"Stacey and Megan handle difficult transactions with simplicity and ease. It’s wonderful from a seller’s perspective. Top level of service!
"
Los Angeles News
Sunday 5, 2012
Actors Brad Pitt and Angelina Jolie have sold their Malibu beach house to daytime host and comedian Ellen De Generes for $12 million.
The 4,088-square-foot house, built in 1962, features walls of glass, dark bamboo flooring, three fireplaces, four bedrooms and four bathrooms. The ocean-view home sits on 1.26 bluff-top acres with a tennis court, a lap pool and beach access.
Looking to buy or sell your home in Malibu? Contact Stacey and Megan Valnes from Sunset Park Realtors for all your real estate needs.
Source: LA Times
Wednesday 25, 2012
Ocean Park gets a new facelift. Los Angeles-based John Kaliski Architects designed the project, which will run from Neilson Way to Lincoln Blvd. It will include a cornucopia of complete streets design features: 100 new trees, new crosswalks with overhead flashers, a stormwater collection system, 75 pedestrian-scaled light poles, wider sidewalks, painted bike lanes, bike racks, street furniture, and trash and recycling cans. The renderings on Bustler show a familiar shade of green for the bike lanes. The renovation is estimated to be completed in early 2013, it will be the longest complete green street in the City of Santa Monica, and one of the longest in Southern California. Construction is expected to last for about 12 months, with traffic occasionally reduced to one lane in each direction.
Looking to buy or sell your home in Ocean Park? Contact Stacey and Megan Valnes from Sunset Park Realtors for all your real estate needs.
Source: Curbed LA
Monday 23, 2012
Happy Year of the Dragon! With the arrival of the Lunar New Year, the Chinese zodiac turns its sights to the the Dragon. Of all 12 signs in the zodiac, the dragon is thought to be the most auspicious and powerful of them all – and typically associated with prosperty. Because this year is the year of the water dragon, which only occurs once every 60 years, it’s considered even more auspicious than ever.
According to the Economist, this year is expected to bring a slight boom to the housing market China. For those who subscribe to the Chinese zodiac and other similar customs, they have put off significant life and financial events until the Year of the Dragon. Many are expected to wed under the Dragon year and with that, purchase a house.
As Chinese new year approaches…, tens of thousands of couples are preparing to marry under what is considered an auspicious sign. To win over a bride in a country undersupplied with women, it helps a lot if the aspiring groom first proves his worth by buying a home.
While being a homeowner isn’t a usual pre-req for finding a mate here in the states, the Year of the Dragon may influence buying decisions of some in the Asian American community.
Looking to buy or sell your home in Santa Monica? Contact Stacey and Megan Valnes from Sunset Park Realtors for all your real estate needs!
Happy Chinese New Years!
Source: SF Gate
Tuesday 17, 2012
A new mural is up on the side of the future home of Boost Kitchen on Abbot Kinney in Venice. The brightly colored collaboration between artists Mar and Madsteez is a tribute to one of Venice's more infamous former residents: the late, great Dennis Hopper.
As for the reactions, it seems like community members are excited to have a new piece of eye candy on Abbot Kinney.
Check out the video at: Click Here
Looking to buy or sell your home in Santa Monica or Venice Beach? Contact Stacey and Megan Valnes from Sunset Park Realtors for all your real estate needs.
Source: Curbed LA
Thursday 12, 2012
Stacey and Megan Valnes will take you through an exterior home makeover tour.
Click here to view their video.
Looking to sell or buy a new home in Santa Monica? Contact Sunset Park Realtors for all your real estate needs!
Monday 2, 2012
Some classrooms are already peanut free.
Now, some students at Santa Monica High School are considering asking the Santa Monica-Malibu Unified School District Board of Education for an all-out ban at their school.
In its newest edition published Tuesday, the student newspaper reported that there's a petition calling for the ban being circulated by students who suffer from peanut allergies.
The report was accompanied by a feature story in the arts and entertainment section chronicling the life of a student with severe peanut allergies. Johanna Turner was home schooled the second-half of her junior year after suffering allergic reactions on campus.
Now in her senior year, Turner wears a hypoallergenic mask during lunch and passing periods.
Looking to buy or sell your home in Santa Monica? Contact Megan and Stacey Valnes from Sunset Park Realtors for all your real estate needs.
Source: Santa Monica Patch
Monday 12, 2011
Santa Monica Airport's current operational agreement with the FAA expires in 2015, and to prepare, the city is doing various studies and evaluations to determine what to do with the unpopular facility when that day comes. While some residents call for closure, the airport issue is causing City Hall rifts that are being aired publicly, thanks to the Santa Monica Patch. The website got a glimpse of a letter from City Manager Rod Gould in which he accused the airport commission of working clandestinely with anti-airport residents and circulating a biased survey. Airport Commission Chairman Richard Brown says one commissioner, not the whole commission, is involved with the survey and that he "can't be responsible for what others do.
Looking to buy or sell a home in Santa Monica? Contact Stacey and Megan Valnes from Sunsest Park Realtors for all your real estate needs.
Source: Curbed LA
Monday 5, 2011
The City Council Tuesday night will take up a "last ditch effort" to save one of Santa Monica's two remaining mobile home parks, but the council member behind the effort concedes the prospect seems unlikely.
At Council member Keven McKeown's behest, the council will once again explore options to halt plans by property owner Marc Lazzutto to turn the Village Trailer Park on Colorado Avenue near Stewart Street into a condominium complex.
McKeown is hoping that the council will direct staff to look into buying the land from Lazzutto or work out another way to save the park, which provides some of the most affordable housing in the beachside city.
At the November meeting, City Staff reported that, according to recent appraisals, the cost of buying the park – a 3.85-acre property – would set the city back $22 to $30 million.
However, local landlord attorney Rosario Perry, in a letter to the council, estimated that the actual fair market value is closer to $8 million.
Tuesday's action will be the council's last effort to end the five-year battle to save Village Trailer Park, although tenants have threatened to take legal action against the property owner, according to McKeown.
The controversy started in 2006 when Lazzutto served residents with a 12-month notice that he would be closing the park to build 240 condominiums and 109 rent-controlled units and that they would have to relocate.
News of the pending closure caused a stir among the park residents, many of whom are elderly or disabled.
The City initially contested the closure, but officials determined they had no legal grounds for preventing Lazzutto from getting out of the mobile home business.
“There are 40 or 50 vulnerable seniors” living there, McKeown said. He added that forcing them to move could be traumatic to those who expected to live out their lives in the park.
Looking to buy or sell a home in Santa Monica? Contact Stacey and Megan Valnes from Sunset Park Realtors for all you real estate needs.
Source: Santa Monica Look Out
Tuesday 29, 2011
Sell your car and buy a bike! Santa Monica's city council passed a 20 year Bike Action Plan that bike activists are already swooning over TheSanta Monica Daily Press reports that the council has also authorized $2.5 million to be spent on bike improvements in the next two years--those include 14 miles of new bike lanes and 17 miles of green buffered lanes on Broadway, Main, Second, and Ocean Park.
The nation's biggest secure bike parking facility has also opened in Santa Monica. The city is also getting 2,500 more bike parking spaces and "the country’s first-ever permanent Bike Education Campus," according to the Santa Monica Mirror. The Bike Plan also calls for bike-focused development guidelines, the bike-friendly renovation of 30 intersections, and a wayfinding system. The planning commission also requested a few additions to the plan, including a bike track at the Santa Monica Airport, one east-west and one north-south separated bike lane, and an earlier start to the city's bike sharing program.
Looking to buy or sell your home in Santa Monica? Contact Stacey and Megan Valnes from Sunset Park realtors for all your real estate needs!
Source: Curbed LA
Wednesday 23, 2011
Southern Deep-Fried Turkey
- 1 (10-12 pound) turkey, non-self-basting
- 2/3 cups prepared vinaigrette dressing
- 1/3 cup sherry
- 2 teaspoon lemon pepper seasoning
- 1 teaspoon garlic powder
- 1 teaspoon onion powder
- 1 teaspoon cayenne pepper
- peanut oil as needed
Thaw turkey completely. Clean out cavity, discarding giblets and neck. Cut off wing tips and tail. Rinse under cold running water and pat dry.
In a medium bowl, combine vinaigrette, sherry and seasonings. Strain the marinade, then place in an injection syringe. Inject the marinade in the turkey breast, thighs and legs. Place turkey in a food-safe, plastic bag and refrigerate for 2 hours. Turn the bag over and massage the turkey to work the marinade into the meat. Remove form bag, drain and pat dry.
Place fryer/cooker outside, placed on level ground and in an open space away from the house. Never use a turkey fryer indoors, in a garage or under a covered patio due to potential fire hazard. Add oil to a 7- to 10-gallon pot with a basket or rack. At the medium-high setting, heat the oil to 375 degrees, (depending on the amount of oil, outside temperature and wind conditions, this should take about 40 minutes).
