Palisadian Sean Barrett seems to have a nack for pulling off his best golf shots when he needs them most. It happened at the Ivy League Championships earlier in the year and it happened again last weekend, when he eagled the second-to-last hole to finish tied for second at a tournament near Napa Valley that qualified him for the United States Amateur Championships held in Philadelphia in late August. Using a wedge from 117 yards, Barrett lofted a shot onto the green. above the hole, then watched as his ball rolled 15 feet downhill and into the cup for an eagle. The shot moved Barrett into a tie at 4-under par, good enough to qualify for the U.S. Amateur by one stroke. ‘I was considering using my nine iron but my caddie, Greg Heidt, suggested I use a wedge and I’m glad I listened to him,’ Barrett said. ‘I saw it drop on the green and then I heard guys in back of the hole cheering and I couldn’t believe it.’ Barrett played two solid rounds on fast greens and in sizzling heat to qualify for the U.S. Amateurs–one of the most competitive tournaments in the country, where aging pros are matched against top collegiate players and even high school stars. ‘There is a lot of history to the tournament so I’m excited to be going,’ Barrett said. ‘I always set high expectations for myself. I’m hoping I can compete well.’ In the Ivy League Championships, Barrett shot even par to finish second as a sophomore. In that event, he hit a three-iron that lipped out for double eagle, then tapped in his eagle putt on the second-to-last hole, to clinch the runner-up position. Barrett attends Wharton School of Business but plays golf for the University of Pennsylvania. Being a student of the game, Barrett knows that players who fare well in the U.S. Amateur are able to putt and chip well. ‘That’s what I’ll be practicing the next few weeks. You don’t necessarily have to drive it far to succeed there, but your short game needs to be on.’ Barrett, who lives near Riviera Country Club, started playing golf at the age of 6 under the tutelage of his father and Eddie Merrins, now the pro emeritus at Bel Air Country Club.
Seven Paly Swimmers Qualify For “A” Meet
Seven swimmers from the Pacific Palisades YMCA Swim Team qualified to swim in the Industry Hills A Minimum meet July 23, 24 and 25. The only events the swimmer could enter were ones where they had already swam an A time as established as an A time by USA Swimming. For example, in the girls 13 & 14 year 100 M. Breaststroke a C time is 1:42.52, a B time 1:42.50, an A time is 1:33.90, an AA 1:29.70 and to qualify for Junior Olympics (JO’s) a swimmer needs to go 1:26.30. The swims were all exceptionally fast overall because this was the last meet to qualify for Summer JO’s. Coach Eric Butler was happy with the way his swimmers performed, “They all did exceptional jobs,” he said. “We practice in a 25 meter pool so to swim competitively in the 50 meter pool with swimmers who don’t have that disadvantage is an accomplishment.” The summer swim season is done in 50 meter pools. Two mornings a week from 6-8 a.m. many of the swimmers make the trip down to the Culver City Plunge in order to have the experience of practicing in a longer pool. Alexandra Edel, 13, qualified to swim in nine events, placing seventh in the in the 100 Fly, taking 5 seconds off her previous time in that event. She also took third in the 400 I.M. which is a hundred yards of each stroke, butterfly, back, breast, and free style with a sizzling time of 5:44.49. Seven of her times were fast enough to reach AA times. Jessica Schem, 14, qualified in three events, bettering her 200 Back time by almost three seconds, giving her an AA time. Jennifer Tartavull,13, swam in five events the 200 I.M., the 100 Free, the 200 Free, the 100 Breast, and the 50 Free. She dropped time in every event, with the biggest drop of four and a half seconds in the 200 I.M. All of her swims were fast enough to advance her to AA times. Kimberly Tartavull,13, swam in the 50 and 100 Free. Shelby Pascoe,13, qualified in five events and has the distinction of being the first Paly 13 & 14 year old to swim the 1500 meter event. Her time of 21:39.64 will go down on the Paly Record book. After she was done with the grueling swim, she said, “I can’t move my arms,” and then confided, “I almost stopped in the middle of the race, I didn’t think I could finish it.” The swimmer leading the 1500 race did stop at lap 21 and left the pool. A day later Pascoe had a different take, “I’m going to swim it again and I’m going to get a better time.” Qualifying in eight events was Nicholas Edel, 10. He dropped time in five events with the most dramatic