Posts by Mark McDermott
Open Carry gun activists kicked out of Los Angeles area restaurant
A dozen armed South Bay Open Carry gun activists were escorted out of a restaurant at the South Bay Galleria mall Saturday afternoon by a Redondo Beach policeman. Open Carry activists accused the officer of “rogue” behavior in singling out the group at the Red Robin restaurant and said he violated their Constitutional right to…
Read MoreSuspect arrested for 2003 RUHS sexual assault
A man was arrested Monday in connection with the sexual assault of a high school girl in a brutal 2003 incident that detectives believe they have finally solved through advances in DNA identification technology. Sylvester Gene Rawls, 45, was arrested outside his Long Beach home after police linked him to the case through biological evidence…
Read MoreMar Ventures awarded RBUSD’s Knob Hill lease
Local development firm Mar Ventures Tuesday night was awarded the lease for the Redondo Beach Unified School District’s site at Knob Hill, contingent upon negotiations for final lease terms. Mar Ventures, which submitted a bid to build an affordable housing complex, was selected as the next highest responsible bidder after the school district was unable…
Read MoreRedondo Beach awards trash hauler $50 million contract
The Redondo Beach City Council on Tuesday night hired a new trash hauler who will offer slightly reduced rates for local residents and businesses while drastically decreasing the amount of waste from Redondo Beach that ends up in landfills. Athens Services was awarded an exclusive eight year solid waste handling contract valued at $50.5 million.…
Read MoreCathy Rubin, Rover Rescue founder, passes away
Cathy Rubin, the founder of Rover Rescue and a longtime Redondo Beach resident, passed away last week after losing a two year battle with cancer. She was 54. “She fought really hard,” said James Mackey, her partner. “But there was nothing that was going to stop this.” A decade ago, Rubin left behind a successful…
Read MoreLagoon’s end appears near
The Seaside Lagoon will open this summer regardless of the political hurdles it faces in coming months. But it may very likely be a lagoon in name only. The City Council Tuesday night refused to fund studies required by a state regulatory agency in order for the city to keep operating the water portion of…
Read MoreSouth Bay Architecture [PHOTOS]
Read about these images in Modernism arrives in the South Bay, .
Read MoreDecade In Review: Architecture
Modernism arrives in the South Bay In decades past, the South Bay was known more for its utter lack of architectural significance than for anything actually built here. It was a disconcerting experience for architects who came to Los Angeles to explore the cutting-edge inventiveness of places like Venice Beach and Pacific Palisades to drive…
Read MoreThe Year in Review: Redondo’s turning point
2010 was a year of turning points in Redondo Beach. Politically, the nine-year battle over the future of the harbor finally culminated in a ballot-box battle. Measure G, an attempt to pick up the pieces of the failed Heart of the City plan and revitalize the city’s ailing harbor area, handily prevailed at the polls…
Read MoreRecreation department to move to Artesia Boulevard
The City of Redondo Beach announced on Tuesday that lease terms had been agreed upon that will allow it to relocate its Recreation and Community Services Department to Artesia Boulevard. The agreement, finalized in the City Council’s closed session Tuesday night, is a nine year lease with two five year extensions. The city will pay…
Read MoreAnimal ambassadors visit Tulita school
Officers Marco Garcia and John Carrillo spend their days conducting unruly, dangerous, and sometimes stinky missions. The city’s animal control officers track down runaway dogs, moderate barking disputes, and are sent into garages and sometimes even kitchens where raccoons, possums, and skunks have accidently found themselves cornered. They scoop up injured turtles, deal with peacock…
Read MoreAmbassador High : Christian high school bid falls short
The fledgling vision for a small faith-based academy, Ambassador High School, will not come to fruition at 320 Knob Hill. Officials from the Redondo Beach Unified School District and Ambassador School announced last week that negotiations for a lease on the former school site have ended unsuccessfully. Ambassador CEO and headmaster Mike Barker said that…
Read MoreTravels with the pirate master — Omar Torrez, Wandering the world with Waits
Think more Captain Jack Sparrow and less Captain Hook. He’s light on his feet and inclined towards sly exuberance and an appreciation for the finer things in life. He wears scarves and eats well. He’ll steal your women, alright, but he’s going to be very particular about which vintage of wine is also included in the loot, and there is likely to be some parting complaint about the meager quality of your tequila. And that sound you hear as he traipses away will be his guitar, played deliriously, gorgeously and with celebratory gusto.
Read MoreHigh school IB program lauded, criticized
A newly adopted diploma program aimed at giving Redondo Union High School students a more international and rigorous educational alternative has come under fire from a group of teachers and department heads who are asking district leadership to delay its implementation. The International Baccalaureate program, however, has been embraced by the Redondo Beach Unified School…
Read MoreStudent guilty of supplying alcohol in ‘party bus’ death
A French student who organized the “party bus” trip to Hollywood for fellow students from the EF International Language School that ended in the tragic death of a 17-year-old boy from Denmark admitted guilt this week of contributing to the delinquency of a minor. Jeremy Touche, 22, pled no contest to the misdemeanor charge at…
Read MoreThree candidates vie for school board; city candidates run unopposed
Three candidates have filed to run for two seats that will be vacated by termed-out board members on the Redondo Beach Unified School District Board of Education, while incumbents for two City Council seats, city clerk, and city treasurer are running unopposed in the upcoming March 8 election. The filing deadline was Dec. 10. Candidates…
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