Trump’s Dark Shadow on Earth Day By Paul Rosenberg, Senior Editor
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[See Dark Trump, p. 6]
White Point Nature Preserve honors Earth Day p. 3 Residents challenge Carson’s cannabis ordinance p. 5
Building Intimacy and Connection One Garden at a Time By Terelle Jerricks, Managing Editor
Feed and Be Fed is the organization that manages the garden on 6th Street in San Pedro. Originally, it was managed by the Garden Church — in fact, Sunday services are still conducted in the garden lot. But little more than a year ago, the Garden Church decided to step away from managing the garden and create a community interface that was secular in nature. From this idea, Feeding to be Fed was founded. Peter Rothe, president of Feeding to be Fed’s board of directors, said the nonprofit’s roots and enduring links in the Garden Church have sustained a philosophy of compassion as part of its mission. “When you’re involved in a project such as
this, you aren’t just giving, you are also receiving a deep satisfying experience yourself,” Rothe noted. “It is the connection made that is the reward. We grow plants here, but the most important thing here is the involvement and the engagement of the community.” Rothe said connections are made through being and working in the garden and thinking about the environmental impacts of raising food on a small scale. Feeding to Be Fed Lara Hughey was the lead gardener for the [See Gardens, p. 4]
April 19 - May 2, 2018
San Pedro’s Moroccan restaurant celebrates 40 years and is in good hands p. 13
Urban Farms
Feeding and Be Fed board president, Peter Rothe, works in the garden on 6th Street. Photo by Terelle Jerricks
Earth Day and Foreign LGBT Film Festivals: A Wild, Wild World p. 11
Illustration by Brenda Lopez
Real News, Real People, Really Effective
rom rolling back regulations to silencing scientists and opening up public lands for private exploitation, the Trump administration’s attacks on the environment are unprecedented in the modern era. Just pulling out of the 2015 Paris Agreement on climate change mitigation (announced by Trump on June 1 this past year) and withdrawing the Clean Power Plan (announced by EPA Administrator Scott Pruitt Oct. 11) would be enough to mark it as the most environmentally destructive administration since Rachel Carson’s book Silent Spring helped launch the modern environmental movement in 1962. So would another unprecedented act: slashing the size of the Bears Ears and Grand Staircase-Escalante national monuments by roughly 2 million acres — the first size-reduction since 1962.
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April 19 - May 2, 2018
Real News, Real People, Totally Relevant
Community Announcements:
Harbor Area Give Blood During National Volunteer Month
Donors of all blood types are needed to help meet patient needs this spring. Make an appointment to donate blood and find out about donation opportunities April 19 through 30. Times: 11 a.m. to 6 p.m. April 26; 8:30 a.m. to 3:30 p.m. April 20 and 27; 8 a.m. to 3 p.m. April 21, 22, 28 and 29; 12 to 7:30 p.m. April 23, 24, 25 and 30 Details: RedCrossBlood.org, (800) 733-2767 Venue: American Red Cross Greater Long Beach Chapter, 3150 E. 29th St. in Long Beach
Paleo Drought Workshop
This event is intended to help Southern California water agencies and others who want to gain information for improving drought preparedness and updating urban water management plans. Time: 8:30 a.m. to 3 p.m. April 19 Cost: $50 Details: www.watereducation.org/foundationevent/paleo-drought-workshop Venue: Madeo Ballroom at DoubleTree by Hilton Hotel San Pedro-Port of Los Angeles, 2800 Via Cabrillo Marina, San Pedro.
Be a Life Saver, Learn About Kitten Fostering
Who can foster? How many kittens can I foster? What supplies do I need? Get answers to these questions and more at the Harbor Animal Shelter with people who can tell you what to expect when you foster kittens — because they’ve done it. Time: 6 to 8 p.m. April 19 Cost: Free Details: (213) 605-4473 Venue: Harbor Animal Shelter, Community Room, 957 N. Gaffey St., San Pedro
State of the Environment Conference
The public is invited to discussion about the current state of the environment and our role in the future of sustainability. Time: 8 a.m. to 4 p.m. April 20 Cost: Free Details: https://tinyurl.com/State-of-theEnvironment-Confe Venue: California State University Long Beach, Walter Pyramid, 1250 N. Bellflower Blvd., Long Beach
Take Action Day
Take action and learn about the impact of [See Announcements, p. 5]
Committed to Independent Journalism in the Greater LA/LB Harbor Area for More Than 30 Years
White Point Nature Preserve Honors Earth Day By Joan Nielsen, RLn Contributing Writer
Walk around winding trails over three acres, breathing in the wonderful scents of native plants like sages and poppies and lilac verbena, all the while reading descriptions of these blooms, butterflies and local birds. The White Point Nature Preserve was featured on the 15th Anniversary Theodore Payne Native Plant Garden Tour. Sharing this native landscape helps inspire greater understanding about what is possible for native gardens to create a healthy and resilient Los Angeles. The White Point Nature Preserve features three acres of a 102-acre native preserve of conservancy-restored coastal sage scrub habitat. The preserve includes hiking and handicap accessible trails with amazing views of the Pacific Ocean and Catalina Island. The Nature Education Center is former a World War II military bunker. Concrete was used from that period to build seating for visitors. A courtyard sundial shows the solstice and equinox set in stones on the ground and a bioswale captures rain. This preserve fulfills a critical need for open space and urban parkland for the Los Angeles Basin. Take a self-guided tour and learn about the Tongva, the Native Americans Indians who were the first to inhabit the Los Angeles coastal basin as seafaring traders. The Tongva nation is represented throughout the demonstration gardens, which show their connection to native plant life in four garden themes. The north garden represents rituals like music, noting flutes made from the sambucus tree. The east garden is the edible garden, with strawberries, blackberries and cherries. The south garden represents structural life, like willow trees
White Point Nature Preserve Education Center in San Pedro. File photo
used to build houses. The west garden represents medicine via plants with healing properties, like mugwort. Now go inside the Nature Education Center and watch as a night camera video captures a sleek silver fox the size of a small dog sniffing around and suddenly climbing up a tree like a cat to hunt for bird nests. The land conservancy offers educational programs for the community and field trips for local and school children. Activities at the Nature Education Center include monthly nature walks, special presentations, bird walks, children’s story
times, volunteer opportunities and field trips for the public. The center is staffed by trained naturalists and filled with interactive exhibits about the fascinating history of the area. Learn about the history of the White Point area from prehistoric times replete with dinosaur bones to present day local flora and fauna like wild grasses and wild beasts. There are beautiful examples of local birds that call White Point home, like California gnatcatchers, white-capped sparrows, spotted towhees, red-tailed hawks and big white owls. You can even learn to identify animals and [See White Point, p. 16]
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April 19 - May 2, 2018
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[Urban Farms, from p.1]
Gardens
church until March 2017, when Feed and Be Fed gained its nonprofit status and began managing the garden with its all-volunteer staff. But a year after the changeover, Hughey’s influence endures. “She definitely set a certain tone,” Rothe said. “Lara did the basic designs of the garden. Without her help, this wouldn’t have been possible.” Students from Port of Los Angeles High School and Marymount California University regularly volunteer in the garden. Sometimes up to 100 students come out to volunteer, Rothe explained. “On any given day we could see volunteers
come to pick or plant vegetables or do some other form of work and never see them again afterward,” Rothe said. On a typical Friday, 50-60 people could come through the gates, while on First Thursdays up to 400 people would fill the garden. There’s usually some form of entertainment during the monthly art walk. Speaking only for himself, Rothe said he could feel tired after working in the garden, but he never feels bad or sad. “There was something basically human about working in the ground, growing food, nurturing something and seeing plants grow,” Rothe explained. “That’s the connection modern people have lost. We have this intuition that nonindustrial peoples somehow have something
Green Girl Farms founder, Lara Hughey, pulled up a prize worthy turnip from her urban farm at 14th and Mesa streets. Photo by Terelle Jerricks
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April 19 - May 2, 2018
An example of the linkages provided by an urban farm is the symbiotic relationship between Pappy’s Seafood restaurant and the 6th Street Farmer’s Market that happens every Friday. Greg Morena at Pappys gives them vegetable clippings for composting and they sell him fresh vegetables and herbs. And it all happens without a carbon footprint such as use of a vehicle to deliver the produce or compost. Between Pappy’s Seafood and the farmer’s market, Feeding to Be Fed is composting 250 pounds of organic matter per week. Rothe would like to grow larger and spread [See Gardens, p. 5]
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we don’t have. They have an intimate relationship with their environment. They have an intimate relationship with the source of their food on a very deep level. You don’t have to believe in metaphysics. You don’t have believe in a God to understand that relationships and intimacy [are] ... good for you as an individual and for us as a community. We’re modeling a certain kind of sustainability we feel should be a part of the future.” Rothe doesn’t believe industrial farming will ever disappear, but he sees long-term viability in urban farming and the system that Feeding to Be Fed is modeling.
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Community Announcements:
Harbor Area [Announcements from p. 3] microplastics. Help clean our community’s Cabrillo Beach on #CMAtakeactionday. Time: 9 a.m. to 12 p.m. April 21 Cost: Free Details: (310) 548-7562 www.cabrillomarineaquarium.org Venue: Cabrillo Marine Aquarium, 3720 Stephen M. White Dr. San Pedro
Ms. Single Mom
The Speak UP Empowerment Foundation Inc., in collaboration with Sullivan International Inc. and the Long Beach Community Improvement League, hosts the 3rd annual Ms. Single Mom Empowerment Forum at the Long Airport Marriott Grand Ballroom. This free event is filled with speakers, breakfast, lunch, complimentary childcare, mentor matching opportunities, dynamic giveaways and a de-stress-pamper center with a variety of relaxing services. Time: 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. April 21 Details: www.speakupempowermentfoundation. org Venue: Long Beach Airport Marriott, 4700 Airport Plaza Drive, Long Beach
Beach Cleanup
The Long Beach Environmental Alliance is hosting a beach cleanup. All supplies will be provided. Volleyball and festivities will follow. Time: 10 to 11 a.m. April 22 Details: lbenvironmental.alliance@gmail.com Venue: Alamitos Beach
LB District 2 Community Meeting
Don’t forget to attend the 4th Thursday District 2 community meeting Time: 6:30 p.m. April 26 Details: (562) 570-2222 Venue: Bixby Park Community Center, 130 Cherry Ave., Long Beach
Summer Internships at the Arts Council
Arts Council Long Beach has three internship opportunities: a marketing and grant internship, and a development internship, both sponsored by the Los Angeles County Board of Supervisors through the Los Angeles County Arts Commission, as well as a public art internship through the Getty Foundation’s Multicultural Undergraduate Internship program. Applications are due April 30, 2018. Details: http://artslb.org/resources/jobsinternships.
The May 1 march and rally demands protection for all workers, calls on Immigration and Customs Enforcement to stop family separations and raids, and urges all Angelenos to get involved. Together We Fight Back is an invitation for all Angelenos to take to the streets at noon May 1 on the corner of 6th Street and Olive Street. The May Day Coalition of Los Angeles will promote three main issues throughout the one mile route: 1) Defend, protect, and respect worker rights. 2) Fight against the anti-immigrant agenda and stop the cruel separation of families by ICE. 3) Underline the importance of civic engagement in this year’s midterm elections.
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Get involved with #RentControlNOW Coalition to place the rent control measure before Long Beach voters. Three thousand signatures must be collected. Details: (562) 436-8592 www.housinglongbeach.org
Council members Albert Robles, Jawane Hilton and Elito Santarina (who previously stated he was against legal marijuana in Carson) voted for the ordinance. The remaining two council members, Lula Davis-Holmes and Cedric Hicks, did not. DavisHolmes and Hicks are former Department of Recreation and Parks employees, with perhaps the most extensive experience concerning atrisk youth of the five council members. Thomas said that during the city’s recent campaign to pass Measure C, an oil refinery tax, Robles frankly told her the city needed the money from legal marijuana operations. He then personally assured her that if the community voted for Measure C, they wouldn’t need legal marijuana operations. “We’re not seeking to ban medicinal marijuana,” Thomas asserts. “There are two types of people who are for legal marijuana. One are the people that want the medicinal marijuana themselves. The other are people, retailers, who want to make money.” Another resident, former Planning Commissioner Ricardo Pulido, favors rescinding any permits for commercial cannabis operations, noting Carson’s identification as a “Red Ribbon” city for many years, indicating a commitment to a drug-free community. Former Mayor Jim Dear is another resident opposed to allowing any kind of commercial
[Gardens from p. 4]
Green Girl Farms. The 14th and Mesa lot is 5,000 square feet, and by Hughey’s estimation, only 1,000 square feet is being farmed. She said by the end of summer 2018, the entire 5,000 square feet will be in production. As this point, Green Girl Farms is growing sugar snap peas (because everyone loves them), Swiss chard, fennel and tomatoes, cucumbers, leeks, cauliflower, two kinds of kale, broccoli, fava beans and beets of different colors. Hughey recited all the vegetables and herbs that were growing as though ticking off a Saturday morning grocery list. Green Girl Farms’ mission is to create a local food system in San Pedro by creating edible gardens out of empty spaces, then making the food available through local produce stands. The other half of what she does is education and she’s been doing it for the past 10 years. Before Green Girl Farms, Hughey would stick gardens in people’s yards and containers. When she moved to San Pedro
Gardens
to other sites in San Pedro and include more restaurants. But for now, he said Feeding to Be Fed is doing just fine making do with the space it has. Joanna Appleseed A documentary filmmaker and consultant by trade, who helped print and radio newsrooms turn their journalists into one-man teams collecting and editing their own audio and visuals, Lara Hughey said she was a frustrated home gardener her whole entire adult life when she moved to San Pedro in 2008 from Brooklyn. She recalled feeling that all she wanted to do was grow tomatoes like her grandma did at the family home in Oklahoma, when young Lara would spend summer days sitting in the tomato patch eating tomatoes. So Hughey sought every opportunity to plant a garden. She could have just planted one in her yard and called it day. But she required more pasture to till. Hughey designed and installed some private gardens for people who hired her. She eventually created a demonstration garden at Crafted at the Port of Los Angeles. Then she was invited to design the 6th Street garden lot and subsequently invited to become the Garden Church’s lead gardener when it first took over management of the downtown San Pedro lot. More than a year ago, an angel donor purchased the vacant land at the corner of 14th and Mesa streets. A private farm existed intermittently between 2012 up until the time Hughey received the purchased land to turn into a fully functioning urban farm under the nonprofit
[See Gardens, p. 22]
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April 19 - May 2, 2018
Get Involved in Long Beach Rent Control Petition
Carson’s window to apply for a cannabis permit closed April 19, but controversy continues about what types of commercial activity to allow or prohibit. The Commercial Cannabis Regulatory Program, an ordinance the city council passed by a 3-2 vote in 2017, bans retailers, but permits up to four “commercial cannabis centers.” These are defined within the ordinance as “operations.” This troubles Dianne Thomas, a longtime Carson resident, who calls the ordinance “flawed” and “with loopholes.” Thomas questions the ordinance’s definition of “commercial cannabis operation,” which includes the “delivery or sale (including retail or wholesale)” of cannabis and cannabis products. While the ordinance bans retail sales and outdoor cultivation, it allows up to “four licensed cannabis centers” also defined as “commercial cannabis operations” that may “combine the activities” of cultivation, manufacturing, testing, or distributing, subject to a city permit. Thomas suggests allowing four licensed cannabis “centers” or “operations” could create a legal loophole. “This is not something three council members should decide,” she said. Thomas has organized Stop Marijuana Sales in Carson, a community group preparing to gather the signatures needed to put a repeal of the cannabis ordinance on the November ballot.
