Westside Today Headlines http://www.westsidetoday.com/news-s21/1/publisher-s-notebook.html Fri, 31 Jan 2014 16:06:25 -0800 en-us Copyright 2014, Westside Today http://www.westsidetoday.com/s21-10331/how-about-a-retirement.html http://www.westsidetoday.com/s21-10331/how-about-a-retirement.html Wed, 11 Dec 2013 16:06:25 -0800 Charlie Munger has withdrawn his application to build Green Hollow Square. People are pretty speechless so far, but in coming weeks we will likely hear a lot from both sides – opponents claiming victory for blocking a project they believed would add to local traffic and parking woes – and from supporters who fear the site will slide into decline, creating blight here in Brentwood.It occurs to me there’s an idea that could maybe get people “unstuck” and move the debate forward. We liv... http://www.westsidetoday.com/s21-10069/the-va-time-to.html http://www.westsidetoday.com/s21-10069/the-va-time-to.html Mon, 23 Sep 2013 16:06:25 -0800 One of the problems with lawsuits is that you often end up with real winners – and real losers. In the case of the ACLU lawsuit against the VA, we currently have a very mixed result that, unless something changes, will likely leave everyone dissatisfied for a very long time to come. The judge’s recent decision doesn’t go into effect for six months; it feels like he’s sending a powerful signal to all parties to resolve this between now and then. If everyone can get into a win-w... http://www.westsidetoday.com/s21-9959/brentwood-news-acquired-by.html http://www.westsidetoday.com/s21-9959/brentwood-news-acquired-by.html Mon, 19 Aug 2013 16:06:25 -0800 The company that publishes the Santa Monica Mirror will now publish the Brentwood News as well. The Brentwood News, started in 1991, is a monthly publication with a circulation of 13,150. The Santa Monica Mirror, started 16 years ago, has a circulation of 20,000.Brentwood News circulation will now be increased to 14,000, starting immediately. The Mirror organization will also take over two websites, BrentwoodNewsOnline.com and WestsideToday.com.“This is an important move in terms of long-te... http://www.westsidetoday.com/s21-9514/ethics-commision-give-us.html http://www.westsidetoday.com/s21-9514/ethics-commision-give-us.html Sat, 18 May 2013 16:06:25 -0800 Mike Feuer isn’t happy with all the attention being given to his “fishy” (according to the LA Times) contract with his campaign consultant, Shallman Communications. The way the original contract was written, Shallman would receive a big bonus if Feuer won the City Attorney race, nothing if Feuer lost. The Trutanich people say that by under-reporting his campaign’s true expenses, Feuer was able to inappropriately qualify for public campaign financing funds – and that the consulting fe... http://www.westsidetoday.com/s21-8865/come-meet-the-candidates.html http://www.westsidetoday.com/s21-8865/come-meet-the-candidates.html Tue, 15 Jan 2013 16:06:25 -0800 Happy New Year!A city council race – and the mayoral race – are hard upon us. We all vote March 5. The Brentwood News is delighted to host a “meet the candidate” forum at University Synagogue on the evening of Thursday, February 7. Mike Bonin, Tina Hess, Odysseus Bostick and Frederick Sutton will each tell you why he or she is the best candidate to replace Bill Rosendahl, who is stepping back to fight his battle with cancer. We’ll start at 7:30 p.m. and end at 9 p.m.I’ll moderate... http://www.westsidetoday.com/s21-8608/dog-spas-vs-justice.html http://www.westsidetoday.com/s21-8608/dog-spas-vs-justice.html Wed, 19 Dec 2012 16:06:25 -0800 You’d be amazed at how many press releases we get promoting the darndest things. Just read some of the verbiage from this press release promoting a holiday getaway for dogs:“Pooch Hotel Santa Monica”, we’re told, is a “five star” fitness center for dogs, complete with poolside cabanas, “palace” suites, a spa, perfectly manicured grass, all enclosed by a white picket fence.Amenities include DogTV, a custom swimming pool complete with floating dog beds, “Poochberry facials,” m... http://www.westsidetoday.com/s21-8510/a-tax-everyone-can.html http://www.westsidetoday.com/s21-8510/a-tax-everyone-can.html Tue, 04 Dec 2012 16:06:25 -0800 Measure J, the ballot proposition that would have extended the Measure R sales tax – facilitating the speeding up of much-needed public transportation infrastructure – fell just short of the two-thirds vote required. Opponents to Measure J included some citizens of Beverly Hills who don’t want a subway tunnel built beneath Beverly Hills High School. To demonstrate their ire, many opposed Measure J as a form of protest. Earlier, opponents to the Beverly Hills section of the proposed subway ... http://www.westsidetoday.com/s21-5933/500-000-new-jobs.html http://www.westsidetoday.com/s21-5933/500-000-new-jobs.html Thu, 03 Nov 2011 16:06:25 -0800 I’m an old-fashioned print guy now reinventing himself as a dot-com mogul wannabe. Like everyone in this town, I’ve got this big idea I’m working on. More and more I find myself talking to fellow entrepreneurs, website