President Trump to sign review of national monuments, how LA's economy could feel large retail closures, new pre-NFL pro football league to launch in SoCal.
California national monuments could suffer under Trump executive order
On Wednesday, President Trump signed another executive order that granted the Department of the Interior (DOI) the power to review two decades of national monument designations.
Under the order, protected public lands could literally shrink in size.
Mike Doyle has been writing on this issue for McClatchy Newspapers. He spoke to A Martinez about what's driving this move and how the Golden State may see some impacts.
What's driving this?
"This is a hot issue, this is a steaming hot issue in the west... For several decades now, certainly since the Clinton administration, Western conservatives have been irate over what they see as the president's overreach and overprotectiveness and the dismissal of local concerns. So yes, the showman President Trump made his trademark style points, but this does speak to an issue that's been preceding him."
What does a 'review' entail?
"The interior department under Secretary Ryan Zinke is now tasked with looking at the largest of the national monuments established since 1996. There are several dozen of these and they will examine, under the Antiquities Act of 1906, that monuments are no larger than is necessary to fulfill the protective function. And so the department is going to look at whether the monuments in Utah and perhaps in Colorado and elsewhere are simply too big."
What can be reviewed here in Southern California?
"In the last couple of years, President Obama designated a number in Southern California, there's the 1.3 million-acre Mojave Trails national monument and the Sand to Snow monument in the Mojave Desert...
There's a huge national monument off the coast of California, covers the entire coast, but focuses on the reefs and rocks.
And up in the southern Sierra Nevada, there's the Giant Sequoia National monument that President Clinton signed in 2000 and was intensely controversial. They're among those that might be under review.
There are many smaller ones, for instance, the former residence of United Farm Workers' leader, César Chávez up in Kern County. They are very small and will escape review.
To listen to the full segment, click the blue play button above.
Meet your new neighbors: Family of American bald eagles nests in Angeles National Forest
The American bald eagle was on the endangered species list for a while--but over the past decade it's been making a comeback.
And now, a pair of bald eagles and their eaglets have settled into their new home in the Angeles National Forest.
Take Two's A Martinez spoke with Steve Scauzillo, who covers the environment for the Southern California News Group. He's been keeping tabs on the birds for the past year.
Steve Scauzillo and his fellow amateur birders were pretty psyched to spot the pair
It's very rare for Los Angeles County. However, bald eagles are doing a comeback so they are in Orange, San Bernardino, and Ventura Counties.
Some amateur birders discovered them, which is really how birding works these days. It's a lot of crowd sourcing... And they called me. I checked it out and I sent pictures around to experts and they confirmed it.
The eaglets don't have their white heads until they're four years-old, so they can be mistaken for golden eagles. So, that was the big question: Are they bald eagles or golden eagles? I had to really work on confirming that.
I thought it was a real chance because some bald eagles have flown around. There's been some buzzing about – no pun intended – so I thought it was a real possibility. But I wasn't sure.
The Bald Eagles have expanded their nest and their babies are doing great!
Their nest is in a lone tree but it's pretty big. It's maybe about three feet-long. And now, I think it's almost doubled. They added a wing because they have two chicks and last year they only had one.
The eagles are off the road in between Highway 39 and the San Gabriel Dam. And that's a pretty big drop off. If you know that windy road, you just can't walk over there. I'd say you're about maybe 100 yards from the birds.
You can see them with the naked eye. You can see them clearly but it helps to have binoculars or a scope. But two weeks ago, the female bird was just there – you could see her clearly. She's just watching the nest.
In fact, the eaglets look very healthy. They've been eating a lot. The mother feeds them rabbit or squirrel or fish. So, they're very large. It looks like their wingspan was at least two feet. So they've grown tremendously. And some say, they're ready to fly the nest soon. They stay about 12 weeks so these have been around for about eight, so you've got to figure another four to six weeks, so that puts us into May or June. But some of them don't want to leave the nest just like teenagers... So it's hard to say. There's a time limit when they do say, you've got to go. So they kind of nudge them out of the nest.
Just like human kids... eventually the eaglets will have to leave the nest... after a few attempts of course
First of all, this is the most majestic bird in America. There's no doubt about that, and not just because it's the national bird. It has the largest wingspan of any raptor, how majestically it flies, the way it hunts– it's amazing. Second of all, amateur birders have told me their flying is really funny. They'll fall out and kind of flap and not make it, and almost fall down, and try again. So, they do have to – kind of like the Wright Brothers trying out their plane – they have to test out the wings several times. Maybe for a few days or weeks.
Seeing these birds settle in LA indicates the American bald eagle is doing well after nearing extinction
It says a lot. It says they're doing very well– remarkably well. And since DDT was banned I believe in '72, they have recovered along with some other birds. The fact that they're seen here where there are 19 million people around, says that they're doing really well. It shows very positive things about their recovery.
For instance, San Bernardino County – they do keep counts near Big Bear and there have been six or eight in one year, up to 12 or 14 in another, depending on how many eyes are on them. So, that number is healthy and there could be more.
