McCourt and Pujols: How to Lose Fans and Alienate People

First off, let me start by saying that I’m not a huge baseball fan, but being from St. Louis, I sometimes consider myself a Cardinals fan by default. St. Louis is, after all, a baseball town. That said, I do love sports. I do love being a part of the game day festivities. I do love when my city wins.  And I do love celebrating my city. Call me a fairweather fan, but I think I’m in a nice position of being able to “Go Crazy!” when the Cards win, but not ending up in tears when they lose. Now that I live in Long Beach, I have two MLB teams located roughly the same distance away from me and I see just as many people wearing Angels gear as I do Dodgers. Unfortunately, baseball in LA has already put a bad taste in my mouth.

Dodger Drama

The drama started before I even moved out to California. Maybe bringing hotshot “Lazy” Ramirez to LA was a bad omen. Former Dodger owner Frank McCourt has generated more negative attention toward himself and his team than I can express. For months it seemed like the morning headlines on KPCC had something to report involving the drama of McCourt’s infamous divorce proceedings, charity scandal, and ownership problems. The year after being proclaimed “Power Couple of the Year” by the Los Angeles Business Journal, the McCourts decided to split, and Frank fired his wife from her position as the “First Female” Dodger CEO the day after the team was eliminated from the playoffs. Maybe she deserved it after having an affair and dipping into the team’s bank account to pay for her lavish lifestyle, but Frank wasn’t much better, and personally benefited from some $130 million of Dodger money in the form of personal dividend payments to himself. After fighting over who owned what portion of the team, Major League Baseball itself was called in to bring a quick end to the drama. Deals were made, and then rejected, while McCourt struggled to find the money to pay the team he was fighting for. Eventually the team filed Chapter 11 bankruptcy and the MLB put the team up for sale. Then there was the salary of Howard Sunkin, Frank’s buddy and chief executive of The Dream Foundation- the charitable arm of the Dodgers- which was nearly equal to one-fourth of the charity’s entire budget.
After all this, the Dodgers still don’t have an owner and are suffering from a tarnished reputation. This gross display of greed, ineptitude, and corruption on the part of the McCourts has no place in professional sports. Here we have a man who continually raised ticket prices beyond what most teams dare to charge, failed to meet payroll obligations for his players, and involved one of the most storied baseball franchises in history in his personal affairs, all while raking in wild profits to support his image and lifestyle. And I haven’t even mentioned the beating of Giant fan Brian Stowe.

A Tale of Betrayal

Fast forward to December 2011. After leading the Cardinals to their 11th World Series victory, Albert Pujols was suddenly a free agent and the rumors began to fly. Of course we all thought he would re-sign with St. Louis. And by “we all,” I mean pretty much everyone who knew who he was.
Pujols is a St. Louis icon. He is part owner in a restaurant that bares his name. He began some ambitious and highly successful charity work there. There is an adult mental health facility named after him. He helped the Cardinals to the World Series three times, and won it twice.  He was given the nickname “El Hombre” by St. Louis fans. Unfortunately, he is also partly responsible for shutting down the only classical music station in the region (the 62-year-old Classic 99) to replace it with the christian rock station Joy FM, even though Joy Fm already had a home on two frequencies. Despite the loads of evidence suggesting Pujols would remain a Cardinal, he left town as soon as the LA Angels offered a bigger, better contract. Money, not loyalty, no matter what Albert and his wife might say, was the real issue here. Now all along the freeways in Los Angeles and the surrounding areas, you’ll find billboards depicting Pujols from the rear, swinging for the fences, alongside captions like “El Hombre,” “Big A,” “Now PlAying,” and “OMG!” How convenient that the Cardinals colors also happen to be red and white- they didn’t even have to photoshop Albert into an Angel’s jersey!

