Mariana Dale
explores and explains the forces that shape how and what kids learn from kindergarten to high school.
Published May 15, 2025 5:00 AM
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LAist
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Topline:
The San Marino Unified School District is asking voters to renew an annual $415 parcel tax. It would raise an estimated $1.6 million a year to fund programs for students, educator salaries, current class sizes, libraries and other services.
Why now: The tax, Measure R, will expire June 30 without voter approval. The district reports revenue from the tax supports 11 teaching and counseling positions.
The backstory: Parcel taxes are one of two avenues for school districts to raise public money outside of the state’s funding formula. “State funding simply doesn't provide everything that's needed for a great education in San Marino,” said Stephen Choi, the district’s chief business official. San Marino Unified voters first passed the predecessor to Measure R in 1991 and renewed the tax six times.
How to vote: The L.A. County Registrar mailed ballots to registered voters earlier this month and prospective voters have until May 19 to register. The election is June 3 and at least two-thirds of voters need to approve Measure R for it to pass.
Some San Gabriel Valley voters are back at the polls again this summer.
The San Marino Unified School District is asking voters to renew an annual $415 parcel tax to raise an estimated $1.6 million a year to fund programs for students, educator salaries, current class sizes, libraries and other services.
Measure R election results
Polls closed on Tuesday, June 3. Returns from election night show Measure R is poised to pass with more than the two-thirds of votes needed. The results still need to be certified, but San Marino Unified voters have renewed the parcel tax six times since it was first passed in 1991. Read more.
The L.A. County Registrar-Recorder mailed ballots to registered voters earlier this month and prospective voters have until May 19 to register. Election Day is June 3 and at least two-thirds of voters need to approve Measure R for it to pass.
“Ultimately, the goal of this district is to provide and continue to provide that stable, high performing, wonderful experience that our students get the benefit from,” said Stephen Choi, the district’s chief business official. “Measure R provides that fiscal stability for our district.”
The measure assesses annual tax on every “parcel” — in layman’s terms, property in the district. There are some owners who do not have to pay (more on those exemptions below).
Official title on the ballot: San Marino School District Special Parcel Tax Election- Measure R.
You are being asked: Can the San Marino Unified School District collect $415 annually from property-owners in the district by way of a parcel tax to fund programs for students, educator salaries, current class sizes, libraries and other services?
What your vote means
A "yes" vote means: The district can collect an annual $415 parcel tax to fund education programs, educator salaries, libraries and other services.
A "no" vote means: The district cannot collect an annual $415 parcel tax to fund education programs, educator salaries, libraries and other services.
Understanding Measure R
The San Marino Unified School District serves more than 2,900 students at four schools — K.L. Carver Elementary School, W.L. Valentine Elementary School, H.E. Huntington Middle School and San Marino High School.
California distributes funding to schools based on students’ average daily attendance and provides additional funding to support low-income students, foster youth and English language learners.
San Marino Unified voters first passed the predecessor to Measure R in 1991 and renewed the tax six times. The current iteration will expire June 30 without voter approval.
The district reports that Measure R supports 11 teaching and counseling positions. Choi said the money from the measure helps the district maintain elementary school classes of 20 to 25 students and middle and high school classes around 28 to 30 students.
California law allows elementary school class sizes of up to 32 students.
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San Marino voters asked to renew property tax to fund schools
Didn’t San Marino just pass a school funding measure?
The $200 million bond is reserved for renovation and repair projects and unlike parcel taxes, cannot be used for employee salaries.
A bond is basically a loan that is paid back — with interest — through local property taxes.
The district estimated the bond would cost property owners that live within the school district's boundaries an average of $60 per $100,000 of assessed value each year.
Wasn’t the lottery supposed to fund education?
The lottery does contribute money to public education — L.A. County alone has gotten $11 billion since 1985 — but as revenues ballooned in recent years, school funding stagnated.
When California voters approved the creation of the lottery, the law required 34 cents of every dollar to fund education. In 2010 lawmakers changed the rules giving the lottery the mandate to “maximize” funding for education.
Now there are bigger jackpots, but fewer dollars for schools. A 2018 LAist investigation found the lottery’s contributions had dropped to 23 cents per dollar.
If at least two-thirds of voters approve Measure R, San Marino Unified will gain $415 from every property owner in the district.
