2+ day, 15+ hour ago   (542+ words) Americans finally found something to agree on: concern about the rapid proliferation of data centers. A recent Reuters/Ipsos poll found that only 1 in 3 Americans approves of the current pace of data center construction, and most would oppose a facility…...

3+ day, 13+ hour ago   (241+ words) The Santa Monica Fire Department will hold a community remembrance ceremony marking the 25th anniversary of the Sept. 11, 2001, attacks, inviting residents to honor the lives lost and the first responders who answered the call. The ceremony will take place from 7:30 to…...

4+ day, 16+ hour ago   (454+ words) There’s a deeply troubling ongoing pattern in Gov. Gavin Newsom’s approach to land and water policies in California involving closed doors, backroom deals and disingenuous — or more often than not — inadequate community engagement to move projects forward. Circumventing guardrails and…...

1+ week, 15+ hour ago   (256+ words) The Santa Monica City Council has appointed Walfred Solorzano as the city's next city clerk, concluding a national recruitment that began earlier this year and was overseen by a council ad hoc committee. Solorzano succeeds Interim City Clerk Denise Anderson-Warren,…...

1+ week, 4+ day ago   (531+ words) There was a time, not too many years ago, when drafting and enacting California’s budgets was a fairly transparent and straightforward process. It’s difficult to pinpoint exactly when the process became opaque and the budget became a hodgepodge of phantom…...

1+ week, 4+ day ago   (345+ words) A last-minute effort to exempt a Frank Gehry-designed downtown development from California Coastal Commission review has died, ending a monthslong fight that pitted a politically connected developer against environmental advocates, neighborhood groups and the city's state representatives. Language that would…...

1+ week, 5+ day ago   (349+ words) When Californians voted to reduce drug penalties in 2014, it likely had the unintended consequence of also increasing homelessness in the state, according to a new report. “Ever since Prop. 47 was passed in 2014, there’s been a lot of critics of that…...

2+ week, 3+ day ago   (258+ words) The Superior Court of Los Angeles County is inviting residents to apply for the 2027-2028 Civil Grand Jury, which examines county, city and joint-powers agencies. Applications are due Nov. 1, 2026. The panel reviews the work of government agencies within Los Angeles County…...

2+ week, 3+ day ago   (551+ words) November’s ballot is dominated by measures that would alter how California levies taxes, including one that would make it more difficult for local governments to gain voter approval of tax hikes. Proposition 43 would overturn a state Supreme Court ruling and…...

2+ week, 4+ day ago   (684+ words) A proposal to exempt certain multifamily housing developments in Santa Monica's coastal zone from California Coastal Act review has resurfaced in a state budget trailer bill with new language that seems to benefit a very specific development by a Santa…...