Courtesy of the Office of Assemblymember Jacqui Irwin
By SARAH SHMERLING | Editor-in-Chief
The office of Assemblymember Jacqui Irwin—who represents AD 42, which includes Pacific Palisades—will host a Wildfire & Disaster Insurance Online Town Hall on Thursday, April 4, from 5:30 to 6:30 p.m.
Palisadians who are interested in attending can register at bit.ly/04042024.
The town hall is being cohosted by Irwin, Insurance Commissioner Ricardo Lara and Las Virgenes-Malibu Council of Governments.
“Wildfire does not respect jurisdictional boundaries,” read a flyer for the town hall. “Hear from a panel of experts from across the region on state and local wildfire response efforts.”
Special guests slated to take part in the town hall include Calabasas Mayor Alicia Weintraub, Agoura Hills Mayor Pro Tem Penny Sylvester, California Department of Insurance and United Policy Holders.
“We will notify customers impacted by this decision in advance of their policy expiration to provide information on other coverage options,” State Farm wrote.
Irwin’s website includes resources and tips for residents who have received non-renewal notices from homeowner insurance companies.
For more information ahead of the town hall, visit insurance.ca.gov, call 800-927-4357 or email crob@insurance.ca.gov. Questions to be addressed during the town hall can be sent to the email address.
Palisades-Malibu YMCA has rescheduled its Spring Festival and Egg Hunt for Saturday, April 6, from 9:30 a.m. to 1 p.m. at Simon Meadow, located at the corner of Temescal Canyon Road and Sunset Boulevard in Pacific Palisades.
“Come join the YMCA Spring Festival and Egg Hunt, a fun event for the whole family,” read an email about the event. “There will be photo opportunities with the Easter Bunny, games, crafts, prizes, snacks and more.”
The event, which was originally slated to take place on Saturday, March 31, was postponed due to forecasted rain.
There will be three egg hunts: 10 a.m. for ages 3 and 4; 10:45 a.m. for ages 5 and 6; and 11:30 a.m. for ages 7 to 12. Attendees are asked to bring their own basket to collect eggs.
Interested in catching a glimpse of the upcoming solar eclipse from Pacific Palisades?
Palisades Branch Library will host an eclipse viewing on Monday, April 8, beginning at 10:45 a.m. in the parking lot, located at 861 Alma Real Drive.
“The maximum eclipse will occur at about 11:12 a.m. here in Los Angeles,” read a synopsis of the event from the library. “Unfortunately, we will only be able to see about 58% of the eclipse, but it is still amazing to behold, and we will show the NASA feed from the areas where it is at 100%.”
The “total solar eclipse” will cross North America, passing over Mexico, the U.S. and Canada, according to NASA. Places that will see a 100% eclipse include Texas and Maine.
“A total solar eclipse happens when the moon passes between the sun and earth, completely blocking the face of the sun,” NASA reported. “The sky will darken as if it were dawn or dusk.”
A “very limited” number of glasses to help view the eclipse will be available, as well as snacks, “generously donated” by Friends of the Palisades Library.
“Safety is the number one priority when viewing a total solar eclipse,” according to NASA. “Be sure you’re familiar with when you need to wear specialized eye protection designed for solar viewing.”
Those who have received glasses from previous eclipses at the library are encouraged to bring them.
“Since this eclipse is on a weekday morning, you can come to the library before April 8 to pick up free eclipse viewing glasses (while supplies last),” the synopsis continued, “so you can safely view at home, school or work (maximum one per person).”
For more information, or information about additional events at the library, visit lapl.org.
Chamber Music Palisades will present a free community concert, “Matinee: Trios and Quartets,” on Sunday, April 7, at Pacific Palisades United Methodist Church beginning at 3 p.m.
“Join us for another free community concert,” read the CMP website. “The program features a variety of music for trios and quartets for flute, oboe, clarinet and piano.”
The program will feature “top-notch Los Angeles players,” including artists who have performed with Los Angeles Philharmonic, Los Angeles Chamber Orchestra, Santa Monica Symphony and the Los Angeles Opera. These musicians include Chamber Music Palisades Artistic Director Susan Greenberg (flute and piccolo), Zachary Borowiec (oboe and English Horn) and Pierre Long-Tao Tang (piano).