When the oil temperature reaches 375 degrees on a deep-fry thermometer, slowly lower turkey into the hot oil. The level of the oil will rise due to frothing caused by the moisture in the turkey but will stabilize within about a minute. Maintain frying temperature at 350 degrees. Allow 3-4 minutes per pound or according to your cooker’s recommended cook times. When the internal temperature of the breast reaches 170 degrees remove turkey from hot oil and allow turkey to drain for a few minutes. Remove turkey form the rack and place on a serving platter. Allow to rest 20 minutes before carving.
Note: Use only the oils with high smoke points such as peanut or safflower oils. Makes 12 servings.
Roasted Turkey with Cranberry Fruit Dressing
- 14-16 pound whole turkey, fresh or frozen (thawed)
- kosher salt and pepper to taste
- 2 tablespoons unsalted butter
- 2 medium onions, chopped
- 16-ounce can jelled cranberry sauce
- 1/3 cup light brown sugar
Remove giblets, neck and any visible fat from turkey, and reserve for stock. Rinse turkey with cold running water and drain well. Pat dry with paper towels, and season inside and outside with salt and pepper. Tie drumsticks together and twist wing tips behind back. Place turkey breast side up on a wire rack that’s been sprayed with cooking oil in a shallow roasting pan. Cover loosely with foil. Roast turkey in a 325˚F oven about 2 hours and 30 minutes, basting with pan juices.
Meanwhile, in a saucepan, melt butter over medium high heat and cook onions with salt and pepper, stirring occasionally, 15 minutes or until onions are soft. (If onions begin to brown, lower heat.) Stir in cranberry sauce and sugar, and bring to a boil. Reduce heat to low and simmer, stirring occasionally, 10 minutes. Remove foil and pour glaze over bird. Continue to roast bird 30 minutes to an hour and 30 minutes hours more or until thermometer reaches 180˚F in the thigh and 170˚F in the breast. Remove turkey from oven and allow to rest for 15 minutes before carving.
Dressing
- 3 cups herb-seasoned stuffing mix
- 2 cups mixed dried fruit, chopped (dates, apricots, apples etc)
- 1 cup celery, chopped
- 2/3 cup onion, chopped
- 1 cup whole cranberry sauce
- 1/2 teaspoon ground sage
- 1/2 teaspoon thyme
- 1 1/2 cups turkey or chicken broth
- cooking oil spray
In a medium bowl, combine the stuffing mix, dried fruit, celery, onion, cranberry sauce, sage, thyme and broth. Coat a 2–quart baking dish with cooking spray. Spoon dressing in prepared dish and bake uncovered at 325 degrees for 40–45 minutes or until internal temperature reaches 165 degrees.
When turkey is ready to serve, garnish turkey platter with grapes, apples and celery leaves. Makes 15 servings.
Cider-Brined Turkey
For the brine:
- 8 cups apple cider
- 1 cup kosher salt
- 1 cup soy sauce
- 1/2 cup packed brown sugar
- 1 tablespoon peppercorns
- 8 star anise cloves
- 1 tablespoon minced fresh garlic
- 6 green onions, chopped
- 6 1/4-thick slices unpeeled ginger root
- 2 cinnamon sticks (about 2-3 inches long)
For the turkey:
- One 12-14 pound turkey
- salt and pepper to taste
- melted butter
- 1 cup apple cider
- 2 cups water
Combine apple cider, salt and the remaining brine ingredients together in a large stock pot and bring to a boil. Let cool to room temperature. Add in 1 1/2 gallons (6 quarts) water. Add turkey and press turkey down in brine to cover. Cover and refrigerate overnight.
Remove from the brine and pat turkey dry with paper towels. Season turkey with salt and pepper. Place breast side up, on a rack in a roasting pan. Tie legs together with kitchen string. Let stand at room temperature for an hour. Brush turkey with melted butter. Turn turkey to roast breast side down, pour cider and water in bottom of roasting pan for an hour in a 375-degree oven. Turn breast side up and baste with pan juices. Continue to roast until the thigh reaches internal temperature of 180 degrees. Serves 12-14.
Thursday 17, 2011
The Santa Monica-Malibu School Board will continue discussing a controversial wealth redistribution policy Thursday night that would weaken the authority of Parent Teacher Associations to spend money.
The Districtwide Funding proposal could prohibit local PTAs from spending money on hiring or training new personnel for programs such as literacy initiatives and would transfer that authority to the Santa Monica-Malibu Education Foundation, a non-profit group.
“With PTA funds, people at different sites are purchasing staff, like nurses and teachers' aids,” School Board Member Oscar de la Torre told The Lookout Wednesday. He said that this has given an edge to schools in upscale neighborhoods with parents who can contribute more time and money.
According to a report presented to the board by Superintendent Sandra Lyon, some schools are spending an extra $2,100 per student while others can only afford to spend an extra $65 per student.
Creating a centralized policy has gained widespread support in Santa Monica in the wake of recent State budget cuts, De la Torre said.
“This community believes that it's no longer acceptable to have practices and policies that perpetuate extreme inequality,” he said.
Santa Monica for Renters' Rights, the City's powerful tenants group that helped elect six of the seven board members, recently released an official statement supporting the Districtwide Fundraising proposal “to achieve social and economic justice for all students.”
“They have to make sure that some children aren't receiving one kind of education and other children are receiving a different kind of education,” Hoffman said.
As a result, wealthy families will leave the public school system, further reducing state and federal funding to the district as a whole, according to Miller.
Looking to buy or sell a home in Santa Monica? Contact Stacey and Megan Valnes from Sunset Park Realtors!
Source: The Look Out News
Friday 11, 2011
The City of West Hollywood will host its annual Veterans Day Ceremony at 11 a.m., featuring guest speaker and veteran, Commander Jeric Wilhelmsen of the Hollywood American Legion Post 43, with an Invocation by Rabbi Hershy Ten and a Presentation of Colors from the Fairfax High School JROTC. The ceremony will take place at the Sal Guarriello Veterans’ Memorial, located at the intersection of Holloway Drive and Santa Monica Boulevard. Public parking will be available at the Kings Road parking structure, 8383 Santa Monica Blvd. Admission is free.
Looking to buy or sell a home in Santa Monica? Contact Stacey and Megan Valnes from Sunset Park Realtors for all your real estate needs!
Tuesday 8, 2011
It must be winter, a record-low temperature of 48 degrees was recorded at the Santa Monica Pier on Monday. The previous record of 49 degrees was recorded in 1975.
As of 7 a.m. on Tuesday, the temperature was recorded at 46 degrees in some areas in Santa Monica, according to Weather.com.
On Wednesday and Thursday, temperatures are expected to rise, with highs and lows of 71 and 51, and 74 and 52, respectively. But it's expected to get cold again after that, with a rainstorm anticipated to begin Friday and last through at least Saturday.
Looking to buy or sell a home? Contact Stacey ane Megan Valnes from Sunset Park Realtors for all your Realestate needs!
Source Santa Monica Patch
Wednesday 2, 2011
The world’s largest film market opens in Santa Monica today – the American Film Market (AFM) – that features screenings of 415 motion pictures from 35 countries for the more than 8,000 industry professionals who converge in the city for the next eight days of deal-making, seminars, premieres, networking, and parties.
Films making their World Premieres include “A Gang Story”, starring Gérard Lanvin and Tchéky Karyo (Gaumont); “Bad Karma,” starring Ray Liotta, Dominic Purcell and Rhona Mitra (Screen Media); “Columbus Circle”, starring Selma Blair, Amy Smart, Giovanni Ribisi and Kevin Pollak (Lightning Entertainment); “Nobel’s Last Will,” starring Malin Crépin, Björn Kjellman and Leif Andrée (Zodiak Rights); ”Snowflake, the White Gorilla,” starring Elsa Pataky and Pere Ponce (Filmax International); “Special Forces,” starring Diane Kruger, Djimon Hounsou and Benoit Magimel (StudioCanal); and “The Expatriate”, starring Aaron Eckhart and Olga Kurylenko (Essential Entertainment).
Films premiering also include the works of prominent actors and directors Jack Black, Adrien Brody, Jackie Chan, Francis Ford Coppola, Michael Fassbender, William Friedkin, Amy Heckerling, Keira Knightley, Richard Linklater, Matthew McConaughey, Carey Mulligan, Seth Rogen, Martin Scorsese, Todd Solondz, Audrey Tautou, and Michelle Williams.
Looking to buy or sell a home in Santa Monica? Contact Stacey and Megan Valnes from Sunset Park Realtors for all your real estate needs.
Source: Santa Monica Mirror
Wednesday 26, 2011
Students at Grant Elementary may soon be out of toilet paper and soap. With efforts to fund these basic needs, Grant is inviting residents to come to the Fall Festival and help raise the school's cashflow.
The festival will take place on Saturday, Oct. 29, on the school grounds from 1 p.m. to 8 p.m.
