By LILY TINOCO | Reporter

As COVID-19 cases continue to surge in California and Los Angeles County, Public Health is reminding businesses to operate as safely as possible.

LA County Department of Public Health reported that compliance teams continue to visit businesses to review protocols with business owners and issue citations for businesses out of compliance.

A total of 143 citations were issued to businesses including restaurants, gyms, salons, places of worship and shipping for noncompliance with Health Officer Orders from December 6, 2020, through January 3.

One citation was issued to Rick Caruso’s Palisades Village on Wednesday, December 16, for an unregulated facility, noncompliance to COVID-19 HOO.

A representative from Caruso did not immediately reply to a request for comment.

“Businesses that are not adhering to safety protocols to protect workers and customers contribute to increased risk for COVID-19 spread,” according to Public Health. “Because COVID-19 is spreading throughout LA County at an alarming acceleration, businesses are reminded they have a duty to protect employees, customers and residents from transmission of COVID-19 as much as possible and implement all safety measures in the business protocols that prevent COVID-19 transmission.”

Public Health reported that on average, 10 people in LA County test positive for COVID-19 every minute, at least 10 to 12% of infected people end up hospitalized, and more than 1% of people diagnosed with COVID-19 end up dying.

Two residents at Atria Park of Pacific Palisades, a senior living facility located on Sunset Boulevard, have died after previously testing positive for COVID-19, according to data from Public Health.

From its most recent full-community test on January 5, a representative from Atria Park reported all residents at the facility received negative results. One additional employee tested positive.

“On a weekly basis, we continue to test all residents and staff, under the guidance of the Los Angeles County Department of Public Health, and as we continue the other rigorous infection control protocols we have undertaken since the pandemic began,” Jane Germaine, regional vice president of Atria Senior Living, said to the Palisadian-Post.

As the Post went to print Tuesday, January 12, Public Health had identified 944,319 positive cases of COVID-19 across the county when factoring in Long Beach and Pasadena, with a total of 12,674 deaths.

Public Health reminded the community that now, more than ever, is the time to avoid contact with others who aren’t in your household.

“The damaging impact to our families and our local hospitals from this surge is the worst disaster our county has experienced in decades,” according to Public Health. “The biggest single factor contributing to the surge comes down to the actions individuals are taking.

“We need everyone to do the right thing—to protect each other so we stop the transmission that is now occurring at epic proportions.”

The number of positive COVID-19 cases in Pacific Palisades had reached 560, with 107 additional in the Palisades Highlands, as the Post went to print Tuesday evening.

Nine deaths have been reported in the Palisades.

By LILY TINOCO | Reporter

Community members have expressed their concerns of trash found locally and on area beaches, leaving them with a lingering question: What can we do to help?

Palisadian Cheyne McClellan has recently taken action regarding the noticeable increase in trash and litter throughout Los Angeles’ city, hills and beaches by writing to various departments and Mayor Eric Garcetti.

“I’ve noticed it more recently and I definitely think it’s progressively getting worse,” McClellan said to the Palisadian-Post. “I don’t know what has created the increase in the trash situation, but it appears to be worse all over. Trash is scattered everywhere, and now there are items that were not as common before COVID, such as masks and gloves, which has exacerbated the situation”

Locally founded environmental organization Resilient Palisades participated in Coastal Cleanup Day in September, coordinated by Santa Monica-based environmental organization Heal the Bay. Data reports show that single-use personal protective equipment made it on the top 10 items found by volunteers for the first time ever in 2020.

“Through our data, we can clearly see the effects of the pandemic on our waste stream,” according to Heal the Bay.

Nicole Mooradian, public information officer at the LA Department of Beaches and Harbors, told the Post excess trash at the beaches may be due to pandemic-related financial decisions.

LA County faced severe budget cuts at the wake of the novel coronavirus and at the start of the pandemic, leading to a hiring freeze. Beaches and Harbors was unable to hire seasonal ground maintenance workers and was left with a lower staffing level.

This doesn’t allot the current crew much time to pick up the tideline or parking lots.

“With all [the] restroom cleaning plus additional trash, it got to the point where we literally don’t have the resources, we don’t have the people and we don’t have the time to run an additional pick-up per day,” Mooradian said.

And without the resources for maintenance, trash begins to spread quickly.

“A lot of [people] aren’t leaving their trash out just to litter, people are putting [trash] in the bins, but the bins start overflowing and once the lids can’t shut, you’ll get seagulls and they’ll start pulling everything out,” Mooradian said. “It’s a whole lot of factors that have just made things difficult.”

