EXCLUSIVE READER QUESTION:
ASK THE CITY MANAGER
BRUCE MOE
Q: There are open courts in Manhattan Heights for pickleball players are they are open to all players? I was suggested/recommended to play on the northerly side of the courts that is where I should play because of my lower level from a player. My understanding is “open play” means all levels. I was shocked when I was asked to move. Thoughts??? Maybe post all levels for open play! —- Emily Piemonte
A: We welcome and encourage Pickleball players of all levels to utilize the Pickleball courts at Manhattan Heights and the new Pickleball courts at Manhattan Beach Middle School (MBMS). Four courts at MBMS are designated by skill level for open play and two courts are first come, first served with a one-hour limit per group. Players may choose to reserve Pickleball courts or participate in drop-in play and other special programs at Manhattan Heights. During drop-in play, players are typically organized organically by skill level with some overlap to promote good experiences for beginner, intermediate, and advanced players. Participants self-identify their skill level and play against similar competition whenever possible during drop-in play. We expect good sportsmanship, including welcoming players of all skill levels, at our public courts. Feel free to speak with Parks and Recreation staff onsite (310) 802-5448 or call Recreation Supervisor Michael Hudak for additional information (mhudak@manhattanbeach.gov or 310-802-5432). Have fun!
Send your questions to City Manager Bruce Moe at: MBWeekly@TimeWire.net
MB COUNCILMAN JOE FRANKLIN EXCLUSIVE COMMENTARY:
Comments On Crime Victim Council Candidate Frank Chiella
I’m sorry this theft happened to Frank Chiella or to any of our residents. The best prevention against theft is to “harden the target.” This is done by making sure our homes and vehicles are secure and locked. If thieves do not have easy targets they will go elsewhere. Get involved with the Neighborhood Watch team on your block. They can give current and accurate information about criminal activity which is given to them on a weekly basis from the Manhattan Beach Police Department. Look out for each other. Let someone know if their garage door is open. If you see trash cans have been out on the curb for a while, call the homeowner or take them off the street. Same for an accumulation of newspapers or packages on the porch. These indicate to the criminals that no one is home. Consider investing in a solar-powered motion-detector flood light for your driveway. These are found in hardware stores and online and require no electrical contractors to install and cost from $110-$150. The moment someone steps onto your driveway it will be flooded with light. Make an effort to park your cars in your driveway. Be sure to file a police report if you are the victim of a crime. These reports help build a database of crimes and, if caught, the criminals. If we have fewer thefts, the MBPD’s time will be freed up for increased patrols and other urgent matters. On Council we are always looking for ways to keep our community safe, including hiring more police officers. In the meantime, organize your blocks and your homes to make them as secure as possible.
https://www.manhattanbeach.gov/government/city-council
MB WEEKLY READER POLL:
Strand House Chosen Restaurant With
The Best Ocean View In Manhattan Beach
By a large majority, 68% of MB Weekly readers chose The Strand House as having the best ocean view in Manhattan Beach. The Strand House is a sophisticated yet comfortable family-owned restaurant conceived by a small group of South Bay families out of their love for great food, wine, and friends. In 2011, The Strand House opened its doors, leading the culinary revolution of Manhattan Beach. With 180° sweeping views of the Pacific Ocean, world travelers and locals may come for the view, but stay for Chef Craig Hopson’s Coastal California Cuisine.
The menu highlights the bounty of produce available year round in Southern California. Each week, their chefs roam the farmers market sourcing directly from the best farmers and purveyors around. The Strand House is also home to a thoughtful and carefully crafted cocktail and wine program that is sure to please each guest.
The believe that impeccable service does not have to be stuffy. The Strand House offers a five-star experience with the warmth and hospitality you would expect from a beach town, where each guest is treated like family.
www.thestrandhousemb.com
MB WEEKLY – LENS:
The Mira Costa boys soccer team won the Laguna Hills Hawk Invitational Thursday, Dec. 29.