"Due to devastating budget cuts, our school continues to struggle to make ends meet," Alan Friedenberg, Grant Elementary School principal said.
Money raised at the festival will help the school upgrade several programs, including computer and technology, health and safety and academic support, in addition to covering bare necessities like toilet paper.
The festival will feature rides, game booths, petting zoos and various food vendors, as well as a Halloween cake decorating contest and bake sale. Entertainment will be provided by dancers, a continual magic show and the band Mad Men. Sponsors of the event include Menchie's, Bob's Market, Wells Fargo and Sunset Park Realtors.
Looking to buy or sell a home? Contact Stacey and Megan Valnes from Sunset Park Realtors for all your real estate needs!
Source: Santa Monica Daily Press
Tuesday 18, 2011
The commercial real estate rental market is booming in Santa Monica, where the office vacancy rate is a fraction of the L.A. County average. Tech and entertainment firms like the lifestyle.
Young Internet-based businesses such as TrueCar, Riot Games and BeachMint have been expanding their workforces and their offices. Often the founders are Web veterans who see value in being in a coastal hot spot where California cultural stereotypes actually hold true.
The laid-back beach scene combined with Santa Monica's sophisticated restaurant and shopping options are a lure for computer whizzes and creative types.
Santa Monica was a tech industry outpost for the same reasons in the great boom of the late 1990s. That boom ended badly, of course, but the flag had been planted. Defunct dot-coms left behind converted industrial buildings and other so-called creative offices ripe for the revival now underway.
The tech cluster is big enough now to be self-perpetuating, industry observers said. Internet companies and related enterprises such as entertainment and advertising firms that work in digital media want to be near one another for business and social reasons. Togetherness abets recruiting and networking.
Expansion often comes at a cost. New companies may start out in small converted industrial buildings with polished concrete floors and exposed ductwork, but they often discover, unhappily, that they must rent more corporate-looking space in large buildings as they grow.
Creative workers "feel constrained" in such standard offices, TrueCar's Hansen said. "One of the things that defines a successful tech company is the company culture. Tech people tend to be fairly nonlinear." Not all firms that fit that profile can afford to be in Santa Monica or want to pay its high rents. Neighboring markets also benefiting from the tech-entertainment boom include Playa Vista, El Segundo, West Los Angeles and Culver City, which has lower rents and taxes.
Southern California's tech industry is growing robustly and is, by some estimates, the second-largest in the country, but it still lags far behind Silicon Valley and other parts of the Bay Area, brokers said.
Looking to buy or sel real estate? Contact Stacey and Megan Valnes from Sunset Park Realtors for all your real esate needs.
Source: LA Times
Thursday 13, 2011
It’s that time of the year for the popular dineLA Restaurant Week, which continues today through Oct. 14.
During Restaurant Week, participating restaurants are offering a specially priced three-course prix fixe menu for lunch and/or dinner.
Lunch will be $16, $22, or $28, depending on the restaurant, and dinner will be $26, $34, or $44. These prices don’t include drinks, tax, or tip.
If you’ve been curious about a restaurant, this could be a good time to try it.
You might not find a restaurant’s signature dishes on the dineLA menu, but you’ll probably find a fair sample of what the chef has to offer, at prices that are lower than the regular menu.
About 300 restaurants throughout Los Angeles are participating in this event, including more than 40 Santa Monica restaurants including the likes of True Food Kitchen, The Lobster, JiRaffe, and the new Hungry Cat.
Despite its name, Restaurant Week actually lasts two weeks, excluding this Saturday.
Restaurants can get busy, so reservations are a good idea.
dineLA Restaurant Weeks are bi-annual events organized by the Los Angeles Convention
and Visitors Bureau and American Express to support local restaurants during the traditionally slow periods of January/February and October.
A list of participating restaurants and menus is at dineLARestaurantWeek.com.
Looking to buy or sell real estate in Santa Monica? Contact Stacey and Megan Valnes from Sunset Park Realtors for all your real estate needs!
Source: Santa Monica Mirror
Friday 23, 2011
St. Timothy School’s teachers were recently honored by Artsonia—an educational company dedicated to integrating technology into the school classroom while enabling students to view other student artwork in faraway countries—the Artsonia Leadership Award for the 2010-2011 school year.
The prominent award commends St. Timothy and its community for demonstrating an outstanding commitment to Arts Education as well as its teachers who go “beyond the classroom walls to encourage family and community involvement in Arts Education,” said CEO Jim Myers of Artsonia.
This prestigious award is only given to ten schools per state across the United States. Furthermore, Artsonia showcases over twelve million pieces of artwork from thousands of schools. As for St. Timothy, its online art gallery ranks #5 in the state.
Parents and community members can view a total of 1,669 published pieces of St. Timothy’s student artwork online. The school has acquired an active fan club of over 340 members as well as 436 comments from fans.
For more information at St. Timothy School in West Los Angeles, visit www.sttimothy.org.
Looking to buy or sell real estate? Contact Stacey and Megan Valnes from Sunset Park Realtors fror all your real estate needs!
Friday 16, 2011
Friends,
The state of California has just passed bill AB499, which will permit minor children as young as 12 years old to be vaccinated with sexually transmitted disease vaccines like Gardasil without parental knowledge or parental consent. This means that if you live in California, school or medical personnel would be allowed to vaccinate your child against an STD without your ever knowing it.
You can read more about it here: http://articles.mercola.com/
Go to www.NVICAdvocacy.org and register today to take action. For those of you who live in California, it is imperative that you take part in NVIC's urgent action alert. If Governor Brown does not veto AB499, vaccine exemptions for sexually transmitted disease vaccines become NULL and VOID in California. Please take just 5 minutes to help support this cause by: < >Forwarding NVIC’s Urgent Action Alert to everyone you know Posting the link to this alert on Facebook, blogs, or other social media sites: http://nvicadvocacy.org/ Contact Governor Jerry Brown and ask him to VETO AB499. The most effective way is to call the Governor’s office. They’ve already added a simple voicemail button for a "yes" or "no" vote on the legislation. Call: (916) 445-2841 Fax: (916) 558-3160 Email Web Form: http://govnews.ca.gov/ Register for the NVIC Advocacy Portal so you can receive updates The more people who get involved, the better chance there is that California will get the message that parents will not lie down while their parental rights are removed. Together we can make a difference and keep this legislation from standing, and influencing the right to informed consent in the rest of the United States as well. Our entire country needs to come together and send the state government of California the strong message: Keep your hands off our kids! Thanks! Megan Valnes
Thursday 1, 2011
Don't forget Santa Monica shoppers,the city of Santa Monica starts enforcing its ban of single-use plastic bags today.
This ban was approved in January and took effect in March. This law applies to grocery stores, convenience stores, liquor stores, drug stores, pharmacies and mini-marts.
Santa Monica shoppers who don't bring their own reusable bag will be able to buy paper bags for 10 cents each.
The ban was adopted to help reduce the number of single-use plastic bags being thrown out.
Looking to buy real estate in Santa Monica? Contact Stacey and Megan Valnes from Sunset Park Realtors for all your real estate needs.
Source: LA Curbed
Wednesday 31, 2011
The East Valley Animal Shelter in Van Nuys say the cutting of more than a dozen trees at the facility to make way for adoption banners has hurt, not helped the shelter.
Animal activist Steven Jay Bernheim paid to have the trees cut and is helping fund the massive banners. He is willing to do whatever it takes to make sure the banners are seen in order to get more people in the door to adopt.
Brenda Barnette, the general manager of the Los Angeles Department of Animal Services, said she knew about the plan for the banners, but said the trees were to be only trimmed.
"It was a volunteer effort that meant that's what they wanted to do, was help us," she said. "We're all disappointed. Nobody would have cut the trees down on purpose."
The pepper trees, which circled the building and lined the front entrance, provided lots of shade and were a key part of the energy-efficient, $23 million building that opened three years ago.
"This was actually vandalism. This was not an effort to help," said Phyllis Daugherty, founder of Animal Issues Movement. "This is an attorney who should have been in control and should be totally liable
Looking to buy or sell your home in Santa Monica? Contact Stacey and Megan Valnes from Sunset Park Realtors for all your real estate needs?
Source: ABC7
Photo Credit: Curbed LA
Friday 26, 2011
Sunset Junction was once again, and finally, denied a permit for this weekend's planned festival by the LA Board of Public Works. Despite organizers' eleventh hour efforts to produce the fees for this year's event.
On Monday, the Board of Public Works voted 3-1 to deny the permits for the yearly Silver Lake festival, but they did allow the possibility that they might reconsider if the festival produced the fees owed to the city.
The board lecutred about the event's finance, and marked by the absence of festival head Michael McKinley, saw tearful testimony from festival supporters, but the email campaigns and testimonies of festival opponents carried the day. In the end, the Board of Public Works was unimpressed with the efforts of festival organizers and voted unanimously to deny the permit.
