The Brief

There’s a room in a South Bay library where stars sparkle on the ceiling, fish and bubbles float in a glowing tube and a giant beanbag chair beckons from the floor.

You can step on tiles and watch bright colors swirl under your feet, look into a mirror and see your reflection in a swirling tunnel of light and run your hands across a crunchy-smooth wall of sequins.

There are books on the shelves about disability, autism and neurodivergence. Dominoes, colorful magnetic tiles, interlocking gears and other games and toys fill the plastic drawers.

Welcome to the sensory room at Harbor City-Harbor Gateway Branch Library, the first of its kind in the Los Angeles Public Library system.

“I don't really want to be the quiet library where you can only come and sit at the hard wooden table and you know, quietly read a book,” said Stephanie Sutton, the branch’s young adult librarian. “I think that there is a place for that … but kids and teens, in general, they want a cozier space, a space where they feel welcome, where they can say, ‘This is a space for me.’”

The room, which opens to the public Thursday, is part of a multi-library effort to welcome people who may process the world a bit differently into spaces typically associated with calm and order.

“For kids, there's a lot more opportunity for self-exploration,” Sutton said. ”It's a much more inspiring space, but it's also a safer, more welcoming space.”

Defining neurodiversity

At least 14% of California students have a known learning or physical disability, and some estimates suggest the population could be much larger.

People with autism, attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder, learning disabilities or traumatic brain injuries may identify as neurodivergent.

“Neurodiversity is the idea that there are lots of different ways that brains work and that all of those ways are valuable and important and valid in our community and in our society,” occupational therapist Kira Bender said.

She’s hosted parenting workshops at the library and acted as a consultant on the development of the library sensory spaces.

One trait under the neurodiversity umbrella is processing sights, sounds, textures, tastes and smells differently. For example, one person might not be able to sit still and concentrate, or melts down when spending time in a brightly lit environment.

Bender said if a patron goes to the library but is too overwhelmed by sensory input, they may have to leave before they can reach their goal for visiting.

“They won't be able to take advantage of the resources that should be available for all members of that community,” Bender said.

Many of the features in the sensory room are meant to be touched, including these lights, which change color with a tap.

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Mariana Dale

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LAist

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Kids can use the light board to explore colors, shapes and letters.

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Mariana Dale

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LAist

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Bender said it’s a misconception that neurodivergent people are not social and don’t want to visit public spaces.

“They want to connect with their communities and their environments in the same ways that everybody else does,” Bender said. “It's just that the systems and the spaces are not necessarily accessible to them.”

Creating a 'more magical' space for all families

The library has long offered services for people with disabilities including audiobooks, dyslexic-friendly fonts in e-books and career and education resources.

In recent years, the library started hosting “sensory story times” for small groups with toys like putty and squishy bracelets to engage children’s senses while they listened. Then three locations started piloting “sensory kits” filled with tools and toys that families could check out like a book.

“Library spaces are not meant to be static,” said youth services librarian Kadie Seitz. “They're meant to adapt and change and grow with the needs of our communities that we serve.”

Youth Services Librarian Kadie Seitz demonstrates one type of flexible seating that allows kids to sit backwards and bounce slightly in place. There are also beanbag chairs and "wobble" stools that allow kids to move in different ways. “What we really try to put in these spaces is that there's something for everyone,” Seitz said.

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Mariana Dale

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LAist

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But changing the physical space is expensive, so the library applied for a grant from the federal Institute of Museum and Library Services to renovate spaces in five branches with the neurodiverse community in mind.

The Central Library, Arroyo Seco, Canoga Park and Harbor City-Harbor Gateway branches each received $20,000. A private donor also contributed $20,000 to the Venice Branch.

“We had applied for future IMLS funds to continue and expand the positive work that we're doing,” Seitz said. “Unfortunately that is not going to happen, but we are looking for other resources in the future.”

The Trump administration recently put the entire staff of the independent federal library and museum agency on leave, and its future — and funding for local libraries — is uncertain. The California State Library has lost at least $3 million in funding so far.

Harbor City targeted a room in the northeast corner of the library with a large gray table and several chairs used for studying. The renovation also included refreshing the furniture and decorations in the children and teen spaces.

“This was all remodeled and reconfigured to transform it from sort of what used to be a utilitarian functional space into something a little bit more magical,” said Sutton, the young adult librarian. “A little bit more in line with what the library tries to be for the community, which is just a much more engaging, vibrant environment.”

