Two Juveniles Arrested for Carjacking in SP
SAN PEDRO — On Jan. 5, Los Angeles Police Department officers arrested a juvenile, whose age has not been confirmed, and a 14-year-old boy in connection to an armed vehicle robbery in San Pedro, Lt. John Jenal, a spokesman with the LAPD said.
The arrests were set in motion at about 5:45 a.m. on the 900 block of West 13th Street. Two suspects wearing ski masks approached a man leaving his home and demanded his car keys at gunpoint. The victim, who was unharmed, handed the keys to his gray, Nissan Versa to the suspects.
Undercover police found the two suspects driving the car at 9:35 a.m. near Pacific Avenue and Santa Cruz Street, and when officers in a marked vehicle attempted to stop the car the juvenile suspects tried to escape.
The officers’ pursuit led to the 14-year-old’s home on the 200 block of West 11th Street, where family and the other suspect came out. The 14-year-old barricaded himself in the home as several officers surrounded the neighborhood. By one estimate from LAPD there were possibly 100 officers involved including 20 or more SWAT officers, LAPD Harbor Division detectives and patrol officers, Port Police with Los Angeles Fire Department back up.
A crisis team was called and the suspect surrendered at 2:25 p.m.
Police are investigating the possibility that the suspects may have been involved in a similar carjacking at about midnight in Wilmington.
Man Found Dead at Point Fermin
SAN PEDRO — The man who died after jumping from a cliff at the 800 block of Paseo del Mar on New Year’s Eve has been identified by the Los Angeles County Coroner Department as 40-year-old Rosendo Herrera Jr. 40, The coroner found multiple blunt force injuries and ruled the death to be suicide.
LB Gets FlyAway Service
LONG BEACH — Traveling to and from LAX got a lot easier for Long Beach residents as of Dec. 30, 2015.
Long Beach Transit began its new FlyAway bus service from Long Beach to LAX. Hourly service will be provided from 5:30 a.m. to 9:30 p.m. daily from the Long Beach Transit Hub at First Street and Long Beach Boulevard. The fare is $7 one way, and for every adult fare, two children age five or under can ride for free.
Long Beach has its own airport, but because it is a small airport, travels sometimes must go to LAX. With traffic and the expense of shuttle services and parking, getting to LAX can be a challenge for some.
Hahn Voices Support for Raiders’ in Carson
CARSON — On Dec. 30, 2015, Rep. Janice Hahn, released a statement calling for NFL owners to bring the Raiders back to Los Angeles from Oakland for the second time. The Raiders returned to Oakland in 1994.
Hahn’s statement came on the same day Oakland officials announced that a deadline set by the league for a stadium financing plan would not be met. However, the league has not submitted a formal plan.
“I urge the NFL owners to vote to move the team back to Los Angeles and into a new stadium in Carson,” Hahn’s statement read. “Carson is ready to welcome the Raiders with open arms.”
The city recently renamed a street near a proposed stadium “Stadium Way.”
The Carson City Council also unanimously approved a building moratorium in December for the property near the site. The Raiders and the San Diego chargers have offered a cost sharing proposal in Carson to build the $1.7 billion stadium.
Local politicians support a stadium because it may foster thousands of jobs and increase tourism, though there’s extensive literature debunking the idea it’s a worthwhile investment economically.
Inglewood’s former Hollywood Park site also is being considered to house a new stadium for NFL teams.
Garcetti Nominates New Planning Director
LOS ANGELES — On Jan. 4, Mayor Eric Garcetti announced the nomination of Pasadena Planning Director Vince Bertoni as the new head of the Los Angeles Department of City Planning.
Bertoni comes to the department with more than 25 years of planning experience – including a previous stint at the Department of City Planning.
Bertoni has served five years as the Pasadena’s Planning and Community Development director. During that time, he successfully managed Pasadena’s city planning program through a General Plan update, a comprehensive visioning process that happens just once every 20 years.
Before joining the City of Pasadena, Bertoni served as deputy planning director in Los Angeles, where he oversaw the adoption of 16 historic preservation overlay zones, new guidelines for the Broadway Historic District, a bicycle master plan and a Hollywood community plan.
Bertoni also has held lead planning posts in the cities of Beverly Hills, Santa Clarita and Malibu, and he serves as a member of the California Planning Roundtable.
In his new position, Bertoni will lead the maintenance and execution of Los Angeles’ General Plan — the comprehensive framework guiding development and infrastructural growth across the city. He will play a crucial role in helping to facilitate smart infrastructural growth, while also working to protect the character of Los Angeles’ neighborhoods.
Bertoni succeeds outgoing Planning Director Michael LoGrande, who is leaving the position after more than 18 years of service to the department, including six as its head. During his time there, LoGrande helped successfully approve more than 50,000 residential units in Los Angeles and more than 20 mixed-use projects. He also launched a comprehensive rewrite of the city’s 1946 zoning code. Under LoGrande’s leadership, the Los Angeles adopted its first Mobility Plan 2035, multiple community plans and transit oriented development plans across the city.
Bertoni’s nomination for general manager of the Department of City Planning will now move to the Los Angeles City Council for confirmation.
Brown Appoints Harbor Area Resident to the California Advisory Commission on Special Education
SACRAMENTO — On Jan. 4, Gov. Edmund G. Brown Jr. announced reappointment of Mariano Sanz to the California Advisory Commission on Special Education. Sanz, 53, has served in that position since 2012. The Long Beach resident has been a school counselor for the Palos Verdes Peninsula Unified School District since 2001. He served as a school counselor for the Long Beach Unified School District from 1994 to 2001 and for the Paramount Unified School District from 1990 to 1994. Sanz was an elementary school teacher at the Los Angeles Unified School District from 1987 to 1990. He is a member of the Harbor Regional Center Board of Trustees. He earned a master’s of science degree in school counseling from National University and a Master of Science degree in school psychology from Universidad Complutense de Madrid. This position does not require Senate confirmation and there is no compensation. Sanz is a Democrat.