There are several groups of property owners that can apply to an exemption including those:
Aged 65 years or older
Receiving Supplemental Security Income for a disability
Receiving Social Security Disability Insurance benefits whose yearly income does not exceed 250% of the 2012 federal poverty guidelines. For example, that’s $57,625 for a family of four.
The exemption is not automatic; property owners must submit an application in person, via email or mail to the district.
Property owners who are already exempt from paying the parcel tax will also be exempted from the renewal.
The district estimates Measure R will raise about $1.6 million a year and plans to spend the money on:
Existing educational programs, including science and math
Teacher and counselor retention and recruitment
Maintaining class sizes
Libraries
Technology
Who is in charge of all this money?
L.A. County collects the money and deposits it into a specific account that the district can use on “specified purposes” listed in the ballot measure:
To support the maintenance of existing educational programs at current levels
To retain and attract the best qualified teachers and counselors
To maintain reduced class size
To support academic programs in science and math
To maintain district-wide school library services
To prevent the elimination of teachers specializing in the area of math and science
To maintain adequate technology systems for all students by retaining technology service technicians.
The most recent report is from the 2023-24 school year and lists nine elementary, science and math teachers, and a library worker, counselor and systems analyst.
What people who support the parcel tax say
San Marino Unified voters have voted to renew Measure R six times since it was first passed in 1991.
“The lion's share [of residents] have really felt that they're getting tremendous value for their dollar, whether they're property owners or renting here within the district,” said Christen Gair, chair of the committee campaigning to pass the measure.
Gair’s son is an eighth-grader at Huntington Middle School. She said he’s thrived, in part, because of the district’s rigorous math and science classes and the opportunity to participate in extracurricular programs like music, where he learned to play the tuba.
“With all the uncertainty at the state level, this source of funding just provides great continuity in terms of maintaining the academics that our community has really come to expect,” Gair said.
Several individuals and groups submitted an argument in favor of Measure R to the L.A. County Registrar-Recorder, including school volunteers, retired educators and the president of the San Marino Council of PTAs.
The Howard Jarvis Taxpayers Association is a frequent opponent of measures that increase property taxes. The nonprofit is dedicated to upholding Proposition 13, the 1978 constitutional amendment that limited changes to California property taxes.
The association has not taken a position on Measure R, but vice president of communications Susan Shelley said voters may want to consider the total cost of the district’s parcel taxes when making their decision.
“The district is not legally permitted to use public funds to campaign for a tax increase,” Shelley said in an email. “Residents should be watchful to make sure any mailings or other advertising are informational in nature and not selectively highlighting or omitting facts in a way that amounts to campaigning.”
The association takes reports of publicly funded campaigning by email or at (916) 444-9950.
Potential financial impact
Measure R will cost property owners $415 per parcel annually starting in July 2025 for six years.
Measure R renews an existing tax, so most property owners will not see a significant change in their property tax bill. However, there is a provision in the measure that allows increases of up to 3% annually to account for inflation.
The district estimates Measure R will raise about $1.6 million a year, though the amount will vary based on the number of property owners paying the tax and the adjustments for inflation.
Property owners will also see two other existing funding measures on their bill.
Measure E: A second parcel tax first approved by voters in 2009.
Cost: $968 a year, with exemptions for people over 65, some low-income and disabled property owners.
Money raised: $4 million a year.
Purpose: Fund about 30 positions, various academic and extracurricular programs.
Expiration: June 2027.
Measure M: A bond approved by voters in 2024.
Cost: An average of $60 per $100,000 of assessed property value.
Money raised: Up to $200 million over the life of the bond.
Purpose: Fund facility repairs, modernization and restoration.
Expiration: The district estimates the tax could be collected through 2058.
Election day is June 3. Polls open at 7 a.m. and close at 8 p.m. The recorder must receive mail-in ballots no later than June 6, three days after election day.
Get more information:
Call (800) 815-2666 to learn how to register to vote, request a replacement ballot and learn more about vote centers.
A Compton-born coffee pop-up thrives in a Guisados
By Isaac Ceja | The LA Local
Published May 8, 2026 8:00 AM
Pablomanuel Maldonado, owner of the Caffeinated Cart, poses for a portrait at Guisados in Pasadena.
