SM PIER — Connecting the world through music. That’s the impetus for Playing for Change, a diverse, multi-cultural, global music project which started eight years ago when Grammy winning producer/engineer Mark Johnson (then living in New York) was on his way to work. “While he was waiting on the subway platform he heard and... Read more →

SUNSET PARK — A consumer advocate group based in Santa Monica has accused California regulators of violating mental health and other laws by allowing health insurers to deny certain treatments for children with autism. Consumer Watchdog, which monitors insurance practices, filed a lawsuit Tuesday in Los Angeles Superior Court. It asks a... Read more →

CITY HALL — Cab companies will now have to battle for the right to pick up customers in Santa Monica after the City Council on Tuesday established a more stringent licensing system to relieve a notoriously overcrowded taxi population. The new franchise structure, which will officially take effect after the council approves it upon a... Read more →

CITY HALL — A proposal by city officials to streamline the permit application process to install photovoltaic panels has drawn concerns from solar advocates who believe that a new provision could deter interested property owners in the future. The issue in question concerns a subsection in the new ordinance that would require solar... Read more →

LOS ANGELES — A powerful House committee chairman with a central role in President Barack Obama’s global warming and health care legislation has been hospitalized. Rep. Henry Waxman, D-Calif., was not feeling well Tuesday and was admitted to Cedars-Sinai Medical Center in Los Angeles for “routine testing,” spokeswoman... Read more →

CITYWIDE — Business owners and shoppers across the city are gritting their teeth in anticipation of the sales tax increase going into effect today, raising Santa Monica’s rate to 9.75 percent. “It’s counterproductive to what the state wants to do,” said Pat Barrett, president of Barrett’s Appliances on... Read more →

Santa Monica Fire Chief Jim Hone wants to remind everyone that lighting fireworks is illegal in Santa Monica, so instead of breaking the law, join him for the third annual Fourth of July Parade along Main Street. Hone will be the grand marshal for this year’s event, which begins at 9:30 a.m. at the Civic Center on Independence Day.... Read more →

Between 5 a.m. and 8 a.m. Thursday, water to the pier will be shut off to allow time for a quick repair on the sewer line. The city asks that pier tenants refrain from using sinks and faucets or flushing toilets and urinals between these hours. “If anybody flushes, we’re dead,” said on-site project manager Randall Martinez.... Read more →

The Santa Monica Museum of Art recently appointed Bruce A. Samuels, MD, and Randi Malkin Steinberger to its board of trustees. Samuels is a cardiologist at Cedars-Sinai Medical Center and an assistant clinical professor of medicine at UCLA. He recently led an effort to provide uninsured and under-insured artists with access to... Read more →

CITY HALL — A pair of parking structures in Downtown Santa Monica could soon be reduced to a pile of concrete. The City Council on Tuesday is expected to approve a $195,000 contract with Morley Construction Company to design and build new garages on the 1200 block of Fourth Street and the 1400 block of Second Street where structures... Read more →

DOWNTOWN — Sylvia Levin, a Santa Monica resident who set records registering Californians to vote, died Thursday in Los Angeles of complications from a stroke. She was 91. In the last 36 years Levin registered more than 47,000 California residents, an all-time high in the state of California. The Brooklyn native was born Sept. 14,... Read more →

SMMUSD HDQTRS — While the school district’s budget for the 2009-10 fiscal year was put to bed last week, the teachers union is continuing to raise concerns about the impact the cuts will have in the classroom, making its own recommendations on ways to save money. In a June 24 letter to the Board of Education, the Santa... Read more →

Dear EarthTalk Do insulating paints actually insulate and save energy? If they do, are they environmentally friendly to use? Bob Dibrindisi Easthampton, MA Paint additives that claim insulating qualities have been marketed since the late 1990s, but energy research organizations have not confirmed their insulating value. For its part, the... Read more →

DOWNTOWN — The number of people who have taken their own lives in Santa Monica so far this year has reached a level not seen in recent years, leaving some to wonder if the economic downturn is responsible. Since the beginning of the year, there have been 20 suicide attempts within the city, 10 of which have been fatal, according... Read more →

CITY HALL — A new truck is joining the Santa Monica fleet, a zero-emissions truck that will serve the Water Division. The first of its kind purchased in the United States, the ZeroTruck is the only all-electric truck on sale in the U.S. this year. All Santa Monica fleet vehicles are currently run on compressed natural gas, but the city... Read more →