Odds and Ends 183

For readers residing in Rancho Palos Verdes who do not already know, Marymount College's President, Dr. Michael Brophy has filed a lawsuit attempting to have the wording of the argument against The Marymount Plan's Initiative, now known as Proposition P or Measure P, thrown out or re-written.

Dr. Brophy also seeks damages from the city which would mean taxpayers would have to fund any settlement granted by the court.

So much for his "The Marymount Plan will be completed at no expense to the taxpayer".

It is now time to get serious about all of the arguments for and against Marymount being granted approval to build student housing on its campus for up to 250 students.

I do understand very well that there are many San Pedro residents that would like to see Marymount do as it has promised to do and abandon the off-campus student housing called Pacific Heights. But since Marymount has claimed they would do so several times, yet has not fulfilled its statements in the past, there is really no trust that they would finally abandon the site at 24Th and Cabrillo Avenue, in San Pedro.

There also has never been any consideration of closing the Palos Verdes North off-campus housing facility, and there would not be should Marymount receive approval to build on-campus student housing.

I continue to publish information about P, The Marymount Plan, and The Marymount College Facilities Expansion Project that has been approved and something I continue to support.
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We have been home since Sunday and I now have four visit to Amalfitano Bakery under my belt and in my tummy.

I learned during my first trip that cannolis and most other non-breakfast fair doesn't come out until around 11:00 AM each day.

Terri and I both ate a cannoli and to be truthful, we like most other goodies over a cannoli.

I have a Napoleon waiting for me that I am sure I will enjoy.

It is not necessary, it appears, to wish Mr. Anthony Amalfitano good luck in the survival of his new Bakery. But good luck is wished for in the bakers' ability to keep up with the demand for all the wonderful treats found in the Bakery.

Many members of our community have already found out the troubling news that, if they don't get to the Bakery early enough in the afternoon, their favorite treats may be sold out by the time they arrive.

Here's a hint. Pre-order what you want so they are set aside for pickup when you can drop by.
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I like the idea of folks visiting Amalfitano Bakery to also treat themselves to a meal, a treat, a haircut, or something from any of the other businesses in Western Plaza.

We enjoy Niccolo's Restaurant just next door to Amalfitano Bakery and Mr. Pack and his wife prepare some really great food there.

31 Flavors and the Barber Shop next door have been at the strip mall for as long as I can remember and even though Hillside Cleaners has moved, there is still a presence between Amalfitano Bakery and Hillside Liquor.

Shopping and dining in Rancho Palos Verdes along Western Avenue helps provide you with what you want and should meet many of your shopping and dining wants.
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We are all now back into the new school year this coming week with the Palos Verdes Peninsula Unified School District opening up classes beginning this coming Tuesday.

This means that traffic along Western Avenue will increase somewhat and we all need to be safe as we travel on that Avenue.

LAUSD comes back to work in several weeks and we all need to watch for traffic regarding Mary Star of the Sea High School, Rolling Hills Prep, and Christ Lutheran School.

Gone are the day of too many injuries due to junior high students crossing Western to get between Dodson and the Navy Housing at what is now Ponte Vista and it looks like it will be years before we have to deal with that, again.

There is still the problems with students crossing Western to get to several parking lots where parental units wait to pick up students attending Dodson. Please keep your eyes on the lookout for potential dangers and GET OFF THE PHONE!
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Odds and Ends 182

Last Monday Amalfitano Bakery opened to what can only be described from my readings is an overwhelming success.

According to its Facebook page, the Bakery sold out of its baked goods for multiple days beginning with its openind day.

I haven't been able to enjoy a cannoli from the Bakery yet, but I suspect that I will rise very early Monday morning and stroll down to view and then purchase a cannoli to enjoy. I may also bring my camera to show the event.
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The measure on the November 2 ballot concerning The Marymount Plan has been given its own identity.

Measure P on the ballot essentially asks RPV voters to approve on-campus student housing and a new law specifically created for and to be use only by Marymount College to overcome and moot some existing municiple codes as well as silencing many city controls placed on all other developments, but not Marymount's.

No matter what you hear, read, or view, every construction request made by Marymount's representatives to the Rancho Palos Verdes City Council has already been approved for construction.

The ONLY new construction the measure seeks to get approved that has NOT already been approved is student housing for up to 250 students on the main campus of Marymount College, located at about the highest elevation of Palos Verdes Drive East and above the switchbacks of that road.

I oppose on-campus student housing because I am not able to find any mitigation possible for the numerous safety concerns I have and when Marymount supporters state that having students live on campus means less traffic, that is not truthful, according to documents Marymount paid to have produced AND Marymount already uses trained shuttle bus drivers to safely transport students and have done so for years, without any reportable incidents or injuries.

Please vote NO on measure P on or before November 2, 2010 if you are a voter registered in Rancho Palos Verdes.
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I haven't found a "Ponte Vista" on the Island of Hawai'i but that was expected. The Hawai'ian alphabet in English has no 'v' or 's' as I have seen so far. The bridges I have passed over are, for the most part, very small and there are not many reasons to think that Italians would have been interested in viewing these bridges in Hawai'i.
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There are "Ponte Vista" signs and locations in Florida and other places.
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Odds and Ends 181

Monday, August 16!
Be there for the opening of Amalfitano Bakery or be on a United Airlines flight to Hawai'i.