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Isaac Ceja
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The LA Local
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Topline:
Local taco chain Guisados partnered with the Caffeinated Cart to bring its coffee to the people of Pasadena in a space where owner Pablomanuel Maldonado can chat up his customers and serve his Latino-inspired signature coffees.
About the drinks: Nearly all of his drinks have names in Spanish, a nod to his Mexican roots. By far his best seller is the “Cereal Killer,” a cinnamon brown sugar latte with a cereal garnish, where customers can choose between Cocoa Puffs or Cap’N Crunch Crunch Berries.
The backstory: The Caffeinated Cart began in 2020 when Maldonado started selling bottled lattes in his hometown of Compton before eventually popping up at local markets like Angel City Market and the Beach Flea.
Just inches away from where workers warm up handmade tortillas at Guisados in Pasadena, Pablomanuel Maldonado puts the finishing touches on different drinks before calling out to his customers.
“Provecho,” Maldonado, owner of coffee pop-up the Caffeinated Cart, says to each customer before quickly redirecting his attention to the next, treating each one like he’s known them for years.
Local taco chain Guisados partnered with the Caffeinated Cart to bring its coffee to the people of Pasadena in a space where Maldonado can chat up his customers and serve his Latino-inspired signature coffees.
Nearly all of his drinks have names in Spanish, a nod to his Mexican roots. By far his best seller is the “Cereal Killer,” a cinnamon brown sugar latte with a cereal garnish, where customers can choose between Cocoa Puffs or Cap’N Crunch Crunch Berries.
Pablomanuel Maldonado, owner of the Caffeinated Cart, prepares a Cereal Killer at Guisados in Pasadena, Calif. on Mar. 4, 2026.
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Isaac Ceja
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The LA Local
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Though he’s only been operating at this location for the past three weeks, small touches — like Virgen de Guadalupe candles, a new coffee blend from local roaster Picaresca and a shiny new drink menu on the wall — make his corner of the restaurant feel welcoming.
“For the first time, I don’t feel tired. I feel mentally at peace, and it’s like, ‘Damn, this is what I love doing,’ you know?” Maldonado told The LA Local. “I get excited to come here. I get excited to get out of bed.”
Maldonado recently transitioned from working full-time at Bristol Farms during the week and doing coffee pop-ups on weekends to serving coffee full-time at Guisados.
The Caffeinated Cart began in 2020 when Maldonado started selling bottled lattes in his hometown of Compton before eventually popping up at local markets like Angel City Market and the Beach Flea.
Only a couple of years after he started, Maldonado was selling out at the pop-ups. Today, he has over 23,000 followers on Instagram.
Maldonado’s partnership with Guisados began in 2025 via an Instagram story when owner Armando De La Torre Jr. put out a call for coffee pop-ups at his Guisados location in Long Beach.
A photo illustration of the Caffeinated Cart’s most popular drink the Cereal Killer, a cinnamon brown sugar latte with a cereal garnish, at Guisados in Pasadena, Calif. on Mar. 4, 2026.
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Isaac Ceja
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The LA Local
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After connecting with De La Torre, Maldonado began popping up outside the Long Beach location for six months. But Maldonado said permitting issues with the city’s Health Department forced him to stop.
Nearly a year after their initial collaboration, De La Torre invited Maldonado to Pasadena to show off the space he had in mind for him, but the Caffeinated Cart owner had mixed emotions.
Maldonado was concerned about going to Pasadena and leaving behind the community and regular customers he had in Long Beach, but he was excited by the idea of finally having a physical space, even if it wasn’t completely his own.
Pablomanuel Maldonado, owner of the Caffeinated Cart, hugs his former boss who visited him at his new coffee residency at Guisados in Pasadena, Calif. on Mar. 4, 2026.
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Isaac Ceja
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The LA Local
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“We’re in a world where… everybody gatekeeps and then everybody stops each other from growing, and coffee’s been so welcoming, man,” Maldonado said. “The community I’ve built around me has just been so welcoming, and a lot of people just truly do trust us.”
Leo Abularach, co-owner of Picaresca in Boyle Heights, has been a longtime supporter of the Caffeinated Cart. He told The LA Local that he loaned Maldonado over $3,000 worth of equipment to help him get started. Abularach even let him use his business delivery service, so Maldonado would no longer have to run to the store for things like extra milk.
