Barbecue bon viveur Kevin Bludso opens outlet in central Santa Monica: Arguably Southern California’s most celebrated local pitmaster, Kevin Bludso, once again expanded his scope of operations and opened an outlet on Santa Monica Blvd. This marks the first time that the celebrated chef has opened a new, full-scale restaurant in a decade.
Senior SETI scientist gives talk at Amateur Astronomy Club: The Santa Monica Amateur Astronomy Club hosted Dr. Seth Shostak for an in-person talk. Shostak is a senior astronomer at the Search for Extraterrestrial Intelligence (SETI) Institute, a non-profit research organization established in 1984 that aims to explore and explain the origin and nature of life in the universe.
Chamber of Commerce hosts Women’s Health and Wellness Gala: The Santa Monica Chamber of Commerce hosted a Women’s Health and Wellness Gala at the carousel building recognizing five local female business owners for their work and achievements in the industry.
Weekend crash kills one and sends nine to hospital: An afternoon crash on the PCH near the Incline killed one person on April 29 and sent nine others to a nearby hospital. A car was heading north on the PCH when it attempted to turn left into Beach Lot 4 North and was struck by a car heading south.
Criminal returns for an encore theft at Santa Monica Music Center: The music store owned by Councilwoman Lana Negrete was burglarized for the fourth time in recent years with a criminal literally returning to the scene of the crime to steal multiple items.
Black Bear captured in the Santa Monica mountains: Wildlife officials captured a black bear in the Santa Monica Mountains. While there have been bear sightings in the area before, the capture was the first time officials captured and collared a bear. Named BB-12, the 210 pound black bear is estimated to be about 3-4 years old. The bear was killed later in the year trying to cross the 101 freeway.
DTSM looking at options to replace ambassadors with security guards: DTSM voted to approve a proposal to redirect nearly $1.7 million funding the Ambassador Program to hire a private security company to help police patrol the downtown. While a private vendor was eventually chosen, that company withdrew from the contract at the last minute following accusations it had an association with an individual who espoused far-right ideology. After the debacle of the initial contract, DTSM regrouped and ultimately hired a second company, Legion, who began patrols by the end of the year.
Coronation celebrations reach Santa Monica: Santa Monica’s Anglophile headquarters, Ye Olde King’s Head, The Daily Pint and The Britannia Pub, celebrated the coronation of King Charles with several royal events.
Homelessness spikes 15% according to newly released data: Homelessness in Santa Monica increased by 15% last year according to numbers from the annual Homeless Count. Volunteers found an additional 73 individuals on local streets and 46 inside (in shelters, motels, or jail) during the January count bringing the total to 926 this year. The results are a reversal from the 2022 count that reported an 11% decline from the year before.
More electric vehicles charge into town as dedicated Hyundai EV dealership opens: Celebrating its seventh location in Santa Monica, the LAcarGUY dealership has announced that the latest outlet will be the country’s first standalone showroom focused specifically on Hyundai’s all-electric brand, called the Ioniq.
Sports brand Wilson defies Downtown downturn with new Promenade retail store: International sportswear manufacturer Wilson expanded its scope of operations by opening a retail store at 1349 Third Street Promenade. The 4,500 square feet space was Wilson’s first brick-and-mortar location outside of Chicago and New York.
Credit: Scott Snowden
Santa Monica resident indicted on $800,000 retail theft scheme: A man and a woman were arrested on an indictment charging them with conspiracy and 10 counts of wire fraud related to an organized retail theft scheme amounting to $800,000. Jalen Amir Thomas, 27, of Santa Monica and Armia Ta’Jae Timmons, 25, of Los Angeles, were arrested on the 11-count indictment.
As House of Pies goes up, trees come down: Four California Sycamore trees that were planted by a group of community members along Venice Boulevard nearly 30 years ago were reduced to nothing more than stumps. The missing trees were steps away from construction at the House of Pies restaurant, and neighbors reported the chopped-down trees to the City of Los Angeles. Officials said the developer could be forced to replant the demolished trees.
A Santa Monica senior services center is proving the positive power of the drum: Wise & Health Aging employed a weekly ‘drum circle’ session to engage senior citizens suffering from neurodegenerative diseases such as Alzheimer’s dementia and Parkinson’s and the results they say have been extremely encouraging.