I couldn’t help but smirk and even cheer after reading Tom Schlafly’s most recent Top Fermentation column, where he, with tongue in cheek, quotes “Casey At The Bat:”

Oh, somewhere in this favoured land the sun is shining bright;
The band is playing somewhere, and somewhere hearts are light,
And somewhere men are laughing, and somewhere children shout;
And in Mudville there is Joy-FM‚—Albert Pujols has sold out.
Unfortunately, the Cards don’t play the Angels this next season. So this spring when the Cardinals do come to Los Angeles, for a three-game series against the Dodgers, I’ll hope to grab a seat near the visiting bullpen for all three nights. If you’d like to join me to help pray away the parking-lot assault, you’re more than welcome.

 

LB Post Articles Highlight “Urban Revival” Aspirations

Urban revival. The term is thrown around about as frequently, and with as much weight, as the term “fusion” is in the culinary world. Both phrases seek to say something very simple in a fanciful way. Essentially, urban revival refers to the recent movement to re-make our cities more pedestrian friendly, aesthetically pleasing, and environmentally sound.
A couple of news articles in the July print edition of Long Beach Post provide an interesting perspective on how this concept is applied in Long Beach.

In her article “The 10 Worst Decisions in Long Beach History”, writer Allison Jean Eaton provides a voice rarely heard in Los Angeles County- one that looks to the mistakes of the past to learn how the future can be made that much better. She is willing to look lovingly at her city and admit that we’ve messed a few things up.

I was surprised to see problems caused by The Queen Mary on her list. When I moved here, I thought of it like I do the Gateway Arch in St. Louis. The Arch is a historical monument to Westward expansion and the exploits of Lewis, Clark and Sacajawea. For many, the view of the Queen Mary evokes the same sense of history and desire that the Arch does. Maybe The City of Long Beach just needs to rethink the use of space, much like St. Louis is doing with the Gateway Arch.

Also appearing in the July edition is an article called “The Future of the Long Beach Civic Center” by Brian Ulaszewski. In it, he highlights the problems with the current center, and the possibility of a new use of space to bring about the activity it was meant to bring to downtown.

I recommend picking up a copy of the paper or visiting them online. Resources like the Long Beach Post are invaluable.

The Articles from LBPost.com:
The 10 Worst Decisions in Long Beach History
The Future of the Long Beach Civic Center

What “Carmageddon” Says About LA County

It’s virtually impossible to avoid hearing about this weekend’s shutdown of I-405, as the media has been hyping “Carmegeddon” for weeks, but the fact that there is such a big deal to be made over the closure of such a short stretch of freeway (only 10 miles) over a mere 52-hour period, highlights what the rest of the nation has long criticized L.A. for: extreme auto dependency.

Hopefully, the right people are taking note and regarding the weekend freakout as reason for something to be done about L.A.’s auto addiction. Providing Los Angeles county citizens with the transportation options of other comparable cities would be a step in the right direction toward solving multiple problems in the area, including the infamous smog issue. In addition, wider freeways will probably just mean more cars, and not less traffic. In fact, a University of Toronto study recently found exactly that.

In all likelihood, enough people will be too afraid to use a car this weekend that the traffic situation will be no worse than any other weekend in L.A. Carmegeddon will probably be laughed about years later, and we’ll all feel foolish for worrying about nothing. Fortunately for those of us living in Long Beach, there’s plenty to do without needing to leave the city anyway, including a college volleyball tournament, free movie on the beach, and motorcycle festival at the Queen Mary.

Amidst all the hype however, the situation might encourage people to explore their immediate neighborhood. My advice? Take a walk! Ride your bike! Take advantage of free rides on Metro rail! Do something that doesn’t involve driving. You might find something really cool nearby that you never knew was there.

The Pike’s Not Dead!

This past weekend, I finally had the chance to ride the Ferris Wheel at the Pike downtown. I had been to The Pike several times before, and each time I went seemed more dead than the last. It always amazed me how many empty storefronts there were and how few people were out on a given night. The closure of Borders seemed like it would be a huge blow to the area, and I was worried I was witnessing The Pike’s death as a possible casualty of the economy. But this weekend was different- I was surprised and excited to see so many people out enjoying a beautiful Long Beach weekend downtown.

