Running for Assembly District 53, says Kate Anderson, is as exciting as giving birth to her twin daughters. She is vying to fill the same Westside seat that her mentor and former boss in Washington, D.C., Rep. Henry Waxman held before being elected to Congress in 1974. So on Sunday she joined with some 225 Pacific Palisades Democratic Club members and guests to listen to Waxman’s periodic congressional review at the Woman’s Club. For Waxman, 2009 was exciting indeed, but ‘the most challenging year I’ve ever had,’ he admitted. With a warm welcome from a roomful of likeminded constituents, the 18-term congressman maximized his diminutive stature with a stool and a good-natured, ‘Speaking to you has already been an uplifting experience,’ as he stood tall behind the podium.   Emerging from two years as chairman of the Committee on Oversight and Government Reform, trying to oppose efforts by the Bush Administration to block congressional oversight and roll back health and environmental laws, Waxman entered the powerful congressional inner sanctum last January when he was elected chairman of the House Energy and Commerce Committee. He beat out Rep. John Dingell, who at 82 is the longest-serving representative in Congress. Alluding to the fight within the Democratic Party for the committee chairmanship, Waxman, 70, explained his reasoning. ‘After the 2008 election, I thought we had a historic opportunity to deal with issues that have been pushed to the back-burner for too long. If I could be chair of Energy and Commerce, I would have this once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to push forward legislation on energy and health reform in 2009.’ While Waxman praised Dingell as ‘terrific on health issues, not so good on environment’ (the Michigan Democrat has a crippled automobile industry to represent), he felt he could push the legislation through the Democratic Caucus. Waxman had admired Dingell’s leadership on healthcare reform and recognized him as the lead advocate in the House to push health care reform this past year. Well equipped with facts and a concise timeline, Waxman reviewed the three areas of legislation that happen to be under his committee’s aegis while also being top priorities for the Obama Administration: energy, healthcare and consumer protection. Waxman has advocated for healthcare reform for decades, and has sponsored a long list of bills that have been enacted into law. These measures include the largest federally funded program for people living with HIV/AIDS, the Nutrition Labeling and Education Act, and tobacco regulation. His record on environmental and health protection includes the 1996 Food Quality Act and the Safe Drinking Water Act amendments, passed the same year. Now as chairman, Waxman has had to put his skills as an adroit politician and negotiator into overdrive. He acknowledged the recalcitrance of the Republicans, whose lack of bipartisan support, he asserts, is all part of their strategy to defeat Democratic candidates in 2010 and President Obama in 2012. ‘No Republican supported the economic stimulus bill except Susan Collins, Olympia Snowe and Arlen Specter, who, you could argue, are the only moderate Republicans left in Congress,’ Waxman said. ‘Even when you have Republicans who want to work with you (such as Senator Specter before he switched over to the Democrats), they come under intimidation’ from within their party. He offered comments from Texas Rep. Joe Barton as example A. ‘Barton said to me, ‘I don’t believe in global warming, I don’t believe it’s a problem, and I don’t believe in working with you on a problem that I don’t believe exists.’ At least he was honest.’ Having reconciled the fact that he will have to depend on the Democratic majority, nevertheless acknowledged the broad representation of different views within the party and from different parts of the country. ‘On the energy bill, we had to work with regional differences, so we proposed a bill making sure there was input from the business community and the environmental community. On the healthcare issue, the committee had to work with the Blue Dog conservative coalition and the liberal Democrats.’ Waxman praised the solid leadership of Speaker Nancy Pelosi in getting both bills passed by the House. ‘Under that velvet glove, she has steel,’ he said. ‘She’s tough; she knows how to get the votes.’ Waxman had three objectives for clean-energy legislation, known as the Waxman-Markey bill (Chairman Edward J. Markey of the Energy and Environment Subcommittee), that would reduce U.S. dependence on foreign oil, promote the development of new technologies and create millions of new jobs, and reduce carbon emissions that contribute to global warming. Now with the House and Senate versions of the healthcare bill passed, Waxman and other key Democrats will start drafting a compromise bill, a task that cut short his Christmas break and had him returning to Washington, D. C., Monday morning. The differences between the two draft bills seem to center on taxing high-end health plans, restricting federal subsidies from abortion coverage, and creating a government-run health insurer, or ‘public option.’ Answering the question whether the healthcare negotiations would be televised on C-SPAN, Waxman said ‘No. They may not even be worked out by a conference committee,’ but instead by key Congressional leaders and President Obama. The audience was allotted 45 minutes for written questions, some of them prepared at home, others before Waxman took the podium. An especially informed group, the Democratic Club members were interested in topics ranging from healthcare, global warming and Afghanistan to cap-and-trade, election reform, the West L.A. Veterans property and even noise, pollution and safety issues at the Santa Monica Airport. ‘I am very skeptical about the president’s proposal for Afghanistan,’ Waxman said. ‘How can we expect a corrupt and incompetent government to protect its own population? We can’t afford to spend that money; we can’t be all things to all people all over the world.’ For the most part, Waxman acquitted himself expertly on the issues and declined to comment on issues that he had not thoroughly studied, such as certain provisions of CAFTA and NAFTA, saying only that he hadn’t voted for either of the free-trade bills. He took pains to explain in detail the Byzantine approaches to treating abortion in the healthcare bills, which involve the states’ responsibilities and federal exclusions. He concluded by reiterating his longstanding support of the right of women to freedom of choice, including the full extension of this right to lower-income women who depend on the Medicaid program. ‘The first year of the Obama Administration is not yet finished,’ Waxman said, adding that it has been tough ‘when you had the hand the president inherited from the Bush Administration. ‘But I have a lot of confidence in President Obama. He’s trying to do the right thing. He’s very smart, very thoughtful, and he’s taking his time. The first year of his presidency will not actually end until February or March or April.’

As a reporter entered Patrick’s Roadhouse one morning before Christmas, there could not have been more than a dozen customers occupying the colorful roadside diner along PCH. On a table near the entrance, the piercing sunshine fell on a memoir by Noel Neill, the actress who portrayed Lois Lane on the old ‘Superman’ TV series, who lives nearby and frequents the Santa Monica Canyon diner. Mounted on a wooden beam overhead was a framed 1990 issue of Los Angeles magazine when Patrick’s made the hip list, and an article pointed out that no less than Arnold, Katzenberg, Ovitz, and Kurt and Goldie loved to eat here. Scrawled on the chalkboard was the day’s lunch special: tuna salad quesadilla. At the counter, manager Cherry Gustafson, a gregarious, attractive young woman with a megawatt smile in a black tee, her arms crawling with tattoos, pours a cup of coffee and jokes around with a dreadlocked surfer. On his way out, another customer hits his head on a stretch of fake pearls strung up throughout the front of the restaurant, over the lunch counter and a row of wooden booths painted bright green and adorned with shamrocks. Mixed in with the brick and wood d’cor are statues of lions and a brass deep-sea diver’s helmet, which stares out blankly toward the front entrance. The beads are hard to notice at first amid the cluster of plants, the fake snake, and the ceiling fans hanging overhead. Tinsel snowflakes and other Yuletide decorations added to the crazy visual clutter running down the restaurant’s length. ‘I don’t know if it’s very Christmas-y,’ Gustafson admitted regarding the plastic pearls, ‘but I just put it up.’ This was just a typical morning at Patrick’s, an inexpensive, informal breakfast and lunch destination amid a two-block district of pricey restaurants. Except in a legal sense, this was not. It was Friday, December 18, the day after the eviction date for Patrick’s had expired; the result of a complicated landlord dispute between Anthony Fischler, from whom owner Silvio Moreira sublets on a month-to-month basis, and M & M Investments, from whom Fischler leases. A December 21 Los Angeles Times article further suggested in-fighting between Fischler and his siblings over management of the property. And on this date, observing Gustafson’s upbeat, outsized personality and the mountain of home fries sizzling on the kitchen grill, there was absolutely no sense of impending closure. On Tuesday morning this week, Patrick’s was still standing. Elvis crooned ‘That’s All Right, Mama’ over the speakers as Moreira was hands on, refilling beverages, serving entrees and answering phones. Wearing a t-shirt, faded jeans and a hoody, the youthful Moreira could easily be mistaken for one of his customers, and he appeared at home among his regulars. ‘There are real people here,’ said the Culver City resident. ‘Everybody’s welcome here. I price it so that the plumbers, the street workers can eat here, people who love to surf. I welcome everybody.’ A call came in. After a long pause, Moreira replied, ‘I appreciate your support.’ It’s been like this for the past few weeks, and Moreira said he was appreciative of the community outpouring, not to mention impressed with how savvy some customers were regarding the particulars of his situation, which has been well-chronicled by various media outlets. So where does the situation stand this week? ‘We’re on a holding pattern,’ said Moreira, who is waiting for a court date later this month when all parties will go before a judge to resolve the matter. Moreira said the uncertainty of the situation has been hard on him and his staff. For now, he will carry on, business as usual, and he added that Patrick’s will certainly remain open through January. Back in the 1940s, the Patrick’s Roadhouse site was occupied by the 10-unit Entrada Motel and its adjoining diner (four booths, stools and a takeout counter for the beach crowd). Roy and Dody Colburn purchased a one-quarter share of the business in 1948, named the diner Roy’s Coffee Shop, and later started their own line of custom-made beachwear (known today as Roy’s Custom Sportswear). According to oft-told lore, Patrick’s original owner, Bill Fischler, patronized Roy’s one day in 1974 while on a beach visit with his four boys. When he complained to Roy about the quality of his burgers, the owner (eager to retire) suggested that Fischler could buy the place and make his own burgers. So Fischler handed the owner $100 and, the next day, began operating the diner, which he renamed Patrick’s after his youngest son. Today, Patrick Fischler works in Hollywood as a character actor.   Moreira, a native of Portugal, came to work at Patrick’s 18 years ago to when he was a Santa Monica College student. After waiting at the restaurant for many years under Bill Fischler, Moreira assumed ownership from Bill’s son, Anthony, by 2005 after Bill’s daughter, Tracey, had become overwhelmed with running it. Bill Fischler died in 1997.   ’I’ve had so many great little moments here,’ Moreira said. ‘I’ve met so many high-profile people’senators and congressmen, entertainment people. I’ve seen a lot of celebrities come in here without make-up. Major writers and entertainment people. I’ve seen huge deals made here. People have their meetings here. It’s casual and not intimidating.’   There’s also the story behind the large mural of a woman on the side of the building’s exterior might be cosmic, if not supernatural. Right as Moreira was about to hire an artist to repaint it, the original artist, a man in his 70s who went by the nom de plume ‘Silvani,’ ‘came out of nowhere,’ Moreira said. ‘He was like a nomad, living in a camper. He came back just at the right time. Like divine intervention.’ Silvani repainted the mural in a few days.   As for the interior, ‘I painted it, I rearranged everything,’ said Moreira, referring to when he originally took over the restaurant’s reins. ‘It is totally different but no one would notice because it still feels the same.’   