Posts by Kevin Cody
Letters to the Editor 6-30-22
Time to send a message Dear ER: From the raiding of Pasha Jewelry in downtown Manhattan Beach last Friday by armed robbers in three getaway cars, to the ransacking of our Manhattan Beach home while we were watching TV Friday evening three weeks ago by masked/gloved thieves, with a fourth manning their getaway car, it’s…
Read MoreThe murder in Noble Park, Hermosa Beach
Crows are protecting their nests, bird expert Bob Shanman says by Kevin Cody Danielle Cohen had just opened her father Harold’s La Playita restaurant for breakfast, when a frightened man ran in from the street. He told her he was being chased by crows. Cohen was not surprised. La Playita, on 14th Street, is next…
Read MoreLetters to the Editor 6-23-22
E-gads Dear ER; Starting at Torrance Beach and continuing to Imperial Highway, the bike path mixes scenic views with shared street lanes, including the Strand in Hermosa Beach. But the path is no longer mostly pedal bikes. On the weekends it has become an electric motorcycle freeway with no speed limit. The variety of E-Bikes…
Read MoreWally Moore was a popular Hermosa Beach Police Department Public Information Officer
Long time Hermosa Beach Police Public Information Officer Wallace “Wally” Moore passed away May 16, at age 81. Moore joined the department in 1964, a tumultuous era when Hells Angels gathered at the Taco Bell on The Strand. During his years as an undercover officer, his cases included the infamous Bittaker-Norris, and Trash Bag murders,…
Read MoreHermosa Beach Greenbelt becomes a stopover for El Segundo Blue, and Monarch Butterflies
by Kevin Cody Dreams of Hermosa Beach becoming a stopover site for local El Segundo Blue Butterflies, and migratory Monarch butterflies moved closer to reality last Saturday with the planting of hundreds of seacliff buckwheat plants on the Hermosa Greenbelt, at Second Street. The planting was organized by South Bay Parkland Conservancy President Jim Light,…
Read MoreHermosa Pride Festival returns with films, music, drag shows
by Kevin Cody The Hermosa Pride Festival returns to Hermosa Beach for the second year next Friday, June 24, through Sunday June 26. According to co-organizers Jose Bacallao, and Randy Renner, the weekend events will begin with a happy hour at 6 p.m., followed by a screening of “Gender Outlaw” at The Stanton HB restaurant,…
Read MoreHermosa City Council discusses Pier Plaza as ‘place maker,’ divided over equity
by Kevin Cody The Hermosa City Council passed a motion, 3 to 1, to accept a city staff recommendation that would allow downtown businesses to use two parallel on-street parking spaces, or three head-in parking spaces for decks in front of their businesses through next January. Councilman Justin Massey cast the sole dissenting vote at…
Read MoreThe Rose of Manhattan – Rose Jacobson was a strong, colorful thread in the fabric of downtown Manhattan Beach for over four decades
by Kevin Cody Manhattan Beach lost one of its most beloved, and longest working downtown business owners with the passing of Cotton Cargo’s Rosemarie Jacobson over the recent Memorial Day Weekend. She was 94. Jacobson opened Cotton Cargo on Manhattan Avenue in 1979, and walked to work from her Marine Avenue home almost daily, into…
Read MoreExceptional Kids Organization (EKO) prom at the Westdrift Hotel Manhattan Beach
Annual prom is highlight of EKO year Photos by Kevin Cody Nearly two decades ago, Dennis May, of Manhattan Beach, was invited to volunteer at a prom for special needs students. The annual prom was hosted by The Exceptional Kids Organization (EKO). Friday evening May emceed EKO’s annual prom at the Westdrift Manhattan Beach Hotel.…
Read MoreEl Camino College offers tuition-free classes
In efforts to remove financial burdens for students El Camino College has announced the Tuition Relief Program, which clears all outstanding tuition and fees for past and current students enrolled since spring 2020. Students who enroll in courses at El Camino College for summer and fall 2022 can apply to have their tuition and fees…
Read MoreHermosa Beach restaurant VISTA, AB Brands donate $5,000 to museum, Jimmy Miller Foundation
VISTA restaurant owner Justin Safier presented checks totaling $5,000 to the Hermosa Beach Historical Society’s Annie Seawright-Newton, and Chris Brown, of the Jimmy Miller Memorial Foundation over the Memorial Day Weekend. AB Brands (Anheuser-Busch) also contributed to the charities. Seawright-Newton was this year’s Hermosa Beach Person of the Year. Brown is president of the California…
Read MoreConductor Joanna Medwar Nachef showcases El Camino’s musical legacy
by Kevin Cody Joanna Medawar Nachef, El Camino College’s Director of Choral and Orchestral Activities, assembled a program that looked intimidatingly long for the school’s Diamond Jubilee Concert. It ended too quickly, after stunningly showcasing the school’s musical legacy. The free concert was held Saturday, June 4 at the campus’ Marsee Auditorium, headlined by alumnus,…
Read More‘Studies, studies, studies,’ Hermosa Council questions budget
by Kevin Cody Hermosa Beach’s four largest income sources are projected to increase in the coming year, according to the 2022-23 Budget Overview presented by City Finance Director Viki Copeland to the city council at its Thursday, June 2 budget workshop. But the increases won’t be sufficient to balance the projected $48 million budget. To…
Read MoreNew Manhattan Beach Kinecta Federal Credit Union flagship evokes past and future
by Kevin Cody The word Kinecta appeared on Redondo Police chief Keith Kauffman’s skate helmet at the 2017 King Harbor Skateboard Championships. It appears regularly on pop-ups at South Bay Boardrider and Jimmy Miller Foundation surf contests. It appears on team T-shirts at the Skechers Friendship Walk and the Tour de Pier. It’s on checks…
Read MoreA music, art and community reunion at Fiesta Hermosa 2022
Music Art Community The Hermosa Beach Memorial Day Weekend Fiesta rebounded from the pandemic with a potent mixture of music, art and community. The expanded layout stretched from Hermosa Avenue, up Pier Avenue to the Community Center, where the art booths, and carnival rides were located. Bands performed on the…
Read MoreStreet Dining Decks can stay, but no more beer pong, Hermosa Beach City council decides
by Kevin Cody Street dining decks on Pier and Hermosa avenues will remain open, and auto traffic lanes will remain closed, at least until January 2023, the Hermosa Beach City Council decided by unanimous vote at its Tuesday evening meeting. But restaurants may be required to “use or lose their decks,” council members agreed. The…
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