While I will miss the opening I have been waiting months and months for, I wish all of you joyful tastes and wonderful fare as the last of the five new eateries opens along Western between Caddington and Summerland.

There is little doubt that I will venture down the hill the first available hour it is open after we return from the Big Island and the vacation we have put off for too long.
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Recently, if you have been driving closer to downtown San Pedro, you would have noticed road work that normally is found always slowing traffic on Western Avenue.

It seems like when it is time to close a lane or two along Western, it is undertaken while schools are in session and traffic becomes more of the nightmare and daymare is usually is.

But the summer has been very mild north and south of 9th Street and I can live stopped in traffic along Western much easier when the air is cooler and tempers only flare because of the congestion and not the heat.
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Might there be coming a period of less-than-moderate turmoil along Western Avenue?
Could it be that no storm drains will collapse and not major road work lies in store for Western Avenue in the coming months?

What will it be like to have sustained relative quite and moderation along Western?
Yes, there are empty storefronts and business is not what it should and could be.

There is a new Toys-R-Us store in the same location as Kay-Bee Toys once used batteries.
Calm has come to Denny's and there seems to still be no sushi at Asaka Grill Express.

Saladish and Pavich's still provide tasty and healthier food than some other restaurants provide.
There is still little more than nothing on the horizon concerning the Clearwater Project.

The silence at Ponte Vista is broken only by the sounds of happy goats and first responders undertaking worthwhile training as various times.

So, 'all calm on the Western Avenue front' may be something we can enjoy yet not take granted in.

Enjoy it while is lasts because the only constant along Western is change.
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Odds and Ends 180

The post begins with a mailer I received today from Save Our City III.

The issues revolves around simply whether Marymount College will persuade voters in Rancho Palos Verdes that everything already granted to them via The Marymount College Facilities Expansion Project is good enough or must voters also agree that on-campus student housing, TAKEN OUT BY MARYMOUNT's representatives must now be granted.

The ballot measure also includes language that, if approved, strips many of the city's oversight and regulatory provisions demanded of everyone else and every other business.

Save Our City III is the third group with that name to come about and all three entities had to deal with over development in the area.

Save Our City I was the original group that was created to form the structure to allow Rancho Palos Verdes to become a city.

Los Angeles County was allowing massive developments in its unincorporated areas where particular cities had jurisdiction.

Without city status, residents had very little power to stop or slow down over development.

Almost 38 years ago, voters in areas, not including Eastview voted to become residents of Rancho Palos Verdes.

The Eastview area was annexed into R.P.V. by a vote of the people several decades ago.

Marymount's representatives could have, had they wished, requested that the Rancho Palos Verdes discuss, debate and vote on whether to approve on-campus housing at their Palos Verdes Drive East, no matter what the city's Planning Commission stated in its report.

Marymount Officials also decide NOT TO REQUEST consideration of dorms on campus, from the current City Council membership.

The reasons I oppose on campus housing at Marymount deal exclusively with safety and are far different than the reasons that SOC III is undertaking their opposition to the ballot measure.

But their stance is also a great one, in my opinion and I hope you will read the information, get the REAL FACTS about Marymount (EVERYTHING MARYMOUNT ASKED FOR FROM THE CITY COUNCIL, HAS ALREADY BEEN APPROVED BY THE R.P.V. CITY COUNCIL)

But now they want on-campus student housing at a site that has suffered declining enrollment for several years and is only beginning a four-year program to award no more than three different Bachelor's degrees.

Loyola Marymount College in the Westchester area of Los Angeles is also going through the processes of upgrading its campus and they have a multitude of degree programs that seem to fit many students' liking.

SOC III is lead by Ken Dyda, who is one of the founders of Rancho Palos Verdes and he is a former Mayor of that city who continues to work hard for the average resident.

In the future, expect to see a large list of individual and groups siding with SOC III and don't be surprised to see all but two living former Mayors endorsing SOC III.

There are just two former Mayors that I am aware of that support The Marymount Plan and one of them sits on the College's Board of Trustees, so you know why she supports Marymount's plans to put up to 250 17-25 year olds living in high density housing in a low density neighborhood.

But for our northwest San Pedro folks, Marymount has plans to do absolutely NOTHING with their Palos Verdes North off-campus facility as far as lowering the number of students who could live there or even considering closing it, altogether.

Naturally, I will send in a small check. I am still unemployed so I will also find time to make buttons.

I am not nor will I be a member of SOC III. While they have truly honorable, reasonable, realistic, responsible and respectful goals, I oppose dorms on campus and SOC III takes no official on whether there should be dorms at Marymount. Rather, they oppose the measure for a number of good reasons, but I wish they also opposed the dorms being constructed.

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Tick. Tick. Tock. I want the health inspector to walk. Walk that is, into Amalfitano Bakery, inspect it, give it the go-ahead to open and then walk out to go someplace else.

Mr. Anthony Amalfitano was hopeful, last Tuesday that he can open "next week" and I am hopeful for that, too. I get one cannoli. That's it for about a week. My eating plan doesn't include much wheat, but there are exceptions that I must abide by.

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I was quoted in the latest edition of The Palos Verdes Peninsula News regarding Rancho Palos Verdes becoming a Charter city.

Right now I haven't seen any interest outside those who are government or politically interested types that either support or oppose the issue.