“He has always been there for Picaresca. He is part of our family,” Abularach said of Maldonado. “He is one of the kindest people I’ve ever met, and I think his personality is one of the reasons why people love the Caffeinated Cart.”
Pablomanuel Maldonado, owner of the Caffeinated Cart, pours coffee beans into a grinder at Guisados in Pasadena, Calif. on Mar. 4, 2026.
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Isaac Ceja
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The LA Local
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Customers Adriana Acevedo and Eilene Gonzalez saw the Caffeinated Cart on TikTok. When they realized it was around the corner from their workplace, they decided to give it a try.
“It’s amazing. It tastes really good. Like, no notes. Amazing,” Acevedo said after finally trying the coffee in real life on a recent Wednesday morning.
“Yeah, for first timers, now I think we’re going to be returners,” Gonzalez added with a laugh.
Pablomanuel Maldonado, right, talks with customers Adriana Acevedo, left, and Eilene Gonzalez, centert, at the Caffeinated Cart inside of Guisados in Pasadena, Calif. on Mar. 4, 2026.
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Isaac Ceja
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The LA Local
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The two praised the welcoming service offered by Maldonado, and after Acevedo mentioned she loves caffeine, Maldonado even gave her an additional shot.
“I’m all about making it affordable. I don’t charge extra for alternative milks. You want extra shots? Bro, get extra shots. I’m not going to charge you extra,” Maldonado said.
“We’re all for the people,” he said. “We want to make sure people can still come back and not have to feel like ‘Was the $7 coffee worth it?’”
Though it was only a Wednesday, customers kept trickling in, keeping him busy throughout his shift, and even Maldonado’s old boss from Bristol Farms, Dina Urquilla, came to support.
Maldonado said he’s still saving to open up his own shop in the future, but for now, he says he looks forward to making coffee every day in his corner of Pasadena.
A view of some of the trinkets at the Caffeinated Cart inside of Guisados in Pasadena, Calif. on Mar. 4, 2026.
Warnings and advisories: Extreme Heat Watch Sunday morning through Tuesday evening in Coachella Valley
What to expect: Some morning clouds followed by a sunny afternoon. Temperatures to reach the mid-80s for some areas and up into the triple digits in some parts of Coachella Valley.
Read on ... for where it's going to be the warmest today.
QUICK FACTS
Today’s weather: Sunny, partly cloudy some areas
Beaches: Mid-60s to low 70s
Mountains: Mid-70s to low 80s
Inland: 82 to 89 degrees
Warnings and advisories: Extreme Heat Watch Sunday morning through Tuesday evening in Coachella Valley
Warm temperatures are on tap again today as we head into a toasty weekend with temps set to reach the triple digits in desert communities.
L.A. County beaches will see daytime highs from 67 to 72 degrees. It'll be between 69 and 76 degrees along the Orange County coast. More inland areas like downtown L.A., Hollywood and Anaheim will see temperatures from 75 to 81 degrees.
Meanwhile, the valleys will see varying temperatures. Areas closer to the coast will see highs from 78 to 83 degrees, and further inland, temps will stay in the upper 80s, up to 89 degrees.
Meanwhile in Coachella Valley, temperatures will rise to 101 to 106 degrees.
Looking ahead to the weekend, the valleys will reach the 90s for Mother's Day, up to 100 degrees in the Antelope Valley too. Come Sunday, an Extreme Heat Warning kicks in for the Coachella Valley, where temperatures will stay in the low 100s, with up to 109 degrees possible. Make sure to stay hydrated!
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Before today, the D Line ran until Koreatown, largely parallel to the B Line.
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AURELIA VENTURA
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Topline:
The first phase of the Los Angeles Metro D Line extension opens today, with the public able to start riding to the three new stations at 12:30 p.m.
The new stops: The three new Wilshire Boulevard stops are located at La Brea and Fairfax avenues and La Cienega Boulevard. The first phase of the extension will stretch D Line service from downtown L.A. to Beverly Hills. Before today, the D Line ran until Koreatown, largely parallel to the B Line.
Free fares: The entire Metro system — including bus, rail, bike share and Metro Micro — will be free starting Friday morning through early morning Monday. If you’re using Metro Bike Share, make sure to input the code 050826.
