Results tagged “longbeach”

Following yesterday's Finance Committee approval, today the California State University Board of Trustees voted in favor of the 2010-11 budget calling for $884 million in funding from the state, reports LA Now.

As Los Angeles prepares to dive into their own pot law, Long Beach is already taking it head on. Last night they voted to make some changes to a proposed medical marijuana ordinance, loosening some restrictions, before finalizing the law. "The changes included, among others, allowing collectives in mixed-use areas; removing prohibitions against having collectives within 1,000 feet of libraries and parks; improving patient privacy issues so as to not identify every member of a collective; giving a grace period for existing collectives to comply once the law goes into effect; and allowing collective patients to grow marijuana in their homes," reports the Press Telegram.

As Los Angeles fumbles around with the latest proposed medical marijuana ordinance, the Long Beach City Council is set to examine its own tomorrow. If passed, the law would limit where dispensaries may be located, hours of operation, how it can be distributed and records of every member, according to the Long Beach Press Telegram.

One week ago, 16-year-old Wilson High student Melody Ross was with her friends, watching the school's Homecoming football game. Last night the team observed a moment of silence in her honor, as Ross was gunned down minutes after she exited the Long Beach school's stadium. At last night's game students wrote MR on their cheeks, the team turned the school's "W" on their helmets upside down to make an "M" in their classmates honor, and attendees faced upped security, according to the Press-Telegram. Earlier that day in a Long Beach court Tom Love Vinson and Daivion Davis, both 16-year-old gang members, found themselves charged as adults; the Deputy DA said the charges are as a result of the "seriousness of the crime" and the fact that it was gang-related, notes LA Now. Ross was an innocent bystander; two young men who were wounded "may have been the intended targets."

It's been a week of mourning in Long Beach after the death of 16-year-old Melody Ross between last week's Homecoming football game and dance at Wilson High School. She was an innocent bystander when two alleged 16-year-old gangmembers shot bullets into a crowd meant for two men who were wounded. Those teens were identified today--Tom Love Vinson and Daivion Davis--because they were charged as adults, according to the LA Times.

Gunfire erupted outside Wilson High School in Long Beach at around 10 o'clock Friday night as about 200 students were inside the building enjoying their Homecoming dance. The bullets took the life of 16-year-old Melody Ross, a "popular honors student and athlete," and the "daughter of Cambodian immigrants," who died in hospital half an hour after the shooting, according to LA Now. Ross and friends had just left the Homecoming football game when the shots were fired. Police are working to determine who killed Ross and wounded two young men, but "said they have no suspects and no motive," and "don't have a description or many leads to go on."

Unfortunately, sewage spills in the Long Beach area are all too often. The latest began this weekend when a sewage line began to leak on Saturday night. The waste entered the storm drain system and headed towards Shoreline Village at the mouth of the L.A. River.

If Metro's regional connector project is built, passengers will be able to commute between Pasadena and Long Beach without transferring from the Gold Line to the Red Line, then the Blue Line. Likewise, those traveling between East LA and Culver City (and maybe someday Santa Monica) will be able to skip a similar transfer process. That means faster travel times and more accessibility car-free.

Some 23,000 runners, walkers and cyclists will be hitting 26-miles of Long Beach streets this Sunday morning during the the city's 25th annual marathon. About 35,000 people are also expected to join and cheer on race participants. That means if you live or will be in the area, especially between 5 a.m. and 2 p.m. in the Long Beach metro area, take heed of closures and traffic.

Los Angeles just got a new fire chief and Long Beach is about to lose theirs. Fire Chief David Ellis announced yesterday, after five years at the top post, his intent to retire by the end of the year. Ellis began his career in Glendale in 1980, but two years later found himself working for Long Beach, where he was raised and schooled as a kid and college student. The Department has about 550 employees and a $90 million budget, a small portion of which that is spent on a blog, likely inspired by LAFD's).