Concertgoers can expect to hear “William Tell Overture” by Gioachino Rossini, “Carmen Rhapsody” by Georges Bizet, “Trio” by Madeleine Dring, “Mutt and Steff” by Adrienne Albert, “Miniatures” by William Grant Still, “Hungarian Dance” by Johannes Brahms and more.
Though admission to the concert is free—supported, in part, by the City of Los Angeles Department of Cultural Affairs—donations will be accepted in person and online.
“Your support of Chamber Music Palisades helps us fulfill our mission to promote new music in our community,” the website read.
Pacific Palisades United Methodist Church is located at 801 Via De La Paz.
As part of Westside Food Bank’s 28th annual Phantom Dinner, donations made through Tuesday, April 30, will receive a dollar-for-dollar match.
“For over two decades, our community of supporters, volunteers and friends have gathered in spirit rather than in person to support our vital hunger relief work,” read the WSFB website. “Our Phantom Dinner tradition allows us to apply the cost of holding a gala dinner to our mission to provide nutritious food for our neighbors in need.”
A “ticket menu” included items like a Table Sponsor for $600 (for the “table your colleagues won’t have to sit at”) or $300 for a dress or suit “that you won’t have to buy.”
Founded in 1981, Westside Food Bank was created to serve as a more efficient food security network. It is now the primary bulk wholesale food supplier for over 60 nonprofit service agencies in West Los Angeles County.
WSFB announced this year, a pool of anonymous donors pledged to match every dollar donated through the end of April, up to $100,000. According to the WSFB website, $25 provides 100 meals in LA County.
“The extra assistance programs that helped vulnerable households get through the pandemic have ended, and now Los Angeles County is facing the worst hunger crisis of our lifetime with 30% of residents experiencing food insecurity,” Westside Food Bank President and CEO Genevieve Riutort said in a statement.
Westside Food Bank reported food insecurity rates are up another 13% “since the height of the pandemic in 2021.”
“People are turning to emergency food sources like Westside Food Bank’s network of partner food pantries to survive,” Ruitort concluded.
For more information or to donate to Westside Food Bank’s Phantom Dinner, visit wsfb.org/pd2024.
The “Picture Worlds: Greek, Maya, and Moche Pottery” exhibition will be on display at Getty Villa in Pacific Palisades from April 10 to July 29.
The exhibition “brings together three major world ceramic traditions,” according to a press release: “that of the Greeks in the Mediterranean, the Maya in Central America and the Moche of northern Peru.”
It was described as the “first major exhibition” that juxtaposes painted pottery of these societies, the statement continued, “devoting special attention to the narrative art and social settings in which these dynamic objects were seen and handled.”
“Picture Worlds” will feature more than 40 “ancient painted vessels,” which will be displayed side by side, organized thematically.
“Among the many ancient cultures that decorated ceramics, the Greeks (Archaic and Classical Periods, 700-323 BCE), the Maya (Late Classic Period, 550-850 CE) and the Moche (Early Intermediate period and Middle Horizon, 200-850 CE) stand out for their painted vessels adorned with depictions of heroic adventures, divine encounters, ritual actions and legendary events,” according to the statement. “These pots—made for drinking and feasting, gift-giving or trade, and as offerings—are fundamentally social objects, and the narratives painted upon their surfaces prompted and perpetuated the sharing of cultures, stories and ideals.”
The first gallery—“Makers and Users”—will focus on the people who handled the pieces, beginning with the potters and painters, leading to the individuals who used and gifted them. “Stories and Images” will then present a series of stories, including the Trojan War, episodes involving Maya deities and a Moche divinity known as “Wrinkle Face.”
The exhibition will conclude in the final section, “Handling Narrative,” which shows the ways that handling or rotating the vessels animates the narrative. It will include “specially commissioned replicas” of three of the vessels to allow visitors to “better appreciate the dynamic and immersive potential.”
“Each vessel in this exhibition is a ‘picture world,’ full of expressive possibility,” said David Saunders, associate curator of antiquities. “Seeing them together sharpens our understanding of the three ancient cultures, and—we hope—will invite new perspectives on topics such as image-making and storytelling, that continue to resonate today.”
