Results tagged “valley”

Back in April of 2008 we remarked that the announcement of a new overlay area code--a code within an existing code area for use with new numbers when all previous numbers have been assigned--was "not a big deal." Okay, fine, so soon people in the 818 might have to accept a 747 area code, and everyone within the area would have to dial each other using all 10 digits.

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.

Members of two rival gangs clashed last night at an Arco station at the corner of Laurel Canyon and Vanowen in North Hollywood, resulting in a shootout that left one teenage boy dead, according to the Daily News.

Last month, Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger eliminated full funding--a mere $16.3 million--for domestic violence programs in the state. Highlighting the need for such a program, an 18-year-old girl was killed in her bed in the Santa Clarita Valley last Sunday. Her boyfriend allegedly committed the murder inside the family trailer in the Canyon Country neighborhood. That was the third domestic violence death for the valley in a year's time.

It's pretty much been known for months, but today Assemblymember Paul Krekorian announced his campaign for Los Angeles Council District 2, which crosses the Valley from Sherman Oaks to North Hollywood to a handful of Northeast Valley neighborhoods like Shadow Hills and Tujunga. Currently, Krekorian represents the 43rd Assembly District, which covers Burbank, Glendale and portions of LA including Valley Village, Valley Glen, Toluca Lake, Atwater Village, Silver Lake and Los Feliz.

       

The Counter, known for letting customers customize their own burgers anyway they want, finally made its arrival yesterday in Studio City (Ventura Blvd. near Laurel Canyon). The long-awaited restaurant adds to the commercial district's gamut of quality eateries to choose from, including the nearby Artisan Cheese Gallery, Arb Pizza, Vegan Plate and Laurel Tavern.

If you've been sitting on the edge of your seat waiting to grab up the best 747 area code number (747-666-6666?), today is the first day to grab one. The San Fernando Valley has been in overlay mode--that means you have to first dial 1 when calling within the 818 area code--since last month. Starting today, new phone line activations can be in the new 747 area code or still within the 818 one until it's fully exhausted.

We live in a city filled with thousands of landmarks, but whether it's just our proclivity for changing courses like our capricious weather patterns, or it's a matter of life imitating the kind of art that put us on the map, even when we call something a "landmark" it doesn't mean it's even here anymore. Or, really, that it even makes sense. Such is the case with one of the most unusual landmarks to spring up in the city, the Tower of Wooden Pallets that accidentally became art, then a landmark, then--to most--just a memory.

Planning for the weekend, the weather is looking to be pretty sweet. Basically, today through Sunday, the weather will be in the 70s on the beaches, low 80s inland and a little hotter in the hills and Valley, according to the National Weather Service. Oh yes, for the win. The skies will remain clear and sunny until Sunday night and Monday morning, when patchy clouds and fog will roll on in before it once again... clears.

It's 97 in Woodland Hills. Drive 12 miles over the Santa Monica Mountains to Malibu and you'll be in the low 70s. Head a little further south to the Southbay and welcome to the high 60s. Now take the 10 freeway to Downtown and you'll split the difference at 85 degrees. What's your pick?

         

it's been about two years since Vi Trinh left her pursuit of a child psychology degree at UCLA to open Se' La Vi Sweets as a private catering business. Instead of doing homework, she would watch the Food Network and bake. So at the insistence of her boyfriend--and now partner Physent Walker--she dropped out of college and applied to Le Cordon Bleu in Pasadena. She was accepted, but could not afford tuition, so she just went at it, full time, catering parties and events with her own style of cupcakes and other sweets. So far, business is great.

By law, if police want to use radar guns on streets, cities must measure the average speed cars are going, regardless of posted limits, every 7 to 10 years. If they find that 15% of vehicles are illegally going over the speed limit, the city must increase the limit to allow for radar use. That's what's been happening for nearly a year in the Valley, angering residents and activists who have brought the issue to City Councilmembers who in turn are beginning to show disapproval of the system, too.

Four valley streets with proposed speed limit increases are scheduled to be voted on by the City Council tomorrow. This has livable streets activists up in arms as they ask how can vehicles legally gain more speed while pedestrians and bicyclists are put in more danger, especially in light of a slew of recent fatal pedestrian incidents. Damien Newton at StreetblogLA explains why there is an increase: "The LADOT and LAPD have conspired to raise the limits on these streets because of a state law that requires that the speed limit be set at the 85th percentile of traffic every couple of years for the police to be able to use radar. What has been left unexplained is why so many people are speeding on these roads if the police are using rader currently. Unless limits are being enforced, people will continue to speed no matter what the limit and the limit will rise every couple of years." Whether or not it is acceptable or not to raise speed limits, we'll leave to the transportation experts. What we feel the real problem here is the lack of plans to create a culture of pedestrian and cyclist awareness and respect for the law.

              

Around the perimeter of Lake Balboa in the San Fernando Valley are hundreds of slender trees with fragile branches soon to be fully burdened by the buouyant pink of gorgeous cherry blossoms. These trees know it's verging on spring, and about 30% of them are sporting their cheerful buds and blooms. An daytime jaunt these days to the park and a stroll around the lake will grant you a hint of what's to come.

