Our advice to you is to steer clear of Studio City this morning if you can -- a ruptured water main has Ventura Blvd. closed from Whitsett to Coldwater Canyon. According to KTLA, the pipe burst at about 8:20 last night, flooding the major thoroughfare completely. Crews are working to clean it up and suggest taking alternate streets like Riverside or Moorpark to those who can't avoid the area. more ›

It's 6:20 on a Thursday evening, and you're supposed to meet a friend for a drink at one of the restaurants on Ventura Boulevard in Studio City. So, uh...where is there a free parking spot? As of today, iPhone and Android users can tap into vacant spaces in Studio City with Parker, the real-time parking app. The launch of the app in Studio City was marked at an event featuring the participation of City Councilman Paul Krekorian, along with city officials and tech leaders. more ›

Following an alleged altercation, a gunman opened fire in the parking garage of the BLVD Hotel & Spa on the 10700 block of Ventura Blvd near Universal Studios, striking a hotel customer around 3:00 a.m. Sunday, according to authorities, reports KTLA. more ›

The bomb squad has been deployed to check out a "suspicious container" tied to a tree in Sherman Oaks, police said today. A coffee can-sized container tied to a palm tree with wires and batteries protruding on the southeast corner of Ventura and Sepulveda (map) -- that's catty corner to the Sherman Oaks Galleria -- was reported to the LAPD around 1:45 p.m. Police activity is affecting traffic at the intersection, which is one of the most traveled in the San Fernando Valley. more ›

A man was wounded in a shooting this afternoon that took place inside a parking garage in Studio City, but no suspect has been located, according to the LAPD. At 2:09 p.m., a 911 call alerted police of gunshots heard on the 12200 block of Ventura Boulevard, reportedly in the garage of California Pizza Kitchen off Laurelgrove. Upon arrival, officers and paramedics found a man suffering from two gunshot wounds -- one in his leg and another in his hand. more ›

The LAPD will set up a sobriety & drivers license checkpoint tonight in Studio City. The 8 p.m. to 3 a.m. event at Ventura and Big Oak is in response to 83 driving under the influence-related and 455 hit and run traffic collisions that have occurred so far this year in the North Hollywood police division, which includes Studio City. As usual, stay safe everyone! more ›

Around 1 a.m., a female driver sheared a fire hydrant and flipped her car on the Coldwater Curve portion of Ventura Boulevard in Studio City. Police on scene and witnesses said it appeared she had been drinking (luckily she survived). The towering geyser (video below) halted traffic and flooded the curbs leading toward Laurel Canyon. Some drivers parked near the hydrant were told they could not retrieve their cars until the scene was clear -- power lines above posed a safety risk, police said. more ›

Around 3 p.m., LAPD officers responded to the 4200 block of Ethel Avenue in Studio City, between Ventura Blvd. and the Los Angeles River. A "suspicious package" was reported, prompting street closures and a call to the bomb squad. No word yet on the outcome of the situation, according to LAPD officials. more ›

In a nice addition to Studio City's growing stock of quality eateries, Kings Road Cafe of Beverly Boulevard fame opened its second location on Ventura Boulevard earlier this month. Located just east of Whitsett Avenue, parking is complimentary with the valet, which is shared with the cafe's neighbor, Good Earth Restaurant. more ›

The new Studio Oaks Park, officially a wide median along Ventura Boulevard with a walking path that straddles the border of Sherman Oaks and Studio City, is practically finished. The meandering walking path is open to the public, except for one block that was flooded out by a trunkline break on Coldwater Canyon, and all that needs to be done to complete the project is some landscaping, which has become an issue between neighbors. more ›

Despite progress on a broken water main that flooded a part of Studio City, officials do not know when the busy canyon route will re-open. "At this time, it is not possible to estimate when street repair work will be complete and Coldwater Canyon Avenue will be reopened," a statement read from the Los Angeles Department of Water and Power. more ›

After opening a second location in Hollywood last year, Loteria Grill is readying a new one in Studio City, according to a land use committee agenda (.pdf) with the Studio City Neighborhood Council. This Wednesday, the group will discuss and possibly make a motion in regards to the restaurant's application for a full line alcoholic beverage license. Loteria, which has a space on the corner of Laurel Canyon and Ventura Blvd., is also planning to obtain a permit to allow for live entertainment between 11 a.m. and 2 a.m. more ›

Late last night a 64-inch water main burst in Studio City at Ventura Boulevard and Coldwater Canyon, according to the LA Times. The water flooded into area businesses and homes, and was 3-4' high in places, according to an LAFD email alert. more ›