Nando Trattoria Manhattan Beach:
Wild-caught spiny lobster.
www.nandotrattoria.com
MB WEEKLY – COMMENTARY:
by Mike Michalski
Despite our police department’s best efforts, public safety continues to deteriorate at a shocking clip. Overall, reported property crime through November is up 14% over the same period in 2021, which itself represented a huge spike over the 2020 lockdown year, according to MBPD’s Compstat Dashboard. Most alarming, since the November 8 election through last Wednesday (roughly five weeks), there were 52 (!) vehicle burglaries, including 16 stolen catalytic converters (and one attempted theft of a converter), six residential burglaries, an armed robbery and another attack on one of our downtown jewelers (this one was an after-hours burglary, so it did not get the media coverage of last June’s brazen armed looting of Pasha Fine Jewelry in broad daylight). Also, last month in the space of three days, there were three vehicle stops that resulted in arrests of occupants with loaded, illegal firearms (which makes you wonder how many guns are coming into our city undetected).
www.realestateedge.com
OPEN UP YOUR EYES TO THE UNIQUE RHYTHM OF MANHATTAN BEACH:
Join thousands and thousands of your neighbors in Manhattan Beach and surrounding South Bay communities. Sign up for free at MB Weekly.
www.MBWeekly.net
MB WEEKLY:
The Faces of Manhattan Beach
Meet Nelly Penalonzo
Manhattan Village General Manager
“WOULD YOU RATHER” INTERVIEW
WOULD YOU RATHER GO INTO THE PAST AND MEET YOUR ANCESTORS OR GO INTO THE FUTURE AND MEET YOUR GREAT-GREAT-GRANDCHILDREN?
–Future and Meet Your Great-Grandchildren
WOULD YOU RATHER HAVE MORE TIME OR MORE MONEY?
–Money
WOULD YOU RATHER HAVE A REWIND BUTTON OR A PAUSE BUTTON ON YOUR LIFE?
–Pause Button
WOULD YOU RATHER BE ABLE TO TALK WITH THE ANIMALS OR SPEAK ALL FOREIGN LANGUAGES?
–Foreign Languages
WOULD YOU RATHER WIN THE LOTTERY OR LIVE TWICE AS LONG?
–Win The Lottery
www.seabreezemgmt.com
MB WEEKLY – HISTORY:
Pancho’s restaurant, January, 1950.
Feel free to send in your historical photos of Manhattan Beach to: MBWeekly@TimeWire.net
Urban Plates:
www.urbanplates.com
MB WEEKLY – COMMENTARY:
by Susan Boettner
I’m a lifetime local, longtime realtor, and neighborhood watch block captain in the MB tree section. It is undeniable that crime has risen in our community, and my opinion is that there are many that are apathetic about reporting the crimes except on Nextdoor, as they don’t feel that the Manhattan Beach Police Department has enough manpower or legal power to do anything. Even with ring cameras and locked doors criminals are brazen both in broad daylight and evening. A week ago in front of my house in the middle of the night our car was also ransacked, and I also did not report (except to my neighbors). Later I also heard that a neighbor a block and a half away had her car stolen out in front of her house that same week. Personally I think private patrol companies or MBPD should be patrolling our neighborhoods (it’s not just the downtown areas). The sooner, the better. Thieves know they can get away with it, I think.
www.susanboettner.com
WHAT IS THE MAGIC OF MANHATTAN BEACH TO YOU?
** Manhattan Beach’s magic in my opinion is its small-town charm. Kids still riding their bikes in the neighborhood, going to Costa on a Friday night in the chilly fall weather watching football with cheerleaders. The community support (from most) of homegrown businesses and entrepreneurs. Successful retirees that offer advice and wisdom and care about your family when they ask how your son or daughter are doing. And most of all when in a time of need or sorrow we are there to support that need and we are there to be there in a time of sorrow. —- David Slay, restaurateur, SLAY Steak and Fish
** The Magic of Manhattan Beach is our residents, of course! Our residents are more civil, respectful and caring than any community that I know. And, as a community, our residents give more, always, with more time, effort and money to those who are in need. That’s their MAGIC! —- Mark Burton, former MB mayor
** Everyone dreams of a safe, peaceful, clean, kind, helpful, giving, open, respectful, adaptable, and inclusive community amidst an incredibly sought-after climate agreeable to most every human. You can feel all that any day in Manhattan Beach, if you choose to, by standing and looking out from our iconic pier dreaming of the past and future. The magic happens once you decide what to do with your good fortune to live here as you leave the pier. It’s why so many that leave return to stay for good. —- Stewart Fournier, former City Councilmember
MB WEEKLY:
An Exclusive Interview With
Former MB Mayor Russ Lesser
PART TWO
Q: FROM YOUR PERSPECTIVE, WHAT IS THE MOST SIGNIFICANT PROBLEM FACING MANHATTAN BEACH IN THE NEXT YEAR?
