The Brief

More than half a year after January’s fires, utilities are slowly moving forward on their plans to put power lines underground.

Along the coast and in the foothills of the San Gabriel Mountains, the details for the plans are lacking — and in the case of the Palisades, yet to be developed.

As survivors start filing the paperwork to rebuild their homes, they worry they’re putting the cart before the horse.

In Altadena, many fire survivors are asking — is the Southern California Edison work to bury power lines worth the cost? In Pacific Palisades, where rebuild permits are being approved more quickly, building contractors are wondering — what exactly is the L.A. Department of Water and Power’s plan?

In both areas, successfully putting power lines underground will require buy-in from neighbors on each block. If there’s one holdout, it can render an entire undergrounding project unfeasible. These individual homeowners could foot up to $10,000 of the bill, though those costs are still being worked out.

After a flurry of calls to put more power lines underground from community members, local officials and Gov. Gavin Newsom himself, the challenges of actually doing it — including whether people can or are willing to pay for it — are mounting.

Why put lines underground?

The causes of both the Eaton and Palisades fires remain under investigation. The leading theory for the Eaton Fire is that a de-energized transmission line (those big power lines up in the mountains) somehow re-energized and sparked the fire.

The electrical transmission towers above Eaton Canyon in Altadena, where the LA wildfire known as the Eaton Fire originally started.

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Jules Hotz

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Transmission lines are generally not buried underground because they’re often high above vegetation, are far apart from each other and are far less likely to spark fires. (Though when they do, it can be devastating — equipment on Pacific Gas & Electric transmission lines were found to be the cause of the deadly Camp Fire, which killed 85 people and razed the town of Paradise in Northern California).

In the Palisades, the leading theory is that a previous fire possibly reignited with the winds.

But in both areas, there’s evidence that downed distribution power lines — the lines that actually connect to our homes — sparked additional fires.

In Altadena, radio traffic shows how downed lines sparked new fires after Edison did not shut off power. In Pacific Palisades, a lawsuit representing more than 3,300 families alleges evidence of DWP downed power poles worsening the fires.

Snapped LADWP power poles and downed lines stand on a hill in the Palisades Fire burn scar. The image is from a lawsuit alleging high winds snapped the poles, leading to additional fires from the downed power lines.

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Screenshot from Grigsby et al. lawsuit against LADWP

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Putting distribution lines underground can almost completely reduce the risk of those lines sparking fires, as well as improve reliability. But it’s a lot more expensive than other fire-risk-reduction strategies, such as covered conductors or “fast trip” technology, which turns off the power automatically when a fault is detected on a line. Those strategies can reduce fire ignition risk by around 55% to 80%, respectively, and sometimes more, according to studies by utilities and academics.

An example of a covered conductor.

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Courtesy Southern California Edison

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Covered conductors like this one can reduce fire risk significantly, though not as much as burying power lines.

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But burying power lines also comes with advantages — the lines are insulated from the environment so they need less maintenance, and it can prevent the need to shut off power during dangerous fire weather (though it can extend outages when they happen since the lines are harder to reach).

Edison’s ratepayers largely have to foot the bill for these fire risk reduction strategies — from tree and vegetation management, to hardening infrastructure. It’s a big reason why electricity bills continue to rise — Edison estimates about 10% of our bills go toward wildfire mitigation.

What goes into the average SoCal Edison electric bill.

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How SoCal Edison is putting lines underground

In Altadena, about a mile of the trenching and equipment installation needed to put power lines underground has been completed so far along Sunny Oaks Circle and East Loma Alta Drive, just below the foothills. Many, though not all, of the houses in the area burned in the Eaton Fire. The utility was already planning to put these lines underground before the fire — now the work is being expedited.

Edison will need to secure about 30 easements from homeowners to successfully complete the remaining mile-and-a-half or so of this underground segment, said Shinjini Menon, Edison’s vice president of system planning and engineering.