I can't repeat enough that there is no way any current or future City Council member would ever consider doing anything like what the 'crooks' in Bell did. I know we have enough interested voters who will probably ask candidates for three seats on the Council opening up next year, about what they would do as Council members of a Charter City and after been to a fair share of candidate debates in R.P.V., I don't see any potential candidate even thinking about trying to catch residents off guard.
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There hasn't been anything new on www.yourpontevista.com in several months and I don't think we will see much in the foreseeable future what with the economy still doing poorly.

It is still amazing to me that "360" on the Hawthorne/El Segundo border is continuing development after a long delay.

I don't know if the eventual management company will have a very large apartment complex or whether it will still be considered to have various types of leases, rentals, and for sale units.
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Odds and Ends 179

I guess I was too hopeful that last week's Odds and Ends would be the last before the opening of Amalfitano Bakery.
I have heard that it will be very soon though and it could even happen this weekend or perhaps this coming Monday.
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Developments and projects still are having trouble all around, it seems and Ponte Vista at San Pedro is more the norm rather than the exception.
There remains continued thankfulness among many that the first phase was not begun and that the site was not occupied by renters and residents who lease units.
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Terri and I hope all of you are having a fine and mild summer to this point. Every time it looks like the heat will be turned on and left on, the morning gloom comes back to help with our electric bills.
It may be amazing to some that summer will be over in about a month and 23+ days and then fall begins.
Whether there will be an extended period of very hot weather during the remainder of the summer is something we can ponder. If it comes, then we probably should be grateful that it came so late in the summer and remember the milder temps as we swelter on the north side of 9th Street, waiting for the fall Santa Ana winds and fires that are burning now and in the future.
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It will be interesting to learn what the new Director of Los Angeles City Planning Department thinks about large developments in the city and particularly Ponte Vista.
I feel there is much we owe to the former Director in helping our community stave off over development through a time when such developments are grinding to a halt and many of them are become debris-strewn ghost areas.
We have lived with the blight at Ponte Vista and it still seems better to me to have it rather than a partially built settlement that has both completed structures and incomplete building.
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Villaraigosa Names New Planning Director For L.A.

This is from The Daily Breeze.

Villaraigosa names new planning director for L.A.
By Rick Orlov Staff Writer
Posted: 07/26/2010 06:33:32 PM PDT

Los Angeles Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa on Monday nominated a 15-year city veteran to serve as the next planning director.

Michael LoGrande, 39, the city's chief zoning administrator, was tapped to succeed S. Gail Goldberg as the head of a department that has struggled with severe budget problems in recent years.

"What I hope I can do is get people to understand the planning process and get involved," LoGrande said after a news conference.

The nomination has to be approved by the City Council. Councilman Ed Reyes, who chairs the council's Planning and Land Use Management Committee, said he hopes to hold hearings in the next several weeks.

The salary has not been set, but Goldberg was paid more than $212,000.

LoGrande lives in Long Beach and got his start in urban planning after the Northridge earthquake, where he oversaw a land use survey of the damage and was responsible for the department's emergency response team. He has held a variety of jobs in the department, from streamlining the agency's processes, interacting with community groups and reviewing applications for conditional-use permits, tentative tract maps and parcel maps.

- Rick Orlov
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The departing Director, Ms. Gail Goldberg was a champion of reasonable growth and her phrase "planning has to mean something" worked well when thinking about Ponte Vista at San Pedro.

I hope Mr. LoGrande has similar views as Ms. Goldberg and I think we should all wish Ms. Goldberg much success and happiness in her next adventure in planning.

San Pedro's Vue Complex In Receivership

San Pedro's Vue Complex In Receivership is the title of an article linked below:

http://www.dailybreeze.com/news/ci_15593727

The real estate market is still in big trouble and I have been told that it will be at least somewhere into 2011 that we might see enough of a nudge to suggest that the nightmare may be winding down.

Some others suggest we are in for another 3-4 years of real problems.

The real point about drawing anything out of the article and then pondering Ponte Vista is the issue of unit sales versus leases and rental units.

It now looks clearer than ever, had Bob Bisno found no opposition to his original plans for Phase 1 of Ponte Vista at San Pedro, we might now be passing one completed building among a debris-strewn construction area and the completed units, originally considered to be for sale Senior Housing, would most likely be leased or rented units to any age persons.

Bob would have gone belly up sooner than he did and there would be no need for even a project trailer remaining on the site, I believe.

Yes, the 245 duplexes are a terrible sight and many of us have called on the city of L.A. to enforce codes at Ponte Vista they don't seem to wish to enforce.

But please remember, first responders from all over California and from many parts of the country come to Ponte Vista to exercise their skills in urban environment tactics. So the owners of the site are doing good while they are doing nothing and the goats don't seem to mind that, one bit.

Unless the coyotes run amok among them.

Odds and Ends 178

If all goes well, the next Odds and Ends will include my impressions of the opening of Amalfitano Bakery.
An inspection scheduled for earlier this week was supposed to be the decision point activity that Mr. Anthony Amalfitano would use to learn when he would open his Bakery.
Yes, I know a cannoli is not such a great treat to consume with my new eating program. But I think we can all enjoy a treat from time to time and I don't feel one cannoli will hurt my continuing weight loss and I will make greater efforts to place more exercise into days and weeks following whatever treats I choose to enjoy.
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There is still quite a bit of construction-related equipment and items near the intersection of Avenida Aprenda and Western Avenue. With the giant pipes above ground at this time, the completion of the entire project is still some time away.
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I have published a post about the most recent San Ramon Canyon Stabilization Project Update Meeting at my: www.eastrpv.blogspot.com site and that project is of some importance with regard to transit routes that could be affected in the northwest San Pedro area and the eastern and southern portions of Rancho Palos Verdes.
The potential continues to exist that if a significant rainfall pattern comes during a future rainy season and the stabilization project is not completed or an interim stabilization structure is not placed, we all could face greater traffic challenges, even along Western Avenue.
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I have read, heard, or seen nothing of note, newly discovered about Ponte Vista at San Pedro and whether the current status of the project has been updated.
I really haven't expected to see any real updates because it continues to look like the real estate market remains bad and the most recent local residential development news has focused on single-family houses being considered in the Chandler area of Rolling Hills Estates.

