Yes on ES
Santa Monica Next is urging a “yes” vote on Measure ES. Since much of our coverage the past couple of years has focused on some of the school district’s controversies (HVACs, turf, Safe Routes to Schools) a reader might be…
Damien Newton
Damien is the executive director of the Southern California Streets Initiative which publishes Santa Monica Next, Streetsblog Los Angeles, Streetsblog San Francisco, Streetsblog California and Longbeachize.
Movie Premier and Bike Ride: A SIMPLE MACHINE on 11/17
Save the Date and Get Your Tickets Today! Mark your Calendars: NOV. 17 @ 7:30 PM — Laemmle Monica Film Center + BIKE RIDELeave the car at home and ride to the movies with us at Santa Monica Spoke!Details on the ride announced as they…
Santa Monica Airport Conversion Project to hold community event on Oct. 17
The following is a submission from the City of Santa Monica. After more than two years of community outreach and engagement, the Santa Monica Airport Conversion Project will move into its fourth phase with the unveiling of the Illustrative Master…
Eyes on the Street: Santa Monica’s Newly Concrete-Curb-Protected Broadway Bikeway
Streetsblog rode the city of Santa Monica’s Broadway Safety Project yesterday. Find SBLA’s brief project construction coverage earlier this year, see post or video. The project is open and appears complete. Added 10/6: A city representative responded that the project was “substantially completed” in…
Letter to the Editor: Save Main Street Responds to Last Week’s Article
(Last week, Santa Monica Next discussed a flyer circulating in the Ocean Park/Downtown neighborhoods by a group called Save Main Street. Usually, Next doesn’t allow for Letters to the Editor to be unsigned, but after a discussion over emails I…
An Update on Next 3.0 – The PAL Students Are Readying for the Election
Yesterday, Councilmember Dan Hall joined our journalism class at the Santa Monica Police Activities League to help our students prepare for interviews with some of the city council candidates running in this fall’s local elections. Back in July, Santa Monica…
Bike It! Walk It! Bus It! Week Returns to Santa Monica
Santa Monica students and families are being encouraged to leave the car at home this week (October 5-9) as Bike It! Walk It! Bus It! Week returns with a series of activities promoting walking, biking and public transportation as ways…
Streetsblog/Next: No on Prop 45
Streetsblog California and Santa Monica Next are urging voters to reject Proposition 45. The measure is being pitched as a way to modernize the state’s landmark environmental protection law, the California Environmental Quality Act; but its impact would make it easier to…
Fact Check: Santa Monica Has Not Approved 577 Apartments on Main Street Parking Lots
(Note: An earlier version of this article misquoted the flyer stating that there were 557 apartments proposed. That has been corrected in the headline and throughout the article.) A flyer circulating in Ocean Park by an anonymous group called “Save…
Legislative Update: If it Got to the Governor’s Desk, It Was Signed
This legislative session was a bit of an outlier. While the governor’s office has usually been a roadblock for some of our favorite legislation, this year it was the legislature that was the problem. Every piece of legislation that we…
Newsom Signs SB 1167, Drawing a Clearer Line Between E-Bikes and E-Motos
California Governor Gavin Newsom signed Senate Bill 1167 into law Wednesday, establishing new consumer protections intended to make it harder for high-powered electric motorcycles and other devices to be marketed as e-bikes. The law takes effect January 1, 2027. The law, authored…
Big Blue Bus Offers Free Rides, Hosts “Try a Commute” on Clean Air Day on 10/7
Big Blue Bus (BBB) will join transit agencies across California in offering free rides on Wednesday, October 7, as part of California Clean Air Day. The annual event, organized by the Coalition for Clean Air, encourages Californians to take actions…
Santa Monica Advocates Push School District to Adopt Safe Routes to School Policy
Santa Monica has spent years presenting itself as a city where walking, biking and transit are part of everyday life. The local school district has embraced that ethos too, at least informally, with route maps, weekly Car-Free Fridays, and a…
Newsom Signs Bi-Partisan Package of New DUI Laws
Californians convicted of a third drunk-driving offense will lose their licenses for eight years, and those with four or more prior convictions face felony charges, under four bills Governor Gavin Newsom signed Friday, September 25. One bill is one named…
The Ocean Way Festival Was Cancelled, But Goldenvoice Still Funded Programs in Santa Monica
Although damage to the Santa Monica shoreline from Hurricane Marie forced Goldenvoice to postpone its inaugural Ocean Way Festival until 2027, the company is moving ahead with community benefits promised as part of the festival agreement with the California Coastal…