Go to Sleep, My City Council

Goodnight Moon, Goodnight Stars, Goodnight to the Government Meetings That Should Close Before the Bars

I hereby propose a new rule to improve the quality of California’s local democracy. When the bars in your city close, so must your city council.

The idea occurred to me while watching recent Santa Monica City Council meetings, including one gathering so long (nine hours plus) and so full of nonsense and hate (from hundreds of public commenters) that it could make you reconsider your support for free speech and self-government.

The bars had shut at 2 a.m., but the council was still going, groggily, at 3:30 a.m. when it logged …

by Joe Mathews | November 21, 2023

Journalist Frances Anderton

I Think I Detest the Beverly Center

October 29, 2021

Frances Anderton, the longtime host of the weekly public radio show DnA: Design and Architecture on KCRW, currently covers Los Angeles design and architecture for print and radio. She is …

Why the Santa Monica Airport Should Become a Park

The Facility's Closure Provides a Great Opportunity to Give Los Angeles a Giant New Playground

By Michael Feinstein | September 28, 2015

A new 150-plus-acre park on the Westside of Los Angeles might seem like a pipe dream—at approximately $200 a square foot just for the land, that’s almost $1.3 billion. That …

A Pharmacy that Dispenses Homeopathic Remedies Instead of Drugs

Why My Grandparents in Santa Monica Became Pioneers in Alternative Medicine

by Steven Litvak | June 10, 2015

My grandparents, Norman and Mary Litvak, founded the Santa Monica Homeopathic Pharmacy back in 1944, originally planning on selling the usual items found in drug stores at the time—medicine, alcohol, …

Killing Time with the Fishermen of Santa Monica Pier

Photos of the Anglers Who Hang Out Beneath the Ferris Wheel, Take in the Ocean Breeze, and Wait for a Bite

November 22, 2014

On the lower deck of the Santa Monica Pier—below the Pacific Park solar-powered Ferris wheel, Inkie’s Pirate Ship ride, and oceanfront West Coaster—there’s a quiet community of fishermen and women.

Many …

Breakfast on the Beach with Dad

The Joys of Early Mornings at Perry’s Café, Before Work

by Kelsey Hess | August 25, 2014

Perry’s at the Beach Café has nine locations throughout Santa Monica and Venice, but I only really like one—and won’t bother going after 10 a.m.

My dad first introduced me …

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