Odds and Ends 177

I may just be that between this post and next Friday's Odds and Ends there could be a post celebrating the opening of Amalfitano Bakery. I shall keep my fingers crossed.
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Is the fence that surrounded the Sanitation Districts pumping station still not noticeable?

I saw several K-rails on the curb and I hope if they are not gone by now, they soon will be.
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Save Our Cities III, organization opposed to the initiative concerning The Marymount Plan is looking to speak to groups of folks who want to learn more about why they oppose passage of the ballot initiative.

Save Our Cities III (SOCIII) has not taken a position on whether on-campus student housing should be built on Marymount's campus. The group is strongly opposed to the proposed new ordinance that would be created by passage of the measure that would change the General Plan of Rancho Palos Verdes, take aways some rights and responsibilities provided to the City Council by voters who elected them to represent all residents of the city and also because The Marymount Plan mandates a radical departure to land use issues that are historic to the founding of Rancho Palos Verdes and could mean a non-returnable change in how and by whom land use codes, and requirements are kept in the city of Rancho Palos Verdes.
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Hot and muggy enough for you yet? Earlier this morning (Friday) we got a short downpour from Mother Nature. I guess she probably felt sad that San Pedro Hill is only about 1,260 feet tall and not really a mountain where she normally dumps late afternoon rain showers.

I guess her early morning downpour was not much more than a reminder for her not to forget the little hills who want to be mountains.
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Have You Noticed What Is No Longer Noticeable?

Existence as we have known it for years and through the change of decades has recently been altered in a fashion so many of us could only have dreamed about, yet thought would never happen.

Now there is no telling how long this new existence will last because we have seen at least one time when the change described in this post has been done, only to find things reverting back to the status quo.

If you noticed what can be passed by without much notice though not to notice what is no longer noticeable is probably a reasonable observation, should not be taken as any fault on your part.

For so very long the now unnoticeable had been noticed by so many that all notices were taken for granted and no real change was considered fathomable by a great number of us.

Yet in the dreams of many, noticing what is now reality, was something anticipated, hoped for, begged for, and demanded of.

The fencing around the pumping station has been removed.

Odds and Ends 176

When my sister Ruth is amazed about the upcoming auction at Silver Spur Court, that is something quite remarkable to me.

She commented about the huge loss between the former asking prices of the units and what the minimum bids may be, when the units go up for auction.

Ruth doesn't normally comment with excitement over the prices of condos and housing so it was something of a small shock to hear her with regards to the foreclosed project in Rolling Hills Estates.

I am wondering if she gets excited about something like this, what are folks considering when and what to do regarding potential condos at Ponte Vista at San Pedro are thinking.
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We are getting wind of another 'push poll' either having begun or almost here regarding Marymount College's ballot measure and attempts to have on-campus housing at the College.

This news reminds me about the poll paid for by Bob Bisno related to Ponte Vista at San Pedro and how the outcome of that poll was immediately questioned and how Bob and the pollster he hired had a meeting with the public and press about the poll and how its results differed so drastically with what members of the community were saying out loud and in small numbers.

I remember the events surrounding the meeting regarding the results of the poll and how Bob Bisno admitted he wrote as least one of the questions asked and how he would not answer specific questions about poll results.

Bob is long gone and I doubt that any future developers of the Ponte Vista site would try something like that again.

But it looks as if supporters of Marymount's plan to have voters approve dorms and create a new code that would allow Marymount's Specific Plan zone to supersede municipal codes found in conflict with Marymount's Plan may try their own 'push poll'.

Is this deja vu all over again? I hope not but I think it is something we all should be leery of.

The press and community members found quickly that the results of Bob's poll were probably pre-determined due to the questions created and the possible responses provided.

It is going around that similar things may be afoot with the new poll and I think many of us are ready to learn whether it is an objective poll or something Marymount's pollsters already are prepared to publish due to their knowledge of what they expect to find.

Is this type of poll uncommon? No way! It is done all the time, whether we like it or not.

What should we make of it? If it is a 'push poll', one created to 'push' respondents to answers that the creators want the respondents to have, then we all need to be skeptical and on our toes.

What else might a poll of this type do? It is suspected at this point, that some questions may be geared at either defaming some groups or individuals opposed to The Marymount Plan. There could be questions and comments from those calling registered voters that may tend to allow the respondent to have a negative impression or opinion about possibly City Council members because of their 5-0 vote to oppose The Marymount Plan.

There could be negative comments steered towards having respondents opine in a negative manner about individuals other than representatives of Rancho Palos Verdes, but probably not be because I am really a nobody. The folks that may be targeted may represent homeowners or opposition groups to Marymount's Special Election ballot measure.