A: I think the biggest problem is public safety. We have been a very safe town and still are as far as violent crime is concerned. However, we have seen increases in property crime against commercial establishments and automobiles. We have a great police department who has done the best they can but is frustrated and hampered by new laws such as proposition 47 which reduced certain crimes such as some shoplifting to misdemeanors and they know that even if they catch someone red-handed they will not be prosecuted. Add to that the disaster that Los Angeles District Attorney George Gascon has been and no one should be surprised at increases in crime. Forty-two years ago my wife Charlotte, along with support from the city council, established and still heads up our Neighborhood Watch program. When it was started we were averaging over one hundred residential burglaries a month and now we have a fraction of that. The other big problem is maintaining fiscal responsibility.
Q: WHAT IS YOUR FAVORITE MOVIE OF ALL TIME?
A: That is a tough one as I have a few favorites. I am a Star Wars and Pink Panther fanatic. Probably, as I am a true sucker for romantic films, my actual favorite is Sleepless in Seattle followed by the Princess Bride. The Magnificent Seven also is high on the list.
Q: NAME THREE OF YOUR FAVORITE RESTAURANTS IN THE AREA?
A: This is also hard, as we are blessed to have many fine restaurants in our town. Probably Mangiamos, followed by Pancho’s and Nick’s. When our family was growing up and something special happened we usually went to Pancho’s to celebrate.
Q: WHAT ADVICE DO YOU HAVE FOR THE MAYOR AND CITY COUNCIL IN THE NEW YEAR?
A: It takes a team working together to get anything done. You can have the greatest ideas in the world but if you can’t get three votes you might as well stay home and watch I Love Lucy reruns. Public Safety is the primary concern, followed by fiscal responsibility. I think we have a good city manager and a good staff who care about the community and want to do the right thing.
www.calstate.edu
MB WEEKLY – LENS:
Starting off the New Year, MB Police Department graveyard officers conducting a traffic stop on a vehicle at approximately 12:15 a.m. for a vehicle code violation. Through investigation, officers recovered a concealed, loaded firearm within the vehicle. The driver, a convicted felon, was arrested for multiple gun related charges.
MB WEEKLY – AROUND THE NEIGHBORHOOD:
*****A man was arrested on suspicion of vehicular manslaughter and hit-and-run after Torrance police said that, in October, his truck struck a pedestrian and he ran away, leaving his vehicle behind. Patrick Carty, a 52-year-old Castaic resident, surrendered and was arrested, December 19 – two months after the collision that killed a 78-year-old Torrance man, the Torrance Police Department reported. On October 27, a Ford truck that police say was driven by Carty, was going west on Artesia Boulevard when it rear-ended a 2000 Toyota truck, causing the Ford to lose control and hit a pedestrian waking south of the Artesia Boulevard sidewalk, a police news release states. *****Four Torrance police officers involved in the racist text scandal that shocked the community – and compounded concerns about racism and accountability within the agency following 2018’s fatal shooting of Christopher De’Andre Mitchell – are no longer employed by the city, according to government documents and multiple sources. The Police Department declined to comment on whether the officers were fired, citing an ongoing investigation into the scandal. Police Chief Jeremiah Hart, for his part, said that the department was working collaboratively with the US Department of Justice to update its policies and implement reforms to repair community trust. *****A former Redondo Beach detective was acquitted of criminal charges that stemmed from online posts he made in summer 2019 that the city’s Police Department had argued were threatening toward others. Patrick Shrum was charged with misdemeanors for contempt of court and unlawfully possessing ammunition in November 2019 and, according to the Redondo Beach human resources office, was fired from his position as police detective on April 30, 2020.
MB WEEKLY:
The Faces of Manhattan Beach
Meet Aki
Feel free to share your photographs with thousands and thousands of your neighbors in Manhattan Beach and surrounding South Bay communities.
Send to: MBWeekly@TimeWire.net
MB WEEKLY LIST:
People From Manhattan Beach
Athletes – Volleyball
Kerri Walsh Jennings: three-time Olympic beach volleyball player
Alix Klineman: volleyball player
Mike Lambert: former professional beach volleyball player
Stein Metzger: former professional beach volleyball player
MB WEEKLY – LENS:
Meet new MB Police Department Officer Orta who officially completed Field Training this weekend.
Feel free to send your photos to: MBWeekly@TimeWire.net
MB WEEKLY – READER QUESTION:
IS AIR TRAVEL DURING THE HOLIDAYS A FORM OF MADNESS?