You can go see the bald eagles for yourself... Just be sure to respect the wildlife and their habitat
Oh course, we don't want any hardship to come to any wildlife... And the Forest Service has done a good job– they've put a little fence around and said, keep out of this little brush area. I think it's more for your safety so you don't fall down or get hit by a car. I think you can do it as long as you do it carefully. I think the most important thing is don't stop on the road or get hit by a car.
Between 4 and 6 pm, you might see more activity where the daddy eagle comes back into the nest or perhaps the mommy will join into the nest. There could be more activity in the evening, that's what some people say.
*Quotes edited for clarity*
Bonus fun fact: American eagles don't actually screech, contrary to popular thought.
For example, the sound clip at the end of The Colbert Report opening sequence is actually a red-tailed hawk!
Instead of the intimidating screeching sound, bald eagles communicate with sounds more like chirping:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hlq2kcYQcLc
To listen to the interview with Steve Scauzillo, click on the blue Media Player above.
Audio foot note: There technically is another bald eagle nest in LA County located on Santa Catalina Island.
Judge, lawyers tour Orange County homeless camp in search of solutions
The Styled Side: the crumbling brick-and-mortar retailers
Big brick-and-mortar retailers like Sears and K-Mart have been closing stores across the country following a large drop in sales over the years.
Retailers in Southern California are feeling the crunch, too, and closing up shop.
"Specialty Southern California retailer Bebe just announced that it was, indeed, shuttering all of its 168 stores by the end of May," says Michelle Dalton Tyree of Fashion Trends Daily. "L.A.-based retailer BCBG, founded by designer Max Azria in 1989, is closing 120 of its 175 U.S. stores, too"
And Wet Seal, also based in California, will close its 171 stores.
"It's feeling like a retail apocalypse out there," says Tyree, "and many retailers are running for cover."
Online shopping is driving this fallout, and it's the mid-range retailers that are feeling the squeeze.
"After the Great Recession of 2008, people were really trained to wait for deals, seek out sales, shop more economically," says Tyree.
That means discount and fast-fashion retailers like TJ Maxx and H&M are still going strong from people looking for low prices.
Luxury retailers are also weathering the storm because of their reputations as status symbols.
But the decline of certain mall staples has put a strain on employment in Southern California, too.
According to the LA Economic Development Corporation, in L.A. County alone there are 51,800 people working in retail clothing stores right now, down from 57,000 in 2007.
There is a glimmer of hope on the horizon east of L.A.: as more people order clothes online, there's a rising demand in staff for the warehouses that ship them to homes.
"We're seeing in places such as the Inland Empire the growth of these massive warehouse to handle the amount of e-commerce distribution going on," says LAEDC economist Kimberly Ritter-Martinez.
Amazon has five warehouses in the Inland Empire alone.
Plus JC Penney, which operates 79 stores in California, is actually moving its Buena Park distribution center to a new facility in that same region.
Meanwhile, malls are looking at creative ways to fill up the spaces vacated by retailers.
"They're adding gyms, medical offices, I've even seen churches go up in some of these kind of places," says Ritter-Martinez. "They're doing things to attract people that involve something other than going to a clothing store."
Listen to the full segment by clicking the blue audio player above.
Sports Roundup: The fate of the Clippers
The LA Clippers lost to the Utah Jazz last night at the Staples Center. They'll be facing elimination on Friday in Utah--and yet, this is only the first round of the playoffs.
If this week marks the end of the season for the Clippers -- there could be a lot at stake. What's the future of coach Doc Rivers? Will the team look to move?
We talk about that, and a lot more with Andy and Brian Kamenetzky.
Pacific Pro Football League may soon offer a new path to the NFL
Regardless of their off-the-field reputations, most players signed in last week's NFL draft have two things in common:
They're former college athletes... And they've never been paid to play football.
NFL rules say that an athlete must be out of high school for at least three years before they can sign with a professional team.
But soon, some of them may be able to get paid for playing before they reach the NFL.
It's called the Pacific Pro Football League. It's based right here in Southern California and will start in summer of 2018.
"We feel Pacific Pro Football can be a supplement to the existing system," said Donald Yee, CEO of the fledgling league. "[It could] expand the football industry, provide more jobs and give the players a choice."
Yee told Take Two's A Martinez that Pacific Pro Football would be made up of four teams, each with about 50 players. They'd play eight games in the summer. Player pay would average around $50,000, along with a benefits package.
"That would include health insurance, workers compensation benefits, one year paid community college tuition and books, housing and food."
There is a catch: If a player decides to sign with Pacific Pro Football, they would be immediately disqualified from receiving a scholarship from a school to play football. Yee says that he would work to educate young players on that rule.
"It will require complete education on the issue. But they are adults and we will hold them accountable to understanding that choice."
And while playing football at a major institution would not be possible, Yee said that Pacific Pro would still provide education for its players.
"We take an expansive view of the word education," Yee said. "We hope to innovate and excite these players and have them explore different paths outside of their football career by creating unique internships and exposing them to a wide variety of occupations."
Recruitment for the Pacific Pro Football League will start this coming winter.
To hear the full conversation, click the blue player above.