EE FR
FRIDAY, AUGUST 1, 2003
Volume 2, Issue 224
Santa Monica Daily Press A newspaper with issues
Club on SM Pier in works for a decade
L O T T O FANTASY 5 39, 23, 38, 12, 7 DAILY 3
‘Club Route 66’ still a pipe dream
Afternoon picks: 1, 3, 8 Evening picks: 0, 7, 9
DAILY DERBY 1st Place: 06, Whirl Win 2nd Place: 01, Gold Rush 3rd Place: 03, Hot Shot
BY JOHN WOOD Daily Press Staff Writer
NEWS OF THE WEIRD by Chuck Shepard
■ In Racine, Wis., in January, city and state officials knocked on Angie Anderson’s door to inform her that they were about to capture a sickly owl in a tree in her yard, but she explained that the reason it appeared immobile was that it was a fake owl, purchased two years earlier from Wal-Mart for $14.99. ■ A consciousness-raising stunt by People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals hit a snag in March at the Palm Springs Middle School in Hialeah, Fla., when PETA was informed that its sign in Spanish on its life-size cow prop, reading “Echar la Leche” (translation of their slogan, “Dump Dairy”) was also slang for “ejaculate.”
QUOTE OF THE DAY John Wood/Daily Press
“In the long run we are all dead.” – John Maynard Keynes
INDEX Horoscopes Avoid conflict, Libra . . . . . . . . . . . . .2
Local How to deal with coyotes . . . . . . . .3
Opinion Homeless center is bad news . . . . .4
Entertainment ‘Gigli’ is bad — real bad . . . . . . . . .6
State Gangmembers attack Marines . . .7
National Gains made in Glacier fire . . . . . .11
International Glowing fish for sale in Taiwan . .13
Sports Mercedes Cup at UCLA today . . .15
People in the News Kidman wins libel award . . . . . . .20
William Bubar, co-owner of Bubar’s Jewelers, helps customer Sari Boesky of Pacific Palisades try on a bracelet Thursday.
Leaving the mall feels good to store owners
Local jeweler has been downtown for 58 years BY JOHN WOOD Daily Press Staff Writer
While local leaders lament the decline of independent businesses in Santa Monica, a handful have survived despite the corporate boom. One is Bubar’s Jewelers, which, for the past 58 years, has had a presence downtown. Coowners William Bubar and Inez Johnson said Thursday the success of Bubar’s comes from a deepseated commitment to service. “The best part about our business is we always see people during their happy occasions,” said Bubar, who sells pieces that range from as little as $10 to more than $20,000. “It’s been a hands-on business.
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“My parents believed in treating their customers right and treating their employees right. Our employees have been like family and our customers have been our friends.” Despite the sour economy, Bubar’s July sales were up 20 percent over sales in June. Gross sales for the store have topped $1 million in good years, like in 1992, and dropped by as much as 50 percent in lean years, like in 2002, Bubar said. Bubar’s was recently given the Business Leadership Award by the Santa Monica Chamber of Commerce, which it has been a member of since 1945. And the local jewelry shop has participated in several art fairs, promotions and business groups. See MERCHANTS, page 8
A would-be club on the Santa Monica Pier has been vacant for a decade because of a dispute between a local businessman and City Hall. Russell Barnard signed a lease in 1993 to develop an unused space on the pier into “Club Route 66,” a restaurant and club with live entertainment. But after nearly 10 years, the project still has not come to fruition. And now a judge is set to decide who’s to blame. The space, which is located between the arcade and the food court at 370 Santa Monica Pier, has been vacant since the late 1970s when Sinbad’s Restaurant closed its doors. In the mid-1990s, the building on the property was torn down because it was considered a fire hazard. Barnard, who also owns a separate restaurant and bar on the pier called Rusty’s Surf Ranch, was selected by City Hall in 1988 from a pool of applicants who sought to develop the popular piece of property. According to the parameters of the lease, Barnard was to pay $75,800 each year or 5 percent of gross sales, whichever is more, said Mark Richter, the manager of eco-
“He had years to perform and he didn’t.” — TONY SERRITELLA Deputy city attorney
In 1998, City Hall issued Barnard a building permit. He then moved forward with the financial arrangements, hired staff members and obtained a liquor license for the property. By February 2000, Barnard still had not begun construction and received an extension of the previously-issued building permits. But by 2001, Barnard said city officials had revoked those permits and stopped returning his calls and e-mails. With the 12,000-square-foot site still dark in September 2002, he turned to the courts. Barnard accused City Hall of corruption and malice and sued it for fraudulently violating his lease. He is seeking an unspecified See ROUTE 66, page 8
Genetically engineered trees quietly sprouting BY PAUL ELIAS AP Biotechnology Writer
SAN FRANCISCO — Roll over John Muir and tell Johnny Appleseed the news: Biotechnology is coming to the forest and orchard. Scientists are planting genetically engineered trees in dozens of research projects across the country, ignoring the pleas of environmentalists who fear dan-
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nomic development for the city. But the rent was deferred so Barnard could improve the property. Once he signed the lease in 1993, Barnard said it took him several years to obtain the proper permits for the new venue.
gerous, unintended consequences. “It won't be as widespread as agricultural biotechnology, but it could be much more destructive,” said Jim Diamond, chairman of the Sierra Club's genetic engineering committee. “Trees are what's left of our natural environment and home to endangered species.” The Sierra Club wants a moratorium on the planting of genetic engineered trees outSee TREES, page 10
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