drop in the 200 I.M. losing almost 12 seconds off of his previous best time. Nicholas had AA times in the 200 I.M., the 100 Breast, the 100 Free, and the 50 Breast. Catherine Wang, 11, swimming in the 11 &12 year category took third in the 100 Fly with a new best time of 1:16.39. She dropped three seconds off the 200 I.M. with a time of 2:48.99, which placed her tenth. She now has AA times in six events and continues to be a consistently strong swimmer for Paly. This was the last swim meet to be held at the Pacific Palms Swim Center in Industry Hills. After 25 years of meets, the eight lane Olympic pool, with diving boards and towers will close. It is being demolished so a shopping center can be built. There are plans for a new pool at a different location. The Paly Y swim team is gearing up for JO’s which will take place the first weekend of August. Coach Kameron Kennedy welcomes swimmers of all abilities to try out for the team. Find out more about the Paly Swim Team at palyswimteam.com.
Recycling His Glory Days
If anyone can appreciate the hard work and dedication it took for Lance Armstrong to win his seventh consecutive Tour de France last Sunday in Paris, it’s Palisadian Tom Hill. One of the top cyclists in the United States in the 1970s, Hill raced against Greg Lemond every weekend and had dreams of competing in the world’s most prestigious race himself one day until he injured vertebrae in his lower back in a skiing accident, effectively ending his career. And although Hill went on to build a successful business in the wine industry and start a family, in the back of his mind there was always the lingering question… what if? ‘Until that accident in 1978, I was planning on racing professionally,’ Hill recalls. ‘But after that I kind of drifted into a normal sort of life. I went to San Diego State, got my business degree in 1983 and started working. But I always rode on the side. I’ve never given it up. I’m still a huge fan of the sport.’ And on July 11, Hill finally got to experience what the Tour de France would have been like. He participated in the 13th annual L’Etape du Tour, an event run by organizers of the Tour de France. It takes place on one of the two rest days for the professionals during the grueling 23-day event. Hill was one of 7,785 cyclists to ride the 16th stage of the Tour de France, a 112-mile stretch through the Pyranees from the town of Mourenx to the city of Pau in Southeastern France. Considered one of the toughest of the 21 stages in the Tour de France, the route included 25 miles of climbing 10,000 feet over three mountain passes with grades over 16 percent. ‘I trained for four months in Malibu Canyon and Old Topanga Canyon but nothing I did really prepared me for Pyrenees,’ admits Hill, who lives in the Alphabet Streets with his wife Andrea and 14-year-old son Andy. ‘The Pyrenees are much steeper than the Alps and by the end of the race I was absolutely drained. It’s incredible to think the professionals can be right back riding the next day. People don’t realize how physically demanding that kind of cycling is.’ At 45 years old, Hill completed the 112-mile course in seven hours and 31 minutes and earned a silver medal by finishing 15 minutes under the designated silver medal time for his 40-49 age group. The winning time of his race was 5:15. Eight days later, in the actual Tour de France, Oscar Pereiro completed the stage in 4:38:20–the exact time predicted. ‘They have everything down to a science now,’ Hill says. ‘The race has gone on so long that the organizers are pretty accurate in predicting what’s going to happen based on previous results.’ Just being able to participate in the event was Hill’s first hurdle. Sign-ups started last October and the event typically sells out in 48 hours. Most of the participants are French, although riders from 44 countries competed this year, including 187 Americans. ‘I had contacted a French-based company I knew but they first said there was no room so I had given up on the thought,’ Hill said. ‘But I got an e-mail four months ago saying that there had been a cancellation and I was in.’ Hill described the experience as exhilarating but he needed to rely on his past racing experience to navigate on narrow mountain roads with thousands of other riders. ‘I was a late entry so I was assigned bib number 5654,’ says Hill, who rode a Scott CR-1 bike, made of carbon fiber and weighing a mere 16 1/4 pounds. ‘So when the race began, I had about 5,000 people ahead of me. It took me 13 minutes and 50 seconds just to reach the starting line. Once you get going, you can manuever and try to clear a path for yourself, but it’s still very crowded and very dangerous. Accidents happen all the time.’ After finishing, Hill traveled to Montpellier to watch the 13th stage of the Tour de France, then flew home to the Palisades and awoke at 5:30 every morning to watch the last five stages of Armstrong’s history-making feat. ‘The first couple of days after L’Etape I was exhausted and sore all over and I said to myself I’m never doing this again,’ Hill says. ‘But after a few days I thought I have to come back next year and this time I’m going to shoot for a gold medal.’ This year’s gold time was six hours and 38 minutes but it will be different next year as the race will take place in the Alps. Prior to L’Etape, Hill’s last competitive race was 15 years ago at the World Championships in Austria, where he finished first in the men’s 28-34 age group and 67th overall. But his glory days were back in high school when he competed against Greg Lemond, who would become the first cyclist to put America on the international map. Lemond won the Tour de France three times and was named Sports Illustrated’s ‘Sportsman of the Year’ after winning by eight seconds in 1989 in the closest finish ever. ‘I grew up in the Bay area and Greg lived in Carson City, Nevada, so every week we were in the same category,’ Hill says. ‘I was the best in my age group until Greg came along. I felt like Jan Ullrich competing against Lance Armstrong, finishing second to Greg in most races.’ But Hill did beat Lemond on several occasions, including a victory by mere inches at the Nevada City Criterium in 1977 when he was 17 years old and Lemond was 16. ‘It was an exciting race. It was a one-mile course but it was a 20-lap race and I was drafting him most of the way,’ Hill says, remembering like it was yesterday. ‘I made my move on the last lap and had the lead through the last turn and thought I had it won. But somehow he got on the inside of me and I barely held him off at the finish line.’ Hill may not be racing against the likes of Greg Lemond anymore, but he is far from ready to relegate his bike to the garage. He rides for LaGrange in Westwood, a cycling group that rides different 25 to 30 mile routes every morning around Los Angeles, including one in Mandeville Canyon. To put Armstrong’s record in perspective, Hill says it will go down as one of the greatest achievements in sports history. ‘It’s equivalent to running a marathon at a record pace every day for 21 straight days,’ Hill says. ‘No one will do it again in my lifetime–I’ll bet my last penny on it. The man is just incredible.’
Focusing on France
Lavender graces the hillside. Copper pots hang in the kitchen. Proven’al-inspired fabric brightens the antique wooden chairs. One could easily be describing a domestic scene in France, but this home sits squarely in the Palisades. It belongs to Francophile Helena Ruffin and her partner, Rose Greene. The couple’s thirst for everything French is quenched by two annual treks to their favored country, sojourns they’ve ritually made for the past 14 years. But the most evocative celebration of French culture is found in Ruffin’s photographs, hundreds of which she’s composed during her travels. A selection of these images is currently on view at Congregation Kol Ami in West Hollywood, an exhibition that will continue through September 30. Her range shifts from the iconic’vibrant flower markets, dramatic rooftops, the Eiffel Tower’to the enigmatic, especially with snapshots taken on the Paris Metro. These images’essentially happy accidents’capture “the decisive moment” Henri Cartier-Bresson so famously exalted. The Frenchman’s influence is clear, with one of his renowned prints hanging in Ruffin’s living room together with a collection of other notable photographs. “My goal is to transport the viewer, not just to another country, but to another time and another emotional state,” Ruffin explains. This is Ruffin’s first exhibition, marking a turn from serious hobbyist to full-fledged artist. Her creative growth spurt was prompted by the worst of circumstances. Earlier this year, Rose, her partner for the past 12 years, was diagnosed with cancer. Ruffin poured herself into preparing for the exhibition partly as a way to cope. “I’m happy to say she’s doing terrifically well,” Ruffin says. “It’s a lesson for people who are caring for loved ones suffering from cancer. Caregivers also need a break.” The “big break” came to Ruffin through her friend, Rabbi Denise Eger of Congregation Kol Ami, who encouraged Ruffin to take her art to the next level by organizing an exhibition. She also provided the venue: the lobby space of her temple. “She saw that I needed some