The Department of City Planning and the Department of Neighborhood Empowerment is hosting a training is intended to provide an overview of the basic elements of the city’s development process and key points for public participation. Time: 6 to 8:30 p.m May 2 Details: (213) 978-1321; goo.gl/yFYrDd Venue: Kaiser Permanente Conference Center, 25965 Normandie Ave., Harbor City
By Lyn Jensen, Carson Reporter
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May Day Coalition in L.A.: Together We Fight Back
Residents Challenge to Carson Cannabis Ordinance
cannabis operation in Carson. Asked about the tax revenue commercial marijuana might generate, he asks, “At what cost to our youth?” According to the city staff report that proposed a cannabis regulatory program: “Cities cannot prohibit personal use, but maintain limited local control over personal cultivation of cannabis and can regulate personal cultivation stricter than state regulations. Cities also have the authority to prohibit or regulate commercial cannabis operations by local ordinance.” Exercising a similar authority, Compton recently banned commercial cannabis activity entirely. This is in line with cities reserving the right to prohibit certain commercial activity. Torrance, for example, outlawed tattoo parlors for many years. Tobacco, gambling, and alcohol are sometimes subject to prohibition at the local level, too. Los Angeles County Supervisor Mark RidleyThomas is on record as voicing concern about what he calls the “unintended consequences” of legalizing marijuana. In a statement on his website, he claims: “I am, and will remain, concerned that legalizing the sale of marijuana could be detrimental to the health and safety of vulnerable neighborhoods, leading to unintended consequences that cannot be offset by overblown estimates of the profits legalization may bring.” City of Carson Cannabis information may be found at http://ci.carson.ca.us/ CommunityDevelopment/planningprojects.aspx
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[Dark Trump from p. 1]
Dark Trump
“Republican administrations in the past have been more pro-business,” David Pettit, a senior attorney with the Natural Resources Defense Council told Random Lengths News. “But now, I think Pruitt, I assume with Trump’s blessing, has taken us to a different level of just outright destructiveness.” But those serious environmental assaults have recently been overshadowed by a rash of highprofile scandals involving Pruitt (more on them below)—and those are only the most high-profile examples out of a countless flood of destructive actions. “We at NRDC, I was reading yesterday, the count is up to 58 lawsuits against the Trump administration over rollbacks,” Pettit said. “Eight have gone to judgment and we won all of them.” There are far too many specific actions to cover in a single story, but they can be grasped, at least roughly, by examining the narratives used to promote, justify, excuse or deny what is actually being done. During the 2016 campaign, Trump’s environmental views were best expressed in two phony false narratives—a blame-shifting one, attacking climate change by calling it a
“Chinese hoax,” and a credit-stealing narrative, claiming to be an award-winning environmentalist. Typically, Trump never even pretended to bother with evidence for either of his claims. But—as Politico reported in May 2016, Trump actually believes global warming is real—at least when it threatened to erode his seaside golf resort in County Clare, Ireland. So, global warming is real when it threatens Trump’s property, but it’s “a Chinese hoax,” when that narrative helps him politically. As for environmental awards, Golf Digest fact-checked a similar award claim in a 2014 interview. “Donald Trump’s environmental record when it comes to golf could hardly be worse,” filmmaker Anthony Baxter—who did two documentaries on the subject—told them. No wonder Trump’s so short on specific details. In Trump’s universe, lack of evidence is a feature, not a bug. Sweeping narratives with superlative claims have emotional power that details would only drag down—even if they weren’t so lopsidedly against him. At the EPA, Pruitt has followed suit with his “back to basics” narrative, falsely implying that the EPA has somehow strayed from its original purpose, and that Pruitt is somehow saving the agency as well as the environment, when he’s actually doing his
Join us for our monthly meeting on Mon., April 23, 7 p.m. • Endorsements - CD44 Nanette Barragán • Superior Court Judge seats 60, 67 and 126 • June Ballot Proposition 68 (Water, Parks) and Proposition 70 (Cap and Trade)
April 19 - May 2, 2018
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best to decimate them both. As laid out in the EPA’s year-end review, Pruitt’s “‘back-to-basics agenda’ centered on returning EPA to its proper role via three objectives: 1) Refocusing the agency back to its core mission 2) Restoring power to the states through cooperative federalism 3) Adhering to the rule of law and improving agency processes” But none of these “objectives” corresponds with objective reality. The first simply restates the core false claim. If it means anything, it should mean more basic enforcement actions to protect clean air and water. “Enforcement actions have dropped significantly since Pruitt came on board,” Pettit said. “It’s hard to say you really care about cleaning up Superfund sites in clean air and clean water, when you’re not in the field doing what needs to be done to find those sites and clean them up.” First-year statistics released in early February showed enforcement levels at a 10year low, at least, with a 20 percent decline in new civil cases and a 30 percent decline in new criminal cases. Pruitt’s EPA did claim an increase in criminal penalties, but as NBC noted: “Of the $2.98 billion in total criminal fines in fiscal year 2017, $2.8 billion came from Volkswagen’s penalties for cheating on emissions tests, which the company agreed to shortly before Trump took office.” More broadly, Pruitt has taken three major actions to roll back clean air and clean water regulations. Withdrawing the Clean Power Plan not only weakens efforts to reduce climate change, it also enables other forms of continued pollution. According to a pre-Trump EPA fact sheet, the plan benefits include: • By 2030, emissions of sulfur dioxide from power plants will be 90 percent lower compared to 2005 levels, and emissions of nitrogen oxide will be 72 percent lower. • Because these pollutants can create dangerous soot and smog, the historically low levels mean we will avoid thousands of premature deaths and mean thousands fewer asthma attacks and hospitalizations in 2030 and every year beyond. These are exactly the sorts of key clean air protections which Pruitt claims to be focused on protecting. Instead, he’s doing his best to throw them out. In a second action, Pruitt has withdrawn the mid-term evaluation of mileage standards for light-duty vehicles for model years 2022 to 2025. The standards were set in 2012, primarily focused on greenhouse gases, with a mid-term review for potential fine-tuning. That review, completed just before Trump took office, found that the costs of vehicle compliance would be substantially less than initially projected, while benefits remained far larger. New cars would save owners almost $4,000 compared to current models, on average, because fuel savings will far outweigh the car’s new technology costs. And
the air would be cleaner as well. A third Pruitt action suspended the Obamaera Clean Water Rule (aka “ Waters of the United States”) for two years, in order to repeal and replace it with a much looser industry-friendly version that would do substantially less to protect clean water. Pruitt’s rationale was that there was “litigation,” which he himself had helped start, producing “regulatory uncertainty.” So, to combat uncertainty, he’s introduced a whole new level of uncertainty never seen before. As Environmental Defense Fund Senior Vice President David Festa wrote last September, “If any agency action could be withdrawn solely due to pending or potential litigation and ‘regulatory uncertainty’ — a catch phrase of this administration — our nation’s regulatory structures would be in constant flux, lack rigor and lose factual and scientific basis.” It’s hard to imagine how uncertainty could get any higher than it would if Trump and Pruitt got their way. The second claimed objective — restoring power to the states — flies in the face of widespread statelevel conflict with Pruitt’s actions. Most pointedly: California has historically had the power to set its own fuel-economy standards, which other states can also adopt. Pruitt wants that to end, because California refuses to go along with Pruitt’s roll-back of the midterm review discussed above. “As attorney general of Oklahoma, Pruitt filed a number of cases [14] against the EPA. The theory behind a lot of them was that the states had the power to do something that’s weaker than what the EPA wanted them to do, Pettit said. “Now his position is, well, the states don’t have the power to do anything stronger than what EPA wants,” he said. Another Trump/Pruitt priority was rolling back the Clean Power Plan, which had target levels specifically tailored on a state-by-state basis, and gave states wide leeways on how to meet those goals. This Barack Obama-era rule devoted enormous time and resources to the goal of providing states with planning frameworks fitted to their specific needs—just the sort of thing that Pruitt rhetorically claims is a key concern of his. But if he really believes in it, then why destroy so much work done to achieve it? The third claimed object —“Adhering to the rule of law and improving agency processes”— is an even more ludicrous joke. As Pettit’s earlier comments suggest, Pruitt’s rule-making process has been abysmally shoddy. And Pettit is hardly alone. “While Sierra Club and other organizations are suing Pruitt over his often clumsily illegal shortcircuiting of properly established safeguards, his delays will harm the very people he is supposed to be protecting,” the Sierra Club’s Bill Corcoran told Random Lengths. Corcoran is Western Regional Campaign Director for the Beyond Coal Campaign. “Pruitt has illegally rushed actions to remove clean air and clean water protections, especially to benefit his fossil fuel industry clientele,” Corcoran said. “From mercury in the air, to coal ash waste in water, to the dangerous agricultural poison chlorpyrifos, which harms the brains of [See Dark Trump, p. 7]
[Dark Trump from p. 6]
Dark Trump
Martinez Quits LA Harbor Commission
Help Harbor LAPD Find Murder Suspect
WILMINGTON — The Los Angeles Police Department is seeking help finding a suspect involved in the murder of Richard Oscar Odell. Odell was shot multiple times at about 1 a.m. April 7, near the 1500 block of McDonald Ave. in Wilmington. The Los Angeles Fire Department paramedics gave aid to Odell before he died. Anyone with additional information is urged to call (310) 726-7886 or visit www. lapdonline.org.
Two Men Murdered in North Long Beach
Zero-Emissions Port Project Launched to Accelerate Clean Technologies
LONG BEACH — On April 4, officials from the Port of Long Beach, Southern California [See News Briefs, p. 10]
April 19 - May 2, 2018
LONG BEACH — The Long Beach Police Department is investigating the murder of two men in north Long Beach. The incident took place at about 12 am. April 4, near the 5300 block of Orange Avenue. LBPD officers responded to the shooting and found 52-year-old Suy Phavong and 35-year-old Panha Nhean, of Long Beach, struck in the torso. Phavong was pronounced dead at the scene. Nhean was taken to a local hospital where he died. A third male subject, only identified as a 47-year-old resident of Long Beach, was also taken to a local hospital with a non-life threatening injury. The preliminary investigation determined that all the victims were in a converted detached garage when an unknown suspect opened fire on the group. The investigation remains ongoing. Anyone who may have information regarding this incident should call (562) 5707244 or visit www.lacrimestoppers.org.
manufacturers hate this whole thing,” Pettit said, Pruitt to the EPA, he first required him to meet because they’re pouring tremendous resources Icahn personally to get his OK. Yes, the trip was into new cleaner-burning engines, and competing extravagant, costing around $40,000 for firstwith the dirtiest vehicles imaginable. But that one class airfare and accommodations for Pruitt and manufacturer made the right political connections, his unprecedented “security team” (total cost in line with another narrative Pruitt loves to around $3 million so far), with a two-day stop in Paris and just one day in Morocco. But it’s very invoke—“consulting with stakeholders.” purpose was to do a favor Indeed, a Reuters for a Trump crony whom analysis, found that “Pruitt “The US seems to Pruitt should have been met with representatives of as a producer the industries EPA regulates be abrogating our regulating in the U.S., not running at least 105 times from Feb. opportunity to lead the sales errands for abroad. 22 to Aug. 10 of last year, also tied into another making up about 77 percent world markets in clean ItPruitt scandal—his $50 of his total meetings,” of energy … I’m sure the per night condo room which roughly half were “representatives of the Chinese are happy and rental deal, co-owned by the wife of an energy oil, gas, coal and mining incredulous that we lobbyist. You guessed industries,” according to calendar records, “But would be dumb enough it: his firm represents Cheniere Energy. Pruitt met only four times to do that, but that’s Sen. Sheldon with environmental groups eager to see the EPA limit what I see happening.” Whitehouse, a Democrat from Rhode Island, has pollution.” Here’s his written to Pruitt Tuesday defense: — David Pettit, senior attorney seeking more information. Pruitt, a former attorney with the Natural Resources He’s looking more general of Oklahoma, said Defense Council broadly at the vast web through a spokesman that he does not spend any time with polluters. “I of connections Pruitt has with the oil and gas prosecute polluters. What I’m spending time with industries, and how this action—so far outside are stakeholders who care about outcomes,” he his job description—fits so well into that picture. Pruitt’s expensive obsessions with firstsaid. It must be comforting to live in a class travel, his “security team,” his housing world where the oil, gas, coal and mining bargain, his $43,000 soundproof phone booth industries don’t pollute the environment. may all seem like unrelated scandals to most But, then you have to wonder, who does? of the media covering him, but as Maddow’s “Stakeholders who care about outcomes,” reporting suggests—along with Whitehouse’s sounds so much nicer than “polluters.” inquiry—there may be far more connection It’s truly a classic bogus narrative. lurking beneath the surface than anyone has There are rumors that Pruitt may be about to be even dreamed of. The dominant narrative fired, not because of anything reported above, but that these scandals aren’t policy-related because of an avalanche of scandals, which many may well have shielded Pruitt from far more in the media have presented as having nothing to damaging scrutiny than he’s received so far. do with his policy agenda. But that narrative, too, Environmentalists care about the environment and its human health impacts, environmental is utterly bogus. On her April 5 show, MSNBC’s Rachel lawyers care about environmental law. Both Maddow presented an opposite view, focused are heavily focused on the world of facts. But on a trip Pruitt took to Morocco to lobby for Trump and Pruitt’s attacks on the environment that country to import liquid natural gas from are overwhelmingly based on narratives, meant the United States—something well outside to bury facts. Defeating their destructive impact his range of duties. The US has only one will require a different way of thinking by all LNG exporter, Cheniere Energy, and an old who care about protecting the environment that Trump crony, Carl Icahn, is a major Cheniere sustains us all. shareholder. When Trump decided to appoint
SAN PEDRO — On April 5, Vilma Martinez announced her plan to step down as president of the Los Angeles Harbor Commission the next day. Martinez, long-time community advocate and international trade visionary, has served on the board since 2013. Martinez oversaw several major milestones, including consecutive years of record cargo growth and the development and approval of the 2017 Clean Air Action Plan update during her tenure on the board. She was instrumental in two port five-year strategic plans and in creating the port’s Public Access Investment Plan, which provides a more consistent, predictable funding stream for non-cargo related public-serving projects and programs. Before her Harbor Commission appointment, Martinez was appointed by President Barack Obama and served as U.S. Ambassador to Argentina from 2009 to 2013. She was a partner at the law firm of Munger, Tolles & Olson, and served as past-president and general counsel of the Mexican-American Legal Defense and Educational Fund. She was also a President Bill Clinton appointee to the Advisory Committee on Trade Policy and Negotiations from 1994 to 1996. Jaime L. Lee was nominated for the Harbor Commission by Los Angeles Mayor Eric Garcetti. The appointment will go before the Los Angeles City Council for approval. All members of the fivemember commission are volunteers. Lee served as board president and commissioner on the Los Angeles City Employees’ Retirement System Board of Administration for the past four years. Lee was previously, a commissioner on the Los Angeles City Industrial Development Authority, the Los Angeles City Quality and Productivity Commission, and on the State of California’s Speech Language Pathology, Audiology and Hearing Aid Dispensers Board. Lee earned a law degree from USC.
