The Brief

There’s not much left of 17126 Avenida de la Herradura in the Pacific Palisades' Highlands neighborhood. A charred file cabinet a few feet from where the front door probably was. Some blackened cans of paint strewn about what was likely the front yard. Five neighboring homes on the cul-de-sac look similarly obliterated.

But at the end of the street, there’s still an ocean view.

"This is the first publicly listed and closed property in the Palisades," said Richard Schulman, standing outside what used to be a 2,500 square foot ranch house. "This closed for $1.2 million."

Schulman listed the property Jan. 15, barely a week after the fires started. The sale closed in late February.

If you’re wondering how in the world a lot with 9,900 square feet of rubble fetches over a million dollars? It's the Palisades.

"This is one of the most beautiful places to live in the world," said Schulman. "You're in a totally secluded part of L.A., but you're still in the city."

Before the fires, Schulman estimates the property could have sold for upwards of $2.5 million. He listed the property for $999,000, based off a rough calculation of the value of the underlying land. But it’s not like there were other burned down comps he could find on Zillow.

"This hasn't been done before here, so we're trying to guess along the way and try to get the best answer," said Schulman, who has worked in West Los Angeles real estate for 21 years. While he's completed difficult sales before, including fire-damaged properties, he had never been involved in selling a property quite like this.

Schulman settled on a price he thought would drum up interest. But he wasn’t sure exactly how much demand there would actually be.

Terri Bromberg, the seller, also had her doubts.

"I couldn't imagine anybody wanting to buy a completely destroyed, burned up property," Bromberg said.

Bromberg, 69, is an artist and associate professor at Santa Monica College. She lived at the Herradura property for 20 years, the last few with her daughter Rosie Galanis and son-in-law Kenneth.

While Bromberg was at work when the fires came, Rosie and Kenneth had to wait hours to make their escape. Abandoned cars were blocking the only exit route.

At first, Bromberg wanted to rebuild. When she told her daughter she was looking into contractors, Rosie started crying.

"When she brought that up I just broke down, and I was like, 'We go back and rebuild for what? For this to happen again?'" said Galanis.

That $999,000 listing price meant Bromberg would likely be selling the home for less than the $1.5 million she and her late husband paid for it 20 years ago. Even with insurance, Bromberg would be taking a financial hit.

But she had made her mind up that she was going to relocate. Within a week, she had made a successful bid on a new home in Santa Monica. Selling the Palisades property for whatever it was worth would hopefully help restore some of the savings she had to deplete for the new house.

"Our decision was mostly an emotional one," said Bromberg. "We don’t want to live back there again, we want to relocate."

Realtor Richard Schulman posted 17126 Herradura on the MLS with pictures of the house before the fires. He knew the pool of buyers would be mostly wealthy developers and investors offering all cash, but didn't know how deep the pool would be.

"We had over 60 inquiries," said Schulman. "We had a stack of offers. I think we had six offers over the list price."

Because access to the Palisades was restricted, all of those offers came without buyers seeing the actual property.

Joe Solamany is the agent who represented the winning bidder, an L.A.-based investor who declined to be interviewed.

"We did a lot with Google Street view, we did a lot of other stuff," said Solamany.

There's no house on the lot that sold and no neighborhood to speak of around it. But the ocean views and the hope that Palisades will return attracted multiple offers.

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Ted Soqui

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CalMatters

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Solomany's client was able to see the property during a 15-day escrow. The plan is to build a new house that the investor can either sell or eventually move into, although it may be a while before construction starts.

Investors like the one Solamany represents are betting that in five to seven years, demand to live in the Palisades will be stronger than before the fires. They believe new fire-hardened homes and infrastructure will convince potential buyers it’s less risky now.

"Because this risk was there before and if you even go back to other places, that in the past, they had fire or what have you, after a while, people start going back," said Solamany.

As a condition of the sale, Solamany's client has accepted responsibility for debris removal from the property. The seller Bromberg will also have a few weeks after the closing date to recover any personal items from the property that may still be there, although her visits so far haven't yielded much.

Schulman already has three other Palisades listings, including a townhome that was part of a larger complex completely destroyed by the fires. It looks like a bomb got dropped on the property.