kind of outlet. It really was a gift,” Ruffin says. Ruffin, a native of Detroit, first began taking pictures in college as a campus photographer for Oakland University in Rochester, Michigan. While she continued on as an avid shutterbug and traveler, her career took a different turn. She held a variety of marketing and sales positions for companies such as Arbitron Ratings and CBS/Viacom, living in Ann Arbor, Chicago and New York City before finally landing in Los Angeles in 1988. Currently, she heads the insurance division of Rose Greene Financial Services. “I wanted to make money; I didn’t listen to my passion,” Ruffin says with a smile. While she still shoots film, Ruffin is slowly making the conversion to digital. Her last trip to France was an all-digital occasion. “I’m happy enough with what I’ve seen in terms of density of color and richness that I’ll probably continue with it [digital],” she says. Both film and digital come into play with “Monet’s Garden,” for which Ruffin imaginatively combined images taken at Giverny over a two-year period to create a monumental collage (the large-scale print measures 23″ x 35″). In contrast to this precisely manipulated composition, “Voyeur,” an award-winning shot taken on the Metro in Paris, happened entirely by chance. “I looked up and just snapped,” recalls Ruffin. “I guess someone was looking down on me.” All the works in the show are limited editions and are for sale. Prices, including frames, range from $375 to $950 depending upon size. Congregation Kol Ami is located at 1200 N. La Brea in West Hollywood. Contact: (323) 606-0996. Ruffin’s images can also be seen on her Web site: ruffprints.smugmug.com.
Wendy Graf’s ‘Lessons’ Directed by Adam Davidson
West Coast Jewish Theatre and The Group at Strasberg in association with Gail Katz Productions present “Lessons,” a new play written by Wendy Graf and directed by Adam Davidson, opening on Friday, July 29, in the Marilyn Monroe Theatre at the Lee Strasberg Institute, 7936 Santa Monica Blvd. in West Hollywood. Produced by Gail Katz and starring Mare Winningham and Hal Linden, “Lessons” is a play about Ben, who finally decides to have a bar mitzvah, and Ruth, the woman he’s hired to tutor him, a former rabbi who’s lost her faith. Through their developing relationship, each searches for healing and forgiveness as they wrestle with their own deep-rooted secrets. Graf, a Mandeville Canyon resident, was inspired to write the play by a sermon delivered by Kehillat Israel Rabbi Sheryl Lewart following the September 11, 2001 attacks. Lewart addressed the loss of faith that many were feeling in response to the violence here and in Israel. “It’s a play that reflects what’s going on right now,” Graf told the Palisadian-Post in March 2003, preceding the first staged reading at KI. “How we’re standing on the precipice of violence and terror, holding onto hope and faith.” In the play, a rabbi who had given up her faith and turned her back on God is confronted by a newfound Jew, struggling to embrace life. They discover they both need each other: one to live and the other to die. “I wanted to do something about how a rabbi’s faith could be tested,” Graf said. “It was right after September 11, so it was about loss of faith, and finding faith and finding hope. I interviewed many female rabbis, both in Los Angeles and other areas in order to write Ruth’s character.” A former stand-up comic and TV writer who previously wrote for such shows as “Murder She Wrote,” “ALF” and “Full House,” Graf premiered her first play “The Book of Esther” in the summer of 2001 at Theatre East in Studio City. She is currently developing a new play, “Leipzig,” the last in the trilogy which again deals with questions of faith, hope, and identity. Director Adam Davidson, born and raised in Pacific Palisades, attended Kenyon College, where he received a bachelor’s degree with honors in history. He received his MFA from Columbia University with a concentration in film. His parents are Gordon Davidson, artistic director of the Center Theatre Group, and Judi Davidson, founder of Davidson, Choy Publicity. While a film student, Davidson created a short film which he himself financed with the hope that he would get class credit for it and gain the experience of putting a story on film, working with actors and completing the editing process. He titled the film “The Lunch Date.” Davidson then went on to write several other scripts that were in development for Hollywood Pictures, including his first feature film as a writer/director, an adaptation of Jess Mowry’s award-winning novel, “Way Past Cool.” It was released last year on Artisan