DOWNTOWN — Parking in public garages is expected to come at a higher cost soon, but shoppers hoping to stay longer hours without paying significantly more money might be able to do so with a new ticket validation system. It’s one of several changes that city officials are exploring as they develop a new parking rate plan for... Read more →

DOWNTOWN — Aside from the upscale and critically-acclaimed restaurants at the new Santa Monica Place will be an old favorite that was popular with budget-minded shoppers and local workers before the resurrection of the mall. Macerich Co. announced this week the lineup of nine fast-food eateries that will occupy the enclosed food... Read more →

SANTA MONICA BLVD. — The bumpy ride along one of the most heavily traveled roads in the city will soon get a lot smoother. Fresh pavement is planned for a nearly one-mile stretch of Santa Monica Boulevard from Cloverfield Boulevard to Centinela Avenue as part of a federally-funded project that will include repairing sidewalks and... Read more →

As the food supply is increasingly altered by controversial practices like liberal use of antibiotics, genetic engineering and irradiation, food labels take on greater significance as shoppers’ only link to how products are produced. Depending on what issues matters most to consumers, what labels do not say can be more meaningful than... Read more →

Dear EarthTalk Has anyone ever studied the environmental impact of discarded cigarettes? I’m constantly appalled at the number of drivers I see pitching their butts out their car windows. Ned Jordan via e-mail It’s true that littered cigarette butts are a public nuisance, and not just for aesthetic reasons. The filters on... Read more →

WESTWOOD — When Vietnam veteran Fred L. Stanley visits the 99 Cent Store, he does with pride for he carries with him a reusable grocery bag. Not only does he feel good about protecting the environment by using fewer plastic bags, Stanley also loves the attention he gets when people ask him about his bag, which features the logo of the... Read more →

STEWART STREET — A new issue is brewing in the neighborhood battle against a proposal to build a train maintenance yard in a historically working-class community, one that involves a giant decades-old pile of trash. The Pico Neighborhood Association recently raised concerns about the possible dangers of placing the maintenance facility... Read more →

DOWNTOWN — The marinated Korean beef short ribs, organic salads and Vietnamese grilled pork sandwiches might be mouth-watering to the long lines of patrons they attract, but the recent influx of the mobile food fad into Santa Monica isn’t as welcomed by the established restaurant owners with whom they directly compete. The... Read more →

It’s not always easy being green, but with their new “Best Practices” Web site, Green Cities California (GCC) is working to make it a little easier. GCC is a collaborative of 10 of California’s most environmentally progressive jurisdictions, including Santa Monica. These jurisdictions teamed up to create the Web site,... Read more →

CITY HALL — A proposal to build two affordable senior group housing projects along the I-10 Freeway is stirring neighbors who believe the developments are not only out of scale but don’t fit in with zoning standards for the area. A group of those residents, calling themselves the Pico Euclid Neighborhood Coalition, appeared... Read more →

SMC — “I have two questions. One, how fast is Jupiter’s orbit? And two, have you heard anything about the L-Cross,” asked the bright-eyed, brown-haired astronomy enthusiast. Jim Mahon, who gives lectures on the cosmos at the John Drescher Planetarium at Santa Monica College, answered the questions slowly and clearly so... Read more →

SM BEACH — A state environmental advocacy group is calling on federal officials to strengthen water quality regulations following the release of a report that found more than 232 million pounds of toxic chemicals have been dumped into the nation’s rivers, oceans and lakes, including large discharges into the Santa Monica Bay.... Read more →

SMC — A Westside football icon has passed. Robert Taylor, a man who coached football at Santa Monica College since 1984, mentoring countless young athletes along the way, died Thursday at the age of 64. Funeral arraignments have yet to be announced. Taylor, who had been on medical leave since being relieved as head coach after an... Read more →

SMMUSD HDQTRS — Cough into the arm, don’t rub the eyes and for kids who are sick, just stay at home. Those are some of the tips that private and public school officials in Santa Monica are giving to parents, teachers and students as they attempt to protect campus populations against the spread of the seasonal influenza and H1N1... Read more →

MAIN LIBRARY — After an intense, undercover investigation that involved the use of court-authorized wiretaps, Santa Monica police have arrested three suspected gang members for the 2008 slaying of Preston Brumfield, a resident who was beaten and left for dead on a busy street in the Pico Neighborhood. SMPD Chief Tim Jackman on... Read more →