Please share your reply with thousands and thousands of your neighbors in Manhattan Beach and surrounding South Bay communities.
Send your reply to: MBWeekly@TimeWire.net (Maximum 100 words)
MB – BULLETIN BOARD:
1. ** Why does THAT person always get featured on national TV and magazines, and I don’t? —- www.PRPrime.net
2. ** Housekeeper looking to fill days that just became available. Lucia is Hardworking, Kind, and Honest. She struggles with English her daughter can translate if needed. She can be reached at Lucia 240-877-6406 —- Liza Dean
3. ** New 2 bed/2 bath townhouse (sleeps 6) on 4th St. Two houses from the beach, 5-minute walk to downtown. $375/night. Call Linda 310-375-8814 —- Linda Emerson
4. ** Police still have not notified merchants or the city of the recent break-in to Blue Diamond jewelers on fireworks night or the homeless guy that broke the glass door to the office and threatened the business owner on 8th and MB Ave 2 weeks ago! For the life, of me, I can’t figure MB out anymore! I thought the new police chief would be more on top of it. —- Kim Riley, Manhattan Beach
5. ** Every meal a cat eats is a breakfast because they sleep so often. —- Harlow A., Manhattan Beach
6. ** Cooking show competitions need a cleaning-the-dishes round to make them way more realistic. —- Nancy P., Manhattan Beach
7. ** In Manhattan Beach, I’ve also seen that great men are often lonely. —- Thomas M., Manhattan Beach
8. ** Walk Streets, Yet you still rarely see police downtown. Is anyone seeing this beefed-up foot patrol? —- Jacquelyn M., Manhattan Beach
9. ** Dear MB Weekly – Thank you for the article – it’s great. —- Maureen, Tabula Rasa Essentials
10. ** Join Neighborhood Watch and your Block Captain will forward a list of weekly crime in the city. It breaks it down by type of crime and which part of the city. It gives you a good idea of what is going on. —- Beth Bermucci, Manhattan Beach
11. ** I took my dog to the animal hospital. Here’s the diagnosis I wasn’t expecting, Sherlock received on arrival in the E.R.: acute cannabis intoxication from something – likely the butt of a joint – he had gobbled up off the street. —- Lani T., Manhattan Beach
12. ** A neighbor up by Gelson’s has told me about crimes in town that have never been made public. Armed robbery of the Arco station on Manhattan Beach Blvd. was one. Keep neighbors informed. —- Jacquelyne M., Manhattan Beach
13. ** A word of advice, don’t start your letter to Santa with “Dear Fatty.” You will definitely end up on the naughty list. —- George A., Manhattan Beach
14. ** Stop voting for Democrats who support cashless bail & DAs who won’t prosecute crime. We need more police presence. I seldom see MBPD in East MB. —- Fred Taylor, Manhattan Beach
15. ** Is anyone else in the El Porto section of Manhattan Beach bothered by the piercing sound from the tanker ships in the bay? Been going on for about six months. —- Lee Allan, Manhattan Beach
16. ** So obvious. Of course, Hunter Biden should have been investigated. His father was the “old man” involved. Duh! It doesn’t take a genius to figure that out. The media dismissed it to hide and steal the election. Tell me why the 15% didn’t want it known. I know. They didn’t want to know either. —- David Denitz, Gardena
17. ** I wanted to encourage everyone in our neighborhood to allow wildlife to live and thrive in our world. According to the World Wildlife Fund, almost 70% of our wildlife has been lost since 1970. —- Heather Beatty, Manhattan Beach
18. ** My wallet was stolen this past April in the Manhattan Village Ralphs. I did report it, filed a report, and went about canceling credit and debit cards (which had already been used at Target and Chevron – within 10 or 15 minutes of the theft). The thief was identified on the store video, and I was told he was a repeat criminal. I don’t understand why he couldn’t be found, arrested, or stopped. —- Elyse Gura, Manhattan Beach
19. ** How long before they get tired of robbing the cars and what’s inside or outside? Seeing how this is the new way of life in the beach cities, how long before they go inside people’s homes for a much richer target environment? Don’t think it can’t happen in this area? Let the police serve and protect, not observe and take reports … just a thought. —- Anthony Bruno, Manhattan Beach
20. ** A Massachusetts town has decided to become the first in the state to contract with the federal government to kill coyotes locals say have killed pets and become a dangerous nuisance. https://abcn.ws/3WmN3AO —- Michael C., Manhattan Beach
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