A newly paved street hides buried power infrastructure at Sunny Oaks Circle and East Loma Drive in Altadena. The box to the right is the transformer. Newly built homes will connect to the cables running through it.

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Securing easements and rights of entry from full blocks of homeowners will be key to finishing all the underground projects, she said. Her team is managing the restoration work.

This part of Altadena is in a designated Very High Fire Hazard Severity Zone, which experts say is the ideal place to put power lines underground. About 40 miles of underground lines are planned in Altadena's high-risk zones.

“ We are doing this because it makes sense for the communities and we really need their help collectively to get all the easements and permits that we need,” Menon said.

The rest of Edison’s line mileage in the area — about 45 miles — are not in designated high-risk zones. Still, the utility said it plans to bury about 23 miles of those lines "given the amount damage that has happened where there are multiple homes along roads that have to be rebuilt,” Menon said. They're assessing an additional 19 miles for undergrounding in lower fire-risk areas.

Shinjini Menon, SoCal Edison’s vice president of system planning and engineering.

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When it comes to burying power lines, Menon said Edison considers "not only the benefits from the risk reduction from fire, but the long term benefits of, 'Hey, we don't have to trim the trees as much once we are underground. We don't have to inspect as frequently.' There are other benefits that come with it. So looking at the lifecycle view of it and saying, 'Where does it make sense?'”

At the same time, Menon said, the utility is upgrading the system to hold more electricity to deal with higher future demand. She said now is the time to do it, when the cost will be less than normal given the scale of destruction.

Cost worries residents

Edison officials say they have done extensive outreach with officials and community members about their plan to bury power lines, but many residents feel they’re still left in the dark, especially when it comes to how much the work may cost them.

Julian Saucedo and his wife lost their home of 35 years in Altadena. He lived far below the foothills and is still beyond the bounds of newly designated fire-risk areas.

Still, Edison plans to bury the power lines that serve him and his neighbors as soon as the end of this year — and Saucedo’s not happy about it.

“It's been six months and little or nothing from [Edison] in terms of what they're doing in the undergrounding arena,” Saucedo said. “And we are beside ourselves.”

His biggest concern? The cost. In a letter to Newsom in mid-April, Edison Chief Executive Pedro Pizarro wrote it could cost individual homeowners $8,000 to $10,000 to connect to new underground lines, plus fees that may not be waived.

“Finding alternative ways to fund this significant out-of-pocket expense, including through government funds or philanthropic sources, could meaningfully assist customers in their rebuilding efforts,” Pizarro wrote.

Restored overhead power lines in Altadena.

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A spokesperson for Edison told LAist they’re working with L.A. County to secure funding from the state’s office of emergency management, as well as the Federal Emergency Management Agency, to offset those costs.

But so far, no word on that additional money. And Saucedo and his neighbors are skeptical that support will ever come through.

Unlike required code upgrades, connecting to underground power lines is not covered by insurance. Saucedo worries the cost could be the straw that breaks the camel’s back, the difference for some neighbors between deciding to rebuild or leave.

He called the undergrounding effort by Edison “a money grab,” especially in areas that are not designated high fire risk, even if they burned in the Eaton Fire.

“We're quite a group of neighbors — we are all rallying behind each other,” Saucedo said. “A number of individuals are strongly opposed to undergrounding.”

Saucedo and his neighbors are advocating for homeowners to reject Edison’s right of entry and easement sale requests.

Instead, they’re planning to push for other, cheaper fire suppression methods, such as covered conductors or fast-trip sensors.

“We're worried that everyone's just going to sign these ROEs [rights-of-entry] and then we're all footing the bill,” said Nicole Wirth, an Altadena resident who lost her home and is a captain with grassroots group Altagether.  She said they want more transparency about the costs from Edison. ”We don't have a ton of trust in Edison right now, and we don't have a ton of trust that the county is looking out for us.”