As many already know, The Pike of today is much different from the original one. Opening in 1902, and shuttering in 1979, it hosted several roller coaster and amusement rides, the original Loof’s, now on Long Beach Blvd., and even a bath house. The newer, modern version seeks to pay homage to the past by incorporating a ferris wheel, merry-go-round, and pedestrian overpass that looks like a roller coaster. The fountain outside of The Laugh Factory on the corner of Pine Ave. and Shoreline tells the stories of some of the Pike’s former main attractions.

The views of Long Beach and the Port are definitely worth the $3 ferris wheel ride. For those coming down for a movie or dinner, there’s plenty more to do before or after. A One Dollar Book Store has even moved into the old Borders location. At the very least, The Pike and nearby Pine Avenue Pier are excellent for a relaxing walk.

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Press Release: Long Beach Approves Plastic Bag Ban

I just saw a Tuesday press release from healthebay.org which explains a Long Beach City Council vote to ban single-use plastic bags beginning this August.
Hopefully, City residents will be receptive to the ban, which at first might seem like it creates an enormous inconvenience. But let’s not forget, we survived without the plastic bag before, so I think we’ll be just fine without it.

From Heal The Bay:

SANTA MONICA, CA (Tuesday, May 18, 2011) – The Long Beach City Council tonight approved a ban on the distribution of single-use plastic shopping bags at grocery stores, convenience stores, pharmacies and farmers’ markets in the City beginning in August.

With the vote, Long Beach becomes the largest city in Los Angeles County to ban plastic bags and is expected to motivate similar actions by other local governments throughout the region, including the City of Los Angeles and City of Pasadena.

In a phased rollout beginning in August, plastic carryout bags will no longer be available in supermarkets, large retail pharmacies, liquor stores, food marts and farmers’ markets in the city, which encompasses nearly 500,000 residents.

The measure seeks to end the environmental and fiscal waste created by the use of 6 billion single-use plastic shopping bags each year in Los Angeles County alone.

California municipalities spend nearly $25 million each year just to collect and dispose of plastic bag waste. Less than 5% of plastic grocery bags are recycled each year statewide, so the remainder clogs precious landfill, litters public spaces and harms animal life when the bags infiltrate waterways.

Long Beach is disproportionally plagued by plastic pollution, as it sits at the terminus of the Los Angeles River. Long Beach spends approximately $2.2 million per year in maintenance costs associated with marine debris such as plastic bags. Suja Lowenthal, Vice Mayor of Long Beach, introduced and championed the bag ordinance and is a board member of Heal the Bay.

“Long Beach has taken control of its own destiny by banning plastic bags from its litter stream and setting an example for cities along the Los Angeles River,” said Vice Mayor Lowenthal.

Environmental group Heal the Bay has led the legislative fight to enact a bag ban for more than five years as part of its ongoing efforts to tackle plastic pollution in California seas and neighborhoods.

“Today Long Beach took a stand against both environmental pollution and fiscal waste,” said Kirsten James, Water Quality Director of Heal the Bay. “This action is yet another signal to the plastics industry that cities are fed up with paying the huge price tag of cleaning up plastic pollution.

Long Beach’s action marks the 11th municipality in California to ban plastic carryout bags. Many others are posed to follow suit. Stakeholders continue to look to Sacramento legislators to move forward a uniform, statewide approach to curb plastic bag pollution.

Retailers in Long Beach will still be able to distribute paper bags, so long as they contain at least 40% post-consumer content. Shoppers who forget their reusable bags have the option of purchasing paper bags at checkout for 10 cents each. Heavy-duty reusable bags are convenient, environmentally friendly alternatives that have been embraced by hundreds of millions of consumers around the world.

Long Beach joins a long list of governments that have enacted progressive curbs on single-use plastic bags, including China, Bangladesh, San Francisco and Mexico City.

