Morning Brief: Appointment-Free Vaccines, A Writer’s Program, And Fire-Battling Goats

Good morning, L.A. It’s May 10.

The city of L.A. wants to make coronavirus vaccines as accessible as possible; all city-run vaccine sites will now be appointment-free. Additionally, health workers will operate some sites for later hours, and another late-night site will open in South L.A.

Beginning this week, the city’s vaccination sites at Pierce College and L.A. Southwest College will be open from 8 a.m. until 8 p.m. In South L.A., a vaccination site at Green Meadows Recreation Center will now be open from 9 a.m. until 9 p.m.

In an announcement yesterday, Mayor Eric Garcetti said the move is based on data showing that the majority of Angelenos have received their vaccine shots after 2 p.m.

“We stand at a critical juncture in our fight to end this pandemic, and our City will keep doing everything possible to knock down barriers to vaccine access,” he said.

Meanwhile, Orange County health officials announced that they will shut down the area’s mass vaccination sites — the Anaheim Convention Center, OC Fair and Event Center, Soka University and Santa Ana College — after June 5, due to reduced demand.

Instead, health workers will focus on mobile clinics and smaller, neighborhood vaccination sites.

"There's a convenience factor we need to consider,” said Margaret Bredehoft, a deputy director with the Orange County Health Care Agency. “A lot of people are telling us they can't find the right time to be able to come get a vaccination.”

As of May 5, more than eight million Angelenos had received at least one dose of the vaccine, and more than three million had received two doses.

Keep reading for more on what’s happening in L.A. today, and stay safe out there.

What Else You Need To Know Today

• Members of Congress toured the shelter for migrant children at the Pomona Fairplex last Friday, in Congresswoman Norma Torres' district.
• A nationwide study found that family poverty, low education rates and unemployment can affect children's performance on attention and memory tests.
• There's a new push in Congress to revive a signature program from the New Deal: The Federal Writers' Project.
• Hundreds of goats outside the Reagan Presidential Library and Museum are eating the brush, vegetation and plants in a wildfire prevention effort.

Before You Go...Remembering The Boyle Heights Sears: A Tribute To An Eastside Icon

Exterior view of the Sears store on Soto Street and Olympic Boulevard, Boyle Heights, in 1997.

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Thomas McGovern/Security Pacific National Bank Collection, Los Angeles Public Library

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The Sears department store in Boyle Heights is closed. The Eastside landmark, with its familiar tower visible for miles around, shut its doors for good last month, after being open for nearly 100 years.

For the generations of Angelenos whose families shopped there — climbing that long flight of stairs at the entrance, inhaling the smell of popcorn, gazing up at the tower’s green neon glow — the Boyle Heights Sears is more than a piece of history. It's inextricably tied to the experience of growing up on the Eastside.

We asked Angelenos to share their memories of the Boyle Heights Sears store. Here are a few of them.