Despite an abundance of precaution over a possible bank break-in, police officials have called a code 4--everything back to normal, no issues--at a Bank of America branch in Sherman Oaks. Around 8 a.m. when the bank manager arrived, things seemed out of place and suspicious noises were heard coming from the vault area. Police were alerted who in turn shut down Ventura Blvd. between Cedros and Willis for 3 and a half hours. Search teams found no one or any evidence of of a robbery or person. A transient with a black duffle bag--wrong place, wrong time, wrong bag--was temporarily detained and eventually let go. In the photo to the right, captured by an LAist reader in an office building across the street, police are seen on the roof of the bank building. more ›

Police have shut down Ventura Boulevard between Cedros and Willis in Sherman Oaks after bank employees suspected a possible break-in in progress this morning. Upon arriving around 8 a.m., bank workers heard suspicious noises coming from the vault area. They alerted police who in turn precautiously shut down the busy artery during rush hour as they prepared to enter the building. As of 9:40 a.m., police were preparing to enter the building, according to Officer Bruce Borihanh at Media Relations. UPDATE: A police search party exited the building empty handed, but noticed a man carrying a black duffel bag. He has been detained in handcuffs and is being questioned, according to KNX1070. UPDATE 2: The man was determined to be a homeless person not related to the incident. UPDATE 3: Ventura Blvd. has reopened, but police continue to search for a possible suspect. more ›

Although the big event has come and gone, the Encino Neighborhood Council is meeting tonight to discuss with city officials about crowds and media that are expected to still visit the Jackson Family compound on Hayvenhurst Avenue, just south of Ventura Boulevard. "As a result of the tragic death of Michael Jackson, the LAPD has exercised considerable restraint in accommodating worldwide media and mourners with access to the Jackson family residence on Hayvenhurst Avenue," according to a statement from the council that the Daily News printed. "At the same time, Hayvenhurst is a vital community access roadway, especially for evacuation and emergency response." The police said strict enforcement would begin last week. The meeting, open to all to attend, will be held at the Encino Women's Club, 4924 Paso Robles Ave. more ›

One of the most consistent tips police give retail business owners along Ventura Blvd. is to leave cash registers empty and open over night to show potential burglars there's nothing to steal. However, that doesn't mean they'll try anyway. more ›

Since last week's death of Michael Jackson, crowds and media have flocked to various locations related to the superstar. In Hollywood, it was his Walk of Fame star; on the Westside, his Holmby Hills rental mansion; and in the Valley, his family home on Hayvenhurst Ave., just off Ventura Blvd. more ›

Although her weight gain and amazing loss has been grabbing tabloid headlines as of late, the real news about Melissa Joan Hart is her new sweets shop that just celebrated its grand opening on Saturday in Sherman Oaks. Meet Sweetharts, a whimsically decorated frozen yogurt, gelato, cake, cupcake, hard and soft candy store. more ›

They may be only a fourth mile apart, but both family friendly yogurt chain Menchies and newcomer Sweet Rarts just recently opened in Sherman Oaks' restaurant row. First came the addicting and popular Menchies of Valley Village fame, which opened at Ventura and Dixie Canyon, most appropriately next to an elementary school. more ›

When it comes to police surveillance cameras, Los Angeles is still way behind New York City, who feeds thousands of live images to their centralized Real Time Crime Center. Here in LA, MacArthur Park and the Hollywood Entertainment District have had cameras for a few years and now the Valley can claim home to them too. more ›

As Los Angeles began to reach out in all directions from its tenuous core in the early part of the 20th Century, the city became a place for families and for visitors, and finding ways to make money off keeping them entertained was a frequent pursuit of many visionaries and entrepreneurs. Although a massive theme park like Disneyland didn't come on the scene until the 1950s, in the 1940s animals were the stars at many local attractions. more ›

Map of New Pizza & Italian Places in Sherman Oaks | View Larger Map more ›

Oh, you've got to love rumors, especially those that both anger and please people, depending on who you're speaking with. This rumor comes via a report during the Sherman Oaks Neighborhood Council* meeting last Monday night. During a Land Use Committee report, someone asked what the status was on the old Ventura Club building at Colbath and Ventura (just East of Hazeltine). Originally it was slated as a Walgreens, but after that got scrapped, the building sat abandoned. But now there a lot of construction going on inside as well as substantial parking lot additions. One member said he heard it was supposed to be "that English grocery store chain." Right then, the room was abuzz with "Tesco" and "Fresh & Easy," and how the Van Nuys location is not working out. No one could confirm any of this and calls to corporate late yesterday afternoon were not immediately returned, but upon a site visit, whatever's being built at the location is looking to be rather large in size (photos below) more ›

Looks like some folks in the San Fernando Valley didn't get the memo about the city's 40 hour moratorium on violence. more ›

Meet the future location of Studio Oaks Park where a grassroots effort is the only way this strip of unusable, rat-infested land will become a park. In Los Angeles, if you really want to get something done, you've got to take it upon yourself. In the southeast Valley, residents are doing just that. more ›

*Update, 6:42 p.m.: A maintenance man familiar with the building has said they found an apparent suicide note.

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