The asking price: $750,000.

"It's a dream of what this will be in the future," said Schulman. "What you're buying is the view of this hillside here and the trees here, and how this is going to look when it's done."

Schulman said he’s already got plenty of interested buyers eager to get into the Palisades for less than a million.

Local ice cream chain Wanderlust Creamery offers a sweet relief from this week’s sweltering temperatures. From ube to mango sticky rice, its unique signature and seasonal flavors can be found across Los Angeles and Orange counties.

Founder and chef Adrienne Borlongan sat down with Austin Cross, who hosts AirTalk every Friday, to discuss Wanderlust’s travel-inspired flavors.

About the owner

Borlongan initially thought that she would be a nurse. But after spending two years completing nursing prerequisites, she pivoted to a degree in food science and worked as a bartender for almost a decade.

Adrienne Borlongan, founder and chef of Wanderlust Creamery, is also a food scientist.

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Lindy Lin

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One day, her roommate brought home an ice cream maker.

“And that kind of just snowballed into this crazy ice cream obsession,” Borlongan recalled.

She founded Wanderlust with her partner Jon-Patrick Lopez in 2015.

What sets the store apart? Its flavors

Wanderlust’s flavors come from places Borlongan has either traveled to or has on her travel bucket list.

Many of the flavors are inspired by Borlongan’s Filipino-American heritage, including a best-selling ube malted crunch. It also features flavors like Ashta, a clotted cream from the Middle East.

The ultimate experience, according to the chef

Wanderlust Creamery is known for flavors from all over the world.

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Courtesy Wanderlust Creamery

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Try as many samples as your heart desires. Wanderlust’s staff are trained to guide anyone through the flavors and talk you through options before you make a decision.

What’s next for Wanderlust? 

Borlongan is working on innovating new flavors for the summer, including an ice cream based on Swedish candies. She’s trying to whip up a mixture that’s able to keep the gummies chewy while frozen in ice cream.

Wanderlust is also opening a new location in San Diego.

Shop details

• Wanderlust’s ice cream has less air compared to traditional ice cream, making it rich and creamy. 
• Its seasonal menu items include Buontalenti, honey butter corn, Kaya toast, white peach verbena, Icelandic milk chocolate and Ashta. 
• The local ice cream shop has locations in Atwater Village, Fairfax, Pasadena, Sawtelle, Venice, Irvine, Costa Mesa and Torrance. 

Menu items we tried

• Ube malted crunch (malted milk, malted milkballs, and ube) 
• Stick rice and mango (rice milk, coconut cream, salt, Alphonso mangoes)
• White peach verbena (peach, lemon verbena)

What should we try next?

An Orange County Superior Court judge this week found that Orange County Board of Education member Marilyn “Mari” Barke failed to report millions of dollars in assets and income in her annual economic disclosure filings over multiple years.

Barke will have to pay nearly $82,000 in penalties, as well as attorneys’ fees, according to a proposed decision statement. The fees could amount to hundreds of thousands of dollars.

What’s next? 

State court rules allow parties 15 days to file objections to the proposed decision. After that, the court will be able to enter a final judgment.

About the case

Barke was elected to the OC Board of Education in 2018, and she currently serves as a board trustee. She is also the director of coalitions at the California Policy Center, an educational non-profit.

Under the California Political Reform Act, local elected officials are required to disclose their income, investments and other assets.

Barke filed amended financial statements for 2018 through 2021, following a complaint by private citizen made in February 2023. The Fair Political Practices Commission in 2024 found Barke liable on 16 counts for failing to report that income. Barke agreed to a settlement and paid a $3,200 penalty.

The judge later found that the FPPC’s settlement did not fully address the “willfulness/recklessness” or “adequacy of corrective efforts,” according to the proposed decision statement from Orange County Superior Court Judge H. Shaina Colover.

According to the court records, Barke argued that the mistakes in her filings were because she was following the advice of her now ex-husband, Dr. Jeff Barke, who she says advised her that the filings only needed to list economic interests if they conflicted with her role on the board.

Colover's response was that Barke’s reliance on that alleged advice was objectively unreasonable and wrong.

