Zach Behrens

A good portion of the our water here in Southern California comes from Bay-Delta, where water distribution has been stifled by a court ruling to protect ecosystem. Add to that the drought and water has been a bit of an issue these days. Today, a group of federal agencies released an interim action plan to do their "part to address the urgent need to provide reliable water supplies for 25 million Californians, while also...

Ice and snow prompted the closure of the 5 Freeway's Grapevine this morning, but lanes in both directions were quickly reopened by officials a couple hours later, according to KNX1070. The National Weather Service says snow would reach as low as 3,000 feet in the latest storm. The Grapevine's highest point is about 4,500 feet....

Photo by Lucyrk in LA via LAist Featured Photos on Flickr Bicycle activist Stephen Box made good on his annual tradition last Friday, taking a group of cyclists to the LADWP Festival of Lights in Griffith Park on a car-only night. He calls it the Festival of Rights because he contends that state law, with a few exceptions such as most freeways, allows bicycles to use any roadway a vehicle can. Somehow, the city...

Watch our Antonio Villaraigosa, Lancaster wants to become the alternative energy capital of the world. Today, the first residential vertical axis wind turbine system installed under new city regulations went into operation. "The City of Lancaster and our surrounding region enjoy an infinite supply of natural resources with the potential to produce alternative energy - namely, wind and sunlight," explained Mayor R. Rex Parris of his high desert Antelope Valley-located city.

Roman Polanski's bid to have his case thrown out was rejected today by panel of judges in the Court of Appeal 2nd District. Polanski's lawyers said the case should to be dropped due to prosecutorial and judicial misconduct. "We conclude that the trial court did not abuse its discretion in applying the fugitive disentitlement doctrine and refusing to consider dismissing the action," Justice Laurie D. Zelon wrote. The director currently awaits extradition, which will...

The preferred route follows the ROW Alternative and down Colorado Blvd. instead of Olympic | See a large version of this map here As the Expo Line's Phase I, between downtown Los Angeles and Culver City, sort of nears completion, the final plan for Phase 2 to 4th Street in Santa Monica was released last Friday. If the Expo Line Construction Authority Board approves the Final Environmental Impact Report at their February 4th meeting,...

Photo by Libertinus via Flickr While people are hoping for the arrival of Ciclovía (that's seek - low - VEE - uh) here in Los Angeles, San Francisco today announced its 2010 Sunday Streets schedule, which takes place along different thoroughfares throughout the year. SFist explains: "Sunday Streets, for those of you who don't know, is a day when a main thoroughfare in SF closes off to vehicle traffic. Pedestrians and cyclists are then...

Photo by S.C. Asher via LAist Featured Photos on Flickr Daily News columnist and city hall beat writer Rick Orlov sat down with Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa for an interview recently. Orlov came out with this lede: "Despite all evidence to the contrary, Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa insists this past year was one of the best in his nearly six years as the city's chief executive." Citing the loss of LAPD Chief William Bratton, the exodus...

Paul McCartney headlines Day One of the 2009 Coachella Music Festival (more photos here) While the official list won't be out 'til sometime in early 2010, Coachella fanatics have been gathering what intel they can for awhile about who is playing and who is just a rumor. One list on a forum seems to be the best. "This is not a wish list thread," pre-empts summerkid in a Coachella forum. "News should be trickling...

Photo by via the LAist Featured Photos pool on Flickr For a lot of people, today marks the end of the year. Vacations start. School is out. Holiday parties begin. Whatever it may be, the cause for celebration also means a higher rate of drunks on the road. Tonight there are various DUI checkpoints throughout the Southern California region. Tonight, checkpoints will be found at Wilshire and Western and on the 300 block of...

Photo from a couple years back on Hollywood Blvd. | Photo by Jeff__ via LAist Featured Photos on Flickr About the above photo: "While an announcer talks about who the next American Idol will be, a man on the street behind her eats from a garbage can," explains photographer Jeffrey Patrick in the caption of his photo where he suggests a few charities to donate to this holiday season. Attention travelers. The snowstorm on...

File this under "we knew it would happen" and "fuck yeah!" Disney today announced the "limited engagement" of Captain EO in Tomorrowland, which, we're sure, many hope is a permanent gesture (because, really, does Honey I Shrunk the Kids, which it is replacing in the meantime, need to be around this long?). The LA Times helps us reminisce in the awesomeness: "The 3-D movie — featuring lasers, smoke and stars that extend into the...