A new taste of the tropics could soon come to downtown: DTSM approved a new tropical-themed juice, smoothie and açaí bowl shop called Little Hawaii Juice Bar that now graces the ground floor of Parking Structure 6 in Downtown Santa Monica amid a push to revitalize the area and activate underutilized spaces.
Missing man found dead in abandoned building: The Santa Monica Police Department found the body of Beau Mann, more than a year after he was reported missing in Los Angeles. The Los Angeles County Coroner took possession of Mann’s remains and worked to determine the cause of death. The Coroner ultimately identified the remains as those of Mann who was last seen in November of 2021 in the city of Los Angeles. The case quickly became an international sensation due to the mysterious circumstances of his disappearance.
LA man arrested for selling fentanyl that resulted in triple overdose of local students: Law enforcement agencies marked National Fentanyl Awareness Day by announcing multiple arrests for fentanyl related crimes, including a suspect responsible for the triple overdose of a group of Santa Monica teens last year. Officials announced the arrest of 22-year-old Los Angeles resident Adrian Benavides-Schorgi on May 9 in connection with the 2022 incident.
Samohi celebrates construction progress of Exploration Building and Gold Gymnasium with steel topping ceremony: Eight months after construction began on the Exploration Building and Gold Gymnasium on the Samohi campus, SMMUSD community members gathered to celebrate the completion of the buildings’ frames.
In first increase since ballot box revolt, Rent Control Board proposes a 2.8% increase: The Rent Control Board’s formula returned an increase of 2.8% for the next year. The dollar cap on those increases, which is also determined by a preset formula, resulted in a maximum of $67 per month on units already paying $2,375 a month or more.
Samohi hosts mental health panel open to the public: Santa Monica High School hosted a panel of mental health experts as part of an event series being put on throughout the Los Angeles area by non-profit ONE Recovery with support and funding from the L.A. Department of Mental Health during May, which is recognized as mental health awareness month.
‘Kitten season’ begins at the Santa Monica Animal Shelter: The city’s animal shelter braced to be overrun with an abundance of kittens. The term “Kitten season” is used from April to August, spring into summer, when the shelter sees a higher volume of kittens both being brought in and mama cats who are about to have their litters.
Millions in new spending approved as homelessness emergency is extended: Santa Monica City Council approved a series of multi-million dollar contracts to aid in the ongoing fight against homelessness. Recommendations included extension of the local state of emergency, continuation of existing outreach teams from the county (for a four-year total contract worth $5,040,000), and the continuation of an outreach team operated by The People Concern (for a four-year total contract worth $2,400,000).
New report shows significant rise in mortality rates among the homelessness: A new report from the Los Angeles County Department of Public Health suggested the mortality rate among people experiencing homelessness has increased by 55%, from 2,056 per 100,000 in 2019 to 3,183 per 100,000 in 2021. Drug overdose was once again the leading cause of death for people experiencing homelessness, accounting for 37% of all deaths among unhoused individuals in 2020 and 2021, or about two deaths per day on average.
‘Gone in a Snap,’ parents protest the social media company they view as complicit in their children’s deaths: Friday, May 12, marked the fourth time that Amy Neville has marched to Snapchat’s Santa Monica headquarters since her 14-year-old son, Alexander, died in 2020 after taking a counterfeit pill containing fentanyl he purchased via the social media app. Other parents who walked alongside Neville as part of the ‘Gone in a Snap’ demonstration share similar stories and a common goal: to hold Snap Inc. accountable for what they view as complicity in their children’s deaths and to advocate for more safety measures and controls on the platform.
Council votes to approve $10 million Human Services Grants budget: The council approved a total of 18 recipients and approximately $10 million as part of the four-year fiscal year 2023-27 Human Services Grants Program funding cycle. The program is designed to address critical community needs and gaps in existing service systems, while also offering funding stability to local social service agencies. With a total operating budget of $10,145,594, the program will fund 21 distinct endeavors run by 18 agencies, serving approximately 27,000 residents.