The response

Lynne Riddle, a retired judge who filed the complaint, said in a statement that financial interest disclosures are critical to the public.

“When elected officials flout their disclosure obligations like this, it undermines the public's right to honest and ethical government,” stated Riddle, who has published op-eds about charter schools and the OC Board of Education. “The Court’s decision vindicates the public’s right to know what their elected officials are doing.”

Riddle said the ruling and penalties should send a clear message that elected officials cannot shirk their responsibilities to disclose their economic interests.

Barke’s lawyer, Mark Rosen, in a statement to LAist, said: "From the start, this case was a vendetta against Mrs. Barke because she supports charter schools."

“As a first-time candidate, she made some technical mistakes in her forms with the Fair Political Practices Commission, and she freely admitted and corrected those mistakes and paid a fine,” Rosen said. “The anti-charter schools gang then piled on with this frivolous lawsuit.”

There are mistakes in the court’s decision, and “we are exploring a further course of action,” Rosen added.

Thinking about buying or leasing an electric car in the near future? California will soon be making that cheaper.

On Monday, Gov. Gavin Newsom signed legislation that sets aside millions of dollars in state funds to fund rebates for residents who buy or lease a zero-emission vehicle — a category that includes battery-electric cars and hydrogen fuel cell-powered vehicles.

First-time EV buyers can qualify for a $3,500 discount when buying or leasing a new electric vehicle, as long as the retail price is under $50,000. If you’re looking for a used electric car, there’s still a price reduction available — a smaller one, however: $1,750 off for vehicles retailing for under $25,000.

The state’s program — called “MyFirstEV” — comes a year after President Donald Trump’s massive spending and tax plan known as the One Big Beautiful Bill ended federal tax credits for EVs nationwide. Previously, American consumers could claim a $7,500 tax credit after buying a new EV or $4,000 for used EVs.

Newsom said on Monday that as the federal government pulls back from supporting EVs, California would instead be “putting its foot on the accelerator” — and that the instant rebate program would “[make] it easier for families to drive clean, breathe clean, and keep more money in their pockets.”

The program has secured $270 million in funding — half of that from the state budget and the other from participating EV automakers.

One big thing to know: Despite the fanfare, the MyFirstEV program has not yet started — and we don’t have an official start date either. State officials will reveal next month which car brands are actually included, so don’t expect to receive this discount if you purchase an EV today.

Who qualifies for this program?

Only California residents who are buying or leasing an EV for the first time are eligible for this rebate.

And consumers will have to confirm that this is the first time they are buying or leasing an EV before taking their car home, said Lindsay Buckley, communications director of the California Air Resources Board, the agency tasked with managing the program.

“Participants will be required to sign a legal document declaring that this is in fact their first purchase or lease of an electric vehicle,” she said.

“So if you’ve already bought or leased an electric vehicle in the past, then you wouldn’t be eligible for this program.”

Limiting the program to first-time buyers could actually help boost the popularity of EVs among people who have never bought them, said Scott Moura, a UC Berkeley professor of civil engineering.

“Providing incentive to people who have bought EVs before isn’t really adding to the number of people who purchase EVs,” he said. “The funds can be used most effectively if they’re targeted towards first-time EV buyers.”

Do I need to apply ahead of time?

No — there’s no application to fill out ahead of time. Once state officials announce that the MyFirstEV program has officially begun, all you need to do is go to a dealership of a participating automaker.

This is different from other past state rebate programs — like the now-terminated Electric Bicycle Incentive Program — which have required participants to fill out an application before making a purchase.

If you move forward with making a purchase or lease, confirm two things with the salesperson and the financing team:

• That you qualify for the MyFirstEV discount
• That there are still state funds available for this specific car brand.

When federal EV rebates were available, buyers had to initially wait until they filed their taxes the year after buying their car to request this money back. But state officials say that folks interested in the FirstEV discount won’t have to wait so long.

“Once launched, Californians will be able to go down to participating automakers’ dealerships and access the rebates at the point of sale,” Buckley said. “They won’t have any delay in getting this discount.”

Can the program help me pay for any EV I want?

No — MyFirstEV discounts will only cover battery-electric cars and hydrogen fuel cell-powered vehicles from automakers participating in the program. State officials will confirm next month which car companies are included.