Real News, Real People, Really Effective
children, Pruitt has put the lie to his claims that he is returning the agency to its original mission.” “They’ve done some really dumb things, legally,” Pettit said. “With federal regulations, procedurally you’re very constrained by the Federal Administrative Procedure Act.… Pruitt came in and said, ‘Well we’re going to put this on hold, we’re going to put these methane rules on hold, we’re going to stop doing the ozone designations,’ without any process, he just wrote it down on a piece of paper.” So NRDC and others sued. “Those are some of the wins, where the court said, ‘You can’t do this, come on. Maybe you can change the regulation, sure. But you have to go through the whole process, notice and comment, put your reasons out there, that takes nine months or a year or something, and they wanted to get stuff done like right away.” That was the problem in a nutshell: sweeping promises versus the requirements of law. So much for the sweeping promise of “adhering to the rule of law and improving agency processes.” The narrative frames discussed above are hardly exhaustive. Consider, for example, Pruitt’s oft-stated claim to be “saving money” through “regulatory roll-back,” which was echoed institutionally in the EPA’s “year-end review:” “In year one, EPA finalized 22 deregulatory actions, saving Americans more than $1 billion in regulatory costs.” This like saying, “abolishing the [Los Angeles Police Department] would save LA residents $1.2 billion in crime control costs,” as if there were no benefits from crime control. “Whenever new regulation comes out of EPA, there’s a cost-benefit analysis,” Pettit said. Ignoring the lost benefits seriously misrepresents the “savings.” Benefits have to outweigh costs at multiple policy/decision levels. A 2011 EPA study projected that clean air programs established by the 1990 Clean Air Act amendments would most like produce a $2 trillion benefit — exceeding costs by 30-1. Or, consider a more visceral example: Yes, it cost billions of dollars to put seatbelts and airbags into cars, but millions of Americans are alive and well today as a result. Car companies fought those safety regulations tooth-and-nail for years. Now they advertise them. In the long run, everyone wins—even those who fought so hard against it. But this particular misleading narrative hides a variety of different sins. One links up with Trump’s “Chinese hoax” claim, which he waved off as a joke in a Fox and Friends interview, even as he doubled down, claiming, “this is done for the benefit of China, because China does not do anything to help climate change,” A decade ago, it might have been credible. But not anymore. During the 2000s, China suffered as many as 750,000 premature deaths due to dirty air. Today China’s become a leading investor in renewable energy, exactly the opposite of what Trump claims. “The U.S. seems to be abrogating our opportunity to lead the world markets in clean energy and electric vehicles and just hand that leadership to the Chinese, for nothing,” Pettit noted. “I’m sure the Chinese are happy and incredulous that we would be dumb enough to do that, but that’s what I see happening.” But even companies making fossil fuel engines have been damaged by Pruitt, who reversed an Obama-era rule to protect a single small manufacturer of “gliders”—truck chassis, that can be put into service with dirty engines, not subject to new vehicle regulations. “The big truck
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Garcetti Finally Calls for Action on Homeless Crisis
City Council passes ordinances but will they actually find the courage to act? By James Preston Allen, Publisher
Real News, Real People, Totally Relevant
Fresh from milking political cows in Iowa, Los Angeles Mayor Eric Garcetti on April 16 gave his annual State of the City address at City Hall. These usually pro-forma speeches are often less than inspiring. This one was a little different. Maybe he was inspired by his better angels, or perhaps more likely by the number of unsheltered Angelenos and the related issue of scarce affordable housing. These circumstances have grown to a size that can’t be put off any longer, the mayor laid out the long awaited vision of a solution — building emergency shelters and adding beds to existing ones for the homeless. This new call was one where more platitudes and hand-wringing were absent. Instead, Garcetti brought two ordinances before the city council the very next morning. In his State of the City address, Garcetti said: The cost of inaction is too great. Because when people get left behind, everyone pays for it. Still, there are Angelenos, like so many Americans, who are working harder and longer for less. They can’t save enough to retire, or see their kids off to college… They are frustrated by rising rents, and worried about making ends meet. It speaks to LA’s incredible creativity that the Tesla Model X was designed here… But we also have families sleeping in their cars. We have the best culinary scene in America… But there are people who will go hungry in our city tonight. I’ve often said that we won’t be judged by what we say today, but by what we do tomorrow. While it has only taken the mayor four years since the prospect of tiny homes lining the streets of San Pedro was exaggerated into a countywide fight over homelessness, Garcetti now appears to have mustered the courage to confront the NIMBY fears. He has stopped short of calling on every department of the city to take action, which he should have. Instead, he called on every city council person to take responsibility. We will see exactly what Councilman Joe Buscaino does now in the 15th District to embrace Garcetti’s vision. Those who remember Buscaino’s failed Homeless Task Force will recall that it was used to stall the initiatives of the Central San
Pedro Neighborhood Council and intimidate others from addressing this most crucial “issue of our times.” You will also notice that for all of the hot air coming out of the council office about development, there hasn’t been one affordable housing unit built in San Pedro for five years and the homeless encampment at the U.S. Post Office on Beacon Street has not dwindled. Garcetti wants to give every council district $1.3 million for emergency shelters and I would like to invite him to come to San Pedro so that we can show him where these could be placed and challenge all seven of the neighborhood councils in Council District 15 to designate at least one parcel of public land on which to place one of these emergency shelters. What I can tell you is that this relatively small commitment can be matched by LA County services. Our faith communities and our network of nonprofits that have struggled for years with feeding the homeless, helping the addicted, the mentally ill and domestic violence victims, would embrace a cure. What I am suggesting is that the greater Harbor Area community — and the rest of Los Angeles, for that matter, already has most of the infrastructure for the services and support as well as vacant land for this purpose. What we haven’t had is the courage of leadership to face this crisis. Perhaps now we will.
Bringing them Home
The solution, as difficult as it is, entails both reason without guilt and aspiration to rise above small politics to solve this most basic human condition. The core question is, when do you want to do it? We can start now, we can wait until later or we can pretend that we can postpone it for 10 years while we build permanent housing. Obviously the latter is just kicking the can down the road. Here’s the rationale for supporting the mayor’s current plan: Emergency shelters could be quickly set up like triage centers to sort out the needs and issues of the homeless. Sanitation facilities can be set up, social service and health care workers brought in to provide centralized care and referrals. In the beginning, Los Angeles’ neighborhood councils should be charged with locating within their 97 districts unutilized properties that are outside of the main business
April 19 - May 2, 2018
Publisher/Executive Editor James Preston Allen james@randomlengthsnews.com
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Paul Rosenberg
districts and don’t impact residential areas but are close enough to transit lines and services. Obviously, some compromises will need to be made but this should be done at the local level. By providing safe, sanitary and secure places for our urban campers and people living in cars to live off of public streets we can then begin the process of making them less homeless. Communities should be prepared for these facilities to be active for at least three to five years, but in the meantime the city should be working on interim shelter. This is where the tiny homes, modified containers and small construction units should be considered while the permanent housing solution slogs its way through the zoning, permitting and financing maze. This is the only way to start working on this problem now rather than later. In many communities across this nation, the small homes movement has taken hold successfully to stabilize homeless people, create community and solve urban blight. Likewise architects and designers have created a multitude of concepts for small dwelling units that are far more cost effective (and some quite attractive) than standard construction. They can be built and placed onsite in a couple of months rather than years. This could begin the process of taking hundreds of souls off of our streets while creating a pipeline to sustainable housing rather than a revolving door to homelessness. And for those who object that we are giving something to people for “free.” All I can say is that the cost of doing nothing now is only going to multiply the costs of doing nothing later. It costs somewhere in the neighborhood of $35,000 every time the sanitation and police are called out to do a “cleanup.” It costs thousands of dollars every time we arrest a homeless person on quality of life warrants and even more if we take
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them to the emergency room for medical care. Just think of the wasted time our police spend playing “social worker” and not addressing more pressing crime issues. If we really want our neighborhoods to be safer, healthier and better places to live, we need to bring the homeless out of the cold and start treating them as neighbors who are down and out. I personally invite the Mayor Garcetti to come visit the Harbor Area so that we can start a pilot project. I call upon all of the neighborhood councils to come prepared with their solutions. The time has come for a cure, not more divisions!
Cost of Avoiding Safety Could be Deadly By Sally Hayati, President of the Torrance Refinery Action Alliance and James Preston Allen, Publisher Residents of the greater South Bay and Harbor Area are weary of living in fear of an accidental release of hydrofluoric acid, HF, at the PBF Torrance and Valero, Wilmington refineries. Both refineries employ modified HF, MHF, claiming it is safe. But, as Rep. Ted Lieu, of Torrance says, we’ve been hoodwinked. An investigation by eight independent South Bay scientists proves MHF has no safety advantage [See Refineries, p. 9] Random Lengths News editorial office is located at 1300 S. Pacific Ave., San Pedro, CA 90731. Address correspondence regarding news items and tips to Random Lengths News, P.O. Box 731, San Pedro, CA 90733-0731, or email: editor@randomlengthsnews. com. Send Letters to the Editor to james@randomlengthsnews.com. To be considered for publication, letters must be signed with address and phone number (for verification purposes) and be about 250 words. For advertising inquiries or to submit advertising copy, email: rlnsales@randomlengthsnews.com. Annual subscription is $36 for 27 issues. Back issues are available for $3/copy while supplies last. Random Lengths News presents issues from an alternative perspective. We welcome articles and opinions from all people in the Harbor Area. While we may not agree with the opinions of contributing writers, we respect and support their 1st Amendment right. Random Lengths News is a member of Standard Rates and Data Services and the Association of Alternative Newsweeklies. (ISN #0891-6627). All contents Copyright 2018 Random Lengths News. All rights reserved.
And the Wars Drag On
You may have seen us every Friday since before the initial US invasion of Iraq, from 5:00 pm to 6:15 pm at 1st and Gaffey, calling for our country to follow the path of peace, not war. Like millions of people worldwide who protested the impending US led invasion and occupation of Iraq in 2003, we knew from knowledgeable testimony that the invasion was based on contrived evidence by the Bush/Cheney administration, that the Saddam Hussein regime wasn’t harboring weapons of mass destruction and imminently planning to use them against the USA. The UN Security Council did not agree with US assessment, either. Without its unanimous approval of the invasion, the attack was ipso facto against international law, making the USA legally a rogue nation, and 15 years later, our country continues to act in a bellicose manner towards much of the world, and lately, recklessly so, towards other nuclear powers. Although we vigilistas are still at it for these 762 consecutive [Refineries from p. 8]
Refineries
compared to hydrofluoric acid. Recent conclusions by the U.S. Chemical Safety Board, the Environmental Protection Agency and the South Coast Air Quality Management District are consistent with this finding. Even the US Department of Justice sued ExxonMobil to enforce the Chemical Safety Board’s subpoenas for MHF information and the DOJ is appealing the court’s denial for subpoenas related to MHF. Like HF, accidentally released MHF forms a dense acid fog that hugs the ground and drifts with air currents. The acid plume resulting from the release of 50,000 pounds of MHF in the settler tank, nearly struck in 2015, could have killed or seriously harmed tens of thousands of people in a 16 mile path... Even if 90 percent of the released acid were successfully “mitigated” by emergency systems, the remaining 5,000 lb. fog plume could still create a five-mile path of death or significant and irreversible harm. This is not “safe.” Our earthquake-prone region is the second most densely populated area in the United States to have refineries still using HF and MHF. Well over 1 million people are threatened. All other California refineries perform alkylation with sulfuric acid, a liquid that remains on refinery grounds upon release. Chevron is
Lewis, Take note of what is beginning to happen with teachers all across America, they are winning a strike in West Virginia and walking out in Oklahoma, both states where conservative legislators have not given teachers a raise in the past decade. So, the recognition of unfair labor conditions in our schools is something that wouldn’t be tolerated on our waterfront and yet, in these very conservative states teachers’ unions have not been supported.
Now, the teachers have organized what amounts to Wildcat strikes because their unions have been compromised. What is the ILWU and the other Harbor Area unions doing in solidarity to support these teachers? And, what’s this I hear about a strike vote in LAUSD? James Preston Allen, publisher
Cesar Chavez Day
Throughout the history of our nation, progress has only been made through trials of profound determination and sacrifice by passionate leaders who were unafraid. Cesar Chavez was one of those great leaders, championing justice for workers who otherwise might have been unable to get it on [See Letters, p. 10]
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April 19 - May 2, 2018
and permitting. MHF unit shutdown times would be about six months for Torrance (build a new unit while operating the old), and one year for Valero (convert MHF unit to use safe technology). PBF brags that it paid pennies on the dollar for a refinery worth $1 billion and predicts Torrance will be its most profitable refinery. Shareholders will not allow PBF to abandon the refinery; PBF never tells shareholders that it plans to when the subject comes up. PBF has not been flagged as a bankruptcy hazard due to AQMD Rule 1410. PBF doesn’t plan to abandon the refinery. It wants to scare residents into thinking they have a stake in preserving MHF. We don’t. The California economy will survive the temporary disruption and benefit from eliminating the risk of mass casualties, lowered property values and massive area business losses from an accidental MHF release. The oil industry might accept the risk of a disaster as a cost of doing business, but the community won’t. It’s time to call the bluff of the corporate blackmailers. It’s time to reject the discredited claims of interested parties in favor of the credible studies of independent investigations. MHF is just as deadly as the original. Please see the ad this issue of RLN. Get involved. It is your health and safety on the line.
A Letter to a Conservative Friend
thinks money is more important than life is morally bankrupt and is cruising for a bruising. Lewis Wright ILWU Local 63, San Pedro
voluntarily converting its only HF unit, in Salt Lake City, to use another safe alternative. Refinery supporters, however, employ economic scare tactics to oppose MHF replacement. They inflate the estimated cost to $600 million to $900 million, even though technology providers’ estimates and ongoing builds and conversions show a $300 million to $400 million cost. Certainly affordable, given the recent tax breaks refineries received from Washington. MHF replacement will not cause the refineries to shut down or result in economic disaster in California. Jobs will be created during the construction, not lost. Industry says deadly MHF must stay because replacing it would raise gas prices just like the 2015 Torrance refinery explosion did. However, unlike explosions and earthquakes, the market can plan for MHF replacement. California refineries would build alkylate inventory to fulfill demand during alky unit downtime, which will be shorter than the full transition period. If temporarily needed, alkylate can be — and commonly is — imported to California. MHF replacement will be much less disruptive and downtime for the alkylation units at PBF Torrance and Valero, Wilmington will be shorter that the four-year transition time, much of which is dedicated to planning, design,
weeks, the years are taking their toll on our health and numbers. We are calling for other San Pedro residents to step up for peace and justice by volunteering any time you can at the 1st and Gaffey Peace Vigil every Friday. It would be a shame to give up our SP presence for peace. Come join us! We will be there as long as life and health permit, but in the words of The Bulletin of Atomic Scientists, it is already two minutes to midnight. Rick Matthews, Chris Venn, Patricia Hannah, Julia Scoville and Charlie Lamont San Pedro
they hoard all the wealth for the few at the top who is going to buy what those on top produce? I’m sure they know this but they are trapped in a system of spiraling greed. Today a million people led by student said we choice life over gun profits. Inequality has grown and it cost you $10,000 more this year than in the 70s. Half of our population is only paid 72 cents for every dollar that the other half makes for the same work. Which half are you and how do you feel about that? Another example is that black Americans were better off in relation to whites in the sixties than they are now. When the system finally crashes it won’t be because a bunch of liberals badmouth it, it will be because any system that
Real News, Real People, Really Effective
The things that are most important to me are how we treat each other. My daughter, who is an expectant mother, is a teacher in Anchorage and the way we treat our teachers is a crime. Now I am not saying that’s because America is a free market capitalist country. Maybe we could be a lot better and still be capitalist, but the countries that are known as “socialist” like
Sweden have a maternity leave program of 480 days at 80 percent salary, whereas my daughter gets a maximum of 14 days at no pay. And I am personally very concerned for her. This is my kid and the system is just not being fair. Sweden is not more capable than the U.S., which decided that my daughter should only get 14 days to bond with her new kid. Who decided that 14 days were enough? I’m sure that someone said a mother needs more than a lousy 14 days, but all we got was 14. That was no accident; it had to be a positive decision made back in 1993 with the Family Medical Leave Act by an economic force that was not concerned for my daughter and so I now find, through no choice of my own, that I am against those economic forces. Name them how you will. If that’s socialism, then for the sake of my daughter count me in. Let’s be clear — I am not choosing socialism; I’m choosing fairness for my family. If it were just maternity leave it would not be that big a deal, but we know that inequality is a growing problem and capitalism seems to be like the lemmings committing economic suicide. If
RANDOMLetters
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RANDOMLetters [Letters from p. 9]
their own. While we celebrate Cesar Chavez Day and honor his legacy, let us also remember the great sacrifice he and others have made to secure the rights and benefits that workers enjoy to this day and will hopefully enjoy for years to come. What started as the formation of the United Farm Workers sparked a tidal wave of newfound awareness for organized labor and what it can truly achieve. Good wages, sustainable work hours, and safe working conditions are all now a requirement of employers thanks to the work of Cesar Chavez and the trail he blazed. As time passes on, though, emerging technologies disrupt how we live our lives and how we put food on our families’ tables, making us more reliant on organized labor than ever before. The Democratic Party is proud to stand with Labor as they continue to fight on behalf of workers while the GOP and President Trump are working to strip their rights away. We work hand in hand with Labor to ensure that union-killing right-to-work laws never come to Los Angeles or California and that hard-working people will always receive decent payment for honest work. Mark Gonzalez Chairman of the Los Angeles County Democratic Party
Was he racially profiled? Possibly. In these situations, there are no good guys and certainly no equal justice. The officers involved in these officer involved shootings are rarely prosecuted let alone convicted. They escape culpability by simply invoking the standard declaration: I was in
fear for my life. Is being in fear for one’s life enough to escape justice when you take another’s life? Police agencies have been forced to retrain officers in light of these shootings. But it still remains that police officers will not allow a suspect to instigate first force. The caveat is if you’re a young Afro-American man, you
Celebrating the Migratory Bird Act
[News Briefs from p.7]
The Return of the Great American Tragedy: Racial Profiling
The Cabrillo Marine Aquarium is celebrating the Year of the Bird through the end of the year by exhibiting a large wall display featuring the poetry, photo-poems and photography of Jess Morton, the co-founder of the Palos Verdes/South Bay Audubon Society and the Endangered Habitats League. The subject of all his displayed work are local species of birds that are found around Cabrillo Beach. This year marks the centennial of the Migratory Bird Treaty Act, crucial to the survival of great and snowy egrets. Though both of those egrets are now common at Cabrillo Beach, 100 years ago they faced extinction, a result of being hunted for feathers used in the millinery trade. The Year of the Bird exhibit opens in April and will be up through the end of the year. Photo by Evi Meyer.
Edison and the California Energy Commission launched the nation’s largest pilot project for zero-emissions cranes and other cargohandling equipment for seaports. The project is funded mostly by a $9.7 million grant from the California Energy Commission. It will bring 25 vehicles that are zero- or near zero-emissions to Port of Long Beach marine terminals for one year to test their performance in a real-world setting. In 2017, the ports of Long Beach and Los Angeles approved an update to their Clean Air Action Plan, with a goal of transitioning all terminal equipment to zero emissions by 2030. It is anticipated the project will reduce greenhouse gases by more than 1,323 tons and smog-causing nitrogen oxides by 27 tons each year. The switch to zero-emissions equipment is expected to save more than 270,000 gallons of diesel fuel. The project includes conversion of nine diesel-electric rubber-tire gantry cranes into fully electric equipment at one terminal, the purchase of 12 battery-electric yard tractors for two more terminals, and the conversion of four LNG trucks into plug-in hybrid-electric trucks for a drayage trucking firm.
April 19 - May 2, 2018
Real News, Real People, Totally Relevant
It’s been three years since I last published a treatise regarding officer involved shootings. I still receive calls from readers whenever there’s an officer involved shooting. My answer now is no better than it was then. It seems like these stories always begin the same way. Police officers were in pursuit of a suspect. Said suspect suddenly turns and appears to have a weapon in his hand. Except what was thought to be a weapon was in fact a cell phone, a belt-buckle, a set of keys or some other object, if anything at all.
won’t be given the benefit of the doubt. Like three years ago I told my grandsons, if you have any contact with police officers, be very careful. For now, it is what it is. Afro-American young men, listen and learn to protect yourselves. You may be on an endangered species list. John Gray San Pedro
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REFINERY & POLA WORKERS in SUPPORT of a MHF BAN: these support letters are not posted by us.
Earth Day and Pride Film Festivals
It’s a Wild World By Melina Paris, Music Columnist
Beginning Earth Day weekend and extending into May, venues through the Los Angeles Harbor Area and Long Beach will be hosting film festivals. At San Pedro’s Warner Grand Theatre, the Palos Still from Jane, 2017 documentary Verdes Land Conservancy will be hosting a screening of Jane, the critically film about the famed primatologist acclaimed National Geographic documentary about Jane Goodall’s commitment to and anthropologist. File photo preserving land for chimpanzees. This screening will take place at 5 p.m. April 21 after beautification activities at the White Point Nature Preserve and a guided ranger walk. The Art Theatre in Long Beach is hosting the Earth Day Film Festival on April 21 and 22, featuring the International Ocean Film Tour, Straws, A Plastic Ocean and An Elephant Love Story. The International Ocean Film Tour will be featured on April 21. The film features the best ocean adventures, water sports and environmental documentaries of the year. Following the screening, the film’s producer Henry C. Lystad and interim vice president of husbandry and curator of [See Film Festivals, p. 16]
Still from Love and Bananas: An Elephant Love Story, 2018. File photo
Still from A Plastic Ocean, 2016. File photo
Real News, Real People, Really Effective April 19 - May 2, 2018
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A
Babouch Moroccan Restaurant:
and some fresh couscous that served to mop up the gravy. We paired these with Moroccan syrahs and cabernet alongside a California cab and the syrah won this time. Dessert is included with all meals and involves mint tea served with a Moroccan pastry made by dropping dough in boiling oil and frying it until crisp, then coating it with honey. If you’re thinking that sounds like the Pennsylvania Dutch funnel cakes that are a staple at county fairs, you’re right. Both cultures had the same idea, though the Moroccan version is lighter and lacier than anything you’ve had at a county fair. As we ate, the woman reading Tarot cards at a nearby table had changed into a variety
Casablanca for the 21st Century By Richard Foss, Dining and Cuisine Writer
A selection of Moroccan dishes awaits diners at Babouch. Right, honey-dipped pastry is served with sweet mint tea.
Spain was under Moroccan rule for hundreds of years. Those who get in the spirit of things will take pinches of the hot bread served with this course to pick up the salads; it’s tricky at first but you quickly get the hang of it. The next course is the b’stilla, layer after layer of flaky dough wrapped around a mixture of shredded chicken, boiled egg, nuts, and spices, then topped with cinnamon and powdered sugar just before serving. They arrive too hot to eat, and pros will poke a hole in the top and wait a minute or two to let out the steamy heat. These smell so good that you’ll probably risk burning your tongue by starting early; it’s a good idea to have some water ready. We did, but we also had wine, which the Moroccans have made for centuries. In the spirit of experimentation we ordered the house California Chardonnay and the Moroccan version by Thaleb. Somewhat to our surprise, the Moroccan was the clear winner. It’s not going to keep the premium French or Napa winemakers up at night worrying, but it’s a nice unoaked wine with floral and fruity notes.
Our main courses were chicken cooked with lemon and olives, rabbit in paprika sauce and lamb stewed with onions. All were slowbraised in the clay pot called a tagine, a style of cooking that renders meats meltingly tender. North African cooking often pairs olives and tart pickled lemon with complex mélanges of spices so that no single flavor dominates and that was the case with each of our items. The chicken had an agreeable saltiness and was most citrusy, while the paprika and pepper in the rabbit sauce made us think of someone making Hungarian goulash in Tangier using local ingredients. The lamb with onion was most down to earth, a pot roast in rich gravy with a touch of the exotic. Each entrée was served with steamed vegetables
of veils. As we left, she was starting to belly dance. The cards and the dance are native to Egypt, not Morocco, but we were happily full and not inclined to quibble. Dinner for three, with a starter and two glasses of wine each, ran $135 — pretty remarkable for a few hours immersed in the sights, sounds, scents, and tastes of another continent. After four decades, Babouch is in good hands and is still doing what it does well — a rare outpost of a high civilization by the side of a busy street. Babouch is at 810 S. Gaffey in San Pedro. Open daily for dinner only. Reservations recommended. Details: (310) 831-0246 www.babouchmoroccan.com
Two Great Choices for Dining featuring
$10 Lunch Menu
& Early Bird Specials 1420 W. 25th St. (25th & Western) San Pedro • (310) 548-4797
Lunch & Dinner—Mon.-Fri. 11:30 a.m.- 9 p.m. Sat. & Sun. from 4 p.m.
April 19 - May 2, 2018
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great restaurant experience takes you out of your everyday world. You live in the moment for a while, basking in attentive service and the sensory experiences associated with fine food. After the time away, you return to everyday life a bit more ready to deal with its trials. Among the many fine dining options in the Harbor Area, one is incomparably ahead of the others when it comes to immersion in another place and time. For 40 years, Babouch has welcomed visitors to its fantasy of a Moroccan palace on Gaffey Street. Brothers Yousef and Kamal Keroles opened the restaurant in 1978, and although it is under new ownership the experience remains the same. The exterior is plain and white, but inside there is a riot of color. Patterned fabrics cover almost every surface from the Moorish carpets on the floor to the tent-like pleated ceiling. The lighting, with leaded glass and stamped tin lamps, adds to the exotic atmosphere. You’re led to a low mosaic-patterned table, where you are seated on couches with pillows, just as you would be at a Moroccan home. (A note for those who wonder how comfortable this is: it’s a slightly unusual posture for those who are used to taller chairs, but even the person at our table who recently had hip surgery had no complaints.) Menus are offered and a staff member comes by with a ewer and a basin to wash your hands with scented water. This is part of the ritual of a Moroccan meal. It was once a necessity because Moroccans usually eat with their fingers. Forks are provided, but most people still follow traditional custom and don’t use them. Meals can be ordered a la carte or as a set dinner, since the price difference is only a few dollars almost everyone orders the works. This includes lentil soup, salads, and b’stilla, the chicken and egg stuffed pastry that is one of Morocco’s favorite items. As much food as that is, on our most recent visit we tried a starter in the form of “spicy cigars.” These are essentially egg rolls made with flaky pastry, stuffed with a mildly spiced beef-and-onion mixture and topped with a line of hot mustard. I would order them again but ask for the mustard on the side. Bowls of cumin-spiced lentil soup began the meal, followed by salads. Separate portions of pickled carrots, chopped tomatoes, and an eggplant and vegetable puree are served over a lettuce mix with minimal dressing. The fragrant but not hot spicing in each element is reminiscent of Spanish food — no surprise, since southern
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Banquet Room up to 50 guests Heated Patio Dining Follow us at Think Cafe San Pedro and Sonny’s Bistro San Pedro @thinkcafesonny @sonnys_bistro
302 W. 5th St., San Pedro (310) 519-3662
Breakfast, Lunch & Dinner Mon.-Sat. 8 a.m.- 9 p.m. • Sun. 8 a.m.-2 p.m.
Founder Kamal Keroles is Happy to See Babouch in Good Hands
the hotel was sold and underwent a complete makeover, moving away from the Moroccan décor. After 40 years of operating Babouch, Kamal said he was extremely happy he was able to hand-off the restaurant to people who love it as he did and would keep it largely the same way. If anything, the new owners, Trina and Jasiree plan to cast Babouch in the mold of the Hollywood Golden Age film, Casablanca, in a bid to add an extra layer of romanticism to the restaurant. One might say, they are going to play it again, Sam.
By Terelle Jerricks, Managing Editor
On April 28, Kamal Keroles and all in the Babouch Moroccan Restaurant family are going to celebrate the restaurant’s 40th anniversary and the passing of the torch to its new owners, Trina Mendoza and Jasiree Fournier. Kamal Keroles and his younger brother Youssef Keroles opened Babouch in April 1978. Kamal studied marketing and business administration and his brother culinary arts in San Francisco. “We don’t like to drive to work,” Kamal said. “The family lives here and we thought that the competition wouldn’t be as severe here.” Kamal said he noticed people in Los Angeles are generally willing to drive to eat at a good Moroccan restaurant. “That’s what happened to us when we found a good location,” he said. “People from all around began to come here.” Kamal didn’t start off knowing he was going to open a restaurant. The idea of running his own business or becoming a restaurateur wasn’t a foreign idea to him. He noted that many members of his family have gone into business for themselves — businesses ranging from gas stations to restaurants, even a pharmacy. Their passion for Moroccan cuisine was born when they worked as apprentices to the great Moroccan Chef Mehdi Ziani, who was the personal chef for Hassan II of Morocco. Kamal was born and raised in Egypt. But because of his apprenticeship with Mehdi Ziani, he traveled frequently to Morocco to absorb the culture and bring back authentic décor for his restaurant. “Moroccan cuisine is one most popular cuisines in the world behind French, Chinese and possibly Indian cuisines,” Kamal said. Kamal counts the years after Babouch first opened as the most exciting. “A lot of times we had fundraisers here at
Founding Babouch restaurateur Kamal Keroles with new Babouch co-owner Jasiree Fournier. Photo by Raphael Richardson
Babouch,” he said. “We always wanted to try to get involved in the community with different groups and organizations. That was a lot of fun.” Kamal noted that it wasn’t until he added a catering dimension to their services that Babouch became as successful it did. He recounted the relationship formed with the former New Figueroa Hotel in Los Angeles, which was known for its Moroccan style décor. Kamal noted that Babouch would receive a lot of requests to hold weddings at their restaurant until it was realized the restaurant couldn’t accommodate 200 guests. The New Figueroa Hotel was often the wedding party’s next destination. But when it discovered that the
hotel didn’t have a large kitchen, the wedding party would hire Babouch Moroccan Restaurant to cater the wedding. This happened a few times before the restaurant and the hotel decided to form a partnership. The partnership endured for 10 years before
Join Us on
Saturday, April 28 • 5 to 11 p.m. as We Honor Babouch’s Founder
Kamal Keroles
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Ba bouch 40
niversary n A th
Food & Drink Specials • Live Music & Belly Dancing
April 19 - May 2, 2018
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Brought to you by the artists and restaurants of the Downtown San Pedro Waterfront Arts District
Studio Gallery 345
DRAWINGS AND PAINTINGS
Michael Stearns Studio @ The Loft
The Loft
GINA HERRERA, NEW VISION
SAM ARNO RETROSPECTIVE The paintings of Sam Arno, who passed away in 2017, will be exhibited in his former studio at The Loft. Arno started out as an advertising art director, then turned to painting full time after he retired. Along with fellow Loft studio artist, Muriel Olguin, Arno helped establish Angels Gate Cultural Center and later The Loft studio and gallery space. Works in oil on cavas will be displayed for First Thursday May 3 with a reception from 6 to 9 p.m. The Loft is at 401 S. Mesa St., San Pedro.
Pat Woolley, Ports O’Call
Studio 345 presents drawings by Pat Woolley and mixed media work and paintings by Gloria D Lee. Open 5 to 9 p.m. on First Thursday and by appointment. Studio 345, 345 W. 7th St., San Pedro. Details: (310) 545-0832 or (310) 374-8055; artsail@roadrunner. com or www.patwoolleyart.com.
Sam Arno, Harbor Sentinels
Gallery 741 TREASURES FROM THE VOYAGE OF DREAMS
While serving in Iraq, amid the devastation of combat, Gina Herrera was moved by seeing miles of mountainous trash heaps. This led her to question her own practices, hoping to lessen her own environmental impact. Like a scavenger, she plays an interventional role in removing garbage from the landscape, preventing it from doing further damage. Natural and manmade objects are reconfigured into lithe, energetic, beinglike assemblages. Figures emerge, in gravity defying postures on the brink of movement, alive with possibility. The exhibition opens on First Thursday, May 3 from 5 to 9 p.m. The Loft is located at 401 S. Mesa St., San Pedro (enter on the 4th Street side). Details: (562) 400-0544; www.michaelstearsstudio. com
Gina Herrera, A Valiant Spirit, 81" x 45" x 12”
Pinta*Dos Philippine Art Gallery
Sculptures and small assemblages by James Preston Allen on view at Gallery 741. Open on First Thursday from 6 p.m. and by appointment. Gallery 741, 520 W. 8th St., San Pedro.
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DESIGNS
April 19 - May 2, 2018
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FORTHCOMING EXHIBIT: INDIGENOUS FILIPINO TEXTILES
This exhibition features select indigenous Filipino textiles from the collection of Linda Nietes and Robert J. Little Jr. The works encompass the ancestral weaving traditions of various indigenous tribes spanning the Philippine archipelago. Opening reception on May 26 by invitation only will feature ethnic folk dances and kulintang music from Southern Philippines. The gallery is open to the public on Thursdays and Fridays from 3 to 6 p.m. or by appointment. The show runs through July 14, 2018. Pinta*Dos Philippine Art Gallery, 479 W. 6th St., Suite 107, San Pedro. Details: www. philippinebookshop.com (310) 514-9139.
Competitively priced full-color printing Call for a free estimate
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April 19 - May 2, 2018
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[See Calendar, page 16]
[Film Festivals from p. 11]
Film Festivals
fish and invertebrates at the Aquarium of the Pacific, Sandy Trautwein will lead a Q-and-A after the film. On April 22, Straws will be presented at 10:30 a.m. followed by a Q-and-A with Primal Alchemy caterer Chef Paul Buchanan, John Sangmeister of Gladstones and Long Beach resident, Steve Rice, who collects thousands of discarded plastic straws every month. Straws highlights a continuing effort to promote a local initiative which encourages Long Beach restaurants to educate diners on the harmful effects plastic straws have on the planet. Also on April 22, A Plastic Ocean, will screen at 11:30 a.m. In the adventure documentary, a team of international scientists reveals the causes and effects of plastic pollution, followed by a Q-and-A with a Long Beach youth panel. At 2 p.m., the same day, Love and Bananas: An Elephant Love Story will be featured, followed by a Q-and-A session with writer, director and producer of the film Ashley Bell. Time: 11 a.m. April 21 and 10:30 a.m. and 11:30 a.m. and 2 p.m. April 22 Cost: $8.50 and $11.50 respectively. Details: www.arttheatrelongbeach.org Venue: The Art Theatre, 2025 East 4th Street.
Foreign Language Film Festival
April 19 - May 2, 2018
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Long Beach City College’s six-day Foreign Language Film Fest is launched with a lecture by Gregorio Luke titled, Gay Greatness at 6 p.m., April 19 at the Carson campus, in
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Close Knit will screen as part of Long Beach City College’s six-day foreign language film festival, which will focus on films with LBGTQ themes. File photo.
Room T-1200. Luke is an expert in Latin American art and culture. His talk celebrates the accomplishments of the LBGTQ people in art, history, and culture. Luke, an accomplished speaker and scholar was named 2010 Artist of the Year in Long Beach. He is the former director of the Museum of Latin American Art and cultural attaché of Mexico in Los Angeles. Contracorriente (Undertow) screens at 6 p.m. April 27 at LBCC’s Pacific Coast Highway campus in Dyer Hall. Winner of the World Cinema Audience Award at Sundance 2010, Contracorriente deals sensitively and elegantly with the dilemma faced by those who find themselves in love with two people at the same
time. When those loved ones are of different genders, the emotions become even more conflicted. A discussion led by Eric Carbajal, professor of Spanish American literature and culture at California State University Fullerton will follow. Tschick (Goodbye Berlin) shows at 6 p.m. May 4 at the Carson campus in Room D-135. A 2016 German comedy-drama depicts two teenage outsiders from Berlin who go on an eccentric road trip through East Germany during the summer holidays. Following Tschick will be a discussion by Robert Blankenship, assistant professor of German at California State University Long Beach. Mine Vaganti (Loose Cannons) shows at 6 p.m. May 11, Carson campus room D-135. In the 1960s on a trip home from Rome, Tommaso decides to tell his parents the truth about himself. But when he is finally ready to come out in front of the entire family, his older brother Antonio ruins his plans. A discussion follows the film with Dr. Leonilde Callocchia, cultural attaché at the
Italian Cultural Institute in Los Angeles. Close Knit is featured at 6 p.m. May 18 at the Carson campus, Room D-135. The film is about a daughter neglected by her mother, a gentle uncle and his transgender lover, an angsty boy who recognizes a sense of himself as gay. A warm “knitting” reorganizes unconventional family. Chavela will screen at 3 p.m. May 19 at the Carson campus in Room T-1200. Mexico’s most beloved lesbian Rancheras icon, Chavela Vargas is a rebellious, solitary and profoundly wounded trailblazer. This lyrical love letter interweaves never-before-seen interview footage and mesmerizing musical portraits of Chavela’s most famous soul-gripping songs. Chavela is followed by a discussion with Gregorio Luke. The last day of the festival, May 19 at 3 p.m. there will be a live mariachi performance by Mariachi Acoiris. Admission is free. Details: FLFilmFest@gmail.com. [White Point from p. 3]
White Point
avians by their scat (that’s poop, kids). Just imagine this — a tiny hummingbird flies so high he almost disappears in the sky then suddenly dive bombs toward you like a fighter pilot, pulling up short and motionless right in front of your eyes. White Point Earth Day activities: The Palos Verdes Peninsula Land Conservancy invites the community to join a special Earth Day celebration and film screening April 21. The two-part event will begin with an outdoor volunteer day and a choice of family activities, from 9 a.m. to 2 p.m., at the White Point Nature Preserve, 1600 W. Paseo del Mar, San Pedro, followed by a free screening of the acclaimed documentary Jane at 5 p.m. the Warner Grand Theatre, 478 W. 6th St. in San Pedro. Details: www.pvplc.org
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• 20 2 y a M 9 april 1
Uncompliant Acts: The Public Stage, Photographs by Anthony Friedkin
ENTERTAINMENT April 19
Live After 5 On the Third Thursday downtown Long Beach comes alive with outdoor music, strolling entertainers, food, art exhibits and an open air vintage trolley. This month Live After 5 goes to Pine Avenue / Promenade and The Loop. Time: 5 to 9 p.m. April 19 Cost: Free Details: www.info@dlba.org Venue: Six trolley stops in the downtown Long Beach corridor
April 20
Bishop Briggs Bringing a hip-hop edge and sensibility to her perfect dark pop sound, Rolling Stone picked her in their 10 new artists you need to know feature (2016). Time: 7 p.m., April 20 Cost: $12 Details: (562) 433-4996 Venue: Fingerprints, 420 E. 4th St., Long Beach Details: www.fingerprintsmusic. com
April 21
Machine Art Studio Hip-Hop Night with DJs spinning live sets. Time: 6 to 10 p.m. April 21 Cost: Free Details: (323) 644-8200 machinestudio.com Venue: Machine Art Studio, 446 W. 6th St., San Pedro
April 22
Saw & Soul Jazz ballads with musical saw and piano, jazz, blues jumps with vocals by Windy Barnes and Oliver C. Brown on percussion. Time: 4 p.m. April 22 Cost: $20 Details: www.alvasshowroom. tix.com, (310) 833-7538 Venue: Alvas Showroom, 1417 W. 8th St., San Pedro
April 28
April 22
Decision My Revenge Some may be familiar with writer producer, Doug Thomas’ hit play Decision, where the audience walked away wondering what happened next. Well, it’s time to find out. Time: 6 p.m. April 22 Cost: $30 to $35 Details: (310) 781-7171 Venue: James Armstrong Theatre, 3330 Civic Center Dr., Torrance. True Tales From the South Bay In the style of Moth, Story Corps or Mortified, the Torrance Cultural Arts Foundation is proud to present its own local storytellers along with exceptional guest tellers. Time: 7 p.m. April 22 Cost: $10 Details: (310) 781-7171 www.torrancearts.org` Venue: George Nakano Theatre, 3330 Civic Center Drive, Torrance
April 27
The Little Mermaid Meet Ariel, the little mermaid who lives far under the sea and is tired of flipping her fins and longs to be part of the amazing world on land. Time: 7:30 p.m. April 27 and 2 p.m. and 7:30 p.m. April 28 Cost: $22 Details: www. southbayconservatory.com Venue: James Armstrong Theatre, 3330 Civic Center Drive, Torrance
April 28
Crumbs from the Table of Joy From Lynn Nottage, a timeless tale of a family’s struggles in 1950s America. A cross between The Glass Menagerie and A Raisin in the Sun. Special events: pay-what-you-can April 25 — see this production for whatever you can afford. Two-for-one preview Friday April 26, $10. Opening night champagne Reception with cast April 27, $27. Time: 8 p.m. to 11 p.m. April 28 through May 26 Cost: $14 to $27 Details: (562) 494-1014 Venue: Long Beach Playhouse, 5021 E. Anaheim St., Long Beach
ARTS
April 21
Second Saturday Artwalk Artists and galleries in downtown San Pedro open their doors for
guided and self-guided tours of the Arts District offerings. Time: 2 to 6 p.m. April 21 Cost: Free Venue: Downtown San Pedro American Myths Violated & Realities Revealed: Photographs by SPOT Cornelius Projects presents American Myths Violated & Realities Revealed: Photographs by SPOT. Born Glen Lockett, SPOT came of age in Los Angeles during the late 1960s and 1970s when America was experiencing a cultural awakening. Continue celebrating the exhibition with live music at Harold’s Place, 1908 S Pacific Ave, San Pedro from 9 p.m. to 12 a.m. Time: 6 to 8:45 p.m.. April 21 through May 26. Cost: Exhibition, Free, Harold’s Place, $5 Details: (310) 266-9216; www. corneliusprojects.com Venue: Cornelius Projects, 1417 S. Pacific Ave., San Pedro Uncompliant Acts: The Public Stage, Photographs by Anthony Friedkin In Uncompliant Acts, the artist shares his appreciation for these unique works, often uncontrolled, unexpected and unnamed attacks on societal structures and norms, urging the viewer to re-evaluate our urban surrounds and discover the art hidden in plain sight. Time: 4 to 7 p.m. April 21 and 11 a.m. to 5 p.m. and Mondays through Fridays Cost: Free Details: (310) 600-4873, (310) 732-2150. Venue: Gallery 478, 478 W. 7th St., San Pedro
May 3
Gina Herrera, New Vision Natural and manmade objects scavenged from the landscape are re-configured into lithe, energetic, being-like assemblages. Time: 6 to 9 p.m. May 3, 6 to 9 p.m., 1 to 5 p.m. Tuesdays. through Saturdays Cost: Free Details: (562) 400-0544 Venue: Michael Stearns Studio @The Loft, 401 S. Mesa St., San Pedro
COMMUNITY April 17
Meet the Grunion at Cabrillo Marine Aquarium Spend a night on Southern California's sandy shore waiting for the “grunion run.” Grunion are small sardine-size fish of the silversides family, which are among the few species of fish that actually come ashore to lay their eggs on sandy beaches. Time: 8 p.m. April 17. Cost: $1 to $5 Details: (310) 548-7562 www.cabrillomarineaquarium.org Venue: Cabrillo Marine Aquarium, 3720 Stephen M. White Drive, San Pedro
April 21 San Pedro Art Association Spring Craft Fair The array of local art assembled for this event include jewelry, paintings, woodwork and wearable art. Time: 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. April 21 Cost: Free Details: (310) 831-2928 Venue: St. Peter’s, 1648 W. 9th St., San Pedro CMA Yard Sale This special sale will be set up just outside the CMA Gift Shop and packed with great finds at discounted prices including CMA treasures, floral sprays, dishes, pinicware, books, stationary, handbags, gifts and much more. There will also be artists and crafters selling one-of-a-kind items. Time: 10 a.m. April 21 Cost: Free Details: www. cabrillomarineaquarium.org Venue: Cabrillo Marine Aquarium, 3720 Stephen M. White Drive, San Pedro Shine A show for the entire family including aerial silks, hoop, cyr wheel, contortion, acrobatics, Japanese drumming, stilt walkers, roller skating and dancing. Time: 11 a.m. April 21 Cost: $13 Details: (310) 781-7171 Venue: James Armstrong Theatre, 3330 Civic Center Drive, Torrance
Earth Day Pop Up Party Preview the concepts for the revitalization of the 51st Street
Greenbelt and take the survey to give your input on the new design. Time: 9:30 to 11:30 a.m. April 21 Cost: Free Venue: At the 51st Street Greenbelt Deforest Ave., between 51st and 52nd streets, Long Beach Environmental Health Fair and Family Fun Day Discover how Green Education, Inc. educates and revitalizes disadvantaged communities across Southern California, transforming them into greensustainable neighborhoods. Grid Alternative and solar power opportunities. Time: 11 a.m. to 3 p.m. April 21 Cost: Free Details: (562) 439-0997 Venue: Burbank Elementary, 501 Junipero Ave., Long Beach Earth Day Celebration and Film Earth Day begins at White Point Nature Preserve, where visitors can attend a composting workshop, art activity, plant sale and a guided ranger walk. Later, attend a special free film screening of Jane at the Warner Grand Theatre in San Pedro. Time: 9 a.m. to 7 p.m. April 21 Cost: Free Details: (310) 561-0917 https://pvplc.org/_events/specialfundraising-events.asp, Venue: White Point Nature Preserve, 1600 W. Paseo del Mar, San Pedro
April 22 Earth Day Weekend Film Festival Features four environmentally conscious films. Each will be followed by a Q-and-A session to learn more about sustainable practices. Fims include, International Ocean Film Tour, Straws, A Plastic Ocean and Love and Bananas: An Elephant Love Story. Time: 11:00 a.m. April 21, and 10:30 a.m. and 11:30 a.m. and 2:00 p.m. April 22 Cost: $8.50 to $11.50, Details: www. arttheatrelongbeach.org Venue: The Art Theatre 2025 East 4th Street Long Beach
April 27 Contracorriente (Undertow) The Foreign Language Film
Festival at LBCC provides students and community members a venue to view films in foreign languages as a means of promoting cultural understanding and a deeper understanding of contemporary issues. Time: 6 p.m. April 27 Cost: Free Details: www.lbcc.edu/ FLFilmFest2018 Venue: Long Beach City College, PCC, Dyer Hall, 1305 E. Pacific Coast Highway, Long Beach
April 28
Yogananda Fest Join in celebrating the spirit of Yogananda in this inspiring daylong festival. Time: 10 a.m. April 28 Cost: Free Details: www.yoganandafest. com/LosAngeles Venue: Torrance Cultural Arts Center, 3330 Civic Center Drive, Torrance Shoreline Stitchers’ Showcase A judged needlework show and boutique at the South Coast Botanic Garden. Nearly 300 pieces of a variety of needlework will be on display. Time: 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. April 28, and 11 a.m. to 3 p.m. April 29 Cost: $10 Details: www. needleartistsbythesea.org. Venue: South Coast Botanic Garden, 26300 Crenshaw Blvd., Palos Verdes Peninsula MayDay! Tales of Love and Other Emergencies Bring your comfy chair, your favorite snacks, your ears and hearts and imaginations. Readings by Melanie Jones, Kim Estes and Kalie Quinones, with sound effects by Eric Noble. Featuring works by Charles Bukowski, Margaret Atwood and W. S. Merwin. Time: 8 pm, April 28 Cost: $10 Venue: Angels Gate Cultural Center, 3601 S. Gaffey St., San Pedro.
April 19 - May 2, 2018
Havana Nights, A Salute to Santana Guitar virtuoso, Robert Sarzo pays tribute to the sound of Carlos Santana. The evening includes Cuban cocktail specials and Cuban cigar rolling. Time: 7 p.m. April 28
THEATER
TransVagrant and Gallery 478 presents Uncompliant Acts: The Public Stage, Photographs by Anthony Friedkin. Friedkin’s entire oeuvre can accurately be described as a pursuit of the authentic. His topics include phenomena such as surf culture, prisons, cinema, gay culture and, most currently, the art of urban streets. Uncompliant Acts opens on April 21 and runs through June 23. Gallery 478, 468 W. 7th St. San Pedro.
Machine Art Studio NASA Show 2 closing event with music, food, and a special popup store by the NASA crew. Time: 6 to 10 p.m. April 28 Cost: Free Details: (323) 644-8200 machinestudio.com Venue: Machine Art Studio, 446 W. 6th St., San Pedro
April 29
Long Beach Symphony Family Concert Receive two free child's tickets for each adult ticket purchased. Time: 3 p.m. April 29 Cost: $15 Details: (562) 436-3203 Venue: Long Beach Convention and Entertainment Center, 300 Ocean Blvd., Long Beach
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Mirrors of Cultue Enjoy music from five centuries which include familiar tunes to the exotic. Time: 8 p.m. April 21 Cost: $25 Details: www. TorranceCivicChorale.oOrg Venue: James Armstrong Theatre, 3330 Civic Center Drive, Torrance
Cost: $20, $30 Details: www. toprocketentertainment.com Venue: Golden Sails Hotel, PCH Club, 6285 E. Pacific Coast Hwy., Long Beach
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E
lysium Conservatory Theatre has a good thing going. Under the redoubtable guidance of Aaron Ganz, its dramatic smorgasbords of movement, music and lighting overflow with energy, immersing the audience in the action and taking full advantage of the beautiful multi-room performance space it is blessed to occupy. I’ve liked everything this group has done, and because of the obvious amount of work and thought that goes into each show, I want to like everything they do. Unfortunately, the pieces don’t come together with Elysium’s production of Richard III. Ganz’s conception seems adrift, in limbo between a traditional take on Shakespeare and the idiosyncratic Elysium treatment given to Romeo & Juliet exactly one year ago, and
Curtain Call:
Richard III Is Not Elysium’s Finest Hour By Gregory Moore, RLn Contributing Writer
Elysium Conservatory Theatre’s production of Richard III. Photo by: Louella Allen
Richard III, a convoluted and implausible play even by Shakespearean standards (which is saying something) and nowhere near one of the Bard’s best. Despite this, I have seen it at least three times, so even if I don’t know it as well as I do Romeo & Juliet or Hamlet, I shouldn’t have had no idea what was going on half the time. Unfortunately, this production is flat-out confusing. The costuming and the casting might have supplied some clarifying clues, but instead contributed to the confusion. Ganz has gone minimal, putting everyone in black with minor distinguishing details (armbands, streaks of makeup) that are more about style than helping us keep things straight. To further blur the story line, almost all of the actors play multiple roles, usually without altering their costumes at all. This includes women playing both male and female roles in a play where several characters go by multiple names and are part of an incredibly tangled web of relationships—plus,
Time: 8 p.m. Thursdays through Saturdays and 7 p.m. Sundays, through April 29 Cost: $18 to $25 Details: (424) 535-7333; fearlessartists.org Venue: Elysium Conservatory Theatre, 729 S. Palos Verdes St, San Pedro
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there’s too little of either interpretation to create a successful whole. Granted, even the most well-executed take was going to be hard-pressed to make me love
they sometimes come back as ghosts. I watched several scenes without knowing who was who or exactly how they fit into the plot. (And remember, I’ve reviewed this play before.) On top of all of this, as often as not I could not make out what anybody was saying. Richard III is staged in the biggest of several rooms in the Elysium theatre complex, and that may have been a miscalculation. It’s a wonderful, cavernous, cement space. This makes for beautiful echoes, but when you’re trying to follow Shakespeare’s rapid-fire dialog — especially in the play where he most violates the “show, don’t tell” dictum — those echoes work against you. But that didn’t have to be as big of a problem as it is. Unless you’ve really studied the Shakespeare play you’re seeing, you’re not going to understand all of the dialog anyway. But the best Shakespeare provides sufficient context (via acting, blocking, set design, etc.) for the passably literate layperson to follow along without following every word. Unfortunately, we aren’t given much context. For such a kinetic troupe, Elysium’s Richard III feels pretty static, with lots of exchanges between characters standing stock still and far apart, drawing our attention to the empty space when we should notice only the characters. What movement we get mostly veers between gratuitous and abstract, neither of which really helps us keep track of the action. As for the acting, a lot of the cast’s energy (Elysium always, always brings the energy) feels misspent. There’s probably too much histrionics and not enough modulation in delivery. Along with too little variance in the pacing, that leaves both scene arcs and the overall dramatic arc feeling like flat lines. There are a few highlights. The group a capellas are gorgeous and haunting, and much of the lighting design is beautiful, helping give Clarence’s death—clearly one of the show’s best scenes—a poetic edge. At least, I think it was Clarence’s death. Like I said, I was often lost, and Ganz’s adaptation of the script — including infusions from Richard II and Henry V — didn’t help me find my way. Unlike everything else I’ve seen by Elysium, this time I neither understood nor related to what they’re going for. So, maybe it’s me. All I can say is that if you see Richard III and don’t like it, don’t give up on Elysium Conservatory Theatre. I’ve never enjoyed Romeo & Juliet as much as I did theirs, and their Three Sisters was the best Chekhov I’ve seen. Ganz and company have proven they can do great work. Maybe they just can’t win ‘em all.
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Fictitious Business Name Statement File No. 2018052390 The following person is doing business as: W.C. Triplett Cleaners, 2138 S. Pacific Ave., San Pedro, CA 90731. Los Angeles County. Registered owners: Willie Cameron, 658 W. 22nd Street, #1, San Pedro, Ca 90731. Luz Cameron, 658 W. 22nd Street, #1, San Pedro, Ca 90731 This Business is conducted by a husband and wife. The date registrant started to transact business under the fictitious business name or names listed above: 1996. I declare that all information in this statement is true and correct. (A registrant who declares as true information which he or she knows to be false is guilty of a crime.) S/. Willie Cameron, owner. This statement was filed with the County Clerk of Los Angeles on March 2, 2018. Notice--In Accordance with subdivision (a) of section 17920. A fictitious name statement generally expires at the end of five years from the date on which it was filed in the office of the county clerk, except as provided in subdivision (b) of section 17920, were to expires 40 days after any change in the facts set forth in the statement pursuant to section 17913 other than a change in the residence address of a registered owner. A new fictitious business name statement must be filed before the expiration.The filing of this statement does not of itself authorize the use in this state of a fictitious business name in violation of the rights of another under federal,
03/22/2018, 04/5/2018, 04/19/2018
Fictitious Business Name Statement File No. 2018046612 The following person is doing business as: Jackie’s Multi Services, 1300 1/2 N. Gaffey St., San Pedro, CA 90731. Los Angeles County. Mailing Address: P.O. Box 1833, San Pedro, CA 90733. Registered owners: Jacqueline G. Bravo, 1300 1/2 N. Gaffey St., San Pedro, CA 90731. This Business is conducted by an individual. The date registrant started to transact business under the fictitious business name or names listed above: 02/01/2013. I declare that all information in this statement is true and correct. (A registrant who declares as true information which he or she knows to be false is guilty of a crime.) S/. Jacqueline G. Bravo, owner. This statement was filed with the County Clerk of Los Angeles on Feb. 26, 2018. Notice-In Accordance with subdivision (a) of section 17920. A fictitious name statement generally expires at the end of five years from the date on which it was filed in the office of the county clerk, except as provided in subdivision (b) of section 17920, were to expires 40 days after any change in the facts set forth in the statement pursuant to section 17913 other than a change in the residence address of a registered owner. A new fictitious business name statement must be filed before the expiration.The filing of this statement does not of itself authorize the use in this state of a fictitious business name in violation of the rights of another under federal, state, or common law (see section 1411 ET SEQ., Business and Professions code). Original filing: 03/08/2018, 03/22/2018, 04/5/2018, 04/19/2018
Fictitious Business Name Statement File No. 2018046613 The following person is doing business as: LA Ilusion Catering, 1631 S. Pacific Ave., San Pedro, CA 90731. Los Angeles County. Mailing Address: P.O. Box 1833, San Pedro, CA 90733. Registered owners: Jacqueline G. Bravo, 1631 S. Pacific Ave., San Pedro, CA 90731. This Business is conducted by an individual. The date registrant started to transact business under the fictitious business name or names listed above: 02/01/2013. I declare that all information in this statement is true and correct. (A registrant who declares as true information which he or she knows to be false is guilty of a crime.) S/. Jacqueline G. Bravo, owner. This statement was filed with the County Clerk of Los Angeles on Feb. 26, 2018. Notice--In Accordance with subdivision (a) of section 17920. A fictitious name statement generally expires at the end of five years from the date on which it was filed in the office of the county clerk, except as provided in subdivision (b) of section 17920, were to expires 40 days after any change in the facts set forth in the statement pursuant to section 17913 other than a change in
the residence address of a registered owner. A new fictitious business name statement must be filed before the expiration.The filing of this statement does not of itself authorize the use in this state of a fictitious business name in violation of the rights of another under federal, state, or common law (see section 1411 ET SEQ., Business and Professions code). Original filing: 03/08/2018, 03/22/2018, 04/5/2018, 04/19/2018
Fictitious Business Name Statement File No. 2018068669 The following person is doing business as: Hair Force One Staffing, 884 W. 12th St., San Pedro, CA 90731. Los Angeles County. Registered owners: Ricardo Salinas, 884 W. 12th St., San Pedro, CA 90731. This Business is conducted by an individual. The date registrant started to transact business under the fictitious business name or names listed above: January 2018. I declare that all information in this statement is true and correct. (A registrant who declares as true information which he or she knows to be false is guilty of a crime.) S/. Ricardo Salinas, owner. This statement was filed with the County Clerk of Los Angeles on March 20, 2018. Notice--In Accordance with subdivision (a) of section 17920. A fictitious name statement generally expires at the end of five years from the date on which it was filed in the office of the county clerk, except as provided in subdivision (b) of section 17920, were to expires 40 days after any change in the facts set forth in the statement pursuant to section 17913 other than a change in the residence address of a registered owner. A new fictitious business name statement must be filed before the expiration.The filing of this statement does not of itself authorize the use in this state of a fictitious business name in violation of the rights of another under federal, state, or common law (see section 1411 ET SEQ., Business and Professions code). Original filing: 03/22/2018, 04/5/2018, 04/19/2018, 05/03/2018
Fictitious Business Name Statement File No. 2018057371 The following person is doing business as: Paul Original Shoe and Working Boot MFG, 631 S. Mesa St.,, San Pedro, CA 90731. Los Angeles County. Registered owners: Jose L. Rivera, 424 W. 3rd St., #10, San Pedro, CA 90731. This Business is conducted by an individual. The date registrant started to transact business under the fictitious business name or names listed above: Jan. 1, 2018. I declare that all information in this statement is true and correct. (A registrant who declares as true information which he or she knows to be false is guilty of a crime.) S/. Jose L. Rivera, owner. This statement was filed with the County Clerk of Los Angeles on March 8, 2018. Notice--In Accordance
[continued on p. 20]
April 19 - May 2, 2018
870 W. 9th St., Ste. 100A, San Pedro Call for appt. today 310.221.0034 • www.justrelaxtax.com
03/22/2018, 04/5/2018, 04/19/2018
state, or common law (see section 1411 ET SEQ., Business and Professions code). Original filing: 03/08/2018,
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Fictitious Business Name Statement File No. 2018048278 The following person is doing business as: Depot Painting, 26 Rockinghorse Rd, RPV, CA 90275. Los Angeles County. Registered owners: Dulux Painting, 26 Rockinghorse Rd, RPV, CA 90275. This Business is conducted by a corporation. The date registrant started to transact business under the fictitious business name or names listed above: Jan. 30, 2018. I declare that all information in this statement is true and correct. (A registrant who declares as true information which he or she knows to be false is guilty of a crime.) S/. John Mantikas, owner. This statement was filed with the County Clerk of Los Angeles on Feb. 27, 2018. Notice--In Accordance with subdivision (a) of section 17920. A fictitious name statement generally expires at the end of five years from the date on which it was filed in the office of the county clerk, except as provided in subdivision (b) of section 17920, were to expires 40 days after any change in the facts set forth in the statement pursuant to section 17913 other than a change in the residence address of a registered owner. A new fictitious business name statement must be filed before the expiration.The filing of this statement does not of itself authorize the use in this state of a fictitious business name in violation of the rights of another under federal, state, or common law (see section 1411 ET SEQ., Business and Professions code). Original filing: 03/08/2018,
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DBA FILINGS
19
DBAs & LEGAL NOTICES [from p. 19] with subdivision (a) of section 17920. A fictitious name statement generally expires at the end of five years from the date on which it was filed in the office of the county clerk, except as provided in subdivision (b) of section 17920, were to expires 40 days after any change in the facts set forth in the statement pursuant to section 17913 other than a change in the residence address of a registered owner. A new fictitious business name statement must be filed before the expiration.The filing of this statement does not of itself authorize the use in this state of a fictitious business name in violation of the rights of another under federal, state, or common law (see section 1411 ET SEQ., Business and Professions code). Original filing: 03/22/2018, 04/5/2018, 04/19/2018, 05/03/2018
April 19 - May 2, 2018
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Fictitious Business Name Statement File No. 2018 The following person is doing business as: Excel Funding R.E.S., Inc, Excel Funding RES, Inc., 28924 S. Western Ave, STE 110, San Pedro, CA 90732. Los Angeles County. Registered owners: Excel Funding Real Estate Services, 28924 S. Western Ave, STE 110, San Pedro, CA 90732. This Business is conducted by an individual. The date registrant started to transact business under the fictitious business name or names listed above: N/A. I declare that all information in this statement is true and correct. (A registrant who declares as true information which he or she knows to be false is guilty of a crime.) S/. Frances T. Baldwin, owner. This statement was filed with the County Clerk of Los Angeles on March 20, 2018. Notice-In Accordance with subdivision (a) of section 17920. A fictitious name statement generally expires at the end of five years from the date on which it was filed in the office of the county clerk, except as provided in subdivision (b) of section 17920, were to expires 40 days after any change in the facts set forth in the statement pursuant to section 17913 other than a change in the residence
20
address of a registered owner. A new fictitious business name statement must be filed before the expiration.The filing of this statement does not of itself authorize the use in this state of a fictitious business name in violation of the rights of another under federal, state, or common law (see section 1411 ET SEQ., Business and Professions code). Original filing: 03/22/2018, 04/5/2018, 04/19/2018, 05/03/2018
Fictitious Business Name Statement File No. 2018085372 The following person is doing business as: A&J Enterprises, 5718 Ravenspur STE #207, Rancho Palos Verdes, CA 90275. Los Angeles County. Mailing Address: 300 N. Rampart Street, #37, Orange, CA 92868. Registered owners: Jeffrey Scott McElhaney, 300 N. Rampart Street, #37, Orange, CA 92868. This Business is conducted by an individual. The date registrant started to transact business under the fictitious business name or names listed above: 06/1993. I declare that all information in this statement is true and correct. (A registrant who declares as true information which he or she knows to be false is guilty of a crime.) S/. Jeffrey Scott McElhaney, owner. This statement was filed with the County Clerk of Los Angeles on April 9, 2018. Notice--In Accordance with subdivision (a) of section 17920. A fictitious name statement generally expires at the end of five years from the date on which it was filed in the office of the county clerk, except as provided in subdivision (b) of section 17920, were to expires 40 days after any change in the facts set forth in the statement pursuant to section 17913 other than a change in the residence address of a registered owner. A new fictitious business name statement must be filed before the expiration.The filing of this statement does not of itself authorize the use in this state of a fictitious business name in violation of the rights of another under federal, state, or common law (see section 1411 ET SEQ., Business and Professions code). Original filing: 04/19/2018,
NOTICE INVITING BIDS NOTICE IS HEREBY GIVEN that the City of Long Beach, California, acting by and through the City’s Board of Harbor Commissioners (“City”) will receive, before the Bid Deadline established below, Bids for the following Work: NORTH HARBOR DISTRICT PAVEMENT REHABILITATION PROJECT LONG BEACH, CALIFORNIA AS DESCRIBED IN SPECIFICATION NO. HD-S2432 Bid Deadline:
Copies of all Port insurance endorsement forms, SBE/ VSBE Program forms, Harbor Development Permit Applications and other Port forms are available at h t t p : / / w w w. p o l b . c o m / economics/contractors/ forms_permits/default.asp. NIB-2 Pre-Bid Questions. All questions, including requests for interpretation or correction, or comments regarding the Contract Documents, must be submitted no later than May 8, 2018, at 5 p.m. Questions received after the pre-Bid question deadline will not be accepted.
Prior to 2:00 p.m. on Tuesday, May 15, 2018 Bids shall be submitted electronically via the Port of Long Beach PlanetBids (PB) System prior to 2:00 p.m.
Bid Opening:
Contract Documents Available:
Electronic Bid (eBid) results shall be viewable online in the PB System immediately after the Bid Deadline. Download Contract Documents from the Port of Long Beach PB System Vendor Portal: www.polb.com/sbe Click on thePOLB Vendor Portal 1. Register and Log In 2. Click “Bid Opportunities” 3. Double-click on respective bid Project Title 4. Click on Document/Attachments tab 5. Double-Click on Title of Electronic Attachment 6. Click “Download Now” 7. Repeat for each attachment For assistance in downloading these documents please contact Port of Long Beach Plans and Specs Desk at 562-283-7353.
Mandatory Pre-Bid Meeting:
Date/Time: April 24, 2018 at 10:00 a.m. Location: Port of Long Beach Interim Administrative Office Building 1st Floor Meeting Room 4801 Airport Plaza Drive Long Beach, CA 90815
05/03/2018, 05/17/2018, 05/31/2018
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Project Contact Person:
Trang Nguyen, trang.nguyen@polb.com
Please refer to the Port of Long Beach PB System for the most current information. NIB-1 Contract Documents. Contract Documents may be downloaded, at no cost, from the Port of Long Beach PB System Vendor Portal website. Bidders must first register as a vendor on the Port of Long Beach PB System website in order to view and download the Contract Documents, to be added to the prospective bidders list, and to receive addendum notifications when issued. For the link to the Port of Long Beach PB System and for information on this Project and other upcoming Port projects, you may view the Port website at http://www.polb. com/economics/contractors/ default.asp.
Questions must be submitted electronically through the PB System. Emails, phone calls, and faxes will not be accepted. Questions submitted to City staff will not be addressed and Bidder will be directed to the PB System. NIB-3 Mandatory Pre-Bid Meeting. The engineering staff of the City’s Harbor Department will conduct a pre-bid meeting at 10:00 a.m., on April 24, 2018 in the 1st Floor Meeting Room, of the Port of Long Interim Administrative Office Building, 4801 Airport Plaza Drive, Long Beach, CA 90815. Attendance is mandatory for the Contractors. It is not mandatory for Subcontractors but highly recommended.
Each Bidder shall attend the mandatory Pre-bid meeting. The City makes no guarantee that existing construction and site conditions matches construction depicted on record reference documents. It shall be the Bidder’s responsibility to identify existing conditions. EACH BIDDER MUST ATTEND THE MANDATORY PRE-BID MEETING. FAILURE TO ATTEND THE MANDATORY PRE-BID MEETING SHALL DISQUALIFY YOUR BID. Bidders are encouraged to RSVP for the Pre-Bid Meeting through the PB System; located under the “RSVP” tab of the Prospective Bidder Detail. Following the meeting a list of Pre-Bid Meeting signed-in attendees will be available on the PB System. Note that attendance at the pre-bid meeting can be used to satisfy a portion of a Bidder’s good faith efforts to meet the SBE/VSBE participation goals listed below. NIB-4 Summary Description of the Work. The Work required by this Contract includes, but is not limited to, the following: Rehabilitate the pavement of Jackson Avenue, Santa Fe Avenue, Canal Avenue, Harbor Avenue, Fashion Avenue, 11th Street, 12th Street and Caspian Avenue. See Section 01100, Summary of Work in the Technical Specifications. NIB-5 Contract Time and Liquidated Damages. The Contractor shall achieve Affidavit of Final Completion of the Project within 310 calendar days as provided in Paragraph SC - 6.1 of the Special Conditions, from a date specified in a written “Notice to Proceed” issued by the City and subject to adjustment as provided in Section 8.2 of the General Conditions. FAILURE OF THE CONTRACTOR TO COMPLETE THE WORK WITHIN THE CONTRACT TIME AND OTHER MILESTONES SET FORTH IN SPECIAL CONDITIONS SC-6.3, INCLUDING THE ENGINEER’S APPROVAL OF AFFIDAVIT OF FINAL COMPLETION, WILL RESULT IN ASSESSMENT OF LIQUIDATED DAMAGES IN THE AMOUNTS ESTABLISHED IN THE SPECIAL CONDITIONS 6.4. NIB-6 Contractor’s License. The Bidder shall hold a current and valid Class “A” or “C12”California Contractor’s License to bid and construct this project. NIB-7 Contractor Performed Work. The Contractor shall perform, with its own employees, Contract Work amounting to at least 50% of the Contract Price, except that any designated “Specialty Items” may be performed by subcontract. The amount of any such “Specialty Items” so performed may be deducted from the Contract Price before computing the amount required to be performed by the Contractor with its own employees. “Specialty Items” will be identified by the City on the Schedule of Bid Items. The bid price of any materials or equipment rental
costs from vendors who are solely furnishing materials or rental equipment and are not performing Work as a licensed subcontractor on this project shall also be deducted from the Contract Price before computing the amount required to be performed by the Contractor with its own employees.
Code Section 1725.5.
NIB -8 SBE/VSBE. This project is subject to the Port of Long Beach (POLB) Small Business Enterprises (SBE)/ Very Small Business Enterprises (VSBE) Program. The combined SBE/VSBE participation goal for this project is twenty - seven percent (27%), of which a minimum of five percent (5%) must be allocated to VSBEs. POLB expects all Bidders to achieve the combined SBE/VSBE participation goal. Award of the Contract will be conditioned on the Bidder submitting an SBE2C Commitment Plan demonstrating the Bidder’s intent to meet the combined SBE/ VSBE participation goal. If the Bidder’s Commitment Plan does not demonstrate intent to meet the combined goal, the Bidder shall demonstrate that it made an adequate good faith effort to do so, as specified in the Instructions to Bidders. The Port’s SBE Program staff is available to provide information on the program requirements, including SBE certification assistance. Please contact the SBE Office at (562) 283-7598 or sbeprogram@polb.com. You may also view the Port’s SBE program requirements at www.polb.com/sbe.
NIB -10 P r o j e c t L a b o r Agreement. This project is not covered by a PLA.
NIB -9 Prevailing Wage Requirements per Department of Industrial Relations. This Project is a public work Contract as defined in Labor Code Section 1720. The Contractor receiving award of the Contract and Subcontractors of any tier shall pay not less than the prevailing wage rates to all workers employed in execution of the Contract. The Director of Industrial Relations of the State of California has determined the general prevailing rates of wages in the locality in which the Work is to be performed. The rate schedules are available on the internet at http://www.dir. ca.gov/dlsr/DPreWageDetermination.htm and on file at the City, available upon request. Bidders are directed to Article 15 of the General Conditions for requirements concerning payment of prevailing wages, payroll records, hours of work and employment of apprentices. This Project is subject to compliance monitoring and enforcement by the Department of Industrial Relations. No Contractor or Subcontractor may be listed on a bid proposal for a public works project unless registered with the Department of Industrial Relations pursuant to Labor Code Section 1725.5 (with limited exceptions from this requirement for bid purposes only under Labor Code Section 1771.1(a)). No Contractor or Subcontractor may be awarded a contract for public work on a public works project unless registered with the Department of Industrial Relations pursuant to Labor
Contractors and Subcontractors must furnish electronic Certified Payroll Records (CPRs) to the Labor Commissioner’s Office, and in addition, hardcopies or electronic copies shall be furnished to the Port of Long Beach.
NIB -11 Tr a d e N a m e s and Substitution of Equals. With the exception of any sole source determination that may be identified in this paragraph, Bidders wishing to obtain City’s authorization for substitution of equivalent material, product, or equipment, are required to submit a written request for an Or Equal Substitution using the form included in Appendix A together with data substantiating Bidder’s representation that the non-specified item is of equal quality to the item specified, thirty five (35) calendar days after Bid Opening. Authorization of a substitution is solely within the discretion of the City. NIB -12
Not Used.
NIB -13 B i d S e c u r i t y, Signed Contract, Insurance and Bonds. Each Bid shall be accompanied by a satisfactory Bidder’s Bond or other acceptable Bid Security in an amount not less than ten percent (10%) of the Base Bid as a guarantee that the Bidder will, if Conditionally Awarded a Contract by the Board, within thirty (30) calendar days after the Contract is conditionally awarded to the Contractor by the City, execute and deliver such Contract to the Chief Harbor Engineer together with all required documents including insurance forms, a Payment Bond for one hundred percent (100%) of the Contract Price, and a Performance Bond for one hundred percent (100%) of the Contract Price. All Bonds shall be on forms provided by the City. NIB -14 C o n d i t i o n a l Award of Contract and Reservation of Rights. The Board, acting through the Executive Director, reserves the right at any time before the execution of the Contract by the City, to reject any or all Bids, and to waive any informality or irregularity. The Conditional Award of the Contract, if any, will be to the responsible Bidder submitting the lowest responsive and responsible Bid. If the lowest responsive responsible Bidder fails to submit the required documents including insurance forms, bonds and signed Contract within thirty (30) calendar days after Conditional Award of Contract, the Board reserves the right to rescind the Conditional Award and Conditionally Award the Contract to the next lowest responsive and responsible Bidder. NIB -15 Period of Bid Irrevocability. Bids shall remain open and valid and Bidder’s Bonds and other acceptable Bid Security shall be guaranteed and valid for ninety (90)
[continued on p. 21]
LEGAL NOTICES [from p. 20] calendar days after the Bid Deadline or until the Executive Director executes a Contract, whichever occurs first. NIB -16 Substitution of Securities. Substitution of Securities for retainage is permitted in accordance with Section 22300 of the Public Contract Code.
NOTICE INVITING BIDS NOTICE IS HEREBY GIVEN that the City of Long Beach, California, acting by and through the City’s Board of Harbor Commissioners (“City”) will receive, before the Bid Deadline established below, Bids for the following Work: PIER B WATER SYSTEM UPGRADE IMPROVEMENTS ON CARRACK AVENUE FROM CARRACK AVENUE (WEST) TO EDISON DRIVE LONG BEACH, CALIFORNIA AS DESCRIBED IN SPECIFICATION NO. HD-S2521 Bid Deadline:
NIB -17 Iran Contracting Act of 2010. In accordance with Public Contract Code sections 2200-2208, every person who submits a bid or proposal for entering into or renewing contracts with the City for goods or services estimated at $1,000,000 or more are required to complete, sign, and submit the “Iran Contracting Act of 2010 Compliance Affidavit.”
Issued at Long Beach, California, this 26th day of February, 2018.
Documents, to be added to the prospective bidders list, and to receive addendum notifications when issued.
p.m. Questions received after the pre-Bid question deadline will not be accepted.
For the link to the Port of Long Beach PB System and for information on this Project and other upcoming Port projects, you may view the Port website at http://www.polb. com/economics/contractors/ default.asp. Copies of all Port insurance endorsement forms, SBE/ VSBE Program forms, Harbor Development Permit Applications and other Port forms are available at h t t p : / / w w w. p o l b . c o m /
Prior to 2:00 p.m. on Tuesday, May 15, 2018. Bids shall be submitted electronically via the Port of Long Beach PlanetBids (PB) System prior to 2:00 p.m.
Bid Opening:
Contract Documents Available:
Electronic Bid (eBid) results shall be viewable online in the PB System immediately after the Bid Deadline. Download Contract Documents from the Port of Long Beach PB System Vendor Portal: www.polb.com/sbe Click on the POLB Vendor Portal 1. Register and Log In
3. Double-click on respective bid Project Title 4. Click on Document/Attachments tab 5. Double-Click on Title of Electronic Attachment 6. Click “Download Now” 7. Repeat for each attachment For assistance in downloading these documents please contact Port of Long Beach Plans and Specs Desk at 562-283-7353. Date/Time: April 26, 2018 at 10:00 a.m. Location: Port of Long Beach Interim Administrative Offices (IAO) 1st Floor Board Room 4801 Airport Plaza Drive Long Beach, CA 90815
Project Contact Person:
Victor Sagredo, victor.sagredo@ polb.com
NIB-1 Contract Documents. Contract Documents may be downloaded, at no cost, from the Port of Long Beach PB System Vendor Portal website. Bidders must first register as a vendor on the Port of Long Beach PB System website in order to view and download the Contract
economics/contractors/ forms_permits/default.asp. NIB-2 Pre-Bid Questions. All questions, including requests for interpretation or correction, or comments regarding the Contract Documents, must be submitted no later than May 8, 2018, at 5
NIB-3 Mandatory Pre-Bid Meeting. The engineering staff of the City’s Harbor Department will conduct a pre-bid meeting at 10:00 a.m. on April 26, 2018, in the 1st Floor Board Room, of the Port of Long Beach Interim Administrative Office, 4801 Airport Plaza Drive, Long Beach, CA 90815. Attendance is mandatory for the Contractors. It is not mandatory for Subcontractors but highly recommended. The City makes no guarantee that existing construction and site conditions matches construction depicted on record reference documents. Should a Bidder elect not to attend the pre-bid meeting, the Bidder shall not be relieved of its sole responsibility to inform itself of all conditions at the Project Site and the content of the Contract Documents. EACH BIDDER MUST ATTEND THE MANDATORY PRE-BID MEETING. FAILURE TO ATTEND THE MANDATORY PRE-BID MEETING SHALL DISQUALIFY YOUR BID. Bidders are encouraged to RSVP for the Pre-Bid Meeting through the PB System; located under the “RSVP” tab of the Prospective Bidder Detail. Following the meeting a list of Pre-Bid Meeting signed-in attendees will be available on the PB System. Note that attendance at the pre-bid meeting can be used to satisfy a portion of a Bidder’s good faith efforts to meet the SBE/VSBE participation goals listed below. NIB-4 Summary Description of the Work. The Work required by this Contract includes, but is not limited to, the following: Installation of water mains, fire hydrant assemblies, pavement repair, and other appurtenances along Carrack Avenue. Trench excavation, restoration and traffic control. See Section 01 11 00, Summary of Work in the Technical Specifications. NIB-5 Contract Time and Liquidated Damages. The Contractor shall achieve Affidavit of Final Completion of the Project within 180 calendar days as provided in Paragraph SC - 6.1 of the Special Conditions, from a date specified in a written “Notice to Proceed” issued by the City and subject to adjust-
NIB-7 Contractor Performed Work. The Contractor shall perform, with its own employees, Contract Work amounting to at least 50% of the Contract Price, except that any designated “Specialty Items” may be performed by subcontract. The amount of any such “Specialty Items” so performed may be deducted from the Contract Price before computing the amount required to be performed by the Contractor with its own employees. “Specialty Items” will be identified by the City on the Schedule of Bid Items. The bid price of any materials or equipment rental costs from vendors who are solely furnishing materials or rental equipment and are not performing Work as a licensed subcontractor on this project shall also be deducted from the Contract Price before computing the amount required to be performed by the Contractor with its own employees. NIB -8 SBE/VSBE. This project is subject to the Port of Long Beach (POLB) Small Business Enterprises (SBE)/ Very Small Business Enterprises (VSBE) Program. The combined SBE/VSBE participation goal for this project is twenty-seven percent (27%), of which a minimum of five percent (5%) must be allocated to VSBEs. POLB expects all Bidders to achieve the combined SBE/VSBE participation goal. Award of the Contract will be conditioned on the Bidder submitting an SBE2C Commitment Plan demonstrating the Bidder’s intent to meet the combined SBE/ VSBE participation goal. If the Bidder’s Commitment Plan does not demonstrate intent to meet the combined goal, the Bidder shall demonstrate that it made an adequate good faith effort to do so, as specified in the Instructions to Bidders. The Port’s SBE Program staff is available to provide information on the program requirements, including SBE certification assistance. Please contact the SBE Office at (562) 283-7598 or sbeprogram@polb.com. You may also view the Port’s SBE program requirements at www.polb.com/sbe. NIB -9 Prevailing Wage Requirements per Depart-
This Project is subject to compliance monitoring and enforcement by the Department of Industrial Relations. No Contractor or Subcontractor may be listed on a bid proposal for a public works project unless registered with the Department of Industrial Relations pursuant to Labor Code Section 1725.5 (with limited exceptions from this requirement for bid purposes only under Labor Code Section 1771.1(a)). No Contractor or Subcontractor may be awarded a contract for public work on a public works project unless registered with the Department of Industrial Relations pursuant to Labor Code Section 1725.5. Contractors and Subcontractors must furnish electronic Certified Payroll Records (CPRs) to the Labor Commissioner’s Office, and in addition, hardcopies or electronic copies shall be furnished to the Port of Long Beach. NIB -10 P r o j e c t L a b o r Agreement. This project is not covered by a PLA.
NIB -12
NOT USED.
NIB -13 B i d S e c u r i t y, Signed Contract, Insurance and Bonds. Each Bid shall be accompanied by a satisfactory Bidder’s Bond or other acceptable Bid Security in an amount not less than ten percent (10%) of the Base Bid as a guarantee that the Bidder will, if Conditionally Awarded a Contract by the Board, within thirty (30) calendar days after the Contract is conditionally awarded to the Contractor by the City, execute and deliver such Contract to the Chief Harbor Engineer together with all required documents including insurance forms, a Payment Bond for one hundred percent (100%) of the Contract Price, and a Performance Bond for one hundred percent (100%) of the Contract Price. All Bonds shall be on forms provided by the City. NIB -14 C o n d i t i o n a l Award of Contract and Reservation of Rights. The Board, acting through the Executive Director, reserves the right at any time before the execution of the Contract by the City, to reject any or all Bids, and to waive any informality or irregularity. The Conditional Award of the
Contract, if any, will be to the responsible Bidder submitting the lowest responsive and responsible Bid. If the lowest responsive responsible Bidder fails to submit the required documents including insurance forms, bonds and signed Contract within thirty (30) calendar days after Conditional Award of Contract, the Board reserves the right to rescind the Conditional Award and Conditionally Award the Contract to the next lowest responsive and responsible Bidder. NIB -15 Period of Bid Irrevocability. Bids shall remain open and valid and Bidder’s Bonds and other acceptable Bid Security shall be guaranteed and valid for ninety (90) calendar days after the Bid Deadline or until the Executive Director executes a Contract, whichever occurs first. NIB -16 Substitution of Securities. Substitution of Securities for retainage is permitted in accordance with Section 22300 of the Public Contract Code. NIB -17 Iran Contracting Act of 2010. In accordance with Public Contract Code sections 2200-2208, every person who submits a bid or proposal for entering into or renewing contracts with the City for goods or services estimated at $1,000,000 or more are required to complete, sign, and submit the “Iran Contracting Act of 2010 Compliance Affidavit.” Issued at Long Beach, California, this 26th day of March 2018. Mario Cordero, Executive Director of the Harbor Department, City of Long Beach, California Note: For project updates after Bid Opening, please contact plans.specs@polb.com.
April 19 - May 2, 2018
Please refer to the Port of Long Beach PB System for the most current information.
Questions must be submitted electronically through the PB System. Emails, phone calls, and faxes will not be accepted. Questions submitted to City staff will not be addressed and Bidder will be directed to the PB System.
NIB-6 Contractor ’s License. The Bidder shall hold a current and valid Class “A”, California Contractor’s License to bid and construct this project. In addition, the Bidder or subcontractor(s) shall hold a current and valid Class “C34”, California Contractor’s License to perform the Pipeline work.
NIB -11 Trade Names and Substitution of Equals. With the exception of any sole source determination that may be identified in this paragraph, Bidders wishing to obtain City’s authorization for substitution of equivalent material, product, or equipment, are required to submit a written request for an Or Equal Substitution using the form included in Appendix A together with data substantiating Bidder’s representation that the non-specified item is of equal quality to the item specified, thirty five (35) calendar days after Bid Opening. Authorization of a substitution is solely within the discretion of the City.
Mandatory Pre-Bid Meeting:
Note: For project updates after Bid Opening, please contact plans.specs@polb.com.
ment of Industrial Relations. This Project is a public work Contract as defined in Labor Code Section 1720. The Contractor receiving award of the Contract and Subcontractors of any tier shall pay not less than the prevailing wage rates to all workers employed in execution of the Contract. The Director of Industrial Relations of the State of California has determined the general prevailing rates of wages in the locality in which the Work is to be performed. The rate schedules are available on the internet at http://www.dir. ca.gov/dlsr/DPreWageDetermination.htm and on file at the City, available upon request. Bidders are directed to Article 15 of the General Conditions for requirements concerning payment of prevailing wages, payroll records, hours of work and employment of apprentices.
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2. Click “Bid Opportunities”
Mario Cordero, Executive Director of the Harbor Department, City of Long Beach, California
ment as provided in Section 8.2 of the General Conditions. FAILURE OF THE CONTRACTOR TO COMPLETE THE WORK WITHIN THE CONTRACT TIME AND OTHER MILESTONES SET FORTH IN SPECIAL CONDITIONS SC-6.3, INCLUDING THE ENGINEER’S APPROVAL OF AFFIDAVIT OF FINAL COMPLETION, WILL RESULT IN ASSESSMENT OF LIQUIDATED DAMAGES IN THE AMOUNTS ESTABLISHED IN THE SPECIAL CONDITIONS 6.4.
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[Gardens from p. 5]
Gardens
April 19 - May 2, 2018
Real News, Real People, Totally Relevant
with her family she enrolled her eldest son into the San Pedro Cooperative Nursery School. There she discovered big metal bins that were designed to have plants. “It’s a coop where parents have to contribute volunteer hours as a condition for enrolling their children,” Hughey said. She recalled volunteering to be the gardener before anyone else could. They told her they needed someone to do the laundry. “I can do the laundry and be the gardener,” she replied. The experience of working with your children in a general setting opened her eyes. What she witnessed was connection. In this case, the children’s connection to the natural world around them and the food they eat. “It was just the way the children were interacting with aspects of gardening,” she said. “They were finding the lady bugs and they were thrilled with the flowers and they never saw a yellow tomato before. It was eyeopening in a way that couldn’t be placed in a text book. They were getting so much more out of it.” Hughey continued to find connection and a level intimacy through gardening not found in today’s typical transaction types of relationships. Case in point: when Hughey began cultivating a square patch of earth in front of her house, she planted a tomato plant. She later customized the plot with a trellis and a little white fence around the square. Then she added other little plants around the original tomato plant. After awhile, neighbors walking by
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would ask her about gardening. She got enough of these questions that she figured she would learn how to do it. So, she took a 13-week course to earn a master gardener certificate in 2012. She has since gained the life time status as a master gardener after contributing 1,000 volunteer hours educating people about gardening. A steady stream of volunteers come through Green Girl Farms, steadily harvesting and planting. Homeschooled children to adults of all shapes are welcomed. She said she intentionally keeps the prices as low as possible. Back when she was growing more food than she could eat, Hughey learned about the vegetable stand that community activist Rachel Bruhnke started several years ago. Bruhnke led the charge several years ago to spur the growth of urban farms and gardens following the Occupy Movement in 2011. A part of the work was creating distribution networks for locallygrown fresh produce. By the time Hughey came around, Bruhnke had moved on to other related endeavors. She is running for the California District 70 Assembly in the June 5 primary elections. She has also been looking into veteran health and the role gardening could play in rehabilitating veterans suffering from post traumatic stress disorder. “People aren’t born messed up,” she said. “They are twisted that way by life’s circumstances.” She hopes that if she’s elected, she could work on the adjusting the tax code to incentivise the establishment of community gardens and homeowners that transform their homes to have a zero percent carbon imprint.” Bruhnke helped Hughey get the old vegetable [See Gardens, p. 23]
[Gardens from p. 22]
Gardens
stand in front of the Corner Store.
The Candidate
Community activist, teacher and Green candidate for Assembly District 70 Rachel Bruhnke. Photo by Terelle Jerricks
Join us for our
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“There’s something about the land and being in touch with it and defending it and working it, and having access to it,” Bruhnke said. “That’s very empowering and it has a ripple effect because it is all connected.” Bruhnke is a lefty through-and-through and is generally anti-any-system that perpetuates injustice and inequality. It’s the reason why she’s been involved in the local movement against the Iraq war. It’s why she supported the Occupy Wall Street movement in 2011. It’s also why she was at the forefront in extending the occupy movement plank to include urban farms and she started by first building an urban farm in her own front and backyards. From there, she helped establish vegetable garden at the Rancho San Pedro public housing and launch the original vegetable stand at the Corner Store in the White Point neighborhood and volunteered in the early days of the Garden Church. She’s no longer as active in directly establishing urban farms and gardens as she once was, but that doesn’t mean she’s disappeared either. “I changed direction,” Bruhnke said. “I was ... planting seeds as you put it. Like Muhammad Ali, I float like a butterfly and sting like a bee. I definitely moved around various things because that was where the wind was blowing and opportunities came up around that time,” Bruhnke explained. In 2012, Bruhnke got deeply involved in former Vice President Al Gore’s climate reality leadership program in Chicago and focused her attention on the Western transference of oil and all it had to do with the Harbor Area. She was still planting seeds and getting kids excited about agriculture through her teaching career at Port of Los Angeles High School. She founded the school’s annual Port of Los Angeles High School’s Green Festival. Today, however, she is the Green Party’s candidate running against Democratic incumbent Assemblyman Patrick O’Donnell. In her words, she’s running because he’s sitting. Not because he’s particularly doing a bad job. Bruhnke has ton of ideas she hopes to work on if elected. A major plank in her platform has
to do with land reform involving housing and altering the district’s approach to land use. Her ideas are derived from her travels and studies in Latin America where land redistribution is a viable option. Bruhnke has been eying the empty lot on 9th Street across from the YWCA, which has lain empty for the past 15 years. In bringing up the lot, she was pointing to the potential of that property’s ability to solve real community problems. “How is it possible that you have the YWCA with poor women and children right across from empty land?” Bruhnke asked, rhetorically. “They could be growing vegetables on it. Just down the street from them is the Anderson Senior Center, where you have seniors who need to be engaged. There are some who still remember having to cultivate victory gardens during World War II.”
April 19 - May 2, 2018
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April 19 - May 2, 2018
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