Yesterday, UNITE HERE Local 11 (the union) filed an initiative in Santa Monica that would require hotels to pay their workers $30 an hour. As the union prepares for another round of strikes over what they say are unfairly low…
Recently, the local news has been abuzz with the story of a Santa Monica City Councilmember escalating a random encounter with a person experiencing homelessness and acting erratically on the Promenade. Rather than elevate this story, Next would prefer to…
The following is a press release from the City of Santa Monica. City Manager David White announced that Deputy City Manager Anuj Gupta will step in as the City’s interim director of the Department of Transportation (DOT) beginning August 10,…
For over two decades, Barnes and Nobles bookstore was one of the center posts of the Promenade, doing business at 3rd and Wilshire. The big box bookstore closed in 2017, not because of crime or the future pandemic, but simply…
Yesterday, the Los Angeles County Board of Supervisors unanimously passed legislation authored by Supervisor Lindsey Horvath, designed to strengthen renter protections at a time when many COVID-era protections are expiring. The protections passed yesterday will only impact renters in the…
Though it lacked the support of committee chair and Assemblymember Luz Rivas and a majority of the Democrats on the committee, S.B. 423 advanced out of the Assembly Natural Resources Committee yesterday. While the 6-0 vote might appear unanimous, four…
The What’s Next podcast is back, and this interview is a doozy. Featuring Democratic Club President Jon Katz, we have a wide ranging conversation discussing everything from how the Dem. Club makes endorsements and gets involved in issues, how Santa…
After a June-swoon, we’re back with our What’s Next podcast. This week’s podcast will feature the president of the Santa Monica Democratic Club Jon Katz. As normal, we value your help in prepping for the interview. If you have questions…
Yesterday, 15,000 hotel workers, including many in Los Angeles, walked off the job to join a strike against hotel owners at the start of one of the busiest holidays of the year. The workers are demanding increased wages, both immediate…
Santa Monica Next will be publishing regularly today, be off tomorrow and return with a normal publishing schedule the rest of the week. We wish everyone a happy, festive and safe 4th of July.
At Tuesday night’s City Council meeting, much of the discussion was on either public safety or the city’s response to the homeless crisis. Councilmember Oscar de la Torre wanted assurances that the city’s regional partners in the County, Malibu and…
On the face of it, the case of Pico Neighborhood Association and Maria Loya vs the City of Santa Monica seems like an open and shut case. The plaintiffs are arguing that by having city-wide elections instead of district based…
Last night, the Santa Monica City Council passed the annual budget for the fiscal year beginning on Saturday, July 1 and ending June 30, 2024. Issues surrounding public safety, ranging from funding optional jiu-jitsu classes to a proposal to just…
As required by city ordinance, Santa Monica’s minimum wage will increase from $15.96 to $16.90 per hour on July 1, 2023, the first day of the fiscal new year. The minimum wage applies to all employees physically working in Santa…
In November of 2018, Malibu voters passed Measure M with 71% of the vote, a bond measure to create a state-of-the-art middle school and new high school building on the former Juan Cabrillo Elementary site. While the new high school…