For more information or to reserve a ticket to visit Getty Villa, located at 17985 Pacific Coast Highway, visit getty.edu.
Veronica Beard—which operates a brick-and-mortar location in Palisades Village—has announced its latest Veronica Beard Gives Back partnership, which began on April 1 and runs through the end of June.
#VBGivesBack has partnered with Penny’s Flight Foundation, which is where a portion of all Veronica Beard online sales will be donated during the campaign.
During the month of April, $50 from the sale of each Veronica Beard Penny Loafer will benefit the foundation. Eligible styles are the Penny Suede Loafer, Penny Woven Suede Loafer, Penny Woven Metallic Loafer, Penny Woven Leather Loafer and Penny Raffia Loafer.
Penny’s Flight Foundation is a “nonprofit dedicated to funding research and raising awareness for neurofibromatosis, one of the most common genetic diseases in the U.S.”
Over the course of the partnership, Veronica Beard will host events in some of its retail locations—including the Palisades Village store—donating 10% of event sales to Penny’s Flight Foundation. Additional details about the Palisades event will be available at a later date.
“The Veronica Beard Gives Back program was launched in 2015 to support women and organizations that are making a difference in the world,” read a statement about the partnership.
Kate and Chad Doerge founded Penny’s Flight Foundation in 2022 in memory of their daughter, Penny, who died from a brain tumor caused by NF at the age of 16 in November 2022.
“Despite being one of the most common genetic disorders in the U.S., NF is chronically underfunded,” the statement read. “After Penny’s passing, Kate channeled her grief into action, and started the foundation to celebrate her daughter’s life and to fund much-needed advances in NF research.”
Veronica Beard, founded by sisters-in-law Veronica Miele Beard and Veronica Swanson Beard in 2010, has operated a storefront in Pacific Palisades on Swarthmore Avenue since April 2018.
Sophomore Conor Greene and the Dolphins resume Western League play this Wednesday, April 3, and Friday, April 5, against Hamilton. Photo by Steve Galluzzo
By STEVE GALLUZZO | Sports Editor
Palisades Charter High School baseball coach Mike Voelkel was hoping the confidence his team gained from its 8-4 victory over league rival Venice on March 22 would carry over to last week’s annual trip to San Diego for the Lions Tournament.
Instead, the Dolphins struggled to generate offense and got outscored 31-9 in their four games down south, losing them all to drop below .500 on the season. It was the first time Palisades failed to win a game at the tournament since going 0-4 in 2013. Last spring, the Dolphins won three of four to make the semifinals of the Classic Division.
“Right now we don’t have consistent quality at-bats throughout our lineup, which ends rallies, and the inability to score runs and put pressure on the opposing pitcher is costing us,” said Voelkel, who took over Palisades’ program in 2007 and since then has guided the team to a 20-42 record at the Winter Break tournament. “If you put pressure on the pitcher, he gets tired, the defense gets tired, it breaks their will, they start making mistakes and everyone gets excited to hit.”
In their first game last Monday, March 25, at Poway High, the Dolphins lost to Union of Oregon, 9-2. Alex Loos and Yonah Cohen each had one hit and one RBI, Noah Andrews had two singles, and Logan Bailey and Reece Frankel each added a hit.
The next day, Palisades was held to three hits in a 6-1 loss to host La Jolla Country Day. On the hill, John Iacono allowed five hits with five strikeouts in four innings, and at the plate Jack Kurland had a double, and Bailey and Roman Hawk each singled.
The Dolphins wrapped up pool play last Wednesday, March 27, at Mission Hills in San Marcos, and the Grizzlies scored eight runs in the first inning on their way to winning 11-4. Bailey and Jordan Harris each had two hits, Frankel and Hawk each smacked RBI doubles, and Max Miller pitched a scoreless inning in relief. Jaxson Jenkins and Ryan McVicker each had two doubles for Mission Hills.
Palisades closed the tournament Thursday, March 28, with a 5-2 defeat to Nogales. Bailey had two hits but the Dolphins were victims of an immaculate inning (three strikeouts on nine pitches).
