Zach Behrens

The land of Bruce and Bon Jovi is Full of...wimps. Southern California is no stranger to daily microquakes. In fact, just in the past week, we've had 15 of them. But when a quake shakes the bridge and tunnel crowd--like the 3.0 quake did last night--they freak. Via Gothamist, the Star-Ledger reports, "It sounded like an explosion, houses shook and dogs started barking." Other residents said it felt like a "bomb" and one man...

Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa is going on a quick trip tonight to Washington D.C. to lobby the Obama administration to make sure Los Angeles gets a good slice of the federal stimulus package that's making its way through the Senate today, according to the LA Times. He hopes to get funding for the Subway to the Sea and the solar energy plan, which the controversial Measure B on the March 3rd ballot is part of....

LA County Board of Supervisor Zev Yaroslavsky has jumped on the bandwagon of politicians begging the LA Times not to kill the California section of the paper. "Despite its profitability even in the current market, the Times recently boosted its street price by 50% even as it was accelerating plans to further degrade its news product by eliminating sections and cutting additional staff," he wrote in the letter (via LA Observed). "Charging the newspaper's...

Dennis Hathaway, the activist behind BanBillboardBlight.org, saw this guerilla looking public art and snapped a photo to share with us. It's on North Madison Avenue, just east of Los Angeles City College and Vermont Avenue. Anyone know the story behind this? Do you ever random and fun things around LA? Feel free to share with us via our tips@laist.com inbox or by joining our LAist Featured Photos group on Flickr!...

At the Homeless Count event last week, we happened to meet Daily News writer Dana Bartholomew who became interested in our photos from last week about the Orange Line bike path turning into a little skid row of its own. Soon after, his article: "As Los Angeles County volunteers completed the largest homeless count in the nation last week, many pointed out the trail of refuse left by transients between Sepulveda Boulevard and Hazeltine...

After hearing the news of the the LA Times' decision to cut the California section, which gives us local, regional and state news, Councilman Eric Garcetti went on Facebook and created a group that now has over 1200 members. "Save the California section of the LA Times before it is too late," Garcetti writes. "We need a dedicated section that focuses on the news of the Los Angeles area and the state of California....

The $819 billion stimulus package being worked on right now by congress could help California up and down the state. Projected to have $42 billion deficit later this year, the money wouldn't go to state coffers to fix the budget, but rather to counties and cities for ready-to-go infrastructure projects. For example, $4 billion could go to transportation projects alone. But the New York Times warns that California will be an indicator if this...

Doomie's Home Cookin', which just opened last October, has shut its doors in search of a more permanent home. "I don’t know what to say, I am completely and utterly shocked and saddened by this news. they were one of my favorite spots in los angeles, no doubt," vegan blogger Quarrygirl lamented this weekend. Doomie's opened when the dance club in the space temporarily shut down--it was a product of "hey, let's use the...

Not too long after a bench warrant was issued for Girls Gone Wild founder Joe Francis was he taken in by Federal Marshals this afternoon, five hours after he was supposed to arrive in court this morning. Francis, who was one-half of a team asking for Washington D.C. to bail out the porn industry last year, was due in court for tax evasion charges. He reportedly illegally deducted over $20 million from his companies....

What is this SWAT team doing? | Photo by seantyler via Flickr Remember when an Orange County SWAT team descended upon an unsuspecting couple at their home one night in March 2007? The Bates didn't do anything; rather it was 18-year-old Randal Ellis in Washington--he hacked his VoIP telephone service to look like it was coming from the OC home and claimed he had a gun and just shot his sister. This was just...

Photo by Dennis Hathaway/BanBillboardBlight City Attorney Rocky Delgadillo today filed criminal charges against a billboard company and building owners over an illegal sign next to the 10 Freeway. Keep in mind, this is two days after the city held a press conference under the same exact sign saying they were revving up to fight if these don't come down. World Wide Rush, building owner National Investment Company and eight people--either partial building owners or...

Today is the first Car Free Friday, a day to encourage bike commuting and hopefully convince people that the option is not that bad at all. Councilman Eric Garcetti helped the event gain media attnention by riding from the Hollywood/Western Subway station to City Hall with around sixty bicyclists. “Riding your bike on Car-Free Fridays is a great way to reduce your impact on the environment and get a work out at the same...