About Heal the Bay

Heal the Bay is a nonprofit environmental organization dedicated to making Southern California coastal waters and watersheds, including Santa Monica Bay, safe, healthy and clean. We use research, education, community action and advocacy to pursue our mission.

Contact: Kirsten James, Heal the Bay, (310) 451-1500, x 162 or (310) 713-3091 cell

Lunch Truck It Brings Food Trucks to Long Beach

Beginning May 4, a new weekly gourmet food truck event will kick off in a location where food trucks are rarely seen: within the city limits of Long Beach. Lunch Truck It, which will take place on Coronado at Aneheim on Wednesdays, is a joint effort of Councilman O’Donnell and  the 4th District, and The ZaSo Design District.

Recently, I spoke with Jennifer Jones, administrator of the Lunch Truck It Facebook and Twitter accounts, and a key organizer for the event, to discuss the origin and potential for bringing gourmet food trucks to Long Beach. The following comes from our short e-mail interview.
For those who don’t know, “The ZaSo Design Destrict is made up of a number of creative firms on Coronado Ave. at Anaheim in Long Beach. It has become a collaboration of businesses that want to be more involved in the local Long Beach community and unify the efforts for our district’s creative growth and redevelopment.” Situated on Coronado Street, North of Aneheim Ave, the area will host 3 or 4 trucks every Wednesday for Lunch from 11:30 to 2:30.

Current Long Beach municipal code only allows Food Trucks to operate in construction zones and imposes different regulations and fees than most municipalities in Los Angeles County. This explains why Long Beach residents see trucks operating just outside, but rarely in, The City of Long Beach.

Lunch Truck It will bring a rotating lineup of food trucks to Long Beach (currently 12 trucks are planning on serving in the coming weeks) including Buttermilk, Vizzi Truck, Cool Haus, Global Soul, Ahn Joo, Mandoline Grill, Greasy Wiener, Crepe’n Around, and Grill ‘Em All.

The 4th District and Councilman Patrick O’Donnell was instrumental in getting the ball rolling for the idea of Lunch Truck It to come to fruition. Jones says the Councilman was excited about the idea and the initiative coming out of the area. Vizzi Truck was also a huge help as “the first truck to take a chance on [them] a year ago, they have been immensely helpful with the brainstorm and launch… giving [them] advice and tips from the trucks perspective.” Jones hopes the new event will bring more people into the ZaSo Design District to stick around for more than just lunch. As for her hopes for the impact on local law, Jones said “It is our hope that the City’s regulations will become more flexible and accommodating for gourmet food trucks. We are optimistic that Lunch Truck It will become a hot spot in Long Beach for gourmet food trucks and their patrons from all over L.A. and Orange County.”
I am equally optimistic that bringing gourmet food trucks into the area can spur interest in the area and cooperation with the local organizers, in addition to the fun and spontaneous community that food truck events already bring. Since I come from a city where food trucks are latecomers to the scene and face insane scrutiny and regulations, it’s comforting to see events like this work toward acceptance. I’m enthusiastic that Lunch Truck It will be successful in it’s first weeks and I hope the city comes out to support it. I encourage Long Beach residents to give props to Councilman O’Donnell and Jennifer Jones for having initiative  and vision. Unfortunately, I will be working in San Pedro during the first Lunch Truck It event, but I look forward to stopping by and enjoying some of the best GFTs in LA County sometime soon. Maybe I can convince someone to stop by and take pictures? The kick-off event will feature Great Balls on Tires, KutnSow,  Rosa’s Bella Cucina, The Sweets Truck, and Vizzi Truck. Trucks interested in participating in future Lunch Truck It events can contact info@lunchtruckit.com.

Lunch Truck It
Launching Wednesday May 4th, 11:30-2:30
Coronado Ave at Aneheim
Twitter: @LunchTruckIt
Facebook: facebook.com/lunchtruckit 
Also, feel free to spread this flyer.