The cancellation of this year's event throws its future into doubt.
Looking to buy or sell a home in Santa Monica? Contact Stacey and Megan Valnes from Sunset Park Realtors for all your Real Estate needs!
Source: LA Curbed
Tuesday 23, 2011
Luxury home values rose in Los Angeles in the second quarter of 2011 compared to the first quarter.
In the quarter ended June 30, 2011, the Index indicated the following:
Los Angeles area values climbed 1.7% from the first quarter of 2011 and increased 1.8% from the second quarter a year ago. The average luxury home in Los Angeles is now $2.0 million.
"Luxury home prices were largely stable in the second quarter of 2011," said Katherine August-deWilde, President and Chief Operating Officer of First Republic Bank. "Certain communities in California, particularly those in and around the Silicon Valley and parts of San Francisco, showed robust activity.
Los Angeles Area Values:
Los Angeles values rose 1.8% in the second quarter of 2011 from the same period a year ago. The gain was the first on a year-over-year basis in the past 14 quarters.
Looking to buy or sell a home in Santa Monica? Contact Stacey and Megan Valnes from Sunset Park Realtors for all your real estate needs!
Source: Market Watch
Monday 22, 2011
A 46 year old female grocery store clerk who was stabbed inside a supermarket in Santa Monica died today at a hospital.
The stabbing was reported at 3:24 p.m. Sunday at the Albertsons Market at 3105 Wilshire Blvd., said Sgt. Richard Lewis of the Santa Monica Police Department.
Investigators identified the victim's estranged husband, Kelvin Green, as a person of interest in the case.
"Callers reported that there was a male inside the store stabbing a female employee," Lewis said.
Officers arriving at the location found the victim suffering from multiple stab wounds around the head and torso, but she was still conscious, Lewis said.
Investigators believe the assailant went into the store and approached the victim from behind while she was working at a check stand, Lewis said. He then began hitting and stabbing the victim several times around the head, neck and upper torso, then fled southbound on Berkeley Street headed toward Wilshire Boulevard.
If any one has information please contact the Santa Monica Police
Department at 310-458-8495.
Looking to buy real estate in Santa Monica? Contact Stacey and Megan Valnes from Sunset Park Realtors for all your real estate needs!
Thursday 18, 2011
CNNMoney has put together a list of the best places to go golddigging in the US, and the number one spot goes to Manhattan Beach. With a 30.2% single population and a median family income of $154,860, Manhattan Beach is the perfect place to reel in a partner who can keep you in the style to which you plan to become accustomed.
Beverly Hills makes the list at spot number three, with its median family income of $142,180. And Hermosa Beach is at number four, at 47.5% single, and has a median family income of $134,033.
Looking to buy or sell real estate in Sunset Park, Santa Monica, Venice Beach and Mar Vista? Contact Stacey and Megan Valnes from Sunset Park Realtors for all your real estate needs!
Source: Curbed LA
Wednesday 17, 2011
Police found no sign of a gunman or a victim at Santa Monica College after people reported hearing shots fired at the school.
The incident began when a female student on campus heard what she thought were two gunshots and glass breaking, said Sgt. Richard Lewis. The student immediately called her mother, who called 911, alerting local police.
The campus ordered locked down and about 30 to 40 police officers were dispatched to the scene, including the SWAT unit.
After authorities swept the campus, they determined that there was no gunman in the area, Lewis said.
Looking to buy or sell a home? Contact Stacey and Megan Valnes from Sunset Park Realtors for all your real estate needs!
Source: LA Times Blog
Tuesday 16, 2011
So for those who have watched, Real Housewives of DC may find this story interesting. The infamous White House state dinner crashers/RHODC stars Michaele and Tareq Salahi are coincidentally moving to Beverly Hills. TMZ reports they're renting a house in Coldwater Canyon for $20,000 per month. Coming from Virginia, the choice makes sense aesthetically, at least--but only out-of-towners would slap down $20k a month to live right on Coldwater Canyon Dr. According to Trulia, the house has six bedrooms, eight bathrooms, a pool, a guesthouse, is "impeccably furnished down to the linens," and is indeed asking $20k in rent. But here is the kicker: the listing says the house has a "dining room fit for heads of state." We'll just assume that was the Salahi's main search criteria.
Looking to buy or sell your home? Contact Stacey and Megan Valnes from Sunset Park Realtors for all your real estate needs!
Souce: Curbed LA
Monday 15, 2011
Animal rights groups Marine Animal Rescue (MAR) and Friends of Animals are offering a $5,000 reward for any information that will lead to the culprit responsible for a fatal sea lion shooting.
Peter Wallerstein, founder and director of MAR, was called to Venice beach on August 3 to respond to reports about an injured adult sea lion who had made it to shore. He was bleeding profusely from a hole in his side.
Wallerstein discovered three bullets and confirmed the sex of the sea lion as female.
"I see this thing too many times, from seal bombs to shootings," Wallerstein says. "He made it to the beach, but it's just the tip of the iceberg," he says of the recent death. "How many countless animals don't make it to the beach? I want to bring the brutality of it to light."
National Marine Fishery Service is going to do forensic testing to if they can match the three recovered bullets to the gun used to shoot the sea lion.
Thanks to the Marine Mammal Protection Act, it's a crime to kill marine animals, Punishment includes a $100,000 fine and up to a year in prison.
If you have any information on this sea lion's death, please contact the Marine Animal Rescue Hotline at 1-800-39-WHALE.
Looking to Buy or sell your home, contact Stacey and Megan Valnes from Sunset Park Realtors for all your real estate needs!
Source: Huffington Post Los Angeles
Friday 12, 2011
In Beverly Hills, a briefcase left at an office in a building North Camden Drive on Thursday morning belonged to an aspiring screenwriter attempting to distribute a script.
The Beverly Hills Police Department responded to a "suspicious circumstances" call made by a person who saw the unattended property, which a security guard had removed from the building and left in an alley. The BHPD responded to the call by evacuating buildings and blocking off streets in the area.
The briefcase was destroyed by the Los Angeles Sheriff's Department bomb squad as a precaution. It contained assorted papers and a laptop computer, said BHPD Lt. Tony Lee.
"An individual left his briefcase there hoping that somebody was going to read his script," Lee said.
Police interviewed the owner of the briefcase, who was not arrested.
Looking to sell or buy a home? Contact Stacey and Megan Valnes from Sunset Park Realtors for all your real estate needs.
Wednesday 10, 2011
Commemorating the 30th anniversary of the Santa Monica Farmers Market, it'll be held on September 14-18th and features a jam-packed schedule. So what are they doing for those four days?
September 15th at Santa Monica High School for the 30th Anniversary of the Santa Monica Farmers Market, where national food experts, politicians, chefs and farmers all mix and mingle. Then there's another party, a "Localicious" Gala celebration
On September 17th and 18th is a two day festival at Santa Monica High School with all kinds of farmers and food suppliers as well as a talk by rancher Joel Salatain about sustainable farming. There's also a presentation called "Grow and Preserve Your Own" for festival-goers who want to learn about how they can get involved in seed starting, chicken raising and bee keeping.
Concurrently, the Aero Theater will be continuing their Good Food Film Series.
Looking to sell or buy a home in Santa Monica? Contact Stacey and Megan Valnes from Sunset Park Realtors for all your real estate needs!
Source: LA Weekly
Tuesday 9, 2011
There is now news of more closures around the 405. There will be a forthcoming closures of the Wilshire Blvd. on- and off-ramps in Westwood: In November, construction will commence on two ramps, then move to the next two ramps and so on until work is done on all eight ramps. The ramps will be closed for 24 hours a day, seven days a week, for 14 to 90 days each.
The closures are part of the same project that shut down the 405 in July--the $1 billion project that will add a 10 mile northbound carpool lane to the 405. The plan also includes improvements that will turn the Wilshire Blvd. ramps into "modern, swooping flyover ramps that will make it easier to navigate the notoriously jammed intersection."
First up for closure are the westbound Wilshire on-ramp to the northbound 405 and the northbound 405 off-ramp to westbound Wilshire. Adding to concerns about the Wilshire ramp closures, utility relocation work will be taking place on Sepulveda Blvd. at the same time as the ramp closures. Sepulveda is the designated detour route for the Wilshire closures.
Looking to buy or sell your home? Contact Stacey and Megan Valnes from Sunset Park Realtors for all your real estate needs!
Source: Curbed Los Angeles
Friday 5, 2011
In recent poll suggests Santa Monica is the fourth-most walkable city in California. But there's another story to be told: A large number of pedestrian deaths and injuries regularly happen in Santa Monica.
Transportation for America has mapped out the pedestrian deaths that occurred in the country from 2000-09. More than 47,000 pedestrian deaths were recorded across the U.S., with 2,079 of them in Los Angeles County. The greater Los Angeles metropolitan area was ranked #27 in a list of the 52 most-dangerous areas for pedestrians nationwide.