An aerial view of properties cleared of fire debris in Altadena.

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Amanda Riddle, lead attorney for the Eaton Fire lawsuit, said her clients could claim that cost as part of their damages.

“The costs shouldn't be on the ratepayers or homeowners at this point,” she said.

Edison has said they will pay homeowners a $500 stipend for the right of entry, plus whatever they’re owed for the sale of an easement.

“Our preference is to reach an agreement with the property owners,” said Edison spokesperson Gabriela Ornelas. “Delays into getting access to work on properties can slow down the collective effort to build back stronger. We are committed to working with the homeowners.”

Meanwhile, finding an accessible way to identify if their individual properties will be in areas with newly buried power lines has been a challenge for homeowners. Members of Altagether have been piecing details together using Edison’s public list of current undergrounding projects, then searching the names of the circuits in Altadena via this map.

In an FAQ Edison released in June, the utility said it is “developing a public ArcGIS map to show planned undergrounding areas.”

Putting the cart before the horse?

Beyond questions about costs, in Pacific Palisades, builders and residents are wondering why the Los Angeles Department of Water and Power is taking so long to develop a specific plan.

“ This plan should be done,” said Reza Akef, who was raised in the Palisades and now builds homes there via his company Metro Capital Builders.

Unlike in Altadena, the goal in the Palisades is to bury 100% of the lines in the neighborhood, which exists entirely in a designated Very High Fire Hazard Severity Zone.

Before the fires, about 48% of the lines in the Palisades were already underground, said Yamen Nanne,  an assistant program management director with LADWP.

Nanne said the city-owned utility is putting together more specific plans that will be released at a town hall Aug. 27.

Part of the delay has been coordinating with telecommunications companies, who jointly own poles with LADWP but will have to foot the bill themselves to go underground with the utility.

“ Initially, we did get some concerns from the telecommunication companies about the costs associated with that,” said David Hanson, senior assistant general manager for LADWP’s power system at a July 2 town hall. “But we have had further meetings with the telecom companies and we're making some accommodations for them. So I feel confident that we're moving forward with both electrical and telecommunication underground.”

Power poles in Pacific Palisades. LADWP has largely restored its overhead system already.

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Burying lines will not be required in the Palisades — it will only happen if each neighborhood block agrees to it together.

“There's no mechanism for us to come in and essentially force folks to go underground,” Hanson said. “We want to provide the option, and if they don't want to take the option, it's fine with us. We'll harden your overhead system with another wildfire mitigation technique.”

Like Edison, DWP is also upgrading how much power the system can handle in the process. They’re doing that by expanding their station on Sunset Boulevard, where power lines are being put underground.

This will be the new “backbone” of the neighborhood’s upgraded electric system, a spokesperson for the utility said, and will allow the utility to abandon a plan for another distribution center near Marquez Elementary School, which had long faced resistance from the community.

The increased voltage LADWP is building into this system is another reason for delays.

LADWP is burying power line on Sunset Boulevard in Pacific Palisades.

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“Since this is a new voltage not currently used anywhere else in LADWP service territory, special attention and consideration is being taken to ensure the system will be reliable for the homeowners and safe for our crews and inspectors constructing and operating the system,” said Mia Rose Wong, a spokesperson for the utility.

Hanson said that even without the specific plans yet in public hands, as long as homeowners who are rebuilding install an electrical panel that supports both underground and overhead electric service, they’ll be able to be hooked up to the underground system when LADWP gets to them.

Restored overhead power lines in Pacific Palisades.

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Contractors are skeptical.

“That is so far from the truth  of what it takes to underground power in Los Angeles,” Akef said.

He pointed out that when connecting to underground power, homeowners need to hire an electrical engineer who can provide more detailed plans to the city on their power needs beyond that electrical panel upgrade, such as how many amps are needed and the size and number of the conduit lines. Inspections from LADWP are required every step of the way, Akef said.