The librarians consulted with Bender, the occupational therapist, and also referenced sensory spaces at other libraries, including in Alameda County and Danbury, Connecticut.

Bender said the introduction of the sensory room aligns with a concept called the curb-cut effect: Think of the part of a street curb with sloped breaks. They were originally added to help people in wheelchairs move from the street to the sidewalk — but they also make it easier for people pushing strollers, riding bikes or pulling a wagon of groceries.

“When a space or a system is designed for the needs of the population that needs it the most, they're actually able to enable participation and access for everyone,” Bender said.

Sutton said the sensory room offers kids, teens and families options. “You could just sit down and chill out and listen to the soothing sounds of the bubble tube and pet the seal,” Sutton said. The seal, right, did not yet have a name when LAist visited the library in April, but patrons may be invited to weigh in.

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Mariana Dale

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LAist

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For example, the sensory room offers toys and tools that are accessible to all children, not just those who identify as neurodivergent.

“Even before a child is able to understand spoken words or written words, they are able to touch and feel and hear and taste sometimes in order to interact with their environment,” Bender said.

Sutton said her daughter also informed the development of the space. She is neurodivergent and processes sensory information differently from her twin brother.

“When I have brought her to the library over the last nine years ... she's running around, she's making noise, she has a hard time sitting still,” Sutton said.

Now when she visits, she can choose from a variety of chairs including stools, beanbags that vibrate, and a disk that allows you to sit cross-legged and wobble. (Running is still not allowed in the library — walking feet are encouraged).

“It was really special then to be able to say I have some experience with this,” Sutton said. ”How can I then share that with the community?”

Southern California was built on radio.

"I can still hear the jingle KFWB News 98,” wrote  Taline in Los Feliz, during a recent conversation on LAist's daily news show, AirTalk, which airs on 89.3 FM. “I grew up hearing that in my dad's minivan on the way to and from school. It has a special place in my heart.”

Back in April, broadcast company Audacy announced KNX News — one of the last-remaining all-news FM stations — was leaving the FM dial where it had simulcast on 97.1 FM since 2021. The station, which is also one of the oldest in L.A., is not budging from 1070 AM where it has been on the air for more than 100 years. The move away from FM officially happened in May to make way for a new sports talk station, which Audacy officials called an area of growth for advertisers in today’s media landscape.

The move is one in a long line of changes for radio and a reminder that before podcasts, playlists and algorithms, many Southern Californians built their days around radio broadcasts.

Radio, a daily ritual

The construction of KNX

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Herman J. Schultheis

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Los Angeles Public Library

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Michael Jackson, a well-known KNX, personality

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Los Angeles Public Library

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Larry Mantle, now in his 41st year hosting AirTalk, remembers being a kid and dreaming of what it might be like to be behind the mic at one of these radio stations.

“ I grew up with KNX," he said. “My dream job as a kid was to be an anchor on KNX or KFWB, the two local all-news radio stations, 'cause there was nothing like hosting AirTalk that even existed at that point.”

Mantle opened up the phone lines on a recent show to hear from his fellow SoCal radio lovers about the shows they miss and the memories they have. Here's what they had to say:

A love for radio, then and now  

A pilot of KMPC's traffic alert helicopter pictured with his daughter and grandson.

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Los Angeles Public Library

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A 1963 picture of Valley State College (now Los Angeles Valley College) preparing to launch KVCM

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Larry Leach

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Los Angeles Public Library

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“When you'd walk down Hollywood Boulevard where the station was, you could hear it playing as you went down the street,” said  Olivia in Glendale about KLAC 570 with Al Jarvis.

 Larry in Yorba Linda shouted out KBCA Jazz for its 24-hour jazz, saying “When I first moved out here in '68 from Phoenix, which had like an hour a week, it was a real wonder.”

 Mark in Glassell Park emailed that he loves KCRW’s Henry Rollins, writing, “I used to bristle at his unique DJ persona, but over time, I came to love him and his crazy eclectic playlists. I find his knowledge in history and punk rock fascinating. He's a gem and a legend."

"I'd like to give a shout-out to all the DJs working at KXLU, the college station at Loyola Marymount University, said  Jeremy in Culver City in an email. “That station's been on the air for nearly 60 years. I believe it's one of the best examples of what's possible with radio."

