be awarded to a reJOC6655, Parkway Tree Maintencertification requirements of the sponsible contractor with the lowance, Maintenance District No. 3, Defaulted Tax Program will be est responsive bid; however, the Group B, in the unincorporated considered nonresponsive and exBoard of Supervisors reserves the communities of Maintenance Discluded from further consideration. right to reject any and all bids. A trict No. 3 within Los Angeles The successful bidder will be reresponsible contractor is one who County. The bids must be submitquired to submit a faithful performhas demonstrated the attribute of ted electronically using Bid Exance bond in the amount of trustworthiness, as well as quality, press, www.BidExpress.com, be$750,000 a payment bond in the fitness, capacity, and experience fore 11 a.m. on Tuesday, April 28, amount of $750,000, liability insurto satisfactorily perform the con2020. A subscription is required to ance, automobile insurance, and tract. It is the County's policy to use this service. Registration inworker’s compensation insurance conduct business only with restructions and the fee schedule with the contract. As provided for sponsible contractors. The County are available at the Bid Express in Section 22300 of the State Pubmaintains the Contractor Alert Rewebsite. All fees are directly paylic Contract Code, the contractor porting Database (CARD), which able to Bid Express. Paper bids may substitute securities for any is used to track/monitor poorly will not be accepted. The work monies withheld by Public Works performing contractors. When a shall be done in accordance with to ensure performance under the County department identifies a the Contract Documents on file contract, or enter into an escrow significant performance/non-comand open for inspection at Public agreement for payment of such pliance issue(s) with a contractor, Works. The contract price will be monies to an escrow agent. Each the department will provide notice $750,000 and shall be for one person by submitting a response to the contractor and will give the year or until $750,000 of work orto this Notice Inviting Bids certicontractor an opportunity to cord e r s h a v e b e e n c o m p l e t e d, fies that such bidder and each rect the issue(s). If the contractor whichever occurs first. The prime County lobbyist and County lobbydoes not take any appropriate contractor shall possess a valid ing firm, as defined by Los steps to correct the issue(s), the California Class C27 or C61 (D49) Angeles County Code, Section County department will enter the contractor's license. Prebid ques2.160.010, retained by the bidder, contractor, along with any other tions regarding the Plans and is in full compliance with Chapter relevant information pertaining to Specifications shall be submitted 2.160 of the Los Angeles County the contractor's performance isvia e-mail only to: Ms. Laura Smith Code. Para más información con sue(s), into CARD. The informaat lsmith@pw.lacounty.gov. Inrelación a esta noticia, por favor tion entered into CARD can be acclude "Prebid Questions for RMDllame al (626) 458 3118. Nuestras cessed by all County departments, JOC6655" in the subject line of horas de oficina son de 7 a.m. a and will be used, along with any the email. Prebid questions will 5:30 p.m. de lunes a jueves. The other relevant information not innot be accepted after 5 p.m. on County supports and encourages cluded in CARD, in determining Monday, April 20, 2020. The bids equal opportunity contracting. By bidder responsibility. If a departmust be submitted on the proposorder of the Board of Supervisors ment reviews this information and al forms included in the bidder's of the County of Los Angeles, determines that a finding of nonpackage of the contract docuState of California. Dated March responsibility should be pursued, ments. The contract documents 31, 2020. Celia Zavala Executive the department will adhere to the for this project may be downOfficer of the Board of Supervisors guidelines specified in the Los loaded free of charge by visiting 4/16, 4/23/20 Angeles County Code, Chapter the following website: CNS-3358273# 2.202 and the County's Implehttp://pw.lacounty.gov/general/con THE ARGONAUT mentation Procedures for Determtracts/opportunities Each bid must inations of Contractor Non-Rebe accompanied by a certified sponsibility and Contractor Decheck, cashier's check, or surety barment. The successful bidder Fic. Business Name bond payable to County of Los will be required to fully comply Angeles in an amount equal to at with all applicable State and Fedleast $75,000 to guarantee that eral reporting requirements relatFICTITIOUS BUSINESS NAME the bidder will enter into the coning to employment reporting for its STATEMENT FILE NO. tract if it is so awarded. No conemployees and comply with all 2020064227 tractor or subcontractor may be lawfully served Wage and EarnType of Filing: Original. The follisted on a bid proposal for a pubings Assignment Orders and Nolowing person(s) is (are) doing lic works project (submitted on or tice of Assignment and continue to business as: LET'S TALK ABOUT after March 1, 2015) unless remaintain compliance throughout FACE. 13428 Maxella Ave. #340 gistered with the Department of Inthe duration of the contract. FailMarina del Rey, CA 90292. dustrial Relations pursuant to ure to comply may be cause for COUNTY: Los Angeles. Articles of Labor Code Section 1725.5 [with termination of the contract or initiIncorporation or Organization limited exceptions from this reation of debarment proceedings.