“The results were not good, but we face the best teams we’ll play all year down there—teams above our level—and that’s why we go every year,” Voelkel added.
The Dolphins (6-8 overall, 3-1 in league) return to Western League action this week versus Hamilton, hosting the first game on Wednesday, April 3, and traveling to Los Angeles to take on the Yankees on Friday, April 5.
Palisades is seeking its sixth straight league title and sixth straight City Open Division playoff berth.
Several springtime egg hunts and festivals are slated to take place in Pacific Palisades, including at Palisades Recreation Center, Simon Meadow (postponed one week from the original date, due to rain) and Rustic Canyon Recreation Center.
Palisades Recreation Center will host its annual Eggstravaganza, featuring a Spring Egg Hunt in collaboration with The Gray Dragon children’s store, on Friday, March 29, from 11 a.m. to 1 p.m.
Owned by Adele Heydenrich, the Marquez Knolls store, located at 16620 Marquez Avenue, opened in November 2023—which Heydenrich described as a 20-year “dream come true.”
“The Palisades [Recreation] Center … combined with The Gray Dragon, invite[s] the community to share in the spirit of Easter holiday, promoting connections and creating lasting memories,” according to a statement.
This year’s event will include inflatables, crafts, games, music, a coloring contest, face painting and more.
The Egg Hunt will begin at 11:30 a.m. with two separate fields for children 5 years and under, and children 6 years and older. Palisades Recreation Center is located at 851 Alma Real Drive.
“Join us [in the] community for a joy-filled day of festive activities, where little ones can experience a safe and fun egg-citing adventure in the company of friends and neighbors,” The Gray Dragon shared with the Palisadian-Post.
Dubbed “a fun event for the whole family,” Palisades-Malibu YMCA will host its first Spring Festival and Egg Hunt on Saturday, April 6, from 9:30 a.m. to 1 p.m. at Simon Meadow—postponed from its original March 30 date because of a rainy forescast.
Festivities will include photo opportunities with the Easter Bunny, games, crafts, prizes, snacks and more. The Y asked that attendees bring their own baskets to collect eggs in the hunt.
For children ages 3 to 4 years old, the Egg Hunt will begin at 10 a.m.; for children ages 5 to 6, the Egg Hunt will begin at 10:45 a.m.; and for children ages 7 to 12, the Egg Hunt will begin at 11:30 a.m.
Simon Meadow is located at the corner of Sunset Boulevard and Temescal Canyon Road.
Rustic Canyon Recreation Center will host its annual Spring Festival on Saturday, March 30, from 11 a.m. to 3 p.m.
The event will be free and open to all ages, featuring arts and crafts, a bounce house, games, and an Egg Hunt for all ages at 1 p.m.
Rustic Canyon Recreation Center is located at 601 Latimer Road. For more information, email rusticcanyon.rc@lacity.org.
George Wolfberg Park at Potrero Canyon Photo by Chuck Larsen
By SARAH SHMERLING | Editor-in-Chief
The City of Los Angeles Bureau of Engineering hosted an online community meeting March 14 to discuss the Potrero Canyon Pedestrian/Bicycle Bridge project—the first in a series of public outreach meetings to gather input on plans and disseminate relevant information.
The project includes the development of a bridge that would connect Will Rogers State Beach to George Wolfberg Park at Potrero Canyon.
More than 80 participants tuned in to hear from project officials, including Potrero Canyon Pedestrian/Bridge Project Manager Matt Negrete of Jacobs Engineering, Founder and Design Principal of SPF:Architects Zoltan Pali, Community Outreach Lead Jason Jackson of Arellano Associates, Councilmember Traci Park District Director Juan Fregoso, Senator Ben Allen District Representative Rad Nowroozi and Interim Project Manager Jose Beristain from the City of Los Angeles Bureau of Engineering.
“Our role right now is to work with the departments, our consultants … as well as the community to make sure that everybody’s concerns and thoughts are being heard on that front,” Fregoso said of CD 11’s current goal, “as well as us relaying information as it happens sometimes with our department and our partners.”
Fregoso said he looks forward to a “continued partnership with everybody” while trying to figure out the community’s needs and concerns, finding the balance between that and the bridge.