Entertainment. His second short, “The Monster,” was voted the Paul Robeson Award at the 2001 Newark Black Film Festival and recently aired on Showtime. He is also working on another project as a writer/director, a screenplay based on a true story of the CIA’s testing of LSD on unsuspecting individuals in the 1950s. Davidson has directed a number of television programs, including episodes of “Law and Order,” “Cover Me,” “The Chronicle,” “The Invisible Man,” and, most recently, “Six Feet Under.” He is currently writing a political thriller for Paramount entitled “Protect and Defend.” Since “Lessons” first reading at KI, Graf has developed into a more layered work with deeper emotional resonance, she says. She has received technical assistance from KI Rabbi Steven Carr Reuben, whose read it for liturgical points, and from Mare [Winningham], who having converted three years ago to Judaism was flawless in her Hebrew.
A Debate between Two Unlikely Companions
Theater Review
Not much is left unsaid when two men with several generations between them meet for a job interview, and their opposing intellectual viewpoints clash. One is a classicist, whose strict Eurocentrism offends and challenges the young modernist’s perspectives on life and literature. Both characters have something to teach and learn from the other in the world premiere of Canadian playwright Oren Safdie’s “The Last Word…,” which runs through July 31 at the Malibu Stage. Safdie’s previous play, “Private Jokes, Public Places,” was first developed at the Malibu Stage Company in 2001 and ran off Broadway last year. In “The Last Word…,” Henry Grunwald (Daniel J. Travanti) is a retired advertising executive who has decided to finally pursue his dream of being a playwright. His ad for an assistant is answered by Len Artz (Peter Smith), a New York University student and aspiring writer with a drastically different taste in drama. Where Henry prefers fantasy, Len desires reality, though the confident youth has a thing or two to learn about writing a realistic play. Len calls Shakespeare “simplistic…a glorified ‘Three’s Company’,” adding that at least the characters in the Greek tragedies actually have to live with their pain and grief. The interview quickly becomes an emotionally charged and comedic debate between two unlikely companions, which successfully pulls at the heartstrings while keeping the audience entertained. In many respects, Henry and Len are alike: intellectually stimulated, opinionated and temperamental. Both are Jewish, a bond that carries considerable weight for Henry, a Viennese Jew who escaped the Nazis. As the nearly blind Henry, Travanti (of “Hill Street Blues”) crafts a sympathetic character whose cynicism is balanced by his persistent hope for artistic success. In a relatively flawless Viennese accent, he expresses his disappointment in the modern world, with its crudity, unsophisticated fast pace and subsequent carelessness. Meanwhile, Len struggles with Henry’s outdated understanding of relationships between men and women. Smith delicately portrays Len, who is at first more of a passive character, and then reveals a more aggressive and sensitive side as he defends his own ideology and shares something about his life. Safdie’s clever dialogue steers the play, which moves quickly, with neither actor missing a beat. “What is play writing but music put to words?” Henry says. And in a climactic scene, he dramatically dictates his latest play, “Escape from Germany,” to Len, who types furiously while Henry, eyes closed and arms crossed, moves slowly across the room to the rhythm of his own, melodic punctuation (he indicates an ellipsis as a breathless “three dots”). Some of the most powerful scenes, however, are the moments of awkward silence during which Henry and Len impatiently wait for the laptop computer to reboot and accidentally slip into more meaningful conversation. The symbolic set design’two staggered desks, one large (center stage) and one small (stage right)’reflects the gap between two generations. Each with something to say, these two are brought together in an intimate setting where they confront their insecurities and connect over their drive for artistic expression. Safdie directs the talented duo, who previously appeared together in “Old Wicked Songs” at San Diego’s Old Globe Theatre. Produced by Jackie Bridgeman, the show runs just under one hour and 30 minutes. Performances are Thursdays, Fridays and Saturdays at 8 p.m. and Sundays at 5 p.m. at the Malibu Stage, 29243 PCH, just north of Heathercliff Road. Tickets are $25; $20 on Thursdays. Contact: 589-1998 or visit www.malibustagecompany.org.