He worries that for those already rebuilding, it could cost them later if they get too far ahead of LADWP.

 ”Imagine those people who are building right now,  for example, like if you finish your hardscape or your driveway,  you would have to tear that all down,” Akef said. “You’d have to trench down three feet for this conduit and take it to the property line.”

Justin Skaggs, a utility consultant who specializes in overhead to underground conversion for power lines, said the “logistical puzzle” of burying lines in a timely manner in concert with homes being rebuilt requires more coordination with contractors and homeowners than is currently happening.

“Everyone's going to be on different timelines, so it's very difficult for anyone to be able to really logistically plan,” Skaggs said. “ It's going to be very challenging to coordinate. That's probably one of the biggest hurdles other than the funding.”

This story was originally published by CalMatters.

Democrat Xavier Becerra will advance to the November general election in the race for California governor, capping a sudden and dramatic ascent for a career politician who is running on his experience and his willingness to take on President Donald Trump.

Becerra, the former state attorney general, has secured nearly 27% of the vote in the June 2 primary, with about two-thirds of votes counted as of Friday afternoon. If elected in November, he would be the first Latino to serve as California governor in more than a century.

It’s still unclear who his opponent will be: Returns so far show Republican Steve Hilton most likely to advance with more than 26% of votes counted, though the trailing Democrat Tom Steyer has not conceded and could make up ground in the nearly three million votes that remain to be counted.

California uses a top-two primary system; the two candidates with the most votes advance to the November ballot regardless of party.

The November race could differ dramatically depending on the opponent. If it’s Hilton, Becerra would be heavily favored to win: Democrats in California outnumber Republicans nearly two-to-one, and Hilton is endorsed by Trump, whom Californians disapprove of in high numbers.

If it’s Steyer, California can expect an all-out slugfest between opposing wings of the Democratic Party, supercharged by the hundreds of millions of dollars Steyer has spent from his personal fortune on the primary alone.

While the hedge fund manager-turned-Democratic donor and climate activist has run a progressive campaign and garnered the support of Bernie Sanders surrogates, Becerra is favored by more of the Democratic establishment.

Becerra, who had lingered in the single-digits in polling, surged in popularity following the political implosion of former frontrunner Eric Swalwell, with establishment Democrats favoring the former Health and Human Services secretary and former state attorney general over former Rep. Katie Porter and the outsider Steyer.

It was a surprising and swift ascent for the mild-mannered career politician who was previously part of a crop of lower-polling Democratic candidates that party chair Rusty Hicks was publicly pressuring to drop out of the race.

“Guess what? The underdog stayed in the fight,” Becerra said at an election night rally Tuesday in Los Angeles, calling his near-victory “the everyday miracle of living in a state that regularly makes the improbable seem inevitable.”

The decision comes at a particularly consequential time for California. Residents face a crushing cost of living, nation-topping gas prices made worse by the war in Iran, wildfire risks that have driven insurance companies out of state, an unstable state budget, impending federal cuts to the state’s expansive health system and an economy dampened by immigration enforcement.

This article was originally published on CalMatters and was republished under the Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives license.

Nearly three months ago, the Los Angeles City Council voted to fund homelessness prevention programs to the tune of $177 million. Despite approval by Mayor Karen Bass, the funding still has not been cleared by City Attorney Hydee Feldstein Soto.

Now, city leaders want answers about the delay.

A motion introduced earlier this week by Councilmember Ysabel Jurado said the “contracts remain unexecuted without explanation.” The motion goes on to say the setback has caused “$17 million ... in emergency rental assistance to sit unused” and has put “services for those at risk of homelessness in jeopardy.”

If passed by the council’s Housing and Homelessness Committee and later approved by the full council, Jurado’s motion would call on Feldstein Soto to report back to the council within 30 days about the reasons for the delay.

Representatives with the City Attorney’s Office did not respond to LAist’s repeated requests for comment.

