Welcome to L.A. TACO’s daily news briefs, where we bring our loyal members, readers, and supporters the latest headlines about Los Angeles politics and culture. Stay informed and look closely.
—Los Angeles: The trailer for the third season of Taco Chronicles on Netflix is now available to watch. It will be available to stream on November 23rd, just in time for your Thanksgiving-induced binging pleasure. This season will "cross the border" and will be focused on taquerías and taqueros in the United States, and yes! There will be a Los Angeles episode! You heard it here first. You may see some familiar faces in L.A.'s Taco Life, so keep an eye out for that. [Netflix]
—Santa Monica: After a full rebuild, Santa Monica’s Hot Dog With a Stick reopened. The OG location, located near the Santa Monica Pier at the Original Muscle Beach, opened more than 75 years ago and has grown to dozens of locations. This year the original building was demolished and replaced with a more modern structure that also tries to retain some old charm. [L.A. Times]
—Southern California: Fueled by rising inflation, mortgage rates in Los Angeles climbed above 7 percent for the first time in two decades, making the cost of buying a home here even greater now. Although rates remain below the historical average of 7.76 percent, it’s the sudden spike that is causing concern. Historically low interest rates during the pandemic resulted in prospective homebuyers making larger offers on homes, which contributed to a 40 percent increase in home prices in two years. But after a decade of gains, home prices are finally falling in the region. [NBC]
—DTLA: The Los Angeles City Council voted to censure Councilmembers Gil Cedillo and Kevin de León, after council chambers were cleared of protestors who attempted to stop the meeting. Both Cedillo and de León have resisted widespread calls for their resignations following leaked audio that revealed a racist and bigoted conversation between themselves and former Council President Nury Martinez and Ron Herrera, the former President of the L.A. County Federation of Labor. Censuring their colleagues has no legal barring but it sends a clear message to Cedillo and de León that they need to resign and will not be welcome at council meetings. [LAT]
—South L.A.: Remember when the LAPD blew up an entire neighborhood in South L.A. after raiding a home and confiscating 16 tons of fireworks? The person who transported those fireworks from Nevada to California and stored them at their home was sentenced to five months in the feds for their role in the incident. Federal investigators found that LAPD Bomb Squad technicians underestimated the amount of explosive material loaded into a “total containment vessel” because they didn’t use a scale. As a result of poor judgment, dozens of homes, businesses, and vehicles were destroyed, and several families were displaced from their homes. No police officers have faced charges for their role in the devastating explosion. [AP]
—Manhattan Beach: We’re tired of giving Ye airtime, but in case you didn’t hear, he was escorted out of the Los Angeles office of Skechers after reportedly showing up uninvited with a camera crew. In a statement the sneaker brand indicated that they have no plans to work with the disgraced rapper and fashion designer. [WAPO]
—DTLA: More than 100 firefighters responded to a massive fire in DTLA last night at a red-tagged three-story commercial building near the intersection of 3rd and Los Angeles Streets. Early on, firefighters were concerned that the building might collapse. It took nearly two hours for them to get the blaze under control. Crews remained on night watch into early Thursday morning to monitor for any flare-ups. No injuries were reported, and the cause of the fire remains under investigation. [ABC 7]
—Beverly Hills: Robert Flaxman, a Beverly Hills real estate developer who was convicted in the USC admissions scandal for paying $75,000 to rig his daughters ACT scores, died by suicide yesterday, the Los Angeles County Medical Examiner-Coroner confirmed. [LAT]
—Los Angeles: You can download Mike Davis’ seminal novel ‘City of Quartz’ for free through Verso Books’ website. You will need to sign up for a membership and go through the checkout process, but you won’t be charged a cent. We just downloaded our copy this morning to make sure. [Verso Books]