If you haven't followed the recently increased drama with its letter to the city regarding a potential violation of The Brown Act and a letter by a Council member to the California State Bar dealing with the law firm that wrote the first letter, then you may have been missing something that may interest you.

It looks like between now and November 2, 2010 it going to get hotter with these issues than any issue we have dealt with regarding Ponte Vista at San Pedro.
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Unfortunately, there is one particular individual who was completely rotten during a part of the discussions and letter to the editor writing periods regarding Ponte Vista and he is more than a little involved with the Marymount debate.

I hope he doesn't write what he wrote when he wrote his horrible, disgusting, dishonest, miserable, and untrue letter dealing with those supporting Ponte Vista, if he writes about Marymount. We don't need that kind of letter or individual dirtying up the whole debate.
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The time to smell the fresh baked breads and pastries wafting up from Amalfitano Bakery is approaching for us. The cases are lighted and looking ready to be filled.

Still no opening date has been posted.
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The former liquor store site on Western Avenue just north of Caddington is going to house the mattress store that will be moving from just south of Caddington, pretty soon.
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I was very happy to not hear much noise or see many fireworks in the Eastview areas as we watched lots of illegal fireworks down in The Highlands from our vantage point in the parking lot of The Terraces. There seemed to be two areas down along Barrywood that had fireworks and they didn't seem as outrageous as in years past with it looked like a fireworks war was going on closer to Barrywood and Capitol.
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At last glance, the new theatre chain now showing movies on six screens at The Terraces has not raised their ticket prices and that is GREAT!

Of course a large diet soda and a large bag of popcorn was $10.50, but being a Senior and paying only $5.00 admission to a first run movie isn't that bad for after 6:00 PM.

The theatre continues its $4.00 per ticket for non-3D movies for everyone on Tuesdays and Thursdays AND Seniors get that deal also on Wednesdays.

Please shop and be entertained along Western Avenue, either in San Pedro or Rancho Palos Verdes. There are so many choices and good opportunities to shop locally and both cities can use the sales tax revenue.
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East View or Eastview? Yes!

Another Nearby Condo Project Goes To Auction

Ms. Melissa Pamer reports in the July 7, 2010 edition of The Daily Breeze that a 18-unit luxury condominium project has found no buyers and is on the auction block.

Here is a link to the article: http://www.dailybreeze.com/news/ci_15451511

Silver Spur Court was built but unable to court any buyers to the new building at the corner of Silver Spur Road and Crenshaw Blvd.

This may be an indication of why nothing is happening quickly at all with Ponte Vista at San Pedro and it is also a great example of what could have been for the site had Bob Bisno not been stopped in his tracks before any new building could occur.

It now seem almost certain that had Bob not found opposition to his idea to place at least 2,300-units along Western Avenue, he may have begun building the first phase only to run into the economic downturn that would have stopped his development.

We could have been looking at a site similar to what is found on the corner of Hawthorne Blvd. and Rolling Hills Road and that hillside turned into a horrible non-construction site.

Yes, we still have to deal with the blight that has been at Ponte Vista for over a decade. Yes, we still have to deal with not knowing what the future holds in store or when the future plans might be revealed.

But I would rather have what we have now than a closed-down construction site with contractors not receiving pay for work they started but didn't complete. We also don't have a partially built first phase that was first considered to be built along Western Avenue.

My thinking is that if we hear anything about what may be in store for Ponte Vista at San Pedro before 2011, that may be too early. I am looking towards the second quarter of next year unless the current owners find a buyer for the site to take it off their hands, in 2010.

Odds and Ends 175

From time to time over the past years, something pops up on a subscription Email alert that is part of Google.

I subscribe to Google Alerts regarding Ponte Vista at San Pedro.

Here is very old information that was linked on my Google Alerts this morning:
LLG Ponte Vista Traffic Study Appedix B-1.pdf
1-05-3554-1. Ponte Vista at San Pedro Project ... Future with Ponte Vista Project. CMA Data Worksheets. AM & PM Peak Hours ...
plncts.lacity.org/.../Appendix%20IV.J-1,%20Project%20Traffi...

This is the actually from a traffic study published in 2006 where counts were taken in 2005.
The only point here is learning that sometimes Google Alerts offers links to not so current information and it is a good idea to check the information out before getting excited that something new is coming out via Google Alerts.
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Some of the information contained in the Appendix B-1 can be very slightly considered now because of counts taken in 2005 and a significant point, also published in 2005 about the studied growth in traffic counts on Western Avenue.

The Western Avenue Task Force published their exhaustive and detailed study of traffic on Western Avenue between Palos Verdes Drive North, in Lomita and 25th Street, in San Pedro.
An important conclusion was stated in that study that indicated that, EVEN WITHOUT ANY DEVELOPMENT AT THE PONTE VISTA AT SAN PEDRO SITE, traffic counts were expected to increase at the rate of approximately 1.1 percent per year.

The study also concluded that in 2005 around the time of the publication of the study, there were about 37,500 vehicle trips counted along Western Avenue in the study's area of concern and the rate of increased vehicle trips per year was considered for a 20-year period of 'normal' area growth. The study used 2025 as its final year of study conclusions and for its summary.
It is now 2010, nothing is really new at Ponte Vista and there are no longer approximately 37,500 vehicles expected to be counted along Western Avenue.

It is expected that by the end of this year there will be 39,608 vehicles passing along Western Avenue on a roadway that has seen no changes in geometry and only synchronization of traffic signals.