designers, potential funders, lawyers and various “deal” guys. It’s very clear to me that there are tons of startups out there that, if funded, could likely do very well. Some of the ideas are pretty amazing. Small armies of highly energetic kids are ready to rock... http://www.westsidetoday.com/s21-5384/brentwood-beat.html http://www.westsidetoday.com/s21-5384/brentwood-beat.html Mon, 20 Jun 2011 16:06:25 -0800 I’m assuming everyone knows by now that the 405 will shut down late Friday, July 15, 2011 through very early Monday morning, July 18, 2011. Just in case you didn’t know, now you do. Many say they will leave town rather than be subjected to this debacle. How silly. The 405 closure is a great opportunity in disguise. It will be a great weekend, you wait and see.I remember the “Storm of 1978” while a graduate student in Boston. For days, the snow fell. And fell. And fell. It was am... http://www.westsidetoday.com/s21-5181/brentwood-beat-transition-time.html http://www.westsidetoday.com/s21-5181/brentwood-beat-transition-time.html Fri, 20 May 2011 16:06:25 -0800 The recent Obama visit, as always, got everyone excited. Traffic wasn’t too bad this time, but many were disappointed that they weren’t able to catch a glimpse of the president at Tavern Restaurant. Several locals were waiting across the street, hoping to greet the president.His security detail chose instead to drive the president down a back alley, where his limo parked beneath a tent behind Tavern. From there, the president was whisked inside the restaurant via the kitchen. Those standi... http://www.westsidetoday.com/s21-4659/va-debate-heats-up.html http://www.westsidetoday.com/s21-4659/va-debate-heats-up.html Tue, 15 Mar 2011 16:06:25 -0800 This subject is sensitive, timely, important and complex -- and goes to the heart of who we are as a community and a society. In the print issue of the Brentwood News, three pages are devoted to divergent views regarding the future of the VA (see pages 10-12). See also “Brentwood Beat,” page 4.It feels as if this conversation is taking off in earnest, we urge you to read this special report. Additional perspectives will be included in our next issue as well. We welcome your thoughts on t... http://www.westsidetoday.com/s21-3859/brentwood-beat-note-to.html http://www.westsidetoday.com/s21-3859/brentwood-beat-note-to.html Tue, 23 Nov 2010 16:06:25 -0800 I think the BCC, or Brentwood Community Council, has been a good thing. Since its formation, the community has a central point of communication to hash out issues of importance. But the BCC is starting to remind me of seventh grade student council. At the beginning of each meeting, all kinds of committee reports are given. It can take up to an hour or more to go through some pretty ho-hum items. Finally, after all that, time is allotted to take up new business – which, on occasion, includ... http://www.westsidetoday.com/s21-3016/she-ll-be-missed.html http://www.westsidetoday.com/s21-3016/she-ll-be-missed.html Sat, 10 Jul 2010 16:06:25 -0800 As I think everyone knows, Barbara Goldenberg had been suffering some health issues for a while now. Not that she ever complained -- not at all -- she was always cheerful, positive, full of life.I can't imagine there was a person anywhere who didn't like her. In addition to her many civic contributions, she was maybe the nicest, most genuine, open, polite and friendly person on the planet. If everyone treated each other the way Barbara treated everyone, world peace would reign supreme.Her pas... http://www.westsidetoday.com/s21-2789/sarah-is-back-.html http://www.westsidetoday.com/s21-2789/sarah-is-back-.html Thu, 10 Jun 2010 16:06:25 -0800 Sarah will help relaunch the Brentwood News. http://www.westsidetoday.com/s21-2604/brentwood-news-coming-back.html http://www.westsidetoday.com/s21-2604/brentwood-news-coming-back.html Mon, 10 May 2010 16:06:25 -0800 Greetings, all.Thanks for all your well wishes. Everywhere I go, people tell me they miss the Brentwood News.We had to stop publishing for a while, we got hammered by the economy.But soon we'll have a new newspaper and a great new website up and running again. If you want to write for us, check out our "contribute" button in the top of the left column. You can post your own stories, subject to our review. We hope this will become a site that's known for its citizen journalism. Accor... http://www.westsidetoday.com/s21-2526/meg-whitman-wows-beverly.html http://www.westsidetoday.com/s21-2526/meg-whitman-wows-beverly.html Sat, 24 Apr 2010 16:06:25 -0800 I was at the Beverly Hilton the other night attending a business function. When I first arrived, it was clear something big was going on at the hotel. A crowd was gathering and there were maybe 20 security guys running around wearing those earplugs with the skin-toned wires that go down the backs of their collars.I learned that Meg Whitman would be arriving in an hour or so to attend a political fundraiser. I asked a member of her staff if I could attend and a helpful press aide obliged. My