March 2011 Archives

The South Bay's go-to guy to rescue stranded and injured marine animals has some big names behind his push to build a rehabilitation center in the Playa del Rey area.

Peter Wallerstein, director of the nonprofit Marine Animal Rescue, said this week that actor and director Clint Eastwood, his wife Dina Ruiz, and actress-producer daughter Alison, have committed to helping him build a state-of-the-art "green" rescue and care facility that would be staffed by veterinarians.

Wallerstein said he has two locations in mind -- one at Dockweiler Beach, and another "a block or two" off the shoreline near Los Angeles International Airport.

"We're going ahead," said Wallerstein, whose base of operations is at a Dockweiler parking lot. "It's going to be either of those two sites."

Wallerstein has long wanted to build a South Bay area rehabilitation center that could take some of the pressure off San Pedro's Marine Mammal Care Center, which typically takes in the injured and orphaned animals he rescues.

Last July, his plan got the support it needed from the National Marine Fisheries Service, which is responsible for protecting marine resources and enforcing the Marine Mammal Protection Act. At the time, a spokesman for the federal agency said it had agreed to accept applications for a new county rehab center out of concern that the San Pedro site was getting too many animals.

In 2010 alone, Wallerstein's group made 372 rescues.

New construction near the beach would presumably require a few layers of regulatory permits, but Wallerstein said "we're not nervous about any of that."

He said he believes the Eastwoods' support will keep the vision in the forefront and boost donations. He said the family has not pledged a specific dollar amount.

"They have already reached out to movie studios," Wallerstein said. "They're planning a big fundraiser for us, hopefully by the end of the year."

In a news release, Alison Eastwood is quoted as saying: "My family, friends and I have great hopes that the entertainment community and local businesses will rally to help make this much needed center a reality."

The center is being designed by David Hertz and Associates, Wallerstein said.

The Beach Cities Democratic Club on Thursday endorsed California Secretary of State Debra Bowen for Congress, citing her long "progressive record" and "solid commitment" to protecting the environment.

The nod follows a February meeting between club leaders, Bowen and Los Angeles City Councilwoman Janice Hahn of San Pedro, another candidate running to replace former Rep. Jane Harman in the 36th Congressional District. The nine-term congresswoman resigned Feb. 28 to head up a Washington think tank.

Beach Cities Democratic Club President Lori Geittmann called Bowen, a Marina del Rey resident, the "grassroots" candidate. Bowen represented much of the South Bay in the state Legislature from 1992-2006.

Earlier this week, Bowen also secured the endorsement of another grass-roots political organization: Democracy for America. The group, led by Jim Dean, the brother of former Vermont governor and presidential candidate Howard Dean, claims more than 1 million members nationwide.

Friday is the filing deadline for the race.

According to the Los Angeles County Registrar-Recorder/County Clerk's Office, by Thursday, 21 had taken nomination papers: nine Democrats, five Republicans, two Libertarians, one Peace and Freedom party candidate and four who list no party or belong to a party not recognized by the state.

Political observers consider Bowen and Hahn to be the top candidates. Democrat Marcy Winograd, an anti-war activist and high school teacher from Santa Monica, has already filed to run. Winograd took 41 percent of the vote last June in the primary against Harman.

Among Republicans seeking the seat are Redondo Beach Mayor Mike Gin, Redondo Beach City Attorney Mike Webb and Hermosa Beach City Councilman Kit Bobko.

Gov. Jerry Brown has scheduled a special primary for May 17.

Under new "jungle primary" rules, if no candidate wins a majority then, the top two vote getters regardless of party advance to a special general election set for July 12.

One of El Savador's most prominent religious leaders will visit the Los Angeles area this week, and will make stops at two South Bay churches.

Bishop Medardo Gomez, a Nobel Peace Prize nominee, will celebrate the partnerships between U.S. congregations and those in his native country, and honor the memory of Archbishop Oscar Romero, who was assassinated March 24, 1980, while delivering Mass at the altar of a hospital chapel in El Salvador. His killing came a day after calling Salvadoran soldiers to obey God's higher order and not carry out government assassinations and repression of human rights.  

Gomez continues to hold weekly press conferences advocating human rights, and was involved in the United Nations' peace process, which stopped a Civil War in the Latin American country that claimed nearly 80,000 lives from 1980-1992.

He will be honored by Los Angeles Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa, and will visit a number of churches throughout the county this weekend. The bishop will visit Resurrection Lutheran Church in Redondo Beach at both the 9 and 11 a.m. services; and Trinity Lutheran Church in Hawthorne at 3:45 p.m.