The map lists 24 pedestrian deaths as having occurred in Santa Monica during that 10-year period. The majority of the victims were elderly.
The full Transportation for America report notes that 12 percent of total traffic accidents involve pedestrians and suggests that the main cause of pedestrian deaths are roads that are poorly designed for pedestrian safety.
Looking to sell or buy a home in Santa Monica or Sunset Park?
Contact Stacey and Megan Valnes from Sunset Park Realtors for all your real estate needs!
Source: Santa Monica Patch
Thursday 4, 2011
A little Los Angeles celebrity gossip for today:
It must be nice to be a judge on a hit show American Idol, supposedly Steven Tyler has bought a new home in a very speedy sale.
A witness at the Sunset Tower Hotel claims a woman checked in asking for a room for a month or two.
“My house has been for sale for a while,” the home-owner told the desk clerk.
“Then tonight, Steven Tyler and his girlfriend walked in and decided to buy it with everything in it and pay cash if I would leave tonight.”
The woman said to have taken the American Idol judge up on the offer.
Looking to sell or buy a home in Santa Monica? Contact Stacey and Megan Valnes from Sunset Park Realtors for all your real estate needs.
Source: Yahoo News
Wednesday 3, 2011
Venice's Windward Circle Post Office is likely to close. The United States Post Office wants to shut down the branch and send customers to a post office annex on Grand Boulevard, to consolidate. Venice Beach residents are more concerned for the post office's 70 year old, federally-commissioned mural by Modernist artist Edward Biberman, which depicts the history of the beach neighborhood. USPS real estate specialist Tina Moyer promised that the post office mural would be safe even if a private developer purchased the building. "It will be available to the public to view. No one gets to purchase it," Moyer said. "It's against our own policies to write a contract that would harm a historic property."
Looking to buy or sell your home? Contact Sunset Park Realtor for all your real estate needs!
Source: Curbed LA
Tuesday 2, 2011
If lowering unemployment, increasing economic activity and cutting down on traffic in Santa Monica sound like attractive goals, Santa Monica's city hall's newest project may have some appeal.
Andy Agle, director of the Housing and Economic Development Department, presented options for a local-hiring program, which could require companies that build in Santa Monica to hire Santa Monicans either for the construction or for positions in the new company.
Agle said the "hire local" model would have many of the same benefits of the "buy local" campaign created by City Hall and the Santa Monica Chamber of Commerce, which encourages people to shop at local stores instead of driving to nearby cities, thereby saving gas while pumping more money into the local economy.
Hiring local would ostensibly pump more money into the local economy by putting dollars in the pockets of Santa Monicans, and simultaneously cut down on traffic by getting people to live closer to where they work.
Currently, two-thirds of employed Santa Monicans work outside the city limits, according to figures in a city staff report.
Unfortunately, based on reports from other communities that have done studies of the programs, local hiring initiatives haven't gone too far.
Looking to buy or sell your home, contact Sunset Park Realtors for all your real estate needs!
Source: Santa Monica Daily Press
Monday 1, 2011
The city of Santa Monica has housed 113 homeless people in the past year, making Los Angeles County one of the leading homeless housing providers in the U.S., according to a national report released Thursday.
The report was authored by 100,000 Homes for the Homeless Campaign, a movement to permanently house 100,000 at-risk homeless people by July 2013.
In its first year, the campaign has helped secure permanent housing for 10,244 homeless individuals. L.A. County accounted for nearly 30 percent of the homeless housings among large communities. The project is exclusively dedicated to finding housing for vulnerable individuals.
Studies have shown, 84 percent of homeless people who find permanent housing keep the roofs over their heads.
Looking to find or sell your home, contact Sunset Park Realtors!
Source: Santa Monica Daily Press
Friday 29, 2011
West Hollywood, named the most walkable city in California by Walk Score. West Hollywood's 32,963 residents earned a Walk Score of at least 70, meaning most errands can be accomplished on foot, and city officials said that was no accident.
"Since we were incorporated in 1984, we've tried to have policies that make the city walkable," said John Keho, West Hollywood planning manager. At its inception, the city passed an ordinance that prohibited new drive-through facilities from being built in its 1.9 square mile territory. Zoning laws also require parking lots be built behind buildings, businesses must open onto the street and those occupying ground-level space must be pedestrian oriented, such as retail shops or restaurants.
Wide sidewalks and tree-lined streets also allow residents to choose two feet over four wheels.
Economically, West Hollywood's walkability has been an asset for local business, said Maribel Louie, economic development analyst for the city.
"A walkable city creates a great business climate," Louie said.
City officials have used the Walk Score to pitch West Hollywood streets as prime real estate for potential businesses.
So if you in the market looking to buy real estate in West Hollywood contact
Source: NBC LA
Thursday 28, 2011
In front of the condominium complex at 13331 Moorpark St. in Sherman Oaks. There sits a mystery headstone sitting on the ground in a grassy, open area in front of the building.
The headstone appeared to be made of gray marble. It seemed to be professionally engraved and was heavy but movable. Still, nobody has moved it since it was first seen around July 18. "There's nobody with that name, Jeffrey Lang, who lives at the complex," said Melissa Algaze.
The engraving on the headstone says:
"Loving Husband Father and Physician
Jeffrey Lang
1976-2012."
For all your real estate needs contact Sunset Park Realtors!
Source: Sherman Oaks Patch
Wednesday 27, 2011
The Boys and Girls club of Santa Monica recently opened its new Tech Center. They will be receiving a big cash check thanks to its corporate partner Bank of America.
The Bank of America Charitable Foundation announced Tuesday that it would be giving a $150,000 grant to the Boys & Girls Club of America's Los Angeles County Alliance, and the Santa Monica chapter will benefit directly from it. From the grant, $3,500 will go to the SMBGC to support its after-school programs related to education and arts.
Bank of America also announced that it will be a Title Sponsor for next year's LA County Youth of the Year program, through which members of each club get an education scholarship.
Contact Sunset Park Realtors for all your real estate needs!
Source: Santa Monica Patch
Wednesday 27, 2011
The NFL has a new tentative agreement with its players and Los Angeles has a new tentative agreement with developer AEG.The Ad Hoc Committee on the Proposed Downtown Stadium and Events Center released a non-binding memorandum of understanding outlining the financials behind the AEG's proposed Farmers Field and accompanying relocation of the West Hall of the Convention Center. What's in the deal?
The new Convention Center would cost $275 million and It would be funded in part with $195 million in city-issued bonds, which would be repaid with revenue from the new development. That would include, lease income paid by AEG, parking taxes, property taxes and a one-time construction tax on the project. The ground lease for the site will start at $6.5 million and the one-time tax will be $5 million.
$80 million in bonds would be covered by a new special tax district encompassing AEG's Staples Center and LA Live. The move is meant to remove some of the city's risk in the deal, since AEG will be responsible for the bonds, and as the LAT explains: "If AEG fails to pay the taxes necessary to cover those bonds payments, the city could foreclose on L.A. Live."
According to Chief Legislative Analyst Gerry Miller, the split would be: 27% paid for by new taxes, 73% by payments made by AEG. The city would take in about $410 million in "net new revenue" over 30 years--$210 million would go to city coffers and $200 million would go to repay bonds.
For all your real estate needs check out Sunset Park Realtors!
Source: Curbed LA
Thursday 21, 2011
Rodeo Drive-area merchants are organizing to fight the proposed stop near Wilshire and Beverly Drive--last month, 20 merchants gathered at Spago to discuss their anti-station strategy. Paris Nourafshan, an owner of an office tower at 9454 Wilshire, provided the following rationale for opposition: "The people who shop Rodeo Drive now don't come in by transit bus, so I don't think someone who shops on Rodeo Drive is going to take the subway. The subway riders are not potential shoppers. They cannot afford the kind of products retailers in the Golden Triangle sell." It's limousines--and possibly their own cars--that get the richies to Rodeo Drive, the merchants say.
Another local merchant, Douglas Chrismas, owner and director of Ace Gallery has a valid reason for concern over the subway--his business may have to be bought out to make way for the Golden Triangle station. But he had this to say, "The construction will drive away business and we're concerned that once the subway opens, we will lose our high-end clientele permanently as businesses start catering to the subway passengers."
The Beverly Center would probably be happy to have them too, but also the crime that will happen once the stop opens. Nourafshan worries too--he says he often has to clean up detritus from the local bus bench: "That's just from a single bus stop. I shudder to think what would happen with a subway station here – a station, by the way, that would not have any restrooms."
John Mirisch, the Beverly Hills councilman actually disagrees with the merchants and thinks it'll be a good when the stores' hourly workers can take the train to work. "One of the biggest problems we have in the Golden Triangle is parking, with many spaces being taken by employees," said Mirisch "If just a small portion of the employees could be enticed to take the subway, we could free up many more spaces for shoppers and that would boost business, not hurt it."