       

What was a solution to prevent graffiti tagging on soundwalls became a problem as transients moved in. When Metro's Orange Line opened in 2005, the bike path walls had little growth around them, leaving them as a blank canvas for graffiti. Landscaping was planted to discourage tagging and it was a success for the most part, but when you have space and shrubbery, it also become shelter. As seen here, many have made it their home.

The answer to that may depend where you live. If you're a UCLA student, parking on the sidewalk may not get enforced, but if you're in a different part of the city--let's say the Valley--a ticket could be there waiting for you. The inconsistent parking enforcement is now park of a lawsuit against the city. "This lack of enforcement continues even though parking on a sidewalk violates both the California Vehicle Code, Los Angeles Municipal Code and may violate the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA)," explains Damien Newton at Streetsblog LA. "The U.S. Supreme Court’s decision in Barden v. Sacramento sets a nationwide precedent requiring cities to make all public sidewalks accessible. As a result, cities must remove barriers that block disabled access along the length of the sidewalks."

Today's Daily News takes a look at one of Los Angeles' main streets, Ventura Boulevard, and how it's faring in the current economic crisis. Not surprisingly, things are not going well for business owners whose shops are located on "the San Fernando Valley's most robust commercial strip."

Wrought with the economy hitting them hard and community and city opposition, Home Depot officially announced today that they are done trying to open a store in the Northeast Valley and are dropping their $10 million lawsuit against the city of Los Angeles.

The Westside, especially areas like Padific Palisades, is not that dangerous. Let's just call it property crime/non-violent land. The LAPD now has a plan that will move 26 officers from the West Los Angeles Division to other areas of higher crime in a reorganization of patrol areas because two new stations are opening--one in Koreatown and another in the West Valley.

Daily News' transit writer Sue Doyle today explores the Orange Line and why some people are frustrated with it. Namely, to go 14-miles between North Hollywood and Warner Center, it takes 40 minutes. That's too slow so how can it be sped up? Some want light rail, others say put gates at the intersections and give the buses a right-of-way so they don't have wait at lights. But a light rail could be too costly and inflexible, some say. Gates can be costly too and if you add syncing lights to that equation, it could gridlock crosstraffic.

As fires continue to burn, offshore and onshore winds are expected to push smoke throughout the region. The South Coast Air Quality Management District says you should exercise caution and avoid unnecessary outdoor activities in areas directly impacted by smoke. What that means is if you can see it or smell it, then take the warning seriously.

There's a relatively new local blog on the scene called Blazing Shark. Albeit a bit, ohhhh, NSFW (in words, not photos), it's all about the red headed Westsider's sexually adventurous life (she even flirts on Twitter). Her most recent post reminisces on some successful celebrity stalking earlier this year.

Then happier days are maybe to come... "Traffic signals at 70 intersections around Reseda Boulevard will begin getting synchronization makeovers thanks to money from a $20 billion voter-approved bond," reports the Daily News. "It will take 18 months before commuters see the benefits of the $8.5 million project, a real-time, computer-based traffic signal system that cuts delay time at intersections." Other streets included will be within Lassen Street to the north, Roscoe Boulevard to the south, Hayvenhurst Avenue to the east and Vanalden Avenue to the west.

The gas price spike may be over, but it would seem that some are sticking to public transit. The latest numbers coming from Metro show that the Orange Line continues to grow in popularity. September saw the highest ridership ever for the Orange Line in the Valley at 28,000. Which has us asking, when will that feared and applauded (depending on who you are) proposal to turn the dedicated busway into a light rail happen?

Fire Chief, Michael Freeman reportedly told City News Service that there "is a real possibility" the fire could make a run down toward the Pacific Coast with the wind conditions, which are expected to pick up again tonight. At a 4:30 p.m. press conference, LA County Supervisor Zev Yaroslavsky said that the fire "can go from [the Valley] to the ocean in a matter of two to three hours... now is the time to get prepared and be alert." Communities threatened by the current movement of the fire could be Hidden Hills, Bell Canyon, Calabasas and Agoura Hills.

"The tragic case of the Rajaram family is at the bleakest edge of the economic turmoil that is rattling Americans' emotional well-being. Worries about home foreclosures, job losses and plunging stock prices have sparked a surge in mental health problems," says the LA Times in a report about the economy and a national surge in mental health problems. "Rates of depression and suicide tend to rise during hard economic times. A study that looked at economic shifts between 1972 and 1991 found suicides rose an average of 2% when the economy faltered."

It didn't take long for Harold Ghaemmaghami, 45, the suspected Garden Glove bandit, to be caught by police. It was earlier this month that police asked the public's help in identifying the robber that targeted at least 17 Valley stores while wearing gardening gloves.

blogdowntown is all over the parks in their hood making a special page dedicated to the event. Our favorite is the bike rack in a parking space, something that is not a stranger to the streets of Portland. Over at Curbed LA, a reader is disappointed in the Valley. Apparently, the Studio City and NoHo Arts District parks were no where to be found and one in the Northeast Valley was "was little more than a tent set up in the street with a few big tables." We're lucky the Sherman Oaks one was there as said. Phew!

View Larger Map

For the Los Angeles region this weekend, it was a deadly one. At least ten people died by CBS2's count, four of them within Los Angeles: