De La Guerra Plaza update given

WIKIMEDIA COMMONS/U.S. SENATE

Sen. Dianne Feinstein

Feinstein

won’t seek re-election

(The Center Square) —

U.S. Sen. Dianne Feinstein, D-California, will not seek reelection next year.

Sen. Feinstein, 89, announced the news on Twitter on Tuesday afternoon.

“I am announcing today I will not run for reelection in 2024 but intend to accomplish as much for California as I can through the end of next year when my term ends,” Sen. Feinstein tweeted. “Even with a divided Congress, we can still pass bills that will improve lives.”

Had Sen. Feinstein sought reelection, she would have been challenged by multiple Democrats.

U.S. Rep. Katie Porter, D-Orange County, and U.S. Rep. Adam Schiff, D-Burbank, have both announced runs for the position.

Under California’s jungle primary system, Sen. Feinstein could have faced another Democratic candidate in the general election had she run for re-election. Every candidate runs in a single jungle primary, and the top two vote-getters, regardless of party affiliation, advance to the general election.

Sen. Feinstein defeated thenState Sen. Kevin de Leon, D-Los Angeles, in her 2018 re-election bid. Sen. Feinstein got 54.2% of the vote, while Sen. de Leon got 45.8%.

Progressives in the Democratic Party have also expressed frustration with her opposition to the Green New Deal and for not embracing Medicare-for-All.

Sen. Feinstein was first elected to the U.S. Senate in 1992 and is currently the Senate’s oldest active member.

By DAVE MASON NEWS-PRESS MANAGING EDITOR

UCSB graduate Matthew Mishory is telling the story of two Holocaust survivors’ contribution to global water conservation efforts in “Who Are the Marcuses?”

Mr. Mishory wrote and directed the documentary, which had its world premiere Monday as part of the Santa Barbara International Film Festival.

The film, which includes footage from Israel and its Negev Desert and city of Haifa, will screen again at 3 p.m. today at Metro 4, 618 State St. A reception will follow, and editor Marc Cohen and cinematographer Michael Marius Pessah will join

Mr. Mishory at the screening.

The movie is about Holocaust refugees Lottie and Howard Marcus, a Long Island couple who gave a half-billion-dollar gift to Ben-Gurion University in Israel for its water conservation work.

Mr. and Mrs. Marcus died in the mid-2010s at the ages of 104 and 95, respectively. But Mr. Mishory talked to Ellen Marcus, their daughter, about them as well as various experts including sources in Israel.

“Water scarcity technology and research — that was Howard and Lottie’s passion,” Mr. Mishory told the News-Press Tuesday.

He said the couple first learned about water scarcity issues in the 1990s. “Howard became quite convinced that the next world war could be fought over water if something wasn’t done about this crisis.”

Mr. Mishory, who earned his bachelor’s in film in 2004 at UCSB, said Mr. Marcus was impressed with the progress Israel had made in dealing with water scarcity.

“At some point, he became convinced that Israel had solutions to water problems, not only in its region but all around the world,” said Mr. Mishory, a Jewish filmmaker and West Hollywood resident born in Santa Monica, where he operates his office.

Mr. Mishory, who has dual U.S. and Israeli citizenship, said Mr. Marcus recognized that water conservation isn’t just a matter of survival. Mr. Marcus realized sharing water conservation knowledge could contribute to world peace.

Mr. Mishory explained water conservation is a stool with three legs.

“One leg is education, conservation, recognizing scarcity and the importance of weather,” he said.

“The second component is reused water,” Mr. Mishory said.

“In the United States, we use 5% of our waste water. Israel reuses 95%. Reuse is something we could be doing right away.”

“The third leg of the stool is various technological advancements,” he continued.

By NEIL HARTSTEIN NEWS-PRESS STAFF WRITER

A redesigned De La Guerra Plaza will include a bubbler water fountain for children, a stage, informal seating, selfcleaning bathrooms, cooling trees, and a more open and inviting entrance to City Hall. And no traffic.

Brad Hess, the city’s principal project manager, and Leif McCay, principal at RRM Design Group, presented an update on the De La Guerra Revitalization Project to the Santa Barbara City Council on Tuesday, and the council responded with a positive thumbs-up to how design plans are proceeding.

Under the proposal, the plaza’s current lawn would be replaced with a hardscape.

Council members ended the presentation by authorizing Public Works Director Clifford M. Maurer to execute an agreement to pay $865,088 to RRM Design Group for continued architectural and design services.

The council also amended an agreement with Ann Kale Associates in the amount of $65,599 for lighting design.

Councilmember Kristen Sneddon voiced the most enthusiasm for the plaza design plans, especially the responsiveness of RRM to community and business input, and the respect shown for Santa Barbara’s history by including Chumash representation on the Plaza Advisory Committee while giving a nod to Old Spanish Days.

“We’re honing the historic