East Village Expands

Back in December, I blogged about Phantom Galleries Long Beach and a couple of businesses coming to the East Village. Since then, The East Village Arts District has filled a few more storefronts and continues to live up to the “Arts District” reputation.  With the 4th Street opening of Portfolio Coffeehouse’s  newest endeavor, Berlin by Portfolio and it’s next-door neighbor, the newly relocated Fingerprints Music, the area is becoming a more fun and interesting place to hang out and shop. Just around the corner on 3rd Street at Elm Ave., Durty Mick Records has found a new home for its label and store, as well as The Hallway Spectacle, a new vintage/unique find shop, and Downtown Darling Salon & Boutique. New art galleries have opened on Linden Ave. and The Promenade, and the new Vons on Atlantic and Broadway finally opened.

The New Berlin Portfolio and Fingerprints Music

The area is already looking more attractive and fun, and is playing host to a newly-launched Downtown Long Beach Art Walk. The famous Fingerprints will be bringing a slew of in-store performances to the East Village, including an upcoming Foo Fighters show. Durty Mick has also welcomed a few bands since it moved in. New so-called “pedestrian-friendly” street lights were installed a couple of months ago on 4th Street, giving the area a cleaner, more updated look.

Durty Mick Records and Hallway Spectacle

Unfortunately, East Village has also seen the loss of it’s weekly farmers’ market on 1st Street. On the couple of occasions I walked through, there were few vendors selling actual food, and even fewer customers.

I love seeing street art in Long Beach.

In the future, we only have more to look forward to. Groundbreaking on the Art Exchange is planned for this year. When I first moved to Long Beach, I was a little disappointed to see so many closed shops and boarded windows, but it looks like things are turning around. East Village in particular is slowly becoming a unique place to hang out.

Signal Hill Din-Din a Big Success!

After a rain delay pushed it back a week, the first ever Signal Hill Din-Din-A-Go-Go took place this past Monday. The lineup was comprised of industry favorites Lomo Arigato, Grill ‘Em All, Mandoline Grill, and Tropical Shave Ice, who catered to dozens (hundreds?) of hungry customers form the Long Beach/Signal Hill area.

Since the line for the Great Food Truck Race winner Grill ‘Em All was so long and constant, I saw a lot of people, myself included grabbing some delicious Hawaiian shave ice or Vietnamese tacos to eat while waiting. There were a few lawn chair circles,  plenty of conversations with new friends, and a few unfortunate parking tickets. It’s hard to gauge the attendance of this kind of event, as patrons come and go freely, but the long steady line for burgers and small crowds in front of every truck were an indication that the night was a success.
I’m definitely looking forward to next week’s lineup, as well as more food truck events in the Long Beach area. (Stay tuned!!)

Thanks to everyone involved in making this happen- it was a lot of fun and will hopefully show Long Beach that their municipal code regarding food trucks could use some tweaking.
A big thanks to Sarah for the pictures! Check out her work at sarahsbecker.com!

 

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Signal Hill Din-Din on Twitter: @SHDinDinAGoGo

Metro Prepares for Cuts / My Thoughts

“These are cuts, upon cuts, upon cuts,” said Los Angeles Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa, who cast one of six dissenting votes on the measure; seven board members voted yes. “The only way this system is going to work is with a first-class bus system and a first-class rail system.” – Los Angeles Times

The above quote comes from an article that appeared in the Los Angeles Times on March 25, discussing what it calls “deep cuts to service” at a time when boosting the profile and service of public transit is needed most. Long Beach will only be directly affected by the discontinuation of a section of the 577X’s route to the Transit Mall, but changes elsewhere could make getting around the area more difficult.

With the price of gasoline on the rise again, it’s only natural that people will look toward alternative methods of transportation. In the United States, we have enjoyed relatively low fuel costs when compared to other countries, especially in Europe. Now that the LA area is again seeing $4.00+ per gallon prices, it’s clear why putting all over our “transportation eggs in one basket” isn’t going to work. In the same way that financial experts will suggest a diverse investment portfolio, we need to invest in a diverse transportation portfolio to make sure the public is served in the best way possible.