The Torrance Democratic Club is sponsoring a showing of the documentary "Wal-Mart: The High Cost of Low Price" at a free screening set for 6:30 p.m. next Tuesday at the Katy Geissert Civic Center Library, 3301 Torrance Blvd.

The showing coincides with the local debate over the opening this fall of Torrance's first WalMart on Hawthorne Boulevard.

An RSVP is requested. Click here.

Watch the trailer:

Labeling it a "monumental" endorsement, Los Angeles City Councilwoman Janice Hahn of San Pedro announced Tuesday that the Los Angeles County Federation of Labor, AFL-CIO is endorsing her campaign for the 36th Congressional District.

The labor group, which represents more than 350 unions with membership in excess of 800,000 workers, is expected to add significant fundraising and get-out-the-vote clout to Hahn's bid to succeed former Rep. Jane Harman, who resigned last month to lead a Washington think tank.

Hahn is one of three prominent Democrats running for the coastal district stretching from Venice to San Pedro. California Secretary of State Debra Bowen of Marina del Rey, who represented much of the South Bay in the state Legislature from 1992-2006, has declared her candidacy. Santa Monica resident, anti-war activist and high school teacher Marcy Winograd has also entered the race. Winograd took 41 percent of the vote in last June's Democratic primary against Harman.

Three South Bay Republicans have also begun campaigns. They are: Redondo Beach City Attorney Mike Webb; Redondo Beach Mayor Mike Gin, who, in order to campaign, has taken a leave of absence from his position as a field deputy to Los Angeles County Supervisor Don Knabe; and Hermosa Beach City Councilman Kit Bobko, an attorney and graduate of the U.S. Air Force Academy.

According to the Los Angeles County Registrar-Recorder/County Clerk's Office, 20 people have taken nomination papers for the race. Prospective candidates have until 5 p.m. Friday to file.

The primary will be held May 17. 

If no candidate wins a majority then, the top-two vote getters regardless of party would advance to a July 12 runoff.

After hearing about the earthquake and tsunami that hit Japan late last week, Robert Follmer was on edge thinking about some the friends he'd left behind only recently in Tokyo.

The 26-year-old LMU student and El Porto resident spent a year and a half at Temple University's Japan campus and wanted to find a way to contribute.

And so Follmer, an undergraduate studying graphic design, got to work over the weekend and came up with a logo that's printed on T-shirts selling for $25 apiece.

He's pledged to send all proceeds from the shirts, which picture a heart with a red cross and the capital letters JP, to the American Red Cross' earthquake relief effort.

"I've been promoting it on Facebook, which has been wonderful," Follmer said. "It's been pretty much my effort solely to get it going."

Follmer, who runs an outerwear company called Mediya, said he paid $4,500 to buy a batch of shirts, and he'll rely on friends to help with the distribution.

To buy one - in red, black or white - send an email to bbo@m3diya.com, or log onto the company's website at www.m3diya.bigcartel.com.

Only about 1 in 6 registered Carson voters cast ballots in the March 8
election, but it could have been less if it wasn't for one of the candidate's "doughnut incentive program."

City Council candidate Elito Santarina promised a dozen Krispy Kreme doughnuts to each voter that brought his or her voting stub to United Steel Workers Union Hall that day. Two thousand dozen doughnuts were available to voters, according to the mailer.
Mayor Jim Dear actually claimed ownership of this doughnut program, and Santarina sent out a glossy mailer to residents with a letter from Dear that both endorsed him and advertised the free treats.

"In these uncertain economic times, it's crucial that we have the best leaders possible guiding our city," Dear writes in the mailer. "Enjoy and let the good times roll!"
Santarina won re-election, but there's no way to know whether the offer of free doughnuts contributed to that.

At least one resident was dissatisfied with the deal. He wrote the following in an e-mail:

"The day of election we received a robo call from the Mayor reiterating
the same promise of doughnuts.  Upon voting at the Town Ave school
location not one poll worker new of such promises.  My family and I
contacted via phone city hall and the Mayor's office.  Not one City Hall
employee new of the Mayor's promise, nor did his staff.  They asked for
my name and phone number but never returned my calls.  Mayor Jim Dear
was contacted numerous times, or so I was told by City Hall and Mayoral
staff.  Mr. Dear could
not be reached.  Yes, doughnuts may seem like a silly issue to be upset
over, however if the Mayor cannot deliver on a simple promise such as
doughnuts, what does this say about his abilities or lack there of to
run Carson?  I find this behavior disrespectful and rude.  Mr. Dear
would like the residents of Carson to scratch his back but it appears he
is unwilling to do so in kind."

Hermosa Beach residents awoke to the startling sound of an air raid siren blaring at about midnight -- a mistake caused the recent time change, fire officials said.