Source: Curbed LA
Real Estate Agents Stacey and Megan Valnes are here to help you with all your real Estate services, serving Santa Monica and the Westside!
Monday 18, 2011
In Santa Monica fresh blotches of graffiti decorate the backs of street signs here near the ocean. There are, almost daily, fresh splashes on walls in the San Fernando Valley, on downtown Los Angeles buildings and on billboards along the highways.
Neighborhood leaders and law enforcement officials blame what they call a glamorization of graffiti, reflected by a new graffiti exhibit at the Sunset Marquis Hotel in West Hollywood, even after an earlier furor over a full-fledged graffiti exhibit at the Museum of Contemporary Art.
Sunday 17, 2011
The event that many feared would be the "Carmageddon" of epic traffic jams cruised calmly toward a finish Sunday, with bridge work on the Los Angeles roadway completed ahead of schedule and officials reopening a 10-mile stretch of one of the busiest U.S. freeways.
Drivers honked their horns and waved from car windows as traffic started moving on Interstate 405 just after noon, for the first time since being shut down at midnight Friday to allow for the partial demolition of a bridge. There were no major problems since the freeway was closed, despite warnings and traffic was lighter than usual.
The mayor praised contractors for working so quickly and thanked city residents for heeding calls to stay off the roads. The mayor also gave credit to news outlets for spreading word about the closure.
"We couldn't have done this without the cooperation of this city," Villaraigosa said.
Crews finished demolition work on the bridge at about 7 a.m., toppling two massive pillars.
Another closure will be required in about 11 months to demolish the north side. Officials said they were hopeful that the future shutdown would run just as smoothly as this one.
For all your real estate needs, contact Sunset Park Realtors.
Souce: AP
Thursday 14, 2011
The Mulholland Bridge over the 405 Freeway will be demolished this weekend and the resulting freeway shutdown (you may know it as Carmageddon?)
Wait, what's happening?
They're shutting down the 405 Freeway in both directions for 53 hours-- northbound will be closed from the 10 to the 101; southbound will be closed from the 101 to Getty Center Drive.
Great, I'll just take Sepulveda.
Sepulveda is open to locals only
When do I have to get off the road?
405 Freeway ramps close Friday, July 15 starting at 7 pm
Freeway lanes start closing one by one at 10 pm
The 405 and the Mulholland Bridge will be completely shut down by midnight
When can I get back on?
Demo work should end and cleanup should start around 2 am on Monday, July 18
The freeway should open back up at 5 am
Ramps and connectors should be open by 6 am
Sunset Park Realtor's Advice:
*Stay at home
*Ride your bike
*Rollerblade
*Use a motorcycle
*Walk
*Get out of town
*Stay local
*STAY OFF THE 405!
Contact Sunset Park Realtors for all you real estate needs!
Source: Curbed LA
Tuesday 12, 2011
Former skateboarder Pierre-André Senizergues, who owns skate shoe company etnies wants what any skateboarder wants: a house that's completely skateable--no corners, only ramps. And since he owns a bunch of successful companies, he can actually make it happen. He's brought in artist Gil Le Bon Delapointe and architect Francois Perrin to design the 2,200 square foot PAS House for a site at the top of Las Flores Canyon in Malibu.
Contact Sunset Park Realtors for all your real estate needs!
Source: Curbed LA
Monday 11, 2011
Check out these real estate signs we thought would give you a good chuckle.
Contact Sunset Park Realtors for all your real estate needs!
Source Huffington Post
Friday 8, 2011
Everyone's maybe fretting about the 405 shutdown on July 16 and 17, but Prince William and Kate Middleton's royal visit to Downtown, Hancock Park, and Beverly Hills this weekend could become the sleeper traffic event of the month. Here's what you need to know about the impending British Invasion:
The Schedule;
Friday early evening: The Duke and Duchess get in in the early evening and are scheduled to head to the Beverly Hilton
Friday night: The couple will attend a reception at the British Consul-General's residence on June Street in Hancock Park. They'll also be staying at the 1928 Wallace Neff house.
Saturday: After a day of polo in Santa Barbara, the royals will hit a black tie BAFTA event at the recently-reopened Belasco Theatre Downtown.
Sunday: K&W will visit the Michael Maltzan-designed campus of Inner-City Arts in Skid Row, where they'll do some painting and ceramics with underprivileged kids who attend the program. They'll also see a dance performance by a troupe of teenagers.
Sunday: From Downtown, the couple will swing over to Culver City to attend a job fair for returning servicemen at Sony Pictures Studio.
Contact Sunset Park Realtors for all your Real Estate Needs!
Source Curbed LA
Wednesday 6, 2011
Craftsman meets Contemporary
Come and experience this 3+loft+2.5 home that represents a lifestyle most only dream about. Taken down to the studs, this nearly new construction offers much more than fabulous appliances and gorgeous features; it also offers very thoughtful elements that are indicative of “responsible” living, i.e., single story, high ceilings for volume and natural climate control, indoor/outdoor lifestyle, vegetable garden planters ready for your own organic planting, many fruit trees, CA climate landscaping, and solar ready. A truly unique home in that it is ideal for a family, couple or single professional, this gem is located in the heart of Sunset Park on one of the best streets. Stay home and entertain in your beautiful private backyard, ride your bike to the beach, walk to the park, or visit one of the many nearby cafes and restaurants.
2011 Ashland Ave, Santa Monica
$1,375,000
1,800sf living area
3 bedrooms+2.5 baths+Loft
7000sf lot size
To view this property contact Sunset Park Realtors.
Tuesday 5, 2011
July 4th the Los Angeles County lifeguards declared a SigAlert on the entire beachfront bike path along the Santa Monica Bay Monday, which they said was worse than the San Diego (405) Freeway. Beach goers were still making their way west at midafternoon, and every lifeguard tower was opened to accommodate the masses.
"The bike path is packed with people. It's like the 405 Freeway at the beach – bumper to bumper". said the Los Angeles County Lifeguard Capt. Angus Alexander, "And traffic on it is going like two miles an hour.''
Because of the crush of people at the beach, all 74 lifeguard towers are open to accommodate more than 800,000 people expected to back the beach, he said. On the Malibu coast, all 34 lifeguard stations were open from Zuma west to Nicholas Canyon beach.
For all your Real Estate needs contact Sunset Park Realtors
Souce: KPCC
Friday 1, 2011
Smoking in Santa Monica's apartment buildings may be restricted, and banned altogether in new hotels.
The City Council directed staff to prepare ordinances banning smoking in all newly-constructed hotels and requiring landlords to designate apartments in multi-family buildings as either smoking or non-smoking units.
Mayor Pro Tem Gleam Davis expressed concern that banning smoking in multi-family units would interfere with smokers' rights to housing, especially with regard to Santa Monica's housing first program for homeless people.
Currently, Santa Monica's policy is to find housing for homeless people before they get off drugs, drinking or smoking.
The vast majority of smokers come from low-income households, which, the staff report notes, may lead to a disproportionate impact of smoking restrictions on poorer people.
Mayor Richard Bloom suggested that people be restricted from smoking inside their buildings, as they now are in the workplace, saying that they can step outside if they want to smoke.
O'Day said that, like Davis, he was worried about the effect of smoking bans on people's right to housing. But some people have been forced to move due to health issues caused by secondhand smoke, he said.
The Council will discuss the issue further at a later date.
Contact Sunset Park Realtors for all your real estate needs!
Source: The Lookout News
Wednesday 29, 2011
A controversial development project on the outskirts of Santa Monica at Bundy Drive is further away than ever after the bankrupt developer removed the project from the Los Angeles City Council calendar in recent weeks.
According to a press release by L.A. Councilmember Bill Rosendahl's office, the developer of the proposed Bundy Village & Medical Complex, Michael Lombardi, sent a letter to the council on June 23 noting his intention to remove the project from the calendar of the Planning and Land Use Management committee indefinitely.
The proposed project raised alarm in Santa Monica, residents concerned that the complex would draw too much traffic to an intersection — Bundy Drive and Olympic Boulevard — that is already overwhelmed during rush hour.
The shift in momentum of the project from stalled to sliding backward came after a mailer was sent out to thousands of residents saying that the dormant project could be automatically approved unless the City Council took action.
Although it is technically true that the project could have found itself approved if the government had not acted within a certain time frame, it would not have benefited the developer, who is still languishing under bankruptcy protection while it gets a new development and financing plan underway, to do so.
Officials and neighborhood groups from Santa Monica have long-opposed the project in West L.A., citing a study conducted by the Los Angeles Department of Transportation that showed the development would create 20,000 additional trips in the already-gridlocked area.
In another letter responding to the proposed development, local neighborhood group the Friends of Sunset Park expressed its disapproval of the 1.3 million square foot proposal.
The group's board continued, saying that the traffic impacts would be too great, and that the town did not need another hospital.
Contact Sunset Park Realtors for all your real estate needs!