Next year there will probably be over 40,000 vehicles traveling along Western Avenue, again with no geometric changes on Western but hopefully, the fencing around the pumping station MIGHT be removed.
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The lights are on and the false ceiling is going up. The two new signs are up to allow folks who enjoy great baked goods to find Amalfitano Bakery.
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This blog will begin to post more information, opinion, and other issues related to Marymount Colleges upcoming Initiative vote for its Marymount Plan.

If you find the information worthwhile and I hope you do, you can always visit. http://www.eastrpv.blogspot.com/ for much more information and postings that I don't feel should fill this blog too much.

But I do strongly feel that there would be great impact to traffic on Western Avenue and to residents living in eastern Rancho Palos Verdes and northwest San Pedro should The Marymount Plan's Initiative receive approval from Rancho Palos Verdes voters.

According to the traffic study for The Marymount College Facilities Expansion Project (with the on-campus student housing considered) there would be about 1,591 ADDITIONAL vehicle trips per year along Western Avenue between 9Th Street and Palos Verdes Drive North.

Since the original study was published, another Appendix was ordered and its traffic portion indicated that the number of yearly vehicle trips in the same area could actually increase to over 1,900.

Since any new on-campus housing approved by voters WOULD NOT MEAN that the college's Palos Verdes North off-campus student housing site would shut its doors and close down, traffic would INCREASE due to more students living on Marymount's Palos Verdes Drive East campus would drive to and from Western Avenue during any hour of the day or night, something that has never been done.

The additional approval that Marymount is now a four-year institution was done after the original traffic studies were published and it means upper class persons who would live in dorms will probably look and find work at the many businesses along Western Avenue and do other business, shopping, dining, or entertaining, when they are not in their dorm rooms.
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I strongly support The Marymount College Facilities Expansion Project approved by the Rancho Palos Verdes City Council with its many improvements to the Marymount College campus and with its added opportunities that could allow all students and members of the community an enhanced education and better experiences.

I strongly oppose The Marymount Plan along with its Initiative because The Plan adds on-campus housing and stupilates a new municipal law benefitting only Marymount College, at the expense of the residents and the city of Rancho Palos Verdes and offers just about everything else already approved by the City Council.

Odds and Ends 174

Wednesday June 23, 2010.
Time: 4:55 PM
Party: Mark and Terry Wells
Place: Denny's Restaurant's door.
Occurance: As we strolled into the new Denny's I found just two guests, both sitting at a booth, in the entire dining area.
Terri and I were the third and fourth customers at 5:00 PM.
By the time we left, at about 5:25 PM, the 'huge mass of humanity', O.K., the family of four and one added couple were sitting at booths and the rest of the place was empty.
10 Customers at 5:00 PM on a weekday.
Ouch!
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The lower half of the front windows at Amalfitano Bakery have a frosted look with etched-appearing on two of the pieces of glass.
There will be a very small area inside the Bakery where a few folks can sit and enjoy the fair, there.
I still don't have an opening date to post.
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It's a coyote. It's natural. It's nature.
Get a llama and be done with it.
I feel the llama would arrive sooner if Councilwoman Hahn was offered a photo op with it as it joins the herd of goats and sheep.

What A Wonderful Sign

Hold on to your car keys, walking shoes, sweet tooth, and aroma senses, the Bakery hasn't opened yet!

But seeing the sign up for the first time brought happiness to Terri and I and we both stated we wanted to share the news with everyone.

I wish Mr. Anthony Amalfitano, his family, and all the employees of the new bakery, the best of openings and a strong and healthy life in the new location on Western Avenue at Trudie Drive.

Amalfitano Bakery is the last of the eateries I have been writing about for the longest time, to finally open.

I don't know an opening date for the new establishment. I hope to provide that news to the widest readership possible, when I learn the date.

I have no clue yet what my first 'treat' will be. After growing up eating delights from Ramona's Polly Ann's, Joseph's, and other bakeries in our community, picking a favorite treat I will allow myself to have is going to be a problem.

Carrot Cake? Chocolate Chip Cookies? (Now remember everyone, THERE IS NO SUCH THING AS A CHOCOLATE CHIP COOKIE THAT CONTAINS NUTS!), One of the many bread products Ramona's was famous for? A brownie? (I can consider a brownie with nuts not being too foul)

I guess I'll have to decide once I gaze at the full display of great things.

As for my eating plan, I will make all the necessary changes that should allow me to have at least a small portion of anything I desire. Since I am closing in on a 70 pound weight loss, so far, I feel I am entitled to splurge, especially since Terri and I have waited so long to wake up to the smell of fresh bread baking only a small number of yards from our bedroom window.