Celebrations at the new stations: KCRW DJs and food vendors will be at each of the new stations and the Western Avenue station in Koreatown. Throughout May and June, there will be activations at the new stations, including salsa dancing and basket weaving classes.
More to come: Two additional extensions of the D Line, currently forecast to open in 2027, will add four additional stations through Beverly Hills, Century City and Westwood Village.
Gab Chabrán
covers what's happening in food and culture for LAist.
Published May 8, 2026 5:00 AM
Jessica Wang (center) stands with her mother, Peggy (left), and father, Willie Wang (right), at the Gu Grocery storefront in Chinatown.
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Daniel Nguyen
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Courtesy Gu Grocery
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Topline:
Jessica Wang has been waiting nearly two years for the City of Los Angeles to approve permits for Gu Grocery, a Chinese-Taiwanese grocery store and community hub in Chinatown.
Why it matters: In a neighborhood where half of residents are low-income and one in five are seniors 65 and older, Chinatown has lost multiple grocery stores in recent years — including its last two full-service markets in 2019 and Yue Wa Market in fall 2024. Gu Grocery would be the first to offer EBT-eligible prepared foods, filling a critical gap for seniors and low-income families who rely on walking to shop.
Why now: Wang launched a GoFundMe campaign in mid-April after spending more than $200,000 on a buildout, permits and rent on a space she can't operate. The community response was swift — 134 donors raised nearly $12,000 in two weeks — but money can't solve her core problem: she's still waiting for at least seven final city inspections with no opening date in sight.
What's next: Wang hopes to open by Father's Day — her general contractor dad's birthday — with a phased approach: prepared foods only through a takeout window, then slowly stocking shelves as revenue allows.
Jessica Wang has experienced delay after delay for nearly two years as she tried to open Gu Grocery in Chinatown. Her father, a contractor, had told her it would take nine months.
Instead, she says, there have been issues with city permits, inspectors, inaccurate information, illness and wayward appliance installers which have pushed things back.
The community didn't take nearly as long. In two weeks, 134 donors contributed nearly $12,000 to keep Wang afloat. But money can't solve her problem — she still needs the city's approval to open the doors.
Wang signed the lease at the end of 2023, envisioning a Chinese-Taiwanese grocery store and community hub where seniors could use EBT to buy fresh tofu, where kids from nearby elementary schools could stop by after class, and where her mother, Peggy, could teach neighbors how to make their grandmother's pickles.
Now, more than two years into a five-year lease, and nearly out of money after paying for permits, buildout, and rent on a space she can't operate, Wang launched a GoFundMe campaign a few weeks ago. The response showed the community believes in Gu Grocery and wants to see it succeed. But she's still waiting for at least seven final inspections by the city before she can open.
The story of Gu
The name "Gu" carries layered meaning: the character 菇 means "mushroom" in Chinese, a traditional symbol of prosperity, while the sound "gu" also means "auntie" in Mandarin — honoring intergenerational caretakers. Wang's mission for the space is to provide a place to purchase Chinese-Taiwanese pantry staples and prepared foods, and to host community workshops.
The communal aspect is central to Wang's vision of social entrepreneurship, not solely focused on profit. In addition to workshops, Gu Grocery plans to accept EBT and offer senior discounts for those on fixed incomes.
"I wanted a space where I could share knowledge and share culture and also just learn from the community," Wang said.
Ultimately, she hopes to convert the store into a worker-owned co-op.
Wang grew up in the San Gabriel Valley and worked as a pastry chef at San Francisco's State Bird Provisions before a pre-diabetic diagnosis at age 29 prompted her return to L.A. She began volunteering with API Forward Movement, a local nonprofit focused on health equity and food access in AAPI communities, and saw firsthand the need during COVID food distributions at L.A. State Historic Park.
Chinatown had lost its last two full-service grocery stores in 2019.Last fall, the neighborhood lost another: Yue Wa Market, a small produce shop that had served residents for 18 years before rising rent and pandemic losses forced it to shut its doors. The closures hit especially hard in a neighborhood where, according to American Community Survey data, half of the residents are low-income and one in five are seniors 65 and older — many of whom rely on walking to shop.
Jessica Wang (center, in black) and her mother Peggy (left, in white and red) smile while serving customers at a farmer's market pop-up for Gu Grocery.