Population decrease and housing increase drive local vacancy rate to 10%: State officials said Santa Monica’s total vacancy rate, including single family homes and multi-unit housing could be as high as 10 percent. According to the California’s Department of Finance, Santa Monica’s 2023 population was 91,720 with a total of 53,422 housing units for an average household size of about 1.86. Of those units 47,941 were occupied for a vacancy rate of 10.3 percent. Santa Monica’s vacancy rate is driven in part by the local expression of a statewide trend: declining population and increased construction. The local population declined by about 1,600 people in the past three years while the city built 793 housing units.
Crossroads swims into the postseason: Crossroads School for Arts and Science had a historic aquatic postseason. All three boys and girls relays qualified to compete in their Southern Section CIF championship meet while a combined fourteen individual events qualified to complete.
Tourism nearly doubles year on year as the city rebuilds post-pandemic: After years of being dampened by the pandemic, tourism was on the rise. The number of visitors nearly doubled last year to a total of approximately 5,320,5000 and annual spending by tourists went up almost 30% to reach $961,711,800.
Samohi scholarships: Three Samohi students received scholarships for their work in promoting peace. Finn Ong, Kelly Larios and Fernanda Casas were winners of the Katherine McTaggart Memorial Scholarship for Violence Prevention, received in the 2023 Senior Scholarship and Honors Program.
Judge eliminates cash bail for pre-arraignment arrestees: The County and City of Los Angeles were prevented from requiring cash bail from defendants who are arrested for non-violent and non-serious offenses while awaiting an arraignment. The courts eventually established a new system that eliminated cash bail for most crimes. Santa Monica joined several cities in filing a lawsuit against the new system and while the suit was still active by the end of the year, the case against cashless bail was significantly weakened when a judge said there was no requirement to use a cash-based system and that the new system was necessary to met the terms of the original lawsuit.
Children aged 13 and 15 accused of armed robbery, burglary and stabbing: A teenager who accidentally shot himself in the hand was accused of multiple crimes including an armed robbery shortly before the accident. Subsequent investigation of the incidents tied the two youth to multiple additional crimes that occurred in the area over the past few months including residential and vehicle burglaries, auto theft, and a stabbing.
Los Angeles Councilwoman targets “vanlord” industry: Venice Councilwoman Traci Park took action to address the growing concern about “vanlords” to rent out RVs to people experiencing homelessness in Los Angeles. Park presented a motion to tighten regulations on RV sales and leasing in public rights-of-way that would try to limit the number of vehicles on local streets. While Santa Monica has longstanding prohibition against public camping that includes living in vehicles, the van rental business has been a problem in Venice for years.
SMPD celebrates promotions and new hires: The Santa Monica Police Department welcomed four new officers and promoted five others.
Scuffle highlights Santa Monica’s role in culture war protests: A pair of dueling abortion protests forced police officers to physically separate the groups resulting in a small scuffle that highlighted SMPD response to contentious gatherings.
New 17th Street bike lanes spark community debate: A project that relocated existing bike lanes on 17th Street to be between the curb of the sidewalk and parked cars, separated by a concrete barrier, was completed in 2023 prompting debate over the new alignment. While biking advocates praised the streets as safer for non-car users, drivers said the new system was more dangerous for them and made the street difficult to navigate.
Proposed budget restores almost 70 positions to City Hall: Santa Monica’s budget projections moved from barely in the black to slightly in the red over the next five years. The Citywide proposed Biennial Budget is $740.9 million in fiscal year 2023-24 and $746.4 million in FY 2024-25. Santa Monica’s budget is relatively stable over the next five years with estimates showing a revenue surplus of up to $200,000 over the next three years and a shortfall of about $600,000 in year four followed by a $1.5M shortfall in year five.
Students most in need of help show little improvement on standardized test scores: While scores improved across the entire population, the percentage of students classified as Urgent Intervention (scoring below the 10th percentile) who are English Learners, Serious Emotional Disability, Special Education, Latinx/Hispanic or African American/Black remained essentially unchanged over the last three testing cycles.
Salvation Army launches Second Chance Campaign: The Salvation Army announced the kick off of its “Second Chances” campaign in Los Angeles — a yearlong initiative designed to de-stigmatize addiction and put the spotlight on recovery.