A long summer of hot-hot-hot heat means lots of beach days for Southern Californians. Now that the season is wrapped up, Heal the Bay has released their annual Summer Beach Report Card [PDF]. The non-profit group graded nearly 500 beaches statewide based on bacterial pollution levels monitored from Memorial Day to Labor Day this year, according to their release, and the news is generally pretty good.

    

By Willy Blackmore/Special to LAist

Well, hello, Autumn! As of 9 a.m., it was already 72 in Van Nuys, 66 in downtown L.A. and 64 at LAX and in Long Beach. But temperatures are going to soar today, prompting a Red Flag for fire danger and officials to tell the public to take heed (drink that water, stay cool). At the height of the day, the National Weather Service predicts temperatures over 100 in the Valley (100 in Burbank, 101 in Van Nuys, 104 in Woodland Hills), 96 in downtown L.A. and Long Beach, 89 at LAX, 84 in Santa Monica and 101 in Pasadena.

As the corridors of city hall in Los Angeles are abuzz with the pending outcome of budget talks, which could lead to nearly 1,000 layoffs, Long Beach councilmembers yesterday approved their $2.5 billion budget. "Citywide, 297 positions will be eliminated and up to 150 workers laid off under the new budget plan, which is a decrease from the original budget proposal that would have eliminated 312 positions and laid off 161," reported the Press-Telegram of the $20.3 million in cuts. "About 30 police officers may still get laid off, but the number of firefighters on duty at any given time will now drop from 137 to 133, instead of to 130."

                     

On Monday night, Smashing Pumpkins frontman Billy Corgan and Spirits in the Sky -- germinated from the recent Sky Saxon tribute at The Echoplex, whose lineup includes guitarist Dave Navarro and 19 year old drummer Mike Byrne -- performed the final show of their mini tour at the Hotel Cafe in Hollywood.

As many Americans are preparing to bid adieu to the season with Labor Day weekend, those of us lucky enough to live in this part of the country have several more weeks of warm weather to frolic in. Even so, there are some of you who have thought, “I should go to the beach this summer” and it’s still not too late. With the holiday weekend around the corner, we at LAist figured that you same-sex loving guys out there would appreciate info on where gaze upon gym-toned bods without fear (Lady-loving ladies, we’re open to a similar post just for you).

It's currently against the law to make a home of your car in Long Beach, but a proposal due to be discussed come September 1st at the City Council meeting would create "a new law that would allow "economic refugees" to legally sleep" in their vehicles, according to the Press-Telegram.

Cambridge Police Sgt. James Crowley, the arresting officer in the controversial Gates case that drew quick and harsh criticism from President Obama, will thank a national police union today in Long Beach for defending him when the President said he acted "stupidly," according to the LA Times. Black Harvard professor Henry Louis Gates Jr. was arrested for disorderly conduct when police responded to a break-in call. Gates was actually breaking in to his own house because his door was stuck. The incident drew national headlines and President Obama's remark was praised by the African-American community, but not by the policing one. The three of them sat down for beers to talk things over soon after. It is not known when Crowley will speak at the Fraternal Order of Police convention today. Around 10,000 are in attendance.

A woman pulled up to a Boyle Heights gas station in a Long Beach police cruiser early this morning. Suspicious as why a civilian clad woman was rummaging through the cruiser for money to purchase a lighter, the gas station attendants called police who responded and arrested her around 3:30 a.m., according to the LA Times. It is unknown how the cruiser was stolen, but the LAPD has transfered her into Long Beach's custody.

Last week police were simply looking for a child's step father after his body was found with unexplained injuries. Then yesterday, they announced Marcas Fisher, who has a troubled past, is the murder suspect and that anyone who was harboring him could be charge with interfering with the criminal investigation. Fisher is believed to be in the South LA or Long Beach area. Last week Thursday, officers responded to the 800 block of East 87th Place where paramedics had been summoned to an apartment residence. At the location, they found the body of Dae'von Bailey with multiple, unexplained injuries to his body in various stages of healing. The stepparent of the child was the last known caretaker of the boy, but was not at the location when paramedics and officers arrived. Anyone with info about this crime should contact LAPD Juvenile Division detectives at the Department’s 24-hour, toll-free number, 1-877-LAPD-24-7 or by texting CRIMES (274637) and beginning the message with the letters LAPD.