Tenant aid providers said they’ve entered their third month without funding from the city. They said without an executed contract, legal aid organizations may soon have to lay off staff and stop taking eviction cases.

“The people who are providing the services are all in nonprofit organizations that don't have a great deal of extra funding to cover this contract that isn't being paid,” said Barbara Schultz, housing director at the Legal Aid Foundation of Los Angeles.

How we got here

Feldstein Soto has held up the tenant aid funding since April 2025, when she refused to sign a previously approved five-year funding deal with the Legal Aid Foundation. At the time, she argued the contract should have gone through a competitive bidding process.

City officials responded by putting out a request for proposals. They ultimately selected the Legal Aid Foundation, along with several other tenant rights groups, to receive funding set aside for rent relief, tenant education, enforcement of the city’s tenant anti-harassment ordinance and programs that provide free attorneys to tenants facing eviction.

Much of the funding for these homelessness prevention programs comes from the city’s Measure ULA, also known as the L.A. “Mansion Tax.” That tax is now facing potential elimination from a statewide November ballot measure from the Howard Jarvis Taxpayers Association.

The city attorney’s tenant rights track record 

Feldstein Soto has frequently clashed with tenant rights advocates.

She previously attempted to remove the word “right” from the city’s “Right To Counsel” ordinance, which supplies free eviction defense attorneys to qualified tenants.

Feldstein Soto also has faced criticism for not prosecuting more landlords accused of rent gouging in the wake of the 2025 Palisades and Eaton fires.

She also was accused of failing to defend the rights of tenants at the high-rise apartment complex Barrington Plaza, who went to court to successfully fight wrongful evictions from landlord company Douglas Emmett, which donated to a campaign opposing Feldstein Soto’s opponent in the 2022 election.

Feldstein Soto launched an audit of the Legal Aid Foundation last year. So far, no findings have been released.

Schultz said the organization has provided all the financial and administrative documentation requested by the L.A. Housing Department related to the contracts.

Why it matters for renters

The Legal Aid Foundation is the lead contractor for the city’s eviction defense funding, but the money is shared with other legal aid organizations as well.

Elena Popp, who leads the Eviction Defense Network, said her small team of lawyers can’t continue to take on tenant cases until funding is approved.

“We're contemplating layoffs effective June 15 unless we can raise the part of the money that is our budget from the city,” Popp said. “If we lay people off, then tenants won't be served.”

Anna Urena, a paralegal with the Eviction Defense Network, says her organization would normally do intake for about 300 tenants per month.

“We're not taking on new cases. We're not representing new people right now because we don't know what's going to happen,” she said. “We really cannot leave our tenants behind.”

What’s next?

Jurado’s motion has not yet been scheduled for a vote in the council’s Housing and Homelessness Committee.

Based on her third-place showing so far in the June primary election results, it appears Feldstein Soto will not be L.A.’s city attorney much longer. Popp said Feldstein Soto’s lame duck status doesn’t bode well for the contract getting signed soon.

“She now has no incentive to sign, and pressure on her will not get her to sign,” Popp said. “If that happens and the City Council doesn't take charge of this, maybe hire outside counsel to get the approval, then we won't see any money until the new city attorney comes in.”

Millions of people are about to pack stadiums across the U.S., Canada and Mexico for the World Cup, starting June 11.

Public health officials have been working to ensure the health and safety of the masses of fans they're expecting at the 104 matches across 16 cities through mid-July.

In the U.S., World Cup preparations are coming in a time of a diminished federal health presence and funding. It's upped the workload for host city health departments, as they're also strapped for federal funding.

Nevertheless, World Cup host city health officials say they're prepared for the many challenges that come with large-scale celebrations and gatherings.

"We've been focusing on expecting the expected" — issues related to weather, health and human behavior, says Dr. Marcus Plescia, district health director for Fulton County, Georgia, which includes Atlanta.