Police want new laws targeting catalytic converter theft: The Santa Monica Police Department asked for, and received, a new law specifically targeting catalytic converter theft as officials said the lack of specific prohibitions targeting the thefts had prevented officers from deterring, let alone solving, the vast majority of thefts in the city.
Supreme Court sets date for voting rights showdown: The California Supreme Court set a second oral argument session scheduling the Santa Monica California Voting Rights Act case for arguments. The Los Angeles Superior Court ruled against the City in 2018 but an appeal’s court overturned that decision in 2020 prompting the Plaintiffs to take the case to the California Supreme Court. The Supreme Court overturned the appeal decision but did not make a final ruling on the merits of the case. Instead it sent the case back to the appeals court for a new hearing.
Santa Monica to East LA in about an hour?: Santa Monica Metro riders were able to ride all the way to Atlantic Ave. in East Los Angeles without switching seats thanks to the completion of the Regional Connector project.
AAPI Celebration at Samohi: The Samohi AAPI student clubs successfully hosted a Celebration in honor of AAPI Heritage month. With the help of Japanese Language teacher Ms. Emily Kariya and a generous sponsorship from the PTSA, Koshin Taiko performed during lunchtime.
Strange berry attracts sharks during TV pitch: A small, Santa Monica-based fruit company called Nature’s Wild Berry that grows, processes and markets ledidi berries secured financing from two of the multimillionaire investors that appear on the reality television series “Shark Tank.”
After Florida bans Amanda Gorman poem, New Roads school rallies in support: Students at New Roads School rallied around one of their famous alumni after a poem by Amanda Gorman was banned from a Florida school. The school hosted an all-school meeting with students in each grade reciting part of the work as part of a larger effort to incorporate the controversy into the schools larger educational philosophy
Jewish Heritage Month: The Santa Monica City Council issued a proclamation in May declaring “Jewish American Heritage Month and Antisemitism definition.” Itai Klein said it was a beautiful and important act by the City particularly in light of the rise in antisemitism in the US.
Santa Monica automotive entrepreneur honored in 2023 ASU Sun Devil 100 awards: Santa Monica resident Kevin Emamian, owner of The Haus automotive repair center, was recognized by his alma mater, Arizona State University, in the Sun Devil 100 awards for launching and managing a successful and fast-growing business.
Crimes spike year on year driven by theft, vandalism and assault: Crime, both serious and petty, spiked by double digits in the first quarter of 2023, according to reports from the Santa Monica Police Department that compared the quarter to the same time last year. The most serious crimes, known as Part 1 (homicide, rape, robbery, aggravated assault, burglary, larceny, grand theft auto and arson) increased by 149 crimes (14%). Part II offenses (simple assault, DUIs, fraud, vandalism, narcotics, etc.) increased by 119 crimes (19%).
DTSM hosts first ever Connect Day to promote homelessness resources: As part of DTSM’s ongoing efforts to help address homelessness, the organization held its first ever DTSM Connect Day. The event at St. Monica’s Catholic Church brought together local service providers in one location to share resources with people experiencing homelessness or at risk of becoming homeless.
Lawmakers warned public transit could fall off a “fiscal cliff”: Santa Monica resident and State Senator Ben Allen joined a group of lawmakers and transit advocates to argue for more public transportation funding in the state budget. Statewide transit agencies had been sounding the alarm over an impending end to federal money that has helped offset declines in funding over the past few years. Without support from the State, advocates warned that the impending “fiscal cliff” will damage transit infrastructure with cuts to services and increased fares.
Tourists stabbed and groped by homeless man over Memorial Day weekend: A homeless man was arrested over the Memorial Day Weekend after groping and stabbing multiple people near the Pier. Johnathan Peck was arrested and accused of groping two women and then stabbing friends of the victims with a sharpened wooden stick.
HHS Secretary Xavier Becerra visits Venice Family Clinic: U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) Secretary Xavier Becerra visited the Venice Family Clinic on Rose Avenue as a stop on his Los Angeles trip aimed at highlighting the Biden-Harris Administration’s efforts to lower the costs of health care, addresses homeless, improve access to substance use disorder services, and strengthen LGBTQ youth mental health.
Further editions of our Year in Review will publish through January 2, 2024.