202002110219. RENumber: quirement for bid purposes only The contract is subject to the reGISTERED OWNER(S) Master under Labor Code Section 1771.1 quirements of the County of Los Plumbing Services Training, LLC, 13428 Esthetics (a)]. No contractor or subcontractAngeles' Defaulted Property Tax Maxella Ave. #340 Marina del or may be awarded a contract for Reduction Program (Defaulted Rey, CA 90292. State of Incorporpublic work on a public works Ta x Pr o g r a m ) , L o s An g e l e s ation or LLC: California. THIS project (awarded on or after April County Code, Chapter 2.206. Bid• Repair IS CONDUCTED BY BUSINESS 1, 2015) unless registered with the ders should carefully read the Dea Limited Liability Company. The Department Industrial Relafaulted Tax Program. The Defaul• Faucets & of Toilets registrant commenced to transact tions pursuant to Labor Code Sected Tax Program applies to both business under the fictitious busition 1725.5.

This project is subcontractors and their subcontract• Drain Cleaning ness name or names listed above ject to compliance monitoring and ors. Bidders will be required to on: 01/2020. I declare that all inenforcement by the Department of certify that they are in full compli• Water Heaters formation in this statement is true Since Industrial Relations. All persons ance with the provisions of the Deand correct. /s/ Kimberly A. Harris. performing work shall be paid • Garbagethe Disposals faulted Tax Program and 1978 shall TITLE: Manager, Corp or LLC not less than the General Prevailmaintain compliance during the Name: Master Esthetics Training, • Repipe Specialist prepared term of the contract, or shall certi- LLC. ing Wage Determination This statement was filed with by the Director of Industrial Relafy that they are exempt from the the LA County Clerk on: March 17, • Water & GastoLeaks tions pursuant the State Labor Defaulted Tax Program by com2020.

NOTICE – in accordance Code. Copies of these wage rates pleting a certification of compliwith subdivision (a) of Section • Sewer Specialist are available at Public Works. The ance with the County's Defaulted 17920, a Fictitious Name statesuccessful bidder must provideLicensed-Bonded-Insured full Property Tax Reduction Program. ment generally expires at the end The Argonaut • TanklessofWater disclosure FalseHeaters Claims Act viIn accordance with Los Angeles Lic. #799390 ALL Work Guaranteed of five years from the date on olations, labor law/payroll violaClassifieds County Code, Chapter 2.202, failwhich it was filed in the office of • Camera Inspections tions, debarments, and civil/crimure toBlvd., maintain compliance 11520 Jefferson Culver City 90230with (626) clerk, 584-8747 the county except, as inal legal actions as provided in the Defaulted Tax Program or to Ann@argonautnews.com provided in subdivision (b) of Sec• Hydro Jetter Emergency Service the Instructions to Bidders. Fail-24 hr. cure defects within the time spetion 17920, where it expires 40 ure to complete these forms may cified may be cause for terminadays after any change in the facts result in a determination that the tion of the contract and/or initiset forth in the statement pursubidder is nonresponsive and/or ation of debarment proceedings ant to Section 17913 other than a not responsible. The contract, if against the noncompliant contractchange in the residence address awarded, will be awarded to a reor. Bids that fail to comply with the of a registered owner. a new Fictisponsible contractor with the lowcertification requirements of the tious Business Name statement est responsive bid; however, the Defaulted Tax Program will be must be filed before the expiration.

Board of Supervisors reserves the considered nonresponsive and exThe filing of this statement does right to reject any and all bids. A cluded from further consideration. notyour of itself authorize the use in responsible contractor is one who be reThe successful bidder will Advertise this state of a fictitious business has demonstrated the attribute of quired to submit a faithful performname in violation of the rights of trustworthiness, as well as quality, ance bond in the amount offor as little as $24.95 another under federal, state, or fitness, capacity, and experience $750,000 a payment bond in the common law (see Section 14411 to satisfactorily perform the conamount of $750,000, liability insurCall The Argonaut et seq., Business and Professions tract. It is the County's policy to ance, automobile insurance, and code). Publish: The Argonaut 626-584-8447 conduct business only with reworker’s compensation insurance Newspaper.

Dates: 4/2/20, 4/9/20, sponsible contractors. The County with the contract. As provided for 4/16/20, 4/23/20 maintains the Contractor Alert Rein Section 22300 of the State Pubporting Database (CARD), which lic Contract Code, the contractor is used to track/monitor poorly may substitute securities for any performing contractors. When a monies withheld by Public Works County department identifies a to ensure performance under the

CLASSIFIED ADVERTISING Classifieds / Legals

bobco PlumbiNg

ation or LLC: California. THIS BUSINESS IS CONDUCTED BY a Limited Liability Company. The registrant commenced to transact business under the fictitious business name or names listed above on: 01/2020. I declare that all information in this statement is true and correct. /s/ Kimberly A. Harris.

TITLE: Manager, Corp or LLC Name: Master Esthetics Training, LLC. This statement was filed with the LA County Clerk on: March 17, 2020. NOTICE – in accordance with subdivision (a) of Section 17920, a Fictitious Name statement generally expires at the end of five years from the date on which it was filed in the office of the county clerk, except, as provided in subdivision (b) of Section 17920, where it expires 40 days after any change in the facts set forth in the statement pursuant to Section 17913 other than a change in the residence address of a registered owner. a new Fictitious Business Name statement must be filed before the expiration.

The filing of this statement does not of itself authorize the use in this state of a fictitious business name in violation of the rights of another under federal, state, or common law (see Section 14411 et seq., Business and Professions code). Publish: The Argonaut Newspaper. Dates: 4/2/20, 4/9/20, 4/16/20, 4/23/20

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