Planning for the event is ongoing, says Dr. Philip Huang, director of Dallas County Health and Human Services in Texas. "To be able to begin preparations a year out is a luxury for us, compared to a lot of the situations that we deal with," he says.

"We call Atlanta 'Hotlanta' for a reason"

For public health departments, the World Cup is a big deal –- but they're well prepared for the biggest challenges.

Summer heat, for instance. "We call Atlanta 'Hotlanta' for a reason," says Georgia's Dr. Plescia, "It's going to be hot and humid here -– so heat-related injuries are going to be an issue."

Atlanta is hosting eight World Cup matches and the team from Uzbekistan. At downtown Centennial Olympic Park, a month-long fan festival is expected to draw some 15,000 people a day. Cooling stations will offer air-conditioning and hydration.

Then there's feeding the crowds. "The biggest lift for us and for all health departments is that our environmental health workers have to inspect all of the food vendors — and there will be a whole lot of food vendors," Plescia says.

Inspectors will check every day to ensure the facilities are in working order and the food is safe to eat. "We want to make sure that people feel confident that they can go out to eat and have a good time –- and they don't have to worry about getting food poisoning," Plescia says.

When lots of people gather, germs tend to spread. "We're worried about sexually transmitted infections because there's going to be a lot of people here and it's going to be a festive atmosphere," Plescia says. "And then we're worried about things maybe we wouldn't have been worried about as much before, particularly measles." Measles is highly contagious among those who haven't been vaccinated, and there have been 30 U.S. outbreaks this year.

Dallas is hosting nine World Cup matches — the most of any city. The health department is stepping up disease surveillance in wastewater, expanding sites and covering more area, says Dr. Huang, the county health authority. Beyond looking for typical threats like influenza and COVID, they're also testing for "whatever might appear" through genomic sequencing, he says.

They're also broadening mosquito surveillance –- setting insect traps and testing for pathogens they can spread. "We always test for West Nile virus," Huang says, "But we're also increasing our testing for dengue, chikungunya and Zika because of all the [incoming] international travel."

Medical staff are also looking out for symptoms of Ebola or hantavirus, due to outbreaks.

Keeping track of which diseases are circulating means they'll be able to alert hospitals and the public quickly if they see a spike. "It's a lot of things we normally do but certainly more enhanced," Huang says.

They're also preparing health tips for the public in different languages: Wear a hat and sunscreen and hydrate when it's hot out. Bug spray and long sleeves help prevent mosquito bites. Stay home if you're sick. "It's the same messages [we always share], but it's really concentrated because we've got so many people coming during a hot period of time in Dallas," Huang says.

"Most of our staff are not taking vacations"

The World Cup finals are jointly hosted by New York and New Jersey on July 19.

Officials have been running practice simulations to prepare for outbreaks and mass casualty events. "We plan for the worst case scenario and go through it before it actually happens," says Dr. Alister Martin, New York City's health commissioner.

They've also set up "incident command" to "divert resources from normal stuff so that we can manage any potential emergencies," Martin says, adding that the operation will continue through much of the summer, for other big events planned in New York, including America's 250th anniversary, Pride month and the Puerto Rican Day parade.

In Los Angeles, which is hosting eight games, including the U.S. opening match versus Paraguay, risk-assessment teams will monitor the surroundings for chemical exposures and biological threats.

In L.A., diminished federal assistance means the health department is counting on existing staff to do the extra work. "Most of our staff are not taking vacations during the month of the World Cup because they'll need to work -– we'll be obviously accruing overtime costs," says Barbara Ferrer, the L.A. county health director.

And much of their regular work, like routine food inspections, gets put aside. "I know it would be easier if we weren't in a resource constrained environment," Ferrer says. "But I want to provide assurance that even in a resource constrained environment, we're well prepared."

Ferrer says they've successfully planned and managed other events of national significance, like the 2022 Super Bowl. "This work isn't new to us," she says, adding that staff are making great efforts "to make sure this is a joyous time in L.A. county and [that] we're all safe."