"KFWB and KRLA back in the day when they were rock music stations —  Dr. Demento, one of my favorite on-air personalities, also had eclectic music taste," said  Carrie in Desert Edge.

“ Dr. Demento was must listening when I was a kid in junior high school at Le Conte Junior High in Hollywood,” Mantle added. “Every Sunday night on KMET, we would make sure we were listening to Dr. Demento and his funny records.”

The question remains…

An 11-year-old winning a car in a KMPC contest in 1963.

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Los Angeles Public Library

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Listener support is vital to any radio station, and it’s clear KNX has many lifelong fans. AirTalk listeners highlighted their support for household KNX names over the decades like Bill Keene, Melinda Lee, Mike Roy and Jackie Olden.

As KNX makes changes, many are watching closely and thinking about the future of radio.

Listeners like Tommy in La Quinta are left wondering if the radio dial will be the same…

“I’m a hardcore listener, but I don't know about casual listeners [and] if they'll tune to AM,” he said.

After months of hand-wringing, Los Angeles and LA28 have come to a tentative agreement on how Olympics organizers will reimburse the city for its expenses for the 2028 Summer Games.

According to the deal, the private Olympic organizing committee will pay upfront for the estimated cost of services that are not eligible for federal reimbursement, like trash pick-up and traffic control. Under another proposal, the city would also be able to tap an LA28 contingency fund if it isn't fully repaid by the federal government for policing costs at Olympic venues.

The agreement is nearly nine months overdue and still needs approval by Mayor Karen Bass and the City Council.

The 2028 Olympics are intended to be privately financed, and an existing city agreement with LA28 states that the Olympics organizers, not L.A., will pay for extra costs for public services in support of the Games. But L.A. is the financial back-stop for the Olympics, meaning if LA28 goes in the red, taxpayers will pick up the bill.

Beyond that, the city services agreement presents another area where L.A. could incur additional unexpected expenses for hosting the Games. L.A. City Councilmember Monica Rodriguez warned LA28 CEO Reynold Hoover earlier this year that a bad deal could "bankrupt" the city.

Jacie Prieto Lopez, an LA28 spokesperson, and Paul Krekorian, who leads the city's office of major events, said in statements that the freshly inked agreement would help deliver a fiscally responsible Games.

"Mayor Bass’ priority is that the 2028 Olympic and Paralympic Games be fiscally responsible, protect taxpayers, and benefit Angelenos for decades to come. This agreement helps deliver that commitment," Krekorian said.

But the contract between the two parties doesn't fully resolve one of the biggest areas of financial risk for the city: the enormous cost of security for an event as extensive and high-profile as the summer Olympics and Paralympics.

Organizers are counting on the federal government to pay for public safety at Olympic venues that are considered part of a "national special security event." That includes costs for LAPD staffing. LA28 has not included security costs in its $7.1 billion budget — a fact that City Attorney Hydee Feldstein Soto criticized earlier this year.

The federal government has so far allocated $1 billion for security costs for the Olympics. Exactly where those federal funds will go has not yet been determined, and there's no guarantee they will cover all of L.A.'s policing costs.

To address this, city officials have also proposed an amendment to a 2021 agreement between the city and LA28. That amendment would establish that if L.A. is not reimbursed by the federal government for all its eligible expenses, it could dip into LA28's contingency fund of $270 million before the private organizing committee could use those funds for any legacy projects.

But that bucket of money will first be used for any costs that Olympics organizers still owe if they run out of revenue — meaning if the Olympics don't turn a profit, the city's access to that money will depend on how much is left for the taking.

Civil rights attorney Connie Rice, who has been tracking the city's negotiations with LA28, told LAist the agreement was a "PR document" not a deal. She pointed out that if the federal government does not pay up for security spending as expected, L.A. could be in trouble.

" It leaves the taxpayers with a GoFundMe strategy," she said.

The city services agreement lays the groundwork for more negotiations between LA28 and the city. Each venue will require its own agreement, to be negotiated by July 1, 2027. Venues in the city of L.A. include Dodger Stadium, the L.A. Convention Center, L.A. Memorial Coliseum and the Venice Beach Boardwalk.

The City Council's ad-hoc committee on the 2028 Games will meet Tuesday afternoon to vote on the agreement.