The siren, a relic of the Cold War era, normally sounds every day at noon. But the digital timing system failed, causing the alarm to go off at 12:00 midnight instead.

Given the recent tsunami threats and the nuclear reactor situation in Japan, the timing of the false alarm couldn't have been worse, officials said. The 911 switch board in Hermosa Beach lit up shortly after the siren with calls from worried residents.

The timing system was promptly fixed Tuesday.

The siren, one of the last remaining still in operation, was meant as a warning, and a call for civil service volunteers in times of crisis, officials said.

Gov. Jerry Brown on Monday called a May 17 special primary election for Jane Harman's former South Bay congressional seat.

Brown had planned to consolidate the 36th Congressional District election with an early June statewide ballot measure to extend temporary tax increases, but missed the deadline as Democrats and Republicans in Sacramento remain at loggerheads over the issue.

Harman, a Democrat, resigned on Feb. 28 to take a position leading the Woodrow Wilson International Center for Scholars, a nonpartisan Washington think tank.

Several Democrats have lined up to succeed her, including Los Angeles City Councilwoman Janice Hahn of San Pedro and California Secretary of State Debra Bowen of Marina del Rey. Anti-war activist and high school teacher Marcy Winograd of Santa Monica, the Democrat who won 41 percent of the vote against Harman in last June's primary, is also running.

Among Republicans, Redondo Beach Mayor Mike Gin and City Attorney Mike Webb have declared bids. Last week, Hermosa Beach City Councilman Kit Bobko announced his candidacy.

Insiders consider Hahn and Bowen to be the front runners.

Allan Hoffenblum, a former GOP consultant who co-edits the California Target Book, a nonpartisan guide to state elections, said whoever wins the race could face re-election in 2012 in a substantially-different district after political boundaries are redrawn this year.

The 36th Congressional District currently stretches from Venice down the coast to San Pedro.

Hoffenblum envisioned a new district that includes the Palos Verdes Peninsula, home to a sizable Republican voting bloc.

With that potential political sunlight on the horizon, Republicans may be positioning themselves for the next election cycle.

"Mike Gin wants to make sure Mike Webb doesn't jump ahead of him," said Hoffenblum. "Kit Bobko wants to make sure the Redondo Beach guys don't jump ahead of him."

"These aren't flakes, these are good candidates," Hoffenblum continued. "These are the types of candidates that Republicans would surely be trying to recruit (in 2012)."

The election to replace Harman will be the first congressional race to test the state's new "jungle primary" law.

If no candidate wins a majority of votes and takes the seat outright, the top two vote getters advance to a July 12 special general election, even if they are members of the same party.

Hoffenblum predicted turnout for the special primary of between 15 and 25 percent.

Emergency officials are investigating why a helicopter crashed into a Raytheon plant in El Segundo, causing a four-alarm fire, as it was removing air-conditioning units from the building this morning.
The Sikorsky-style helicopter was moving the heavy equipment at about 9:30 a.m. when something malfunctioned and it crashed into the building at 2000 E. El Segundo Blvd, said El Segundo Fire Department Battalion Commander Richard Geyer.
Fire officials put out the large blaze within 40 minutes, and investigators from several agencies descended on the site to try to understand what caused the accident, Geyer said.
The helicopter pilot was taken to a nearby trauma center, but Geyer said he was unsure of the extent of his injuries

USC researchers who have been looking into this week's massive fish kill in Redondo Beach harbor have reported that they've discovered toxic algae that produce domoic acid -- known for sickening and sometimes killing marine mammals -- in the guts of the dead sardines floating in the city's marinas.

Researchers have not found any toxins or harmful algae inside the harbor, however, and they're still attributing the die-off to a nearly complete lack of oxygen in the water.

In an e-mail sent early today to other scientists, members of the media and other interested folks, USC professor David Caron said it's not clear how the domoic acid poisoning may have contributed to conditions causing the fish kill:

Domoic acid can cause a variety of neurological disorders, and death, of animals consuming fish contaminated with the neurotoxin. Research also indicates that domoic acid poisoning can cause abnormal swimming behavior in some fish.  It is possible that high levels of domoic acid in the sardines in King Harbor may have exacerbated physiological stress of the fish brought on by oxygen depletion of the water, or may have been a contributing explanation for them congregating in the harbor at very high abundances, but this has not been confirmed.

The toxic algae consumed by the fish likely came from a huge bloom that's been present at least since Monday off the coast -- stretching from Point Conception to San Diego, according to researchers who've tracked the greenish-brown mass by satellite.

After the jump is the extended and fascinating email from Caron on what's been learned so far. Sampling was continuing today.