Cole Porter’s Songs Fire Up ‘Kiss Me, Kate’
Theater Review
“Kiss Me, Kate,” that witty play within a play enlivened by Cole Porter’s music, is currently playing at the Morgan-Wixson Theater through August 14. An overnight success when it opened on Broadway December 30, 1948, the play takes up the egotistical Fred Graham and his ex-wife Lilli Vanessi and their fiery, tempestuous, on-again, off-again relationship, which spills from backstage onto their on-stage performance of Shakespeare’s “Taming of the Shrew.” The original play was modeled on the quintessential Broadway couple Alfred Lunt and Lynne Fontanne whose jealous antics behind the scenes were well-known. Producer Saint Subber hired Sam and Bella Spewack to write the book. The Spewacks’ relationship was also rocky and they had been separated for a while before they came together solely for the purpose of writing “Kiss Me, Kate.” They got back together after they wrote it. The musical score by Cole Porter borrows from Shakespeare’s dialogue but uses the syntax of the day in the numbers behind the scenes, such as “It’s Too Darn Hot.” The bridge goes: “According to the Kinsey report, ev’ry average man you know much prefers to play his favorite sport when the temperature is low.” The musical contains 17 classic Porter numbers, including “Another Op’nin, Another Show,” “Why Can’t You Behave,” and “I Hate Men.” The play, which ran for 1,077 performances and won five Tony Awards, including “Best Musical,” “Best Script,” and “Best Score,” is not often done in regional and community theaters. Thomas S. Hischak, a recognized scholar on American theater, speculates that “The vocal demands and the lack of female roles probably make it less appealing.” Director Anne Gesling has gotten around the lack of female roles by having the two daughters in the Shakespeare on-stage play answer to a mother in the role of father/Baptista, Valerie Lippincott. Lippincott’s strong voice make her enjoyable to watch as she tries her best to marry off her shrill-tongued eldest daughter, Katherine. The two gangsters are also usually cast as men, but Valeri Braun, cast as one of the gangsters, holds her own and then some. Whenever Barry Silver and Braun are on stage in their vain attempts to recoup a gambling debt, their presence and deadpan antics leave the audience laughing. They never let the lead character, Graham, out of sight, even if it means they have to don Shakespearean dress and go panic-stricken in front of an audience. Their show-stopping song “Brush Up Your Shakespeare” is pure fun. In the lead as the egotistical Fred Graham/Petruccio, Steve Hall is enjoyable to watch. Leading lady AnnaLisa Erickson sings “I Hate Men” with such conviction that the audience is entirely convinced that this woman will never marry. Both leads are fine in their individual parts; unfortunately, the much needed chemistry the play pivots on isn’t there. Krystal Karpel is wonderfully spunky in the role of Bianca, with a beautifully feigned innocence as she explains to her jealous boyfriend, Bill Calhoun (Joshua Aaron), that she is “Always True to You In My Fashion.” Anytime Karpel comes on stage, it lights up with her presence. Aaron, a lank, lean sweet presence, is also a good hoofer. His tap dance in the number “Bianca” is effortlessly perfect. The choreography by Karpel is imaginative and seamless. The set design for “Kiss Me, Kate” could be problematic on a smaller stage because it has to incorporate the play within a play. Designer Thomas A. Brown has made wise choices that enhance the production. The Shakespearean costumes, designed by Gesling, are particularly lovely. This production needs tightening, but “Kiss Me, Kate” is a classic not done often enough. “Kiss Me, Kate” runs through Sunday, August 14, with performances Fridays and Saturdays at 8 p.m., Sunday matinees at 2 p.m., and one Saturday matinee July 23 at 2 p.m. Tickets are $20 for general admission, $15 for seniors and $12 for students. The Morgan-Wixson Theater is located at 2627 Pico Blvd. in Santa Monica. Contact 828-7519.