t... http://www.westsidetoday.com/s21-2310/community-matters-an-incomprehensible.html http://www.westsidetoday.com/s21-2310/community-matters-an-incomprehensible.html Sat, 06 Mar 2010 16:06:25 -0800 A collective shudder shook the Westside in recent days -- especially among parents of school children who jump on the school buses that criss-cross town every morning and afternoon.Julia Siegler, 13, a student at Harvard-Westlake, was struck by two cars as she tried to cross Sunset at the intersection of Cliffwood and Sunset in Brentwood. As everyone knows by now, she was killed. If you can, pull over and take a look at the shrine of flowers, candles, pictures and written statements that now oc... http://www.westsidetoday.com/s21-1251/community-matters.html http://www.westsidetoday.com/s21-1251/community-matters.html Wed, 15 Jul 2009 16:06:25 -0800 http://www.westsidetoday.com/s21-1198/staying-alive.html http://www.westsidetoday.com/s21-1198/staying-alive.html Mon, 29 Jun 2009 16:06:25 -0800 Times are tough in the publishing business, everyone knows that. But my marching orders from community leaders is very clear: Stay alive, no matter what it takes. Whatever cutbacks we have to undertake for now are OK and understandable; our readers and advertisers will forgive us, I'm told. The key thing is to stay alive. Popular wisdom has it that the Internet is putting papers and magazines out of business. I don't think that's too big a factor at the local level -- at least not yet. Righ... http://www.westsidetoday.com/s21-939/come-to.html http://www.westsidetoday.com/s21-939/come-to.html Mon, 04 May 2009 16:06:25 -0800 On May 27, from 7 p.m. to 9:30 p.m. at the Luxe Sunset Hotel in Brentwood, Westside Today will host a seminar called "New Media Made Easy."At this introductory session, our instructors, Karl Susman and Angel McClinton, will go over the basics of social media, new gadgets (cell phones, laptops, GPS trackers, etc.) and e-commerce. This introductory session will be followed by nine different modules -- Google, Social Media, PCs, MACs, Applications, Important Websites, Cell Phones, Shar... http://www.westsidetoday.com/s21-725/time-for-reinvention.html http://www.westsidetoday.com/s21-725/time-for-reinvention.html Wed, 01 Apr 2009 16:06:25 -0800 Everyone I know is saying it: it’s time for all of us to reinvent ourselves.With the April editions of Westside Today magazines, we’ve heeded that call and our magazines have officially undergone a reinvention of their own. Just as Westwood has the “W” Hotel, and Orange County is referred to as “The OC,” our staff often uses “WT” as shorthand for “Westside Today.” If Oprah Winfrey can put out a magazine called “O,” we believe we can be equally bold and refer to ourselves... http://www.westsidetoday.com/s21-519/community-matters.html http://www.westsidetoday.com/s21-519/community-matters.html Thu, 12 Feb 2009 16:06:25 -0800 A few months ago we said we were going to host a “recession buster” networking party. Some working on the event said they thought there wasn’t enough time to pull it all together, so we postponed.Many of you were disappointed and keep asking when we’re going to do this. Clearly it’s the right idea at the right time.Well, now we’re on again. Let’s do it this time. And let’s do it right!Mark your calendars for the evening of Monday, February 23, from 6 p.m. till 9 p.m. The event wi... http://www.westsidetoday.com/s21-439/community-matters.html http://www.westsidetoday.com/s21-439/community-matters.html Wed, 03 Dec 2008 16:06:25 -0800 Got Chickens?Sometimes things have to get really bad before they can become good again. As painful as the current situation is, deep down inside we all knew something had been off track for quite some time. The day of reckoning had to come. And so it did. And now here we are. That good times can follow bad is something we all need to keep in mind right now. Clearly the current economy is exceedingly painful. I know we’re sure feeling it at Westside Today.Publishing is not an easy field in whic... http://www.westsidetoday.com/s21-434/small-business-conference-postponed.html http://www.westsidetoday.com/s21-434/small-business-conference-postponed.html Wed, 19 Nov 2008 16:06:25 -0800 It was felt we didn't have enough time to line up speakers, sell tickets, etc.So we've postponed the planned "Small Business Conference" (our "recession buster" gathering) till January.Keep checking in, sorry for any inconvenience. http://www.westsidetoday.com/s21-310/community-matters.html http://www.westsidetoday.com/s21-310/community-matters.html Thu, 02 Oct 2008 16:06:25 -0800 Ten-Point Program for Saving AmericaThe presidential candidates are rushing toward the middle in the hope of capturing undecided voters. This is good; Americans are fundamentally a centrist people. Just in case the winner is too tired to remember his platform, here’s one he can use:1. 100% energy independence within ten years. A massive investment in green technology, pumping up our economy along the way. An “all of the above” approach to energy production, coupled with massive conservatio...