Mooradian said Beaches and Harbors appreciates any help the public offers.

“Right now, due to current Public Health orders, you can’t grab a few friends and go … but if you’re taking a walk on the beach, pick up a few pieces of trash while you’re there,” she said.

Resilient Palisades is currently working on initiatives to reduce plastic and other waste items in Pacific Palisades. Its Zero Waste Team is one of four teams working on ways to reduce humanity’s ecological footprint as a community.

Resilient Palisades encouraged Palisadians to remember that much of the trash on the streets and beaches is a result of single-use items, often plastics, and to reject single use items as much as possible.

“This includes remembering to bring reusable bags to the grocery store, advocating that coffee shops start to allow reusable cups again, and rejecting plastic cutlery and paper napkins from restaurant take-out,” Co-Founder and Board President Ingrid Steinberg said to the Post.

McClellan shared hope to see change soon.

“If you look anywhere …  you see trash, and that affects everybody, it truly does,” McClellan said. “I have three young children and it breaks my heart to think if the trash is this bad now, what will it be like for them 20 years from now when they’re all adults?”

For additional resources or to help with these efforts, visit resilientpalisades.org.

By LILY TINOCO | Reporter

California Governor Gavin Newsom signed 372 new laws in 2020, ranging from COVID-19, minimum wage, diversification in the workplace and more. A number of new laws went into effect Friday, January 1, and will continue to go into effect throughout the year, bringing some day-to-day changes for Palisadians.

Here are a few of the new laws taking effect in California this year:

Coronavirus Exposure

One of the most significant changes is the introduction of laws pertaining to COVID-19.

Under Assembly Bill 685, employers are required to provide written notice within 24 hours to workers who may have been exposed to COVID-19. Employers can face fines for violations.

A second law is expanding employees’ compensation if they contract the virus at work.

The two laws will be in effect until 2023.

Minimum Wage

Minimum wage continues to rise incrementally as part of a plan to make the state’s minimum wage $15.

The $14.25 minimum wage established on July 1, 2020, for Los Angeles will go up to $15 an hour on July 1.

Fire Hazard

Introduced by California State Senator Henry Stern, CA SB 63 hopes to enact fire prevention—an issue prevalent in Pacific Palisades.

The law requires homeowners with homes in identified areas of the state as very high fire hazard severity zones to create an “ember-resistant zone” within five feet of the structure, eliminating materials that would likely be ignited by embers.

The very high fire hazard severity zone, “comprises most of the hilly and mountainous regions of the city of Los Angeles,” according to the LA Fire Department.

This includes the Palisades, the Palisades Highlands, Castellammare and portions of surrounding communities.

Diversification

A law that went into effect 2019, which required all publicly owned California-based companies to have at least one woman director on the board, will now require a board with at least five members to have at least two women, and a board with six members to have three women.

Assembly Bill 97 will also require companies to hire directors from underrepresented communities, meaning individuals who self-identify as, “Black, African American, Hispanic, Latino, Asian, Pacific Islander, Native American, Native Hawaiian, or Alaska Native, or who self-[identify] as gay, lesbian, bisexual, or transgender.”

The law is “designed to increase representation of women and minorities in job positions in which they are historically underrepresented,” according to the bill.

Reparations

Assembly Bill 3121 establishes a task force comprised of Regents of the University of California to study, research and develop reparation proposals for African Americans, with special consideration for African Americans who are descendants of persons enslaved in the United States.

This would require the task force to “recommend, among other things, the form of compensation that should be awarded, the instrumentalities through which it should be awarded, and who should be eligible for this compensation,” according to the bill.

Distracted Driving

Although existing law already prohibits individuals from driving with a phone in-hand, the consequences are getting stricter.

Existing law under Assembly Bill 47 offers exemption for telephone use as described from being counted as points against a driver’s record for purposes of suspension or revocation of driving privilege.

Beginning July 1, the bill will make violations that occur within 36 months of a prior conviction for the same offense subject to a violation point against a driver’s record.

By BRETT ABRAMS | Intern

Hunter Hammarberg and Sam Pass, two 17-year-old Palisadians and Palisades Charter High School seniors, recently embarked on a business endeavor that not only gives them the opportunity to gain entrepreneurial experience, but one that also benefits the Palisades community.

Hammarberg and Pass created their business, Hunter and Sam’s Odd Jobs, in January 2020 at the age of 16, and it has only continued to grow since then. The services Hammarberg and Pass offer include, but are not limited to, moving, shopping, furniture assembly and basic technological support for Palisadians.