Closed Monday after 1,000 gallons of sewage spilled into Los Cerritos Channel, three affected beaches were allowed to open back up to the public today after tests concluded the water was within state standards. Mother’s Beach, Colorado Lagoon and Marine Stadium were closed after a private pumping station failed, spilling raw sewage into the storm system. Water quality monitoring will continue to be performed by the Health Department’s Recreational Water Quality Program on a weekly basis, says Long Beach officials.

A sewage spill last night prompted the closure of three beaches in Long Beach today. Failed circuit breakers in a private pump station caused approximately 1,000 gallons to discharge last night around 10:30 p.m. into the storm drain system near the Bixby Terrace Area leading to the Los Cerritos Channel where Mother's Beach, Marine Stadium and Colorado Lagoon are located. The beaches will remain closed until the city's Health Department and Officer deem the water bacteria levels within state standards. All water contact activity will be prohibited in the area.

Long Beach Press-Telegram Sports Columnist Doug Krikorian witnessed a little girl with her family riding along Long Beach's new green bike lane in Belmont Shore. He was a bit taken aback, worried for her safety among the potentially deadly cars on the road. Others shared that sentiment: "This is an absolutely crazy concept," says Long Beach resident Bernie Selmanson. "Who's going to accept the responsibility when someone gets seriously hurt? The first time that happens - and it inevitably will - that'll be the end of cyclists sharing the right lane with motorists in Belmont Shore." With our without the green painted lane, the law will always allow for bicyclists to share the road. As heard many times about this and other projects, serious education on bicycle laws need to happen in communities and at the DMV level.

     

Last week Long Beach did something that, by all appearances, no other city has ever done: they painted sharrows--a common practice to educate motorists that bicyclists get to legally share the road--with a five-foot green lane--a new and inventive way to grab everyone's attention and help cyclists stay out of the door zone.

There's plenty to do this weekend, like keeping cool inside the movie theatre or getting out and about around town. But with summer comes warm temps, long days, and festivals galore. There are a couple of such goings-on happening this weekend that you might want to check out.

On April 4th, two LA residents, Marcus Eriksen and Anna Cummins, set off an a 2,000-mile bike ride, the JUNKride, from Vancouver to Tijuana, to raise awareness and educate children and adults about the damage plastic is causing to our oceans.

Popular low-cost carrier JetBlue debuts their new service to LAX this morning, as they are scheduled to land their inaugural flight from New York's JFK at 10:45. It's been a bit of a wait, however, for the airline to begin service from our major airport; today's launch comes after "a yearlong delay," caused by a period of soaring fuel prices that made cross-country air travel costly, reports the Daily Breeze.

A fiery crash yesterday evening has caused the connector road between the eastbound Artesia (91) Freeway to the northbound Long Beach (710) Freeway as CalTrans continues to investigate the deadly incident.

Motorists spotted a brush fire after midnight last night as they traveled along the 91 Artesia Freeway and the 710 Long Beach Freeway and alerted the California Highway Patrol, reports the Press-Telegram. Firefighters soon arrived on scene to douse the blaze that ultimately "scorched roughly one-fourth of an acre of brush below the transition road" from the 91 to the 710. It took about 15 minutes to get the fire out; no one was injured and it had no effect on traffic. The cause of the fire is being investigated.

Not a good day for use of force reports in Long Beach. In two separate incidents, Long Beach police used their guns injuring four suspects with one officer also being shot. In the first incident, Long Beach undercover detectives witnessed a drive by shooting in Compton and pursued the vehicle onto the 710 freeway. It ended in a shootout: three suspects hit and one officer. Later, an officer responding to a vandalism call led to the suspect being shot when he tried to grab the officer's baton.