One startling aspect of public transit I’ve noticed since moving here is that there are too many municipal providers operating for normal people to make sense of it all. Metro alone operates Merto Local & Limited, Express, Rapid, Shuttles & Circulators, and Liner buses, in addition to the 45 other municipal providers that operate in LA County. I have made the comment before, as well as read multiple times on the blog St. Louis / Elsewhere, that one of the best ways to make public transit more convenient and reliable is to use one system. The common example is the Red and Gold line buses in St. Louis, serving Washington University. These lines used to be separate from the Metro fleet, and used as shuttles for Wash U students. But now they’ve been incorporated into the greater Metro St. Louis system and are available for use to all Metrobus riders. Since Wash U students get a Metro pass included with tuition, they have not lost out on service, and the surrounding community now benefits from increased convenience and availability. In Chicago, one Regional Transit Authority oversees three agencies. Compare that to the 45 agencies in LA County and it’s easy to see why Chicago is constantly seen as a leader in public and commuter transit.

This example is just a very small move that Los Angeles’ Metro could take into consideration in a much bigger way. Many of the 45 municipal bus operators could be folded into Metro with ease. The same routes could be kept with Metro branding, the local tax code could be simplified, riders wouldn’t have to worry about fumbling with a handful of Metro-to-Muni transfers, trip planning would become considerably easier, and the TAP card would see wider use. This would also make getting around much simpler for visitors and tourists, an important source of revenue for LA County.  Obviously, some of the larger providers like Long Beach Transit and Santa Monica’s Big Blue Bus might be opposed to this idea, but whittling down the enormous list of 45 different agencies to just a few would be a major improvement for the cost and convenience to riders.

In a recent interview on the Patt Morrison show, MTA CEO Art Leahy seemed to express agreement with the use of “one system” in LA. However, he also noted some major problems with the system, such as an 80% on-time rate, and the poor security.

I have been the holder of St. Louis’s Student Semester Pass, Chicago’s 7- and 5-Day passes, London’s Oyster Card, and now LA’s TAP Card. I have seen multiple agencies forced to make cuts as they search for a long-term solution to fixing transit needs. LA actually enjoys relatively cheap fares compared to other big cities, yet lags behind most others in convenience and efficiency. In a recent message to the public, Leahy expressed his commitment to a quality transit system. I’m interested to see what happens next after the upcoming service changes.

 

Resources:
LA Times Article
Art Leahy on the Patt Morrison Show
Upcoming Metro Service Changes
Art Leahy’s Message to Customers & Taxpayers

Food Trucks coming to Signal Hill!

Tuesday night, it was announced via Twitter (thanks to @thetruckchaser) that Signal Hill will soon be seeing a weekly gathering of a rotating lineup of gourmet food trucks. The Long Beach area’s “independent donut hole” is the latest town to host a Din-Din A Go-Go, a series of mobile food courts that meet weekly in established locations in the South Bay, West LA, Los Alamitos, Anaheim, and Highland Park. Each location has a few “anchor” trucks that come out every week, and the group is rounded out by different trucks every week.

 

Signal Hill Din-Din A Go-Go is coming!

 

I’ve been going to the South Bay Din-din on Thursdays as often as I can to sample the different trucks that make the lineup each week. When I first heard about the event, it was held in the KMart parking lot in Carson, and since has moved to 19600 S. Vermont in the Harbor Gateway. I have seen this event grow each week, as word spreads through social media and word of mouth, into an event much bigger than I expected.

Typically, the Long Beach/Signal Hill area sees very few food trucks set up shop, even from those who visit both Los Angeles and Orange County. In future posts, I hope to look into the reasons for this and find what kinds of laws and regulations are preventing food truck fun in Long Beach. I can’t seem to find much online. For now, I’m just looking forward to a Din-Din that I can take the bus to!

Signal Hill Din-Din A Go-Go on Twitter: http://twitter.com/#!/SHDinDinAGoGo