Greater LA

The City of Santa Monica is making its outdoor dining program permanent and charging restaurants thousands in upfront costs and monthly fees. 2nd Chance Soul Food Fish Fry, a casual restaurant in Ladera Heights, offers job opportunities to formerly incarcerated men and women who live in transitional housing. Venice restaurant James’ Beach shut down last month. But it wasn’t a pandemic casualty. Instead, its owners say they were ready to move on.

Californians ages 18-24 are experiencing more anxiety and depression compared to past years, and many are struggling to get help due to financial costs or a lack of access to services. That’s the result of a new survey from the California Endowment. Months into this school year, some LAUSD students are anxious, depressed, and lonely, says teacher Aviva Alvarez-Zakson. There aren’t enough campus psychologists and counselors, while technology and the pandemic have exacerbated the situation.

Ballona Creek carries water – and garbage – from Griffith Park to the ocean. LA County is using new tech to try to keep it clean. California will expand union rights for farmworkers, boost disability and family paid-leave programs, not enforce other states’ anti-abortion rules. That’s thanks to Gov. Newsom signing several bills into law. This Friday, Amtrak’s Pacific Surfliner is suspending service between Irvine and San Diego for emergency repairs. The year’s heavy rains and high surf severely impacted the track.

LA is on average more than 4 degrees Fahrenheit hotter than it was in the 19th century. Warmer air can hold more moisture, and the ocean is evaporating faster, which means extra humidity too. Jaime Jarrín has been the Spanish language voice for the Dodgers over the last 64 years. He’s called thousands of games, and his retirement comes at the end of this season.

The founders of ChargerHelp! want to repair the nation’s electric vehicle charging stations while bringing equity to the workplace. For years, the government has offered incentives to help people purchase electric cars. Now, city and state programs are pushing people toward electric too, all with different requirements. In the new exhibition “Promised Land,” artist Patrick Martinez uses landscape paintings to reflect on a changing LA and how his family life fits into it.

Health codes and food regulations used to be so complex that many vendors on California sidewalks and at beaches couldn’t get permits. It all changes thanks to Gov. Newsom signing SB 972. SoCal is facing a third year of La Niña, meaning drier and hotter conditions with no end in sight, according to National Weather Service Meteorologist Eric Boldt. Mission Viejo City Councilmembers Wendy Bucknum, Greg Raths, and Ed Sachs were sued by a resident last month for improperly extending their term limits. Will they be forced to step down?

With freeway-adjacent land filling up and cities pushing back, is the golden age of the goods movement coming to a close in the Inland Empire? In the play “Moniece Clark,” a woman goes missing in the California desert, so a community of online true crime fans and a TV detective try to figure out what happened. A meal per person at the fine dining restaurant Providence can run customers nearly $300. The culture and staff’s services make it worth it, customers say. 

LA Metro plans to hire 300 unarmed “transit ambassadors” to help riders navigate the system and keep an eye on passengers and employees. Will more bodies ease safety concerns on the system? Fresh off her Grammy win, Arooj Aftab returns to LA to headline the final performance in The Broad Museum’s summer series “Now We’re Here.” The history of great jazz on South LA’s Central Avenue is celebrated in the latest concert by MUSE/IQUE, a nonprofit performing arts organization.

Growing up, David Ambroz had a mom with mental illness, and his family experienced homelessness before he moved to the foster care system, which can be especially hard for LGBTQ youth. The City and County of LA are phasing out pandemic-related eviction moratoriums. What will it mean for struggling renters and landlords?

A wave of young union leaders are making the LA labor movement cool and winning elections. But where are the contracts? California scientists are looking to beavers to help mitigate fire damage through a new office called the Beaver Restoration Unit. Why are these animals so necessary? The Orange County Power Authority is set up to provide greener power to hundreds of thousands of residents in the area. But officials want more oversight over the agency.