Patrick’s is also a survivor, having hung on after a fire in 2003 forced its closure for six months, and after a couple of years work on a neighboring Chevron station made Patrick’s parking lot inaccessible. On Tuesday, two middle-aged men dressed in black talk with Moreira as they exit.   ’Don’t wait another 10 years to come back,’ he tells them.   Enter actress Neill, who has been frequenting Patrick’s for about a decade. She told the Palisadian-Post that she usually stops by for the hot dogs or a bowl of oatmeal. She also enjoys meeting various Canyon denizens who make up Patrick’s cast of regulars.   Among the loyal patrons is Dr. Jay Grossman, a Brentwood-based dentist whose wife, Briar, grew up in Pacific Palisades. ‘She introduced me to the place and I’ve been coming here on a regular basis almost daily,’ he said.   ’This is like coming to see your friends,’ said Dr. Mark Fischman, an acupuncture specialist in the Canyon who has a menu entry (the Doctor Mark omelet) named after him. ‘It’s a second office for me.’   Customers such as Grossman and Fischman told the Post that they mourn the idea of a restaurant as distinctive and eccentric as Patrick’s being replaced (as rumored) by a trendy coffee house or yet another upscale restaurant.   ’It’s the antithesis of a Starbucks,’ Fischman said, ‘which is so corporate and clean. What you find here is something that’s unique. It’s eclectic, and it has the personal human touch.’   ’This is the last of the great coffee shops,’ said longtime customer Ralph Starkweather. ‘They’re disappearing. There once was a time when it was possible to stop at wonderful places with humans. Everything today is so corporate, even the Denny’s. Where do you go to get waitresses who call you ‘Hon’ anymore?’

The Pacific Palisades Community Council is seeking community input on a proposal to install a cell tower in the Riviera neighborhood, when it meets on Thursday, January 14 from 7 to 9 p.m. in the community room of the Palisades Branch Library, 861 Alma Real. AT&T recently applied to install a cell tower on the public right of way along Sunset Boulevard near Capri Drive, upsetting the neighbors, who argue that the pole does not fit in aesthetically with the area. Sunset is designated as a scenic highway with no above-ground utilities.   The neighbors recently fought Verizon, which wanted to place a cell tower in that same location, causing Verizon to withdraw its application, Council Chair Richard G. Cohen told the Palisadian-Post. Cohen said he knows that the Riviera neighborhood has inadequate cell coverage, so he asked AT&T to find an alternative location for the pole such as the parking lot of the Riviera Country Club. He also asked that the tower be disguised as a tree. Kyle Sutherland, a consultant representing AT&T who will be at the January 14 meeting, told Cohen in an e-mail on December 28 that he spoke to Riviera about the proposal, and the club is in favor of locating the cell site on its property if there is community support.   Cohen would like to learn if the community finds the alternative location on the country club’s property more acceptable. Other agenda highlights include: ‘ Ira Handelman, representing Vons, will talk about plans to remodel the grocery store at Sunset and Pacific Coast Highway. Neighboring resident Carol Bruch will share her traffic safety concerns about Vons’ plans to relocate the loading dock from the south side of the building to the north side. ‘ The Council will discuss the ramifications of L.A. City Planning Department’s recent decision to postpone indefinitely the development of an Accessory Dwelling Unit Ordinance, which would have provided guidelines for single-family property owners who want to have a second dwelling on their property.   According to a December 17 press release from L.A. City Planning Director Gail Goldberg, the city decided not to create an ordinance at this time because of impending staff reductions due to the budget crisis.   State law requires that all cities allow second units in single-family and multi-family residential zones. The law has specific standards that all cities must follow unless the city has adopted its own ordinance. Since the city has postponed developing its own ordinance, it will comply with the parameters of the state law.