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Daniel Nguyen
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Courtesy Gu Grocery
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Permitting woes
Much of bringing Gu Grocery to reality has been made possible by support from Wang's friends and family. Her father, Willie Wang, serves as her general contractor. When plans were submitted to the city in March 2024, he told her the buildout would take nine months if everything went smoothly.
Instead, she’s experienced delays from all directions, from slow bureaucracy, to issues with contractors. A hood installation contractor rescheduled multiple times, she said, then doubled his price the day before a rescheduled appointment. Drywall contractors said their workers had been detained by ICE and never returned.
The process hasn't just taken time — it's been expensive. One inspector approved a makeup air unit for the kitchen hood system, she said, only to have a senior inspector overturn the decision and order a complete replacement at nearly $6,000. Her father paid out of pocket — even as he was recovering from March surgery to remove a cancerous lung growth.
"Who would have thought that something an inspector asked us to do would be completely overturned by another inspector?" Wang said. "That's just so wild."
LAist has reached out to the city's Department of Building Services for comment but has not heard back.
The financial toll
Wang estimates she's spent more than $200,000 so far — more than $100,000 on buildout and permits alone, plus a full year of rent on a space she can't operate, equipment, insurance and taxes.
She draws no income from Gu Grocery. To cover personal expenses, she teaches fermentation workshops through her other business, Picklepickle, though that work has been inconsistent lately. Her health insurance doubled this year. The GoFundMe money, she said, is a "rainy day fund" in case she needs it to pay future bills.
The financial strain has touched her entire family. Her mother, who received a small inheritance when Wang's grandparents died, got scammed late last year trying to grow that money to help with the store. Targeted through online ads, she was convinced by an "investment tutor" based in Taiwan to hand over cash to a stranger in a parking lot.
"I didn't realize this would become part of what it's like to have aging parents in the age of technology," Wang said. "But it's scary how they get targeted."
Black sesame noodles from Gu Grocery's popup menu. Wang uses black sesame for higher nutritional value and plans to offer the dish as one of the prepared foods when the store opens.
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Aunty J
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Courtesy Gu Grocery
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Rice balls with house pickles from a Gu Grocery pop-up. Wang has been teaching fermentation and pickling workshops for 15 years and plans to serve pickles alongside all meals when the store opens.
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Aunty J.
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Courtesy Gu Grocery
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Addressing Chinatown's needs
Once Gu Grocery opens, it won't operate as a full-service market — there won't be a meat counter. Instead, it will function like a corner store with a focus on healthy prepared foods: butter mochi, sesame noodles and daily congee.
"Something that Chinatown has never had was prepared food that is EBT eligible," Wang said.
In 2020, Wang surveyed seniors through API Forward Movement's Tai Chi fitness program to understand their shopping habits following the closure of local grocery stores. Many told her they now ride the bus to Super King on San Fernando Road in Glendale, nearly 5 miles away, for produce deals, or rely on family members to drive them to 99 Ranch in Alhambra. Some grow their own food in gardening plots, Wang said, "but they can't produce everything they need."
Willie Wang (left), Jessica Wang (center), and Peggy Wang (right) pose inside Gu Grocery. The signs display the store's values in both English and Chinese — Willie's reads "body health" and Peggy's reads "mushroom auntie," playing on the dual meaning of "gu."
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Daniel Nguyen
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Courtesy Gu Grocery
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The community response
When she launched her Go FundMe in mid-April, she was overwhelmed by the response. "I have a hard time asking for help," said Wang. "So actually receiving help, it's very moving."
The donors range from former pop-up customers and friends to a range of assorted well-wishers — a musician who had her food once at an event, fellow food business owners, farmer's market regulars and even her insurance agent.
"The generosity is beyond my expectations," Wang said. "Some of these people only had my food once. People are showing their support truly in a personal way and really believing in the vision."
The GoFundMe money helps Wang stay "afloat for now," but she's had to rethink her opening strategy. She won't be able to afford full inventory when she opens. Instead, she plans a phased opening: prepared foods only, served through a takeout window, then using revenue to slowly stock shelves with the retail items she originally envisioned.
The community raised more than $14,000 in three weeks. After nearly two years of delays, Wang is still waiting for permits. She hopes to open by Father's Day — her general contractor dad's birthday. But she's learned to expect the unexpected.
Many donors sent her direct messages saying simply: "We got this, Jess, we got you."