“Hunter and I have always been very hard workers with a strong passion and drive for business,” Pass explained. “We decided to create Hunter and Sam’s Odd Jobs because we were both in need of a job, and wanted to be of use to our community.”

The pair first began their business venture by posting an advertisement on Nextdoor.

“The response we got was amazing,” Hammarberg said. Since then, the business “has simply spread through word-of-mouth and positive referrals.”

Although the job requests Hammarberg and Pass receive tend to vary depending on the clients and their needs, moving has clearly been their most popular service.

“The first weeks of the pandemic were surprisingly our busiest as people scrambled to move,” Hammerberg said.

“When we first started, we had basically infinite jobs and were working almost every day,” Hammarberg continued. However, after their fast start, their business experienced “a lull over the summer.” Fortunately, the duo received more job requests in recent months, and their business is back in full swing.

“Hunter and I are both hard working, and we always wanted to make a business,” Pass said. “I got this idea one day: ‘What if we just do every kind of job for people in the Palisades?’”

With that thought, Hunter and Sam’s Odd Jobs was born.

Although the company originally started with “two hard-working friends doing all types of jobs in their local neighborhood,” Pass and Hammarberg discovered some unintended benefits from communicating with their clients.

“We get to network with different people from all over Los Angeles and hear stories about how they got where they are, and learn about their business tactics and skills,” Pass said. “I think that’s the coolest part—networking and building relationships with other businesspeople that we get to learn from.”

When starting their business, Hammarberg and Pass did not need to purchase and spend money on appliances; together, the duo already possessed all the equipment required to complete jobs.

“This isn’t a company in the typical sense where we could sell it or its assets,” Hammarberg said. “The only assets are our trucks, our tools and ourselves.”

Set to graduate from Pali High in June 2021, Hammarberg and Pass have already started to plan how they will use their business profits. Pass shared plans to “pay for college and make investments with the money [he’s] made.” Pass also shared hopes to have a future as an entrepreneur and use the tactics and skills he has “learned from clientele to continue with future business ventures.”

Similarly, Hammerberg has already accomplished what he wanted from the business, “which was to gain valuable experience and save money for the future.”

Although their business and some of the jobs have gotten more complex over time, Hunter and Sam’s Odd Jobs has preserved its original foundation.

“Two 16-year-old boys were able to create a company with a stable income and build connections with all these people—that’s what it’s all about,” Pass said.

The two high school students plan to continue Hunter and Sam’s Odd Jobs for as long as possible. Pass said that he firmly believes his work, and the experiences it comes with, have been critical to his growth as a person. Additionally, Hammerberg values his time “helping out the community, and the satisfaction that comes with a job well done.”

For any business inquiries, call 310-384-0108 or email huntersamoddjobs@gmail.com.

The Palisadian-Post has teamed up with locally founded environmental nonprofit Resilient Palisades to deliver a weekly “green tip” to readers.

Resilient Palisades hopes your new year is off to a good start! If you’re looking to get a fresh start on a more resilient future, here a few things you and your family can do to help address some of our most pressing environmental (and social) issues. Together, Palisadians can build a safer, cleaner and plain better community and country.

Energy: Sign up for clean energy through your utility provider. Fifty percent of California’s energy is still sourced from coal.

Water: We live in a Mediterranean climate, and our water is shipped from northern California and the Colorado River. Rethink your lawns, landscape with low-water plants and mulch to help retain moisture in your soil.

Air: Although they continue to be the norm, one of the most passé and archaic behaviors we partake in on a daily basis is the use gas-powered gardening equipment. You can reduce your family’s output of thousands of pounds of carbon dioxide, benzene, formaldehyde and other noxious chemicals into your home and backyard.

Speak with your gardener about making the shift to zero-emission equipment (rebates of up to 75% off through the South Coast Air Quality Management District on commercial-grade alternatives).

Waste: There is no “away.” Landfill space is actually shrinking with valuable materials that can be composted, recycled or downcycled. If you’re not ready to compost at home, services like Compost Carriers and Compostable LA will pick up your food waste and compost it for you. Visit LA Public Works website for free electronic and HHW drop-off locations.

Transportation: Have you ever considered that we are never “stuck” in traffic but that we “are” traffic? Before leaving home, group your errands together to reduce your driving footprint.

Toxins: Clever marketing has us thinking we need harsh chemicals to clean everything from our hair to our floors. Spend one day with your family and look up the ingredients of products from your bathroom to your broom cabinet. Then visit EWG.org to find out how these chemicals are affecting your household—your two- as well as your four-legged family members—and make the switch to safer alternatives.