Vons Supermarket, located on the corner of Sunset Boulevard and Pacific Coast Highway, will undergo a 10-week remodel starting in March if all goes as planned. ‘The remodel is a significant investment,’ said Carlos Illingworth, Vons’ manager of public affairs and government relations. ‘It will comprehensively change the look and feel of store.’ Management has not yet decided whether the store will be closed during eight weeks of interior construction. The multi-million dollar remodel also includes updating the electrical and air conditioning systems and adding new landscaping and blacktop. ‘A new state-of-the-art refrigeration system will also be installed that significantly improves energy efficiency,’ Illingworth said, noting that Vons is a ‘zero waste’ company. The loading dock will be moved from its current location on the south side of the building to the opposite side of the store. Illingworth explained, ‘We’re trying to deter loitering and vagrancy, clean up the site for customers, and give a nice appearance along the scenic highway.’ In its place, a Starbucks will be located on the southwest corner, allowing coffee drinkers a view of the ocean from a newly constructed two-level patio. To patronize Starbucks, customers will have to enter through Vons and will not be able to exit from the patio to the parking lot. Although the footprint of the building will stay the same, rearranging the interior space will increase the sales-floor size to 24,542 square feet (about half the size of a prototypical Vons). Restriping of the parking lot will increase spaces from 98 to 104. Vons has done a study that showed their customers and employees only use about half the spaces. Beach goers, commuters and others utilize the remainder of the stalls. Nearby resident Carol Bruch has raised safety concerns about the proposed location of the loading dock, which will require trucks to enter the lot off Sunset instead of PCH. Once on the lot, they will have to back up and turn across a second parking lot aisle, in order to access the loading dock. Bruch wonders, ‘How will customers driving into the parking lot from Sunset, directly behind delivery trucks, be stopped to permit the reverse maneuver directly in their path? And how will Vons protect patrons and their children who will be walking and unloading groceries into their cars in this major portion of the lot?’ Bruch told the Palisadian-Post she also worries about the traffic on Sunset with customers making left-hand turns into the Vons parking lot, while large trucks and vendor trucks are making left-hand turns at the same location to get out of the parking lot. ‘To the best of my knowledge, no proposal yet addresses either Vons’ plan for traffic within its lot or the implications for traffic on Sunset,’ Bruch said. ‘A driver making the turn into the lot could suddenly be stopped dead because a large truck is stopped or reversing in front of them. It might also endanger other drivers who suddenly find themselves stopped across the lanes of Sunset as they are turning into Vons behind the first car.’ Said Illingworth, ‘A traffic study for this project is not required and trucks already use Sunset for access.’ When asked how many large trucks come to a store on a daily basis, he said he didn’t know. ‘Truck deliveries are scheduled on an as-needed basis. Once product is low, we schedule a delivery.’ A presentation of the new plan will be made to the Palisades Design Review Board on January 13 at 6:30 p.m. in the Chamber of Commerce office on Antioch, and the following night to the Community Council when it meets at 7 p.m. at the Palisades Branch Library. The store opened as a Safeway in January 1969 and became a Vons in April 1989.

The storage shed on the Palisades-Malibu YMCA’s Simon Meadow property at the corner of Sunset Boulevard and Temescal Canyon Road was burglarized over the Christmas holiday weekend. When YMCA staff members returned to work on Monday, December 28, they discovered that approximately $15,000 worth of property had been stolen, and they immediately filed a police report, according to Y Executive Director Carol Pfannkuche. Among the items stolen were two Moon Bouncers, a popcorn machine, a snow cone machine, a phone, furniture, sports equipment and tools.   Pfannkuche told the Palisadian-Post that the Y uses the equipment for its Pumpkin Patch, Christmas tree lot and all free events at the meadow such as Fun Family Fridays.   ’How tragic to steal from a charity, especially on the holidays,’ Pfannkuche said, adding that the Y was able to purchase those items through community support. ‘[Those items] really belonged to the community; the thieves were not only stealing from a nonprofit, but from every family in the community.’   Pfannkuche said that the Y intends to replace what was stolen and install an attractive new structure at the meadow with a security system, so that this does not happen again.   ’We welcome the community’s partnership in helping us,’ she said.   The Y would also appreciate any information Palisadians might have about seeing people loading equipment into a truck over Christmas weekend.’   ’We had tree lot staff loading and unloading Christmas trees, but if someone saw a truck moving the Moon Bouncers and other equipment, we would love to know about it,’ Pfannkuche said. Call the Y at (310) 454-5591.