The Fish Contamination Education Collaborative has a new post up with a helpful questions and answers about the Palos Verdes Shelf Superfund site.

The collaborative -- meant to provide information to local fishermen about DDT in fish and sediment off Palos Verdes -- provides a starter set of facts to those unfamiliar with the contamination. Worth a look if you don't know about this major Superfund site, which had far-reaching environmental effects in Southern California.

The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency is in the process of proceeding with a massive cleanup plan that includes capping part of the site, some 40 years after DDT stopped flowing into the area.
 

Alexa Suart definitely had a rough start to her senior year of high school: The Torrance teen was diagnosed with Stage 3 hodgin's lymphoma last summer.

After undergoing aggressive chemotherapy from August to January of this year, she is now in the midst of radiation treatments five days a week. She described the treatment as "horrible. I don't think I'll ever get used to it."

Her family is hopeful for a full recovery, but the illness has taken a toll -- both emotionally, and financially, her mother said.

They are planning a fundraiser, but in the meantime, want to let the community know that on Mondays throughout March, a portion of dinner proceeds from the Mexican Riviera Restaurant, 4239 Pacific Coast Highway, Torrance, will go toward Alexa's medical expenses. The restaurant is lcoated at the corner of PCH and Anza, near the CVS drug store.

For more details, visit her website at http://www.caringbridge.org/visit/alexasuart.

The ultimate tally of election results reveal that Rancho Palos Verdes' Measure C went down to defeat even more soundly than I reported last night.

The initiative, which would have turned RPV from a general law city to a charter city and adopted a broad charter document, earned just 27.7 percent of the vote, according to results online.

The results, which still need to be certified, show 6,582 ballots cast -- turnout of about 23.7 percent. Rancho Palos Verdes voters also voted in the Los Angeles Community College District elections.

One thing to note on the voting results page for the city of Los Angeles -- which tallied the RPV ballots -- is the ballot measures in both cities. For L.A., it's yes, yes, yes, yes ... and one no for nine initiatives. Then, in RPV, it's a big fat NO. Hmmm ... different electorates?

Five candidates are vying for two seats on the Carson City Council in Tuesday's election. For the past few months, that's meant five campaigns -- five sets of election signs, hyperbolic glossy mailers and lots of luncheons, door knocking and claiming ownership of issues ranging from prayer at council meetings to fixing potholes.

Residents got a healthy dose of the ugly side of politics as well. One thing you can count on in hotly contested races is some last-minute mudslinging to disparage candidates in the minds of the voters just before they head to the polls.

On Saturday, the Los Angeles County Democratic Party and Carson Councilwoman Lula Davis-Holmes, who is running for reelection, responded to a mailer from the Mexican American Democratic Club that blasts Davis-Holmes. The mailer claims she supports Arizona Senate Bill 1070, legislation passed last year that makes it a misdemeanor crime for illegal immigrants not to carry certain identification. Opponents viewed the law as a form of racial profiling. Latinos make up the largest voting block in Carson, and all the candidates actively court votes from that group.

Davis-Holmes never opposed SB 1070. On May 18, 2010 she and Councilman Mike Gipson voted against a city resolution opposing that legislation because they wanted stronger language in the opposition argument. Davis-Holmes and Gipson advocated for the city to cancel all business and travel related to the state of Arizona because of the law, but the rest of the council approved a scaled-down resolution.

Former Republican Rep. Steve Kuykendall will not throw his hat into the ring to seek the congressional seat that he lost to Democrat Jane Harman back in 2000.

The one-term congressman -- who once served on the Rancho Palos Verdes City Council but moved to Long Beach last year -- said he had decided against joining the pack eager to succeed Harman, who resigned Monday to lead a Washington think tank.

"Kuykendall has decided not to make a run at this,"  Kuykendall said. "This seat is a very difficult seat."

Future redistricting could make the possibility of a Republican holding on to the seat, if won this time around, "a futile exercise," Kuykendall said.

That's something he knows a bit about.

In the 1998 race, Kuykendall defeated now-L.A. City Councilwoman Janice Hahn, who was quick to announce a run for Harman's seat last month. He won by about 2 points in what was then a swing district.

Two years later, Harman reclaimed the 36th District seat from Kuykendall on a 1-point margin when she challenged his bid for a second term. She had previously held the office from 1993 to 1999, relinquishing her seat to run for governor instead in 1998.

Kuykendall's effort to return to office in 2002 suffered from redistricting that favored Democrats by a 2-to-1 margin in the 36th, which now stretches from Venice to San Pedro, excluding the Palos Verdes Peninsula.