Court of Appeal Backs YMCA’s Temescal Bid
Last week, the California Court of Appeal upheld various permits issued in 2003 by the City of Los Angeles facilitating the Palisades-Malibu YMCA’s acquisition of a four-acre site in Temescal Canyon and continuing the summer day camp and seasonal sales of Christmas trees and Halloween pumpkins at that location. In June 2004, the Los Angeles County Superior Court dismissed all contentions of the Friends of Temescal Canyon without qualification, and it was this dismissal that was affirmed by the Court of Appeal. The Temescal site, located at the corner of Sunset Boulevard and Temescal Canyon Road, is the subject of a 1985 option agreement that requires recording of a parcel map before title can be transferred to the YMCA. Although the City approved the map, and the Court of Appeal has now upheld this approval, Friends of Temescal Canyon will now take an appeal to the California Coastal Commission, which also has jurisdiction under the Coastal Act. “We are pleased with the appellate court decision,” said Carol Pfannkuche, executive director of the local YMCA. “It will allow us to continue our longstanding tradition of providing positive, community-oriented programs and activities involving Palisades families in this location. Frank Angel, the attorney representing the Friends of Temescal Canyon, while disappointed with the court’s decision, told the Palisadian-Post that the appellate decision will not prejudice the Coastal Commission’s decision. “We are especially disheartened by the court’s acceptance of the City’s dismissal of the seriousness of privatizing public parkland as a non-significant environmental issue that would not require a general plan amendment,” Angel said. “The Brentwood/Palisades plan classifies Temescal Gateway Park as publicly owned open space, with the express purpose of ensuring long-term general public access to this parkland. That assurance is not given, even with the Y’s 10-year promise to keep it as open space.” In addition, The Friends argue that the agreement between the YMCA and the Santa Monica Mountains Conservancy is not binding on the Coastal Commission. “The agreement does not force the Commission to sign off on the permit,” Angel said. “By law, the contract between the Y and Conservancy cannot force the Commission to sign off on a coastal permit.” The Coastal Commission had not yet made a decision to place the matter on the August calendar.
Head-on Collision Closes PCH Tuesday
A head-on collision at 6:30 a.m. on Pacific Coast Highway occurred Tuesday morning, July 19, leaving two people in critical condition and a third with less serious injuries. A Ford F150 headed southbound on PCH, just before Chautauqua, was hit head-on by a northbound red Toyota Celica. It appeared to investigators that the driver of the Celica had fallen asleep at the wheel and when the car hit the pylons which divide the road before the Channel/ Chautauqua intersection, jerked awake, turning his car to the right. When the driver realized he had turned too far to the right, he then overcompensated by jerking the car to left bringing it directly into the path of the truck. PCH between Chautauqua and Temescal Canyon was closed for almost four hours while the investigation was conducted.. According to Captain William Alderson, LAFD Station 69 received a dispatch at 6:33 a.m. and were on the scene by 6:37. The two people in the red Toyota Celica were extricated through the roof of the car with the Jaws of Life. All three people involved in the crash were transported to local hospitals: Santa Monica/UCLA Hospital and UCLA Medical Center Trauma Unit. The total time from the moment they arrived on scene until the driver went into the operating room was 25 minutes. “The top half of the car was crushed,” A LAPD West Traffic Officer investigating the scene reported. “It doesn’t look like either of the two in the Toyota will survive.” The two people in the Celica had head trauma and crushed pelvises, and were still in critical condition at press time. The condition of the truck driver was unknown.