“George Wolfberg Park was completed in 2021, which connected Palisades [Recreation Center] to Pacific Coast Highway,” Beristain said when describing the project’s background. “As part of the Potrero Canyon project, the coastal development permit required the city conduct a feasibility study, which evaluated a safe crossing from PCH to Will Rogers State Beach.”
Beristain explained that a tunnel and at-grade crossing were also studied, and it was determined at the time that the bridge was the “safest, most feasible and cost-effective alternative.” The city has since secured $11 million in state funding from Senator Allen’s office for the project.
“With that funding, BOE has hired Jacobs to assist in the conceptual design and environmental clearance phase of the project,” Beristain continued. “We’re in the beginning phases of environmental clearance and conceptual design, and are expected to start construction in 2027 and wrap up in 2030.”
Concurrently, a lateral trail, connecting George Wolfberg Park to Temescal Canyon Road, is part of the coastal development permit, Beristain said, which is being developed by BOE’s Geotechnical Engineering Division.
Negrete spoke on some of the technical aspects of the project, explaining that the overall vision is to provide a “community gateway for folks traveling down the coast on Pacific Coast Highway as they enter the greater Los Angeles area.” The project will aim to “provide safe pedestrian and bicycle access between the park and the beach,” as well as “create a user experience that maintains personal safety and security.”
“We want to make sure that this project encompasses the local environment, the topography of the area,” Negrete continued, “the history of the area, going as far back as the Native Americans in the area.”
Negrete said the project is in its “environmental documentation phase,” which is expected to last two years. He also explained that while an environmental impact report is not being pursued for the project, the developers will work with different agencies, including city of LA and Caltrans, to determine “an appropriate level of environmental documentation,” depending on aspects like aesthetics and visual impacts, noise, and other various things that could be impacted by the project.
A timeline of the project Photo courtesy of City of LA
When it comes to public outreach for the project, there will be three community meetings, including the March 14 meeting. Future meetings will include a workshop setting with draft concepts, then bringing a final concept for review and refinement input.
“I just want to point out that we are listening, and we’re hearing and we’re taking that all in,” Negrete said of community concerns related to the bridge project, including fire safety, trespassing and park monitoring. “That’s why we’re here tonight.”
There will be two bridge architectural concepts developed, with one recommended alternative, Negrete said.
“We want to make sure that this project is successful, and not just something that gets pushed upon them and pushed through,” Jackson said about community feedback. “That is not the intention of the project, we really want it to be a collaborative process.”
For the remaining portion of the meeting, community feedback, including questions, comments and concerns, were heard through public engagement, which was facilitated by Jackson. Several attendees spoke for and against the bridge project, while others had questions about specific measures that would be implemented.
“I’m very against this bridge, because I feel quite certain that it will bring the homeless that we are already engaging at the beach, we will bring them into Potrero Canyon, into our park and into our village,” one Palisadian, who works with Pacific Palisades Task Force on Homelessness, said.
Additional concerns heard throughout the meeting related to fire safety, potential for additional access for burglaries and robberies, off-leash dogs in the park, the cost of the project, vandalism, trespassing, and more.
In response to safety concerns, Fregoso said Councilmember Park’s office is “running a parallel track” of identifying additional resources—whether that is park rangers, additional support from Los Angeles Police Department or an alternative avenue—to address coastal zone needs.
When asked if the bridge would be available for bicycles, Beristain said the main focus at this point is for it to provide pedestrian access, but that project developers would be “analyzing if utilizing bicycles is going to be something that we’re going to move forward with.” The exact location for the bridge, Negrete said, is still being studied.
Several residents suggested that, in order to mitigate safety issues, the bridge be locked from dusk until dawn—which is when George Wolfberg Park is locked. Negrete said that they are in the early phases of the project, but that “things such as locking gates … can be considered.”
“We need this bridge,” said a Palisadian of more than 80 years. “I can tell you, as a pioneer of environmental law in California, this is not going to have any adverse environmental impacts, it’s going to be a benefit.”
For residents who want to stay informed as the project progresses, additional information can be found at potrerocanyonpedbridge.org. The project email address—which is where questions and comments may be sent—is potrerocanyonpedbridge@lacity.org.
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