This year's experience will better prepare Los Angeles to host other events, she says — like the 2027 Super Bowl and the 2028 Summer Olympics.

Ferrer hopes these events will help authorities see that public health is key to public safety — and worth investing in.

Less of a federal presence

On the federal level, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, which serves as the nation's public health agency, has a muted presence this year.

"Usually, the CDC is a visible lead when we have international events in the United States, particularly across the country, versus just in a single state," says Dr. Debra Houry, former chief medical officer for the CDC who resigned last year.

The current Trump administration has pushed thousands of workers out of the CDC workforce and tampered politically with some of its functions, such as setting vaccine policy and publishing scientific papers. The agency's scientists rarely speak directly with the public anymore; their messages are filtered through politically appointed leadership.

Other governmental groups that would typically be involved, such as the National Security Council's biosecurity group, the Office of Pandemic Preparedness and Response Policy, and the Assistant Secretary for Preparedness and Response, have been disbanded, left vacant or don't have permanent leaders, Houry says.

The diminished federal presence serves as the backdrop for the World Cup.

Emily Hilliard, press secretary for the Department of Health and Human Services which oversees the CDC and ASPR, wrote in an email response to NPR: "HHS and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) are actively coordinating with state, local, and global partners to ensure public health and safety during FIFA World Cup 2026 and enhance any measures, as needed."

Localities have found that the federal presence is late in coming, and not as coordinated as it may have been in the past, says Lori Freeman, CEO for the National Association of County and City Health Officials, which represents health departments.

Freeman says the CDC started holding coordination calls and issuing some guidance a few months ago –- long after host cities started their own preparations. She notes: "When it comes to merging public health, emergency response and preparedness, that is an area we worry constantly about because the federal government is the agency that must manage across state jurisdictions between and among states."

Some have stepped up to fill perceived gaps. For instance, Georgetown University has set up a Health Security Operations Center to track infectious diseases and send out daily reports, to inform places expecting an influx of travelers throughout the World Cup.
Copyright 2026 NPR

If you’re looking for a great place to watch the upcoming World Cup on L.A.'s Westside — particularly if you can’t break the bank for a ticket — there’s O’Brien’s Irish Pub in Santa Monica.

Owner Willy O'Sullivan sat down with Larry Mantle, host of AirTalk, to discuss how the pub has managed to maintain its customer base, while others — like Brennan's and Britannia Pub — have had to close their doors. He says it all comes down to partnerships with local sports fans, trivia nights and maintaining their authentic Irish pub food and brews.

About the owner

A native of Cork City, the second-largest city in Ireland, O'Sullivan arrived stateside in 1987. He opened the pub in 1994, and as interest in soccer has grown, he's built a community around European football matches, especially after subsequent World Cups. Along the road, he's also built a following for New York sports teams.

The ultimate O'Brien's experience

St. Patrick's Day, obviously.

But ... any other day he'd recommend coming in for the Irish breakfast with a coffee in hand or "the best Guinness in Southern California," in his words.

How he ensures quality Guinness

Because Guinness is the pub's signature drink, he's made sure to give it a short beer tap line, meaning it goes from keg to glass quickly. He also makes sure to clean the tap line every two weeks to ensure quality.

Restaurant details

• O’Brien’s has Irish pub classics, including fish & chips, corned beef and cabbage, and a full Irish breakfast.
• It’s best known for hosting the local Manchester United F.C. fan club known as Los Angeles Red Army.
• Its also hosts groups for Leeds United and the New York Giants.

Menu items we tried

• Potato skins (potatoes, cheddar and bacon)
• Banger sandwich (two English sausages, sautéed onions and mixed greens)
• Irish breakfast (two eggs, two Irish sausages, Irish bacon, beans, mushrooms, tomato, black and white pudding)

What should we try next?