Kerbox, Stockdale Open Boutique Realty
Miramar Coastal Properties, a full-service, boutique residential real estate brokerage company, has opened a plush, second-floor office in the Bowinkel building at 1011 Swarthmore, above Whispers. The founders are Bill Kerbox, a residential real estate agent for 18 year, and Ron Stockdale, a veteran commercial real estate broker who worked from 1990 to 2002 for Soboroff Partners, the property management company owned by Palisadian Steve Soboroff. “Our dream is to build a Palisades-based business that’s professional and service-oriented,” said Kerbox, who lives with his wife and two children in the Highlands. “With all the acquisitions and mergers in recent years, we saw an opportunity to jump in and establish a high-end boutique’the opposite of a discount broker. We feel we are going to attract experienced brokers who want to be part of something that won’t be taken over or sold.” Stockdale, who also lives in the Palisades, will run the office as managing partner and long-term strategist, with Kerbox as director of sales. “Our concept of real estate is performance-based,” Stockdale said. “When we sell your house, judge us on the bottom line.” “We intend to provide the highest level of real estate brokerage services to our clients while navigating the tedious process of selling their most precious family asset for the highest possible sales price in the least amount of time and inconvenience to our clients,” the Miramar owners said in a press release they had prepared prior to an interview in their newly-refurbished and furnished suite of offices. “We’ve spent $100,000 to get this place ready, which is about 10 times over budget,” Kerbox said with a painful laugh. “But it’s going to be worth it.” Stockdale had a checkered career in commercial real estate. He was Broker of the Year for the Irvine Company in 1994 and 1995 and L.A. County Broker of the Year in 1998. When Soboroff became president of Playa Vista in 2002 following his unsuccessful run for mayor of Los Angeles, Stockdale began transitioning into personal investment and developments. “I got to know Bill when he sold a couple of houses of friends of mine,” Stockdale said, “and then I hired him to sell my house in the Highlands two years ago. I was impressed by the incredible confidence and energy he brought to the transactions. He took charge and saw the transaction through to completion. You want someone like that who is going to represent you with passion and fire and expertise, because you’re paying him a lot of money.” Thus far, Miramar Coastal Properties has hired one part-time agent, Susan Livingston from Palisades Realty. When Kerbox decided to leave that firm, Stockdale said, “she decided to go with him. She saw an opportunity to work more closely with Bill.” “MCP will be focused on our clients and each client’s unique requirements,” Kerbox said. “We will pride ourselves on our accountability, professionalism, and image in the marketplace. This means that we will only hire agents who are willing to work within the team concept and agree with our business philosophy. We will only take listings that are reasonably priced, and we will not reduce our fees to get listings.” Currently, MCP is looking to hire “someone with a legal background, an accounting, and perhaps a design background to provide our clients with the most informed information available.” Kerbox and Stockdale said their advertising budget will exceed $40,000 this year, and they expect to sell “more than $100 million of real estate.” They added, “We expect to exceed 15 percent annual growth per year over the next 10 years. We plan to operate this company long enough to pass it along to our children.” Kerbox and his wife Tracy have two sons, Alec, 12, and Chase, 4, who both attend Calvary Christian School. He’s active as a board member at the Palisades-Malibu YMCA. Stockdale and his wife, Toni Long Stockdale (who has delivered over 3,000 babies as an ObGyn at St. John’s Hospital), are building a new home on Paseo Miramar. They have three adopted children: Charlie, 18, who is working at A La Tarte on Swarthmore; Caroline, 15, who lives in Colorado Springs; and Alana, 8, a third grader at Calvary.
