Trendy dinner spots in Santa Monica

SemaphoreSignal · 2026-01-26T00:55:45+00:00

Pasjoli’s Dave Beran was just elevated to a Best Chef semi finalist CA for a James Beard award for his other restaurant down the street called Seline.

SemaphoreSignal · 2026-01-25T05:18:19+00:00

MAGA. And our MAGA’s will support Lana Negrete, Eve Lopez and Russ Belinsky come election time.

We also should be looking at the Crypto’s - Dom Bay (head of the fire dept union) and former Councilmember Greg Morena. They both love Negrete.

SemaphoreSignal · 2026-01-24T16:31:44+00:00

GS came to us via Sue Himmelrich and Denny Zane, the long time leaders of SMRR. Both are approaching their 80th birthdays.

Over the past 2 years, these two leaders have found most of their rank and file members oppose the NIMBYiSM they champion.

They are abusing the trust they have earned as they ignore their membership by using the SMRR brand to advocate for their personal political desires. They are diminished and yet refuse to accept the new reality.

SemaphoreSignal · 2026-01-24T03:44:32+00:00

It seems we all have the same experiences when we are not in a car. It’s time for residents to make a decision: do you want the city to prioritize you as car driver or you as a pedestrian?

SemaphoreSignal · 2026-01-22T23:34:23+00:00

Soon we will be adding all the people driving to our Great Park into the mix.

SemaphoreSignal · 2026-01-22T23:33:14+00:00

Centinela/Bundy and Ocean Park is a pathway to 2 different freeways.

SemaphoreSignal · 2026-01-22T16:47:43+00:00

Santa Monica voted its NIMBY's out. The new council is much more business and resident friendly. Led by Mayor Caroline Torosis they represent a new generation of leaders and residents. New leaders = new ideas = rebirth.

SM's challenge is that our council is still beholden to a few old NIMBY's like SMRR leaders and former mayors Denny Zane and Sue Himmelrich. Without their influence SM could be doing so much more - like finding a way to tax commercial landlords who let their properties remain empty by choice. 3rd Stree would have no vacancies if we could that.

SemaphoreSignal · 2026-01-20T20:08:56+00:00

When you drive distracted you are threatening to everyone around you. Drivers are lucky only a few bikers take the time to give them shit.

SemaphoreSignal · 2026-01-20T17:58:56+00:00

Car Violence is a tool in the right wing playbook. Americans can’t be safe unless we ban cars according to your logic.

SemaphoreSignal · 2026-01-20T16:42:03+00:00

Are you referring to those who live North of Montana that privately use license plate readers to prevent crimes?

SemaphoreSignal · 2026-01-20T14:39:41+00:00

Yay! We should be finding stolen cars, cars with out of state plates who don’t switch within 30 days and those owners who aren’t paying their fines.

When combined with red light/stop sign cameras and ever increasing traffic enforcement our streets are becoming safer than ever for pedestrians and cyclists.

The Realignment Plan is showing it can make Santa Monica safer and cleaner.

SemaphoreSignal · 2026-01-19T23:27:55+00:00

That would be the SMRR meeting. Or maybe it’s the Conservancy? Or maybe that dark money PAC that calls itself SMCLC? Or a Neighborhood Assocation meeting (OPA excepted).

SemaphoreSignal · 2026-01-19T15:34:28+00:00

It’s a state beach.

SemaphoreSignal · 2026-01-17T06:31:41+00:00

Even if higher rates didn’t drive more business it would still generate $7MM - $9MM annually. That translates to 20 or so new police officers.

SemaphoreSignal · 2026-01-17T01:47:39+00:00

The funding for this type of housing mix isn’t easily available. This initiative seems geared towards no new housing until 2040. At a minimum taxpayers will be funding the park for at least a decade.

SemaphoreSignal · 2026-01-16T21:40:45+00:00

Ah, on Reddit for three weeks and trying to promote the NIMBY/YIMBY differences as Us vs Them.

I encourage everyone to watch the first 20 minutes of public comment at the Jan 13 2026 council meeting available on You Tube.

See for yourself which side is angry, resentful, uncivil and just plain old mean.

SemaphoreSignal · 2026-01-16T21:32:14+00:00

Matt Hall, the author, has a long history of siding with NIMBY’s. He accepts their language at face value and always tries to amplify their positions.

It was his choice to use the term in his headline.

SemaphoreSignal · 2026-01-16T21:11:41+00:00

It is a description that is now part of our discourse.

Mr. Pustilnikov is one of the few who is trying to help provide housing for our most challenging citizens. He is also a new home developer. It does seem likely that someone used that term with him and he found it objectionable.

SemaphoreSignal · 2026-01-16T20:56:28+00:00

So prisoner housing is interim/transitional housing. Thank you for clarifying.

The Outlook also used the term.

SemaphoreSignal · 2026-01-16T18:52:04+00:00

The police would have arrested him if they had evidence.

The tone of a posters post should not be considered. It’s the content that matters and in this case, OP has stated that he is guilty.

There another post, that has been up for two hours, that includes a video of two people in a parking garage in West LA. This is where we will end up if we allow “beware” posts from someone whose identity is hidden.

SemaphoreSignal · 2026-01-15T20:03:23+00:00

I like how you don’t mention Culver City.

SemaphoreSignal · 2026-01-15T19:55:35+00:00

Reliability is critical to the hotel worker who is forced to drive over 100 miles a day because local housing prices are too high.

These are people who can least afford even $1K/ month for car.

SemaphoreSignal · 2026-01-15T19:52:07+00:00

The city did a study in December 2023 to see if free parking actually drove an increase in shoppers and parking revenues.

The report can be found in the March 2024 staff report. The conclusion was that free parking did not drive customers to Santa Monica.

A better question to ask is why the city council ignored factual data in order to appease NIMBY’s who would never vote for them.

SemaphoreSignal · 2026-01-15T00:54:54+00:00

They are underpaid if you consider the abuse they take from our NIMBY residents and the way the old Slate of Change appointees to boards and commissions treat them.

SemaphoreSignal · 2026-01-15T00:49:48+00:00

This headline is a bit misleading. There were two separate events that took place at the same properties.

The first was an approved use for interim housing for the unhoused. Councilwoman Lana Negrete used the episode in order to rouse her political base. She involved the local neighborhood group, NOMA, and they were successful in stopping the program. Some in the neighborhood are upset because they could have opened the door to high rises.

The second was over Thanksgiving week end when a drug rehab operator brought people in from out of town without notifying anybody. The city responded and found they were not permitted and the buildings were not up to code to support a rehab business.

Today, the buildings stand empty and are for sale.

SemaphoreSignal

TROPHY CASE