Greater LA

Rep. Adam Schiff has a bill that would more than double the size of the Santa Monica Mountains National Recreation Area and preserve its wildlife habitats. “What it means is that those beautiful, open spaces will be there for future generations of Angelenos to enjoy, for our kids and grandkids,” he says.  Schiff also talks about the likelihood of another coronavirus relief package, and weighs in o...

Some restaurants in the San Gabriel Valley have been struggling before the pandemic and are unlikely to make it. Others are adapting to — and even taking advantage of — the increase in digital orders. At family-run Chinese restaurant Jiang Nan Spring, co-owner Henry Chang says, “Before the pandemic, the majority of our business was about 75 to 85% indoor dining.” Now orders flood in through delive...

Five years ago, an old well casing broke at the SoCalGas-owned Aliso Canyon gas storage facility near Porter Ranch, Los Angeles. Some 100,000 metric tons of methane unfurled into the air. It became the largest gas leak in American history. Many residents believe it led to long-term health effects such as chronic coughs and even cancer. They have unexpectedly become environmentalists, and they want...

Between March and July, California released 3,500 incarcerated people in response to the pandemic. The major outbreak at San Quentin prison prompted them to consider another 8,000 for early release. But who qualified for early release from prison under new pandemic rules?

Rising COVID-19 cases and hospitalizations have forced LA County officials to scale back reopening plans for local businesses. Until at least mid-December, restaurants will be barred from offering outdoor dining, a service that has been allowed since last summer. Most restaurateurs have complied, albeit reluctantly. But Alex Jordan, owner of Eat at Joe’s in Redondo Beach, has decided to keep his p...

Big Santa Anita Canyon , part of the Angeles National Forest, was an idyllic getaway for thousands of Southern California locals. Then the   Bobcat Fire   ripped through in September, destroying 17 of the 81 historic cabins there.  T he U.S. Forest Service has not decided on rebuilding yet. It wants to see what the winter rains and likely mud will do. Big Santa Anita Canyon is not expected to reop...

Cooking and serving Thanksgiving meals to unhoused residents takes a lot of organization and help from volunteers. But during the pandemic, most homeless shelters aren’t allowing volunteers on-site. That doesn’t mean Thanksgiving is canceled. Staff members and the volunteers who typically help are getting creative.

Since the beginning of the pandemic, rats seem to be more prominent in every major city. Kat Herrera, owner of Kat’s Pest Solutions in South Pasadena, says her business has nearly tripled.  W hen LA restaurants shut down indoor dining, rats had to get scrappy for food. 

Starting Wednesday night, LA County will require restaurants to stop outdoor dining, which local health officials have linked to an uptick in new coronavirus cases. What does this mean for businesses and the economy? Also, a virologist and a psychologist discuss people’s feelings of COVID fatigue and how that affects their behavior.

Before COVID-19, street vendor Heleo Leyva ran Quesadillas Tepexco, an East Hollywood food stand. But as the virus began to spread, he was forced to shut down. Then he decided to team up with local volunteers and chefs to help feed his community — all for free.  Since August, Leyva’s Community Cookouts has distributed more than 2,000 meals.

Sun, sand, and surf are all synonymous with Southern California’s famous beaches. But a batch of new developments coming to the Coachella Valley are hoping to turn the desert into the region’s newest surf spot. Using a variety of technologies, making waves is going to be big business in resort towns like Palm Springs and Palm Desert. With so many SoCal residents already riding the waves, developer...

A UCLA study found that around 449,000 renters in LA County were unemployed because of COVID-19 and had no income to pay their rent.  However, so far, there have been fewer evictions than expected. From April through the end of June, landlords filed an average of 350 eviction cases per month, down nearly 90% from last year, according to preliminary data from the LA Superior Court.  Meanwhile, many...

The 605 Corridor Improvement Project aims to add new lanes and exit ramps along the 605 freeway and a stretch of the 5 freeway in southeastern LA County. But the plan would also require that hundreds of homes get torn down in the process. The Downey residents who would be affected are fighting back.

President-Elect Joe Biden has put forward several policy proposals on housing and homelessness. What could they mean for the 66,000 unhoused people in Los Angeles County?

Nithya Raman is the new City Council member representing LA’s District 4, which covers Griffith Park, Silver Lake, the Hollywood Hills and part of Koreatown. The urban planner from Silver Lake is replacing incumbent David Ryu, who held the seat for years. She talks to KCRW about getting involved with politics, addressing homelessness in LA, and how progressive values were reflected in the 2020 ele...

The company Exide owns a battery recycling plant in East Los Angeles that’s been closed for years. But the plant spewed lead, arsenic and other carcinogens known to cause serious health problems — such as increased risk of cancer, breathing diseases, and learning disabilities — into nearby communities for decades. But things have become more complicated in recent weeks after a federal judge approv...

Despite a global pandemic that’s curtailed travel, longtime desert destination Palm Springs saw an unexpectedly busy summer. As the hospitality industry adapts by sparing much of the touching in “personal touches,” vacation rentals and hotels are gearing up for the busiest time of the year in Palm Springs. But as they’ve managed to adapt, pandemic pivots have been harder for restaurants that’ve be...

LA County said this morning that it has counted more than 3.3 million ballots, with about 618,000 to go. KCRW gets a rundown of the results so far — including for district attorney, LA City Council and Board of Supervisors. What do the votes say about demographics, turnout, and trends. 

In this special one-hour broadcast the day after the election, Greater LA goes to Sherman Oaks to hear from voters on the streets. In the hotly contested race for LA District Attorney, George Gascón now has a lead over incumbent Jackie Lacey. Also currently posed to pass is Measure J, which would commit more county funds toward social service programs.  And in Orange County, Katie Porter won reele...

In the first few hours of voting this morning, things have been smooth at LA County’s voting centers. Voters are in and out without significant delays. This is very different from Super Tuesday in March, when wait times were at least 45 minutes at the voting centers that KCRW reporter Caleigh Wells visited. Today, with 12 million ballots already cast in California, it’s a much slower pace.

The 2020 election is a significant source of stress for 68% of Americans, according to a recent study by the American Psychological Association. While some people are calming that stress by turning to reliable data and news sources, others have decided to tune out entirely on Election Day, November 3.

Music venues in LA are closed due to the pandemic, so artists have taken their performances to the internet and other creative places. Bike paths and home yards are now serving as performance venues. Meanwhile, mariachis in Boyle Heights are struggling to find work.

The Los Angeles Dodgers beat the Tampa Bay Rays in game six of the World Series on Tuesday night, earning their first World Series title since 1988. The Dodgers played at a neutral Texas stadium instead of their home field due to the pandemic. But fans still went to Dodgers Stadium to watch the game on massive screens from their cars.  After the victory, fans left the stadium headed to downtown. P...

More than 90,000 Orange County residents have fled their homes after two fires exploded on Monday, pushed by strong Santa Ana winds. As of Tuesday afternoon, the Silverado Fire has burned more than 11,000 acres in the Irvine area and is 5% contained, while the Blue Ridge Fire has burned more than 15,000 acres in the Yorba Linda area and is 0% contained. Two young firefighters are in critical condi...

About one-third of all California eligible voters have voted by mail, and more than 100 in-person voting centers in LA opened over the weekend. LA County Registrar Recorder Dean Logan says 2020 voter participation is already shattering previous records.  “We’re at about 50,000 voters that have voted in person. And you add that onto the 1.7 million LA County voters who have already returned a vote-...