Those numbers haven't stopped other Republicans from declaring their candidacy for Harman's former seat. This week, Redondo Beach Mayor Mike Gin said he was running, joining Redondo Beach City Attorney Mike Webb.

Kuykendall said his name had been among a group of five Republican names bandied about for the race. Also mentioned have been Hermosa Beach Councilman Kit Bobko* and Craig Huey, a radio commentator and Rolling Hills Estates resident who publishes conservative voter guide, according to Kuykendall.

In addition to Harman, two other Democrats have announced their campaigns: California Secretary of State Debra Bowen, who is from Marina del Rey; and antiwar activist March Winograd, who lost the June primary to Harman.

A special primary in CD36 is expected in June.

*An earlier version of this post incorrectly referred to Bobko as mayor.

The Easy Reader has posted a video of the fast-moving fire that destroyed the office of a prominent dentist and caused extensive damage to at least three other businesses in downtown Manhattan Beach. The blaze broke out Saturday around 9:40 p.m. and the Manhattan Beach Fire Department put it out in about 10 minutes.

The building appeared to be vacant at the time of the fire, and there were no reported injuries. Damage is estimated to be around $1 million.

An investigation into the fire's cause is expected to be completed in several days.

The video was played Tuesday at the Manhattan Beach City Council meeting and the audience broke out into applause as a show of thanks for the quick-acting firefighters who doused the blaze.

A Lomita restaurateur was charged today with first-degree murder for killing his wife, who was last seen alive 16 months ago and is presumed dead.

David Viens, 47, who confessed to detectives on Monday, is expected to be arraigned Friday in Los Angeles Superior Court if he is physically able, sheriff's Lt. Dave Coleman said.

Viens remains hospitalized at County Harbor-UCLA Medical Center. He jumped from a Rancho Palos Verdes cliff in a suicide attempt Feb. 23.

David Viens is suspected of killing his wife, Dawn Viens, 39, who was last seen Oct. 18, 2009. Although her body has never been found, detectives said they believe she is dead because they found blood spatter on the walls of a bedroom and another room in the Oak Avenue house the couple once shared.

A two-day search at David Viens' restaurant did not locate her remains. Detectives said they received information that she might be buried under concrete at the Thyme Contemporary Cafe, where David Viens recently completed renovations.

Firefighters and coroner's officer workers used jackhammers to excavate the concrete floors, but did not find anything.

Viens, who served a prison sentence in Florida for drug trafficking, could spend the rest of his life in prison if convicted of the murder charge.

Although he implicated himself in the crime, David Viens has not told detectives where they can locate his wife's remains.

Redondo Beach Mayor Mike Gin said Wednesday he will enter the race to succeed former Rep. Jane Harman, joining City Attorney Mike Webb as the only other Republican thus far vying for the seat.

Gin served two terms as a Redondo Beach councilman prior to becoming mayor. He earned a second and final mayoral term in 2009.

Gin also works for Los Angeles County Supervisor Don Knabe as a field deputy to San Pedro, Wilmington, Harbor Gateway and the Palos Verdes Peninsula.

In his announcement, he touted Redondo Beach's budget, which has been balanced or run a surplus each year since he first won office in 1995.

"I've helped manage Redondo Beach the way I believe our country should be managed," Gin said. "I remain a tight-fisted fiscal administrator who believes in controlling spending and reducing our deficit in conjunction with creating good jobs in a new economy. This lies at the very center of what our national resurgence requires."

The coastal 36th Congressional District runs from Venice to San Pedro and was drawn to favor Democrats, who currently outnumber Republicans by a 2-to-1 margin. 

But Gin said his appeal to "numerous demographic and geographic voting groups" - he is pro-choice and openly gay - combined with an expanding Democratic field of candidates and a large number of decline-to-state voters give him an opportunity to score an upset. Decline-to-state voters account for about 24 percent of the electorate in the 36th Congressional District.

Democrats Janice Hahn, a Los Angeles city councilwoman from San Pedro, and California Secretary of State Debra Bowen of Marina del Rey, are expected to engage in a rough battle for party voters. Anti-war activist and high school teacher Marcy Winograd of Santa Monica, who took 41 percent of the vote in June's Democratic primary against Harman, announced on Saturday that she would run.

Gin entering the race creates a potentially awkward political situation in Redondo Beach.

Webb has already listed the endorsements of four Redondo Beach city council members: Steve Aspel, Pat Aust, Steve Diels and Matt Kilroy. On Wednesday, Gin also claimed the endorsements of Aust and Kilroy. Council seats are nonpartisan.

A special election is expected to be held in June to replace Harman, who resigned Monday to lead a Washington think tank.