Odds and Ends 173

For many folks, the cloud of selling off whatever entitlements Ponte Vista at San Pedro receives will be sold off rather than having the development constructed by a single development team as told to us, during "The Bob Years".
It seems we may be watching something somewhat similar unfold with "The Marymount Plan" and its initiative that would allow the constructions of two residence halls on the Palos Verdes Drive East campus and restrict, using a municipal code if approved by voters on November 2, 2010 that would essentially strip city government oversight of the bulk of their responsibility and rights to monitor, comment, and enforce elements of The Marymount Plan, both during the construction, implementation, and school operation, into the future.
As Bob Bisno was probably considering selling off the entitlements to others rather than actually developing Ponte Vista, so too may Dr. Michael Brophy, Marymount's President and other supporters of The Marymount Plan be considering the use of 'forward selling' of the rights and operations of all potential on-campus and off-campus college-owned student housing.
Dr. Brophy and others may also wish to forward sell all rights related to any or all public and private events and ventures to an entity that would manage, produce, administer, and market things like concerts, band camps, sporting events, and other things on the Marymount Campus.
Forward selling of residence halls operations and the administration and management of events and non-academic activities at Marymount could find a huge financial windfall coming to Marymount with very large checks that could conceivably, pay for the entire expansion plan, with more large donations from well-healed supporters.
I have offered some facts, assertions, and other opinions on my www.eastrpv.blogspot.com blog.
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Along with the possibility of on-campus housing at Marymount College, no one living anywhere near Western Avenue and Palos Verdes Drive North should expect or consider that Marymount would abandon and/or sell their 300+ student off-campus housing site called Palos Verdes North, which is located between Western Avenue and Five Points, on Palos Verdes Drive North.
It is also not currently know and doubtful that Marymount would close and sell off its Pacific Heights student housing building near 24Th and Cabrillo, in San Pedro.
Naturally, Marymount could reap even more income by selling off that property. But representatives of Marymount have claimed, several times, that they would close down that site and they have not kept their word about that, repeatedly.
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So, there MAY be coyotes searching for meals at Ponte Vista. Isn't that something that is natural?
I do like the idea of placing at least one llama on the site to protect the goats and sheep.
There was a period of time, while my sister and her family lived where we now live, that she wanted a llama in the back yard to increase her 'zoo' which included two goats, cats, a dog, ducks, and a Vietnamese pot-bellied pig which had the waddle of the house and slept in her own 'bed' in the master bedroom.
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I hope you are sitting down as you read this: The fencing surrounding the construction site along Western Avenue near Avenida Aprenda, is still up! I bet you were thinking I was going to write that it had been removed.
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By the next "Odds and Ends" post, it will officially be summer.
Have a wonderful, peaceful, and happy summer!

Ponte Vista APARTMENTS?????

On June 8, 2009, a video was produced by Arnold Imaging showing a 3 minute and 5 second animation of what the Ponte Vista "Apartments" might look like.

Here is the text from the following URL: www.arnoldimaging.com/?=1080,

"Challenge:
The developers of a 1,395 units apartment development in 'Las' Angeles needed a way to illustrate the design of their development to local neighborhood groups so they could receive their planning approvals.

Our Solution:
Create a video that shows the improvements to the streets and the architectural design of the buildings."

It is important to note that the video was placed in the 'Portfolio' section of the Web site and that was just over one year ago and may have absolutely nothing to do with whatever current plans are afoot by the new development team.

It is also important to note that there is no way on this or any other planet that 1,395 'apartments' would ever be approved, allowed, or tolerated on the 61.53 acre Ponte Vista at San Pedro site.

The animation illustrates what many of us have seen in previous drawings and other types of illustrations with Ponte Vista, even during "The Bob Years".

Apartment complexes with either rental or leased units have a much higher turn around rate than condos or SFRs do and with Western Avenue as the sole ingress and egress road at Ponte Vista, I is not reasonable to expect that the L.A. City Council would ever allow such a large 'apartment' development there.

Seaport Luxury Homes, the former condo project that actually opened as a lease-project has 136-units and I don't believe all the units have been leased or rented out as of today.

While the animation looks somewhat impressive, I think it amounts to much ado about nothing. But even something as trivial as this little bit provides some information many of us haven't seen with the project.

Odds and Ends 172

The morning sun brings light to the plastic cover-less front windows of Amalfitano's Bakery where passersby can see the new display cases clearly, under plastic sheeting.
It looks like the sign may be almost ready for placement. I found no notice when the new business will open in Rancho Palos Verdes.
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The promises, promises to remove the fencing around the still-under-never ending-construction site along Western at Avenida Aprenda. Iguess by the time that site is finally fence-less new fencing will be placed where the Clearwater Program's giant hole will be dug for the tunneling machine, dirt extraction, and tunnel construction. That may be in 2012 or 2013.
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Here is a blatant plug for all to see "Dirty Rotten Scoundrels" the musical, opening tonight at 8:00 PM at the Warner Grand Theatre, in San Pedro.
I built the set in my backyard before it was transported to the theatre.
You can find information and tickets by visiting www.therelevantstage.com
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Although I voted for Janice Hahn to win the primary, it may not be such a bad thing that she now can continue to be the 15Th District Councilperson for the remainder of her last term, I feel.
Los Angeles residents won't have to have tax funds used to pay for a special election to replace her on the City Council should she have won the primary and gone on to win the general election.
We can also probably count on her to continue to call for a reasonable, realistic, responsible, and respectful outcome for Ponte Vista at San Pedro as she is now probably too familiar with all the issues and factions related to the 'sometimes proposed' condominium development.
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My high horse continues to eat its oats and comment that he continues to feel strongly that up to 831 dwelling units should be built at Ponte Vista.
That figure remains as a dwelling unit equivalent to The Garden's 1,100-units where residents of those units have both Western Avenue and North Gaffey Street as main ingress and egress roads while Ponte Vista will only have Western Avenue.
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Odds and Ends 171

Terri and I ate at Pavich's Brick Oven 'Pizzafe' or 'Pizzaeria' depending on whether you believe the outside signage or the menu.

