Hermosa Beach health enforcement workers threatened over sports, mask rules
Rules on mask wearing and other public health precautions enacted by the Hermosa Beach City Council last month are encountering resistance, officials said Tuesday, with the workers brought on to enforce the rules occasionally facing harassment and threats. Chief Paul LeBaron of the Hermosa Beach Police Department told the council the contracted staff who […]
Hermosa Beach teachers absorb lessons of spring shutdown as they ready for first day of school
It’s tough to conceive of a class that is simultaneously less suited to social distancing and harder to replicate over the internet than the Sparks Lab at Hermosa View School. The class, funded primarily through philanthropy, teaches STEM principles to first, second and third graders through what educators call “project-based learning.” In practice, that means […]
About Town Hermosa Beach
Back to school Citing a need to bob and weave amid the changing conditions of the coronavirus pandemic, Superintendent Jason Johnson unveiled plans for the coming year in the Hermosa Beach City School District with a little wisdom from The Baddest Man on the Planet. “I liken this year to the Mike Tyson quote: ‘Everyone […]
Accidental overdose claims Hermosa Beach youth
Scotty Hemstreet, a 14-year-old Hermosa Beach resident, died earlier this month from an accidental drug overdose inside an east Hermosa home. Friends and family recalled Scotty as funny, wickedly smart and often the center of attention, a person who was happiest in motion, either sailing over the ocean or with a skateboard under his feet. […]
Pod People: Schools to open the year exclusively with distance learning, so South Bay parents search for alternatives
Susan Robinson wants her daughter to be bilingual, so it was good news when the Redondo Beach resident learned this spring that her five-year-old had been accepted into the dual immersion program at Washington Elementary. The program, which includes kids from both English- and Spanish-speaking families, lasts throughout a child’s time at the school, but […]
Newsom halts in-door dining; earlier closing time for 4th in HB
All restaurants in the South Bay and the rest of Los Angeles County will be limited to takeout and outdoor dining for the next three weeks, Gov. Gavin Newsom announced Wednesday, a move intended to curtail the recent, rapid growth of the coronavirus but which is likely to reignite disputes over the impact of COVID-19 […]
South Bay ham radio enthusiasts ready for socially distant Field Day
Brian Johnson loosened the drawstrings on a plush bag, which in its former life held a bottle of Crown Royal Canadian whisky. Today, it holds the means to talk to anyone in the world, or maybe even those outside it. Johnson is the club station manager for the Hughes Amateur Radio Club, which draws […]
Hermosa Beach City Council okays new rules to help restaurants, retail survive pandemic
Restaurants in Hermosa Beach may soon be able to reopen with tables in streets and parking lots, and retailers will be able to hold their longest-ever sidewalk sale, thanks to a series of measures approved by the City Council Tuesday. The action is intended to help Hermosa businesses survive the economic downturn associated with the […]
The Strand to reopen in Hermosa Beach
Hermosa Beach will reopen The Strand at 6 a.m. Saturday morning, on the beginning of Memorial Day weekend, lifting a two-month closure put in place to slow the spread of the coronavirus. In a special Thursday night meeting, the City Council voted 4-1 to reopen to reopen the beachside path, a decision that followed pleading […]
Rate of new coronavirus cases may be starting to decline, county says
The coronavirus is spreading slowly enough to allow further relaxation of the restrictions put in place to battle it, Los Angeles County officials said Wednesday, and to begin to reopen sectors of the economy struggling to survive. The average number of people infected by a person with an active case of COVID-19, the disease caused […]
Locals’ burrito bowl donation fights hunger of housebound
Last week, on the day after Los Angeles County beaches reopened, surfers emerging from the waves left wet footsteps as they trod past the 11th Street entrance to Brothers Burritos in Hermosa Beach, slowing as the familiar smell of the post-surf favorite wafted out the door. The scent was a bit more powerful than usual, […]
Summer beach camps in coronavirus impact zone
This time of year, Tommy Ostendorf’s phone is usually ringing off the hook. Ostendorf is the owner of Beach Sports, a summer beach camp with locations throughout the South Bay. He starts getting calls about early bird bookings in March and April, and then around Memorial Day things really start to ramp up with […]
Thousands ignore stay-at-home orders to catch South Bay’s sparkling seas
Thousands of people headed for the sand in the South Bay this past weekend, defying stay-at-home orders and beach closures put in place to combat the spread of the coronavirus. Officers with the Hermosa Beach Police Department estimated the Saturday night crowd in the city’s downtown and beaches at between 2,000 and 3,000 people. Sgt. […]
South Bay beaches to reopen May 13
Beaches in the South Bay and the rest of Los Angeles County will reopen for certain activities Wednesday, more than six weeks after they were closed to slow the spread of the coronavirus pandemic. Beaches countywide will be open from dawn to dusk, but will be limited to “active recreation,” said Public Information Officer Nicole […]
Several dozen take to sand and surf for ‘reopen’ protest in Hermosa Beach
May Day protesters reclaim the beach in Hermosa Beach, at least for briefly. They respect police order to leave.
Nine deaths in the Beach Cities from COVID-19 so far
Nine people in the Beach Cities have died from COVID-19, according to newly released data from county health authorities. This week, Los Angeles County Department of Public Health began releasing a breakdown of death, infection and testing information, revealing for the first time how many people in particular cities and neighborhoods have died in the […]