Source: Santa Monica Daily Press
Tuesday 28, 2011
The Santa Monica City Council will decide on whether to approve a $2 million+ contract for an esplanade that will connect the Downtown Santa Monica Expo Line station at Colorado and Fourth to Ocean Avenue, the Santa Monica Pier, Main Street bridge and Downtown.The esplanade, which will hopefully open when the station does in 2015, will have a "special emphasis on sidewalk and bicycle facilities to accommodate light rail users." If you're questioning the need for an esplanade, the station site is indeed near the Santa Monica Promenade and the ocean, but the 10 freeway empties out on the stop's other side--not exactly ped/bike-friendly. We also are hearing, via the Transit Coalition discuassion boards, that Santa Monica is considering shelling out more money to make the 17th St. and 26th St. stations easier to access.
Contact Sunset Park Realtors for all your real estate needs!
Source Curbed LA
Monday 27, 2011
FBI most wanted top tenner and notorious Boston mob boss Whitey Bulger was arrested in Santa Monica. Bulger's famously the inspiration for the Martin Scorsese movie The Departed, played by Jack Nicholson. Bulger fled Boston in 1994 just as he was about to be arrested in connection with "at least 19 killings, racketeering and other crimes that spanned the early 1970s to the mid-1980s." This 81 year old was living the quite life in Apartment 33 in the Princess Eugenia apartments a few blocks from the Third Street Promenade, along with his dental hygienist companion. There don't seem to be any apartments up for rent in the Princess Eugenia, but we're sure there will be one just as soon as Bulger's trial wraps up. The pair went by the names of Charles and Carol Gasko on their apartment directory and, perhaps Bulger's final crime, were reported to have a dog in a complex that does not allow pets.
Contact Sunset Park Realtors for all your real estate needs!
Source: Curbed LA
Friday 24, 2011
As a successful actress in the arts of television and film, Heather is able to channel her creativity and enthusiasm into the selling and buying process for her clients. Heather's passion, work ethic and love for the Westside are characteristics of a great Realtor. Heather represents multi-million dollar homes in the Pacific Palisades and Santa Monica areas.
Wednesday 22, 2011
Stacey Valnes, a family man and owner of Sunset Park Realtors is here to answer our reader's questions regarding Short Sales. Stacey is known to be one of the top leaders in the Short Sales.
SPR: Stacey, how Long have you been in the real estate industry and why did you get involved?
S: I’ve been selling real estate for 20 years. Honestly, I had no idea what else to do. I was always good at sales.
SPR: Why do you consider to be the leader in Short Sales?
S: I’ve completed over 50 short sales with a 100% success rate.
Here are some questions our readers have for you:
Will I have to pay capital gains taxes if I sell a property as a short sale?
S: No you won’t. The property is being sold for a loss, not a gain, hence the “short sale”
How long does the foreclosure process take?
S: I know people who haven’t made a mortgage payment in years. The banks are back logged and once in foreclosure, you can remain there for a couple years. Once the bank sets an auction sale date, the homeowner would be wise to do a short sale.
Does a good credit score help the seller trying to do the short sale?
S: One’s credit score has nothing to do with whether a short sale will be approved.
Is a short sale still an option if a foreclosure has taken place?
S: If you are in the foreclosure process but your property has not been sold via an auction (trustee sale), yes the short sale is always an option.
I have put an offer in on a home that is a short sale. It took months to get a preliminary acceptance from Wells Fargo, but they said it doesn't have final approval yet. We are 2 weeks from closing and no one from Wells Fargo will call me or my agent back. Any suggestions to get an answer, so I know if my family has a home?
S: You need an agent who is aggressive and can cut through all the red tape. Call Stacey Valnes.
Tuesday 21, 2011
A little make over can go a long way. This property listed by Sunset Park Realtors was appraised before the makeover at $875,00. Spending just $11,000, Sunset Park Realtors was able to sell this property for $1,025,000!
Monday 20, 2011
U2 guitarist the Edge has been denied by the California Coastal Commission. The panel rejected the rock star's plans for five blufftop houses in Malibu's Sweetwater Mesa, saying they would be too damaging to the local environment. Edge has tried to present the plan as five seperate houses being built by five separate owners who happens to have a shared visions, architects, planners, consultants, and project managers and even a website. Which would make it harder for the Commission to reject. But documents identify the owners as Edge's "family friends and business associates, including his younger sister", according to the LA Times. The house Edge wants to build is called "Leaves in the Wind" and is planned to be 12,785 square feet.
Edge says the development would be built to be extrememly green, but Peter Douglas, the Commission's executive director, told the AP "In my 38 years, I have never seen a project as environmentally devastating as this one." The Commission did say it might support tow or three smaller houses on a less-visible part of the land.
Looking to Buy or Sell your home contact Sunset Park Realtors!
Souce: Curbed LA
Friday 3, 2011
Now that it's summer, have you been thinking about undertaking a home improvement project? If your're concerned with making upgrades that will pay off when it's time to sell, consider these useful tips.
Cover the Basics First:
One thing potential buyers don't want to face is expensive repairs. If your home's basic structures and sytems aren't in good condition, the property will be considered a fixer-upper and its market price will be discounted accordingly.
Systems:
The roof, furnace, air conditioning, pluming, water heater, elecrical system and windows are all basic elements of your home that must be in good working order for your home to be attractive to buyers. If any of these components are broken or malfunctioning, make sure to fix them. If any of them are nearing the ends of their useful lives and you can afford to replace them, do so before the home goes on the market.
Exterior:
After that, you can address the next level of basics. Make sure your property has curb appeal by: Power waashing the home's driveway, sidewalks, cleaning the windows, mowing the lawn, pullying weeds and pruning hedges. You can also add decorative plants to make the property look vibrant and inviting.
Entry:
Now that your've drawn prospective purchasers out of their cars, make sure your home's entryway is appealing both inside and outside. If your front door is ugly or damaged, replace it. At a minimum, you should clean or paint your existing door. Also tend to all the details surrounding the door. Sweep the porch and get rid of cobwebs and replace or clean the entry mat. There should be absolutely no clutter when a potential buyer steps into the home, and the entryway should be defined as a distinct space.
Clutter and Cleanliness:
Speaking of clutter, one of the best "improvements" you can make to improve the resale value of your home is to put away your stuff. Buyers should get the impression that your home is spacious and will easily hold all their furniture and other belongings. You also don't want your junk to distract from your home's unique features and selling points, nor do you want to have personal items around that make it more difficult for buyers to picture their new lives in your old space.
Little Upgrades With A Big Impact:
Some minor replacements will produce big results for minimal cost. You know that know matter how clean your 30-year-old bathroom faucet is, it's still not going to be attractive. Replacing the coordinating hardware and fixtures won't cost much, but it will make a big difference. If your furniture is ugly, old or worn out, consider buying inexpensive new furniture or renting furniture to make your home more appealing.
Impress:
Remember when you first bought your house and you wanted to impress all your friends and family when they came to see if for the first time? That's the look you should be going for when improving your home and preparing it for showings. If you can't afford glamourous improvements like a remodeled bathroom or kitchen. These projects are expensive and difficult, and there's not guarantee that they will pay off-especially in a down market. New buyers will be more inclined to spend money to renovate the inside of your home and personalize it to their tastes than to buy a new roof.
Conclusion:
When you don't know when or even if you will be able to sell your home, choosing your home improvement projects carefully becomes extra important. Unless you live in an upscale neighborhood and your home is already immaculate, skip the fancy projects and focus on the fundamentals.
Source: SF Gate
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Tuesday 31, 2011
Last week, the Santa Monica City Council voted to give the Santa Monica Civic Auditorium, which was designed by Welton Becket and opened in 1958, a makeover, but decided it doesn't museum. The Council approved a plan that includes seismic and disability access upgrades and turns the building into a mixed-use performance space run by the same people who manage the Greek Theatre and the Pantages. The renovation will use about $47 million of redevelopment money. The auditorium will operate at a loss of about $1 million a year, but is expected to bring in about $18 million to the city and will still be cheaper than just doing the necessary safety upgrades at the site.
Source: Curbed LA
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Thursday 26, 2011
He's back in the news again, Charlie Sheen has put his Sherman Oaks mansion up for sale for $7.2 million.
The fired Two and a Half Men actor in March purchased a second home -- only nine houses away from the one for sale -- for just under $7 million.
The newly listed property -- which Sheen bought in 1997 for $2.5 million -- is in the guard-gated Mulholland Estate community.
The 7,924-square-foot Mediterranean-style residence includes five bedrooms, seven bathrooms, three fireplaces and a three-car garage.
It also includes a library, "chef-ready eat-in kitchen" and staff room en suite as well as an outdoor kitchen and dining area, swimming pool, spa and canyon view.
Sheen was fired from Two an a Half Men in March, after which he embarked on his nationwide My Violent Torpedo of Truth/Defeat Is Not an Option tour, which he now plans to take to Europe and Australia.