First, we saw no 'brick' oven cooking any pizza. There is a large ceramic tile-covered oven that may be fired by natural gas and it the tile could be shielding the bricks from view.
The restaurant was very clean and customers could observe the preparation and baking operations by friendly workers.
Our cashier was correct-handed and I appreciate owners of businesses providing jobs for some of most oppressed people on the planet.
It appears that Pavich's Manager is fluent in Croatian, as I expected and she could be related to Mr. Pavich by marriage of by birth.
I really liked the price for my 12" 'personal' Italian sausage pizza. It is the type of pizza I use to judge the various fabulous restaurants in our community that serve pizzas. My pizza was just $6.99 plus tax.
Terri said her 'personal' vegetarian pizza was the best in town and probably this galaxy. Her pizza was $10.02 and it was more than filled with great vegetables.
I prefer the more expensive and smaller Italian sausage pizza from Z-Pizza on Western in the Albertson's shopping area.
Both restaurants serve very thin crust pizzas and that is the best for folks with diabetes and who are trying to lose weight.
The problem with having a 12" 'personal' pizza, I found, was that I ate five pieces in Pavich's because it was so good and I finished the rest of the slices several hours later.
Big mistake on my part. I hadn't had more than one piece of pizza in over three months. I guess I overdid the overenjoyment.
The menu at Pavich's offers pizzas on the obverse and three choices for entrees, sandwiches, and sides on the reverse.
Because Terri and I consider the original Pavich's Pizza near 22nd and Alma, we were very pleased with the quality at the new site. The tastes of the cheese and sauce was familiar and very enjoyable.
The menu states "Salad Menu Coming Soon" and I hope the salads come sooner than later.
Of Saladish, Pavich's, Asaka Grill Express, and Denny's, I prefer those four new restaurants in that order.
I hope to find much sooner than rather later, where I can place Amalfitano's Bakery in the order.
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I again wish to share my appreciation and gratitude to Ms. Elise Swanson for allowing my friend Angela 'Romee' Romero access to the streets and the less-than-wildlife at Ponte Vista.
Angela's photos on her www.sanpedrobxb.com San Pedro Block by Block blog were wonderful and her post was informative.
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I will probably write a post when I get time about the potential ramifications of the recently passed Resolutions concerning Marymount College.
But for now I am volunteering at Miraleste I.S. Library, working on the set for "Dirty Rotten Scoundrels" and trying to get on board with the T.S.A.

Odds and Ends 170

I hope that readers of this blog who are registered voters in the city of Rancho Palos Verdes take a visit to my East R.P.V. blog at: www.eastrpv.blogspot.com and read about Marymount College and their Plan that would have voters step over their own elected City Council members and vote to approve what the City Council members already approved, plus on campus student housing and the potential to restrict government oversight of The Marymount Plan's activities and construction.

I have many posts dealing with my reasons for opposing residence halls on Marymount's campus at the top of Palos Verdes Drive East where it rounds a large curve and above the infamous switchbacks.

It is not that I don't feel on campus housing at most Colleges and Universities is bad at all. It is the location and student makeup of Marymount that requires me to oppose on campus student housing for safety reasons.

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Ms. Elise Swanson will begin another term as a board member of the San Pedro Peninsula Chamber of Commerce.

This means she will stay on, probably as Vice President, of the new company and team being assembled to resume building plans for Ponte Vista at San Pedro.

I think this is a good thing. Ms. Swanson certainly knows a great deal about Ponte Vista and she can offer to the new team opinions and histories about what has been happening and how to approach OUR community in much better ways than were observed during "The Bob Years".

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The construction going on at Amalfitano's Bakery continues to have fits of on again, off again, work going on.

We say more kitchen parts going into the new bakery. The windows are still mostly covered with paper or plastic. One can peer in and see some display cabinets near the front.

Although I am long past being able to buy lots of goodies and eat them at one setting, I will do my best to enjoy one cookie per visit but not more than two visits per week.

I can still eat cake. Tiny and I mean tiny pieces are all that I allow myself.

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After being inspired by a member of the Rudderless Steering Committee of R Neighborhoods Are 1 as I watched his amazing weight loss and exercise choices, I finally went ahead and made the change I have needed to make for a couple of decades.

Now, when I take up pen and keyboard to do battle with over development, I do it with a little more than 61 pounds less of me. Just think of the new energy I can put to dealing with any plans that are as outrageous as ones offered by a now bankrupt over developer.

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I do expect that when the new team finally emerges do offer 'new' plans for Ponte Vista at San Pedro, the 1,395-unit number that was last considered will be the beginning point for future discussions and plans.

That is still far too many units for my support and it is quite a few too many to the most ardent supporters of keeping the current zoning at Ponte Vista at San Pedro.

I am not holding my breath waiting until the new team makes a move, and neither should you.

It still may take more months, but I think something is coming, because......

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New building is underway at 360 in Hawthorne, Ca.

360 was an ambitious construction project that was started on portions of the old Los Angeles Air Force Base on the south side of El Segundo Blvd, a few years ago.

After two buildings of condos were completed and units there were being offered for sale, all sales stopped and the entire site went into a dormant state.

The two or more completed sat silent and empty almost in the middle of a very large area that was fenced off and closed to all.

Recently however, I noticed new construction at 360 on the corner of El Segundo and Aviation Blvds.

New multi-story housing units are framed and it appears that 360 is building again.

This could portend a sooner than unexpected reemergence of plans for Ponte Vista.

But as I wrote a little up on this post, don't hold your breath.