Posts by Kevin Cody
Letters to the Editor 1-18-24
More juice for less, and healthier Dear ER: The Clean Power Alliance (CPA) will serve Hermosa well, contrary to the disinformation published here last week (“Letters to the Editor; Power play,” Jan. 11, 2024). CPA has served Manhattan and Redondo well for years, and this March Hermosa joins CPA to provide residents more clean power…
Read MoreBergstrom helped Keep Hermosa Hermosa for over 50 years
by Kevin Cody Katherine Bergstrom, one of the last of the “Swedish Mafia,” which waged a 50-year battle to “Keep Hermosa Hermosa,” decades before the slogan was coined during the 2015 oil drilling debate, has died. Bergstrom was 87. She passed away January 5, surrounded by loved ones. Katherine Chappelear married into Hermosa’s “Swedish Mafia,”…
Read MoreHermosa kindergarten, TK parent welcomings scheduled
by Kevin Cody During the Hermosa Beach State of the Schools address last November, Superintendent Jason Johnson used language he knew his Hermosa parents would understand, in underscoring the value of early childhood education. Children who attend transitional kindergarten are more likely to become homeowners than children who don’t attend transitional kindergarten, he said. The…
Read MoreRoundhouse hosts King Tide support of King Tide Project
Beach goers will be able to walk out on the hard pack sand, nearly to the ends of the Hermosa Beach and Manhattan Beach piers on Thursday, January 11 and Friday, January 12. On those days, at 3:43 p.m. on Thursday, and 4:24 p.m on Friday, the tides will reach lows of minus 1.7 feet.…
Read MoreLetters to the Editor 1-11-24
2023 shutdown Dear ER: Thank you, Easy Reader, for acknowledging the closure of the AES Power Plant was, indeed, the Story of the Year (“2023 Story of the Year: A brand new Redondo future,” ER January 4, 2024). We now face the future with hope. Barbara Epstein Redondo Beach We did it Dear ER:…
Read MoreVince Ray shared the surfing stoke with over 12,000 kids as coach, and even more as Surfing Santa
by Kevin Cody Vince Ray brought the joy of surfing to over 12,000 kids, as director of the Chevron Hermosa Surf Camp, and holiday joy to even more kids as Easy Reader’s Surfing Santa. Ray passed away Wednesday morning, January 3, at age 66, after a year-long fight with pancreatic cancer. Ray was a special…
Read MoreSouth Bay, last week of December 2023
Final days of 2023 deliver swell South Bay surfers won’t soon forget
by Kevin Cody The swell that hit South Bay beaches last Thursday invites comparison to the swells that flooded the Hermosa Strand in 1983; blew a hole in the Redondo Breakwall, and blew out the windows of the Portofino Hotel in 1988; and breached the breakwall again in January of this year, destroying the King…
Read MoreBeach Cities Passings 2023
Casey found his voice, shared it for the disabled Casey Rohrer “If I could write everything I am thinking, my words would reach to the sky,” Casey Rohrer said in a 2016 documentary about a play he had written. At the time, his play, “Once Upon a Road Trip,” was in rehearsals with the Family…
Read MoreTop 10 Letters to the Editor 2023
Alfresco lifestyle Dear ER: In an area where the weather is Mediterranean-like, sunny to mildly hot most of the year, why isn’t alfresco dining a natural thing here in SoCal? There are many places that would kill to have our weather just so they could offer this type of dining experience, and Manhattan Beach is…
Read MoreKing Harbor Holiday Boat Parade honors First Responders
Honoring our Storm First Responders The King Harbor Holiday Boat Parade on Saturday, December 9, honored the First Responders who protected the harbor during last year’s pounding storms. Public Works, Fire, and Police Department employees were among the guests at the annual holiday barbecue. Other guests included Assemblyman Al Muratsuchi, Redondo Beach Councilmembers Todd Loewenstein…
Read MoreLetters to the Editor 12-21-23
Bark alert Dear ER: Off-leash dogs are an ongoing problem in Czuleger Park in Redondo Beach. My neighbor was recently bitten by one. When she yelled, “Ow!” the owner just walked away. There are many dog parks in Redondo, but these selfish dog owners want their ocean view. They even post a “look out” at…
Read MoreHermosa Beach Council tightens ban on short term vacation rentals in residential neighborhoods
by Kevin Cody Despite short term vacation rentals (STVRs) in residential neighborhoods being illegal in Hermosa Beach, approximately 150 are presently advertised on STVR websites, Hermosa Beach Community Development Director Carrie Tai told the city council at its Tuesday, December 12 meeting. (STVRs are defined as rentals of fewer than 30 days.) Advertising and operating…
Read MoreHistorical Society celebrates Christmas past, present, future
Photos by Elka Worner The Hermosa Beach Historical Society hosted its annual holiday season party on Thursday, Dec. 7. The evening included a reading of the true history of Surfing Santa, written by Easy Reader publisher Kevin Cody and read by Museum Vice President Jake Courtney. Guests socialized among the museum’s exhibits, which include Surfing…
Read MoreA clouded Hermosa Menorah Lighting celebration
by Kevin Cody Hot latkes were served and the Jewish Community Center children’s choir performed traditional Chanukah music during the annual Menorah Lighting celebration on Hermosa’s Pier Plaza on Sunday, December 10. Rabbi Yossi Mintz, who founded the annual celebration in 2013, encouraged the crowd that packed the plaza to sing and dance. But October…
Read MoreHollander shaped the retail surf industry
Personal and business friends gathered from throughout Southern California Saturday at the Hermosa Beach pier for a paddleout in memory of Becker Surf founder Dave Hollander. Hollander and partners Phil Becker and Steve Mangeli founded Becker Surf in 1980 and built it into one of the country’s largest surf companies, with seven Southern California shops.…
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