Year in Review Part 4: November
Dec. 30, 2020 at 6:00 am
After several months of closure Muscle Beach officially reopened in Santa Monica. The County cleared it for reopening in line with the same requirements as playgrounds. People were required to wear a mask at all times they are in the park. In addition, visits were limited to thirty minutes if others were using the equipment, eating and drinking were not allowed, and people must remain six feet away from non household members.
Relaxed regulations in the Third Street Promenade, Santa Monica Pier and other commercial zones were extended by City Councilmembers until the end of 2022 in an attempt to bolster the economic recovery of local businesses.
Year in Review Part 3: September
Dec. 29, 2020 at 6:00 am
The Boys & Girls Club of Santa Monica reopened its Lincoln and Mar Vista Gardens centers for in-person and virtual academic support. Prior to the pandemic, the club primarily offered after school programming, but it expanded its services to include in-person learning support during the school day.
Neighbors living on Bay Street and nearby businesses joined forces to tackle a growing encampment of homeless people who they believed were involved in drug dealing operations in the alley behind the Walgreens on Lincoln. By working with an array of local services the community members reduced the number of people living in the alley from 12 to zero without arresting the unhoused or removing their possessions.
Year in Review Part 2: May
Dec. 28, 2020 at 6:00 am
Mobility advocates called on the city to join other cities, including Pasadena, San Diego, Oakland and San Francisco, in restricting car traffic on some neighborhood streets to provide more space for pedestrians and cyclists to practice physical distancing.
The Santa Monica Education Foundation’s annual Santa Monica Wine Auction went virtual to continue its tradition of raising funds for local public schools.
The city of Santa Monica extended its moratorium on residential and commercial evictions. The order also extended the time tenants had to pay rent they were unable to pay from six to twelve months.
After much discussion, study and surveys, the Santa Monica-Malibu Unified School District (SMMUSD) Board of Education has voted to support its staff recommendation to ease into in-person learning when Los
SMMUSD to propose ‘distance learning plus’ reopening model for schools
Dec. 16, 2020 at 6:00 am
On Dec. 17, the Board of Education will vote on the Santa Monica-Malibu Unified School District’s staff recommendation to adopt a ‘distance learning plus’ reopening plan for when L.A. County enters Tier 2 of COVID restrictions.
As L.A. County currently remains in Tier 1 the District is offering limited in-person special education services and awaiting approval to open Transitional Kindergarten through Grade 2 through the County’s waiver program. If the waiver is granted further discussions with parents and staff are necessary before expanding Tier 1 in-person offerings.
Once the County enters Tier 2, SMMUSD will have the option to open in-person hybrid instruction TK through Grade 12, but is not planning on taking it.