But this means that if an EV brand you really want to purchase is not on the list, you won’t get the discount when buying or leasing the car.

Hybrid vehicles are also not included in MyFirstEV, state officials confirmed with KQED.

There’s also a price limit: The EV you choose must cost under $50,000 if it’s a new car, and $25,000 if it’s used. There is, however, a small exception to this price rule if the automaker is headquartered in California — in which case the discounts will apply regardless of the manufacturer’s retail price. More than a dozen electric car brands are based in the Golden State, with several selling models priced beyond the $50,000 limit.

I’m really interested in this program. What should I do while I wait for it to open?

While consumers wait for the program to begin, Buckley said they learn as much as they can about different EVs available on the market.

“Maybe head to a dealership and take a test drive of an electric vehicle that you’re eyeing,” she said. “We do expect this to be a popular program and for [funds] to get gobbled up pretty quickly” — so the more prepared you are when the program officially begins, the better.

A Polestar electric car prepares to park at an EV charging station on July 28, 2023, in Corte Madera. (Justin Sullivan/Getty Images)
Potential buyers can also learn about what it takes to care for an EV, like how to find charging stations and battery maintenance.

Buckley said the site ElectricForAll — created by the nonprofit Veloz — is a good source of information.

Will some carmakers have more rebates available than others?

No — funds will be divided equally among the participating automakers.

However, there may be greater demand for some brands, which could mean that rebates may run out faster at some dealerships.

This article includes reporting from KQED’s Laura Klivans.

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and the Food and Drug Administration advise consumers to avoid eating shredded iceberg lettuce at Taco Bell locations in Indiana, Kentucky, Michigan, Ohio and West Virginia.

Health officials analyzed 190 cases of cyclospora in Michigan where a person who fell ill reported eating at Taco Bell. Officials found that 90% of those people said they ate iceberg lettuce.

More than 1,644 sick people in this multi-state cyclospora outbreak reported eating at Taco Bell in those states starting May 13, according to the agencies. There have been 94 hospitalizations and no deaths reported.

The FDA traced this subset of cases identified nationwide to a single supplier of contaminated iceberg lettuce from Mexico, but did not name the supplier.

FDA says it's working with the supplier to identify other locations where the contaminated lettuce has been distributed. The agency notes this is one large cluster that is epidemiologically related. There are other clusters across the country that may or may not be associated. Cases have been identified in 34 states.

Taco Bell issued a statement July 16 that it took "immediate action to voluntarily remove potentially impacted lettuce from a supplier in select states." The statement also said the lettuce would be removed from the supply chain nationwide and replaced within 24 hours.

A wide reach for salad suppliers

The Associated Press, citing an unnamed federal official, has reported that Taylor Farms was the supplier of the lettuce. NPR has not independently confirmed that, and Taylor Farms has not responded to a request for comment.

A handful of big players with integrated supply chains and advanced processing infrastructure, including Taylor Farms, dominate the bagged lettuce and salad industry in the U.S.

With such a big reach, a single supplier can provide lettuce products to a number of retailers, so it's possible that additional clusters of cyclospora around the country could be linked to lettuce from the same supplier. It's also possible that there are multiple sources and suppliers linked to other cases around the country.

The FDA and CDC say the investigation is continuing.

How to protect yourself

The symptoms of the illness include watery diarrhea, loss of appetite and fatigue, and people contract it by eating or drinking contaminated food or water.

To protect yourself from the parasite, the CDC advises people to follow standard food safety handling protocols. "Wash your hands and any fresh produce thoroughly under running water before eating, cutting or cooking. This will reduce the risk of infection. Cooking kills the parasite, so heating food to 158 F or 70 C or higher is effective," said Dr. Gwen Biggerstaff with the CDC's Division of Foodborne, Waterborne, and Environmental Diseases.

If people do develop symptoms, health officials advise people to contact their healthcare providers to be tested specifically for cyclospora. Routine stool tests often don't include that test.

"People with symptoms should stay well-hydrated and avoid preparing food for others while acutely ill, out of general caution, even though person-to-person spread is very unlikely," Biggerstaff said.

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