Source: The Hollywood Reporter
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Thursday 5, 2011
California homes priced at $1 million or more experienced a sales boom in 2010, the first increase in five years. The reason: High-end home shoppers went bargain hunting as certain parts of the economy improved but luxury home prices remained depressed. "Prestige home buyers respond to a different set of motivations than the rest of us. Their decisions are less dependent on jobs, prices and interest rates, and more on how their portfolio is doing Even if prices fall further, he said, "If you are borrowing, buying today makes a lot of sense because interest rates are just incredibly low." Two other reasons for the $1-million-and-up market increase are the return of the jumbo mortgage market in 2010 and a comeback in the stock market, which saw huge losses in 2009, Thornberg said. "A lot of folks who were reeling from equity losses bounced back." Cash purchases also inched upward among $1-million buyers last year to 29.4% of sales, up from 28.9% in 2009 and the highest for any year since 1994. But even cash purchases can be motivated by low interest rates. Million-dollar-plus sales hit a high of 54,773 in 2005 and then dropped through 2009. Last year's sales increase came despite a winnowing in the category; 3,380 of the homes that sold statewide for less than $1 million had previously sold for $1 million or more, DataQuick analysis shows. Source: LA Times
Thursday 5, 2011
Residents of a small rural piece of land in the middle of the city, they raise goats, chickens and horses. But these residents fear their way of life is under attack.
A true city cowboy, Lloyd Wilkins explains about the close-knit community's African American and Latino residents in compton that awakened each morning by the rooster's crow. Horses share the roadway with pickup trucks and SUVs. And a cacophony of clucking hens, bleating goats and squealing pot-bellied pigs drifts from backyards.
"It's a garden paradise," said Wilkins, 72, dubbed "the village chief" and who for more than four decades has owned property in Richland Farms, including stables where he raises Tennessee walking horses. "We have to maintain it."
Many of the older generation are dying out, and Wilkins and others fear that increasing development pressures threaten the future of Richland Farms.
Over the years, the city has imposed limits on certain animals, granted variances allowing for multiple structures on a single lot and introduced new parking restrictions.
"They are sabotaging the community so that developers can eventually come in and take over," said Wilkins, a retired teacher with the Los Angeles Unified School District.
Others complain that the new parking rules hinder their ability to park feed trucks and other vehicles needed for hauling agricultural products. They view the move as yet another attempt to force them to get rid of their animals.
But Councilwoman Yvonne Arceneaux, a Richland Farms resident for more than 30 years, said the restrictions are needed to ensure that the neighborhood remains safe for all residents. She said that at times the community has been plagued with problems, such as illegal cockfighting and dog fighting, gambling, poor animal maintenance — even the illegal sale of cows milk spiked with alcohol.
"When you have a total disregard for the law, you have to take steps so that everyone can live here peacefully," she said. "You're forced into doing this … so that all the community can live in peace and raise their families here."
Eldredge Willis, 75, and his now-deceased first wife, Precise Lavon, moved into their Richland Farms home in the early 1960s when the neighborhood was still largely a white enclave.
"She saw the large lots. She saw the horses, and she said 'I like this,'" Willis recalled. "So we bought the house."
The couple raised horses, goats, rabbits, even emus.
"I'm a country boy. I come from a farm," said Willis, a native Texan. "That's what made this place special for me. I felt like I was back home."
Fellow Texan and neighbor Willard McCrumby, 79, moved from Watts to Richland Farms in 1967. He and his wife, M. Elayne, were also among the community's first black families.
"There were more animals than cars," she recalled. She and her husband liked the spacious lots and the lack of sidewalks and streetlights.
"Here you have space to breathe," she said.
But the McCrumbys and others acknowledge that the neighborhood has changed.
Over the years, residents have battled city leaders who sought to prohibit certain animals. In the mid-1980s, residents agreed to limit the number of horses, goats and sheep to five each per family, Wilkins said.
Some also worry that the city is too eager to grant variances that allow homeowners to build more than one dwelling on a lot. Residents can build a second structure without having to subdivide the property into two parcels, as long as the structure is no larger than 800 square feet, according to the city clerk's office.
In the latest skirmish, the city recently started enforcing an ordinance that requires each vehicle parked on a city street in the neighborhood to display a parking permit. Residents may apply for up to four permits.
Compton Mayor Eric Perrodin has told residents that the parking program might be revised to address their concerns, but so far no action has been taken.
For years, Wilkins has used his own money to print fliers, pamphlets and a four-page community newspaper. He would like to organize an agricultural collective, which would allow residents to pool their produce for sale, and to operate a petting zoo.
"It is necessary to preserve Richland Farms in order to build a strong cultural community bond between two minority groups, African Americans and Latinos," said Wilkins, who no longer lives in the neighborhood but still owns property there. "And the animals can provide a successful foundation for our children."
So intent was Anthony "Magic" Moultrie on making a life in Richland Farms that, each Sunday after church, he and his wife, Tracy, would ride up and down the neighborhood's streets scouting "for sale" signs and talking with residents with offers to buy their homes. The couple finally moved into the neighborhood six years ago.
"This is a diamond in the rough," said Moultrie, 47. "There's nowhere comparable."
The couple started raising a range of livestock, including miniature horses and ponies, which they rent.
Moultrie, who organizes pony parties and petting zoos, shares the concerns of Wilkins and others that the city is overly aggressive in charging residents with violations.
Another resident, 51 year old Andrew Johnson, the neighborhood farrier, is a third-generation Richland Farms resident.
At age 13, his grandfather taught him how to shoe and groom horses. The family owned equines, goats, and scores of chickens.
Today, Johnson teaches local horse owners to trim their animals' hooves and maintain their coats. He also teaches neighborhood children how to ride. "This keeps the kids out of trouble," he said.
For Johnson and other residents, it is their shared love of animals and the rural character of their community that makes Richland Farms special and worth preserving.
"It's the unity of the neighborhood, the small-town atmosphere," Johnson said. "You can pass by on the freeway and miss it."
Source: Los Angeles times
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Monday 2, 2011
From gang clubhouse to blue-chip crack house to a space for Satanic worship, 2450 Solar Drive has had quite a past. Set on top of the world as it may seem, it’s a picturesque scene from every window; a breathtaking sweep of Los Angeles stretching from downtown to thePacific Ocean.
Currently owned by Timothy Devine, a former executive with Columbia Records, “It’s the last big parcel in the Hollywood Hills” the real estate agent calls it and Kirk Morgan, house guard, 53, agrees. The giant house is back on the market for $15.2 million with about 9,800 square feet, seven bathrooms, five bedrooms, a 200-bottle wine cellar, six-car garage, stone floors, a pool, a Jacuzzi with a view of the sunset and all that undeveloped acreage smack in the heart of urban Los Angeles. Cursed or not, it might be an opportunity for someone with a thick wallet to place his stamp on the city in a loud way.
Developers/contractors and clients who want something rare and unique are also called to the table as the property listing suggests other possible fates. “All sorts of subdivision possibilities exist,” it says.
On the other hand, all this talk has sent quivers of concern through city officials and preservationists anxious to protect an undeveloped spot in this city.
All in all, for those heavy hitters and thrill seekers interested in a property who bears many a legend and a glorious view, it’s the ultimate fixer-upper of a lifetime.
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Source: New York Times
Monday 2, 2011
A Los Angeles Department of Transportation spokesman said the Hollywoodland Homeowners Association (HHA) had the right to personally remove those controversial tourist-directing signs to clarify the outstanding issues caused by tourist-related problems.
Bruce Gillman, spokesman for LADOT said yesterday the signs belonged to the HHA and he doesn’t believe the association needed to tell the LADOT before taking them down. The issue of the signs’ removal was brought up at Monday night’s Hollywood United Neighborhood Council (HUNC) subcommittee meeting.
From the city's point of view, the HHA owns the signs. Gillman doesn't believe there was a LADOT application removal process for taking down these type of signs. And while the LADOT worked with the HHA on the design and location of the signs, the LADOT didn’t install or remove the signs. Instead, the name of a LADOT-approved contractor was suggested to the HHA for the installation and removal.
Michelle Vargas, spokesperson for the Department of Public Works, says under normal circumstances, an applicant goes through the Department of Public Works to apply for permits for signs that are in the public right of way. But in this case, the LADOT was helping lead the effort, according to Vargas, essentially going around the Department of Public Works. Vargas characterized the HHA's process of obtaining the signs as a "different" approach, but not incorrect.
Meanwhile, Carolyn Ramsay, spokesperson for the City Councilman Tom LaBonge, said that she will support whatever solution is agreed upon by the neighborhood, of the ongoing effort by all groups to come solve the tourism issue.
For all your real estate needs in Santa Monica, Westside, Venice and Mar Vista contact Stacey and Megan Valnes from Sunset Park Realtors.
Source: Curbed LA