Welcome to the First Edition

And here's to many more!

Author

Adam Kruze
June 02, 2025

Hello fellow Valley Residents!

The Valley is big. If it were it’s own city, it would be the sixth largest in the US. There’s so much to do and see, it’s easy to take it for granted. Plus, it can be such a pain to drive beyond our borders. I wanted to create a resource for people who live in the Valley that will keep them up to date on things that are happening here. Something more casual and less stuffy than traditional media, something positive people would look forward to reading on a regular basis. The SFV 101 aims to be that resource. A couple times a week (and maybe more frequently in the future), I’ll be sending you news, community updates, fun finds, good eats, and events. Hopefully you like it but if there’s anything you’d like to see or something you think I could do better, let me know!

Did You Know - The San Fernando Mission, from which the Valley gets its name, was founded in 1797. Bob Hope and his wife are buried there. When asked where he wanted to be buried he remarked “Surprise me.” 

🚧 PCH Reopens Through Palisades Fire Zone

Good news, beach lovers: Pacific Coast Highway is open again through the area affected by the Palisades Fire! Crews have been working around the clock (yes, literally) to clear debris, rebuild infrastructure, and get things ready for summer traffic. It’s still a work zone, so please slow down—speed limit is 25 mph, and fines double in construction areas.

Heads-up:

  • Expect delays (especially on weekends).

  • Avoid stopping in burn areas—it’s unsafe and prohibited.

  • A few Malibu traffic signals are flashing red (treat them as all-way stops). Topanga Canyon Boulevard, Big Rock Drive, La Costa Beach Club, and Carbon Canyon Road. Expect traffic as a result.

  • Tuna Canyon Road is open but only allows a right turn onto PCH.

  • Consider alternate routes like Malibu Canyon or Kanan Dume to avoid bottlenecks.

  • Topanga Canyon was also reopened back on May 23rd.

I for one will be giving it a bit more time before the family heads back to our favorite beaches in the Malibu area. My guess is the traffic is going to be a mess for a while. But if you’re brave, be safe, drive kind, and don’t forget your sunscreen. 🌞

🐏 Rams Village Updates 🐏 

Not exactly new news, but the LA Rams will be making Woodland Hills their official headquarters. While this doesn’t mean we’ll be getting an NFL stadium in the Valley, they’ll be upgrading their practice facility to 350,000 square feet and building a Village complete with indoor performance venues (5k and 2.5k seats), apartment buildings, retail space, a hotel, 500,000 square feet of office space and over 9 acres of open space.

I looked at some of the renderings and it’s pretty exciting. It definitely has the potential to be a destination spot for LA and beyond. Hopefully they’ll do a good job partnering with concert and event promoters to bring some big live acts to the venues. I’m tired of driving to Hollywood or downtown to see a show. And all that office space in such a happening spot will hopefully attract some big name businesses and with them, plenty of jobs.

Some of the pictures show surprisingly small streets and barely a parking spot in sight. We’re talking two lanes around the entire village. In a KTLA article, they mention how it will be transit oriented, improve walkability, transit access and bike infrastructure. I know they’re just renderings, but the city is really going to need to increase bus frequency in and out of the area and maybe put in a new Metro hub. With a projected completion of 2035, that would coincide with the completion of another big development that will benefit the valley and impact transit, one that we’ll be reporting more on in the future, the Sepulveda Transit Corridor.

The Valley Economic Alliance (VEA) is hosting a webinar on June 18th at 10am where they and some of the people responsible for the planning and development will be present. Doesn’t look like a Q&A session, but it should be informative. If you can’t attend, no worries - I’ll be attending and will be reporting on the meeting in a future edition.

💵 Los Angeles Approves $14 Billion Dollar Budget

What’s in it for the Valley?

SFV101 Digs Into L.A.’s $14B Budget So You Don’t Have To

Ah, budget season in Los Angeles — when the mayor unveils a 500-page document, city officials try not to faint, and the rest of us wonder whether we’ll finally get that pothole on Ventura fixed or if our local park will still have swings.

🌊 Sepulveda Basin’s Glow-Up

The Sepulveda Basin is getting some love. Thanks to the upcoming 2028 Olympics (plans for which we’ll be eagerly covering more in the coming months and years), we’re getting:

  • A mobility plan to make it easier to access the area without sacrificing your bumper.

  • Major infrastructure investments because apparently hosting five Olympic sports is a good way to get some overdue repairs. Who knew?

Also, tucked in the budget is funding for a new aquatic center at Balboa Park..

🛹 Reseda Rolls In

Reseda is also making moves with a brand-new skate park on the way. This’ll be right down the street from the Pedlow Field Skate Park in Ecino, so kids (and adults with strong knees and good insurance) will have options for practicing ollies and kickflips.

This is part of a broader investment in parks and rec (no, not the show), which includes renovating cultural centers and arts spaces. In short: Reseda's going rad.

📖 The Library Retained Full Funding

All 72 branches and the Central Library will remain fully funded. Yay! They have some amazing free resources which I’ll be calling your attention to in future editions.

💸 The Price Tag of Progress (a.k.a. Please Don’t Raise My Property Tax)

But of course, not all news is sunshine and skate ramps.

A few things could sneakily increase costs for residents:

  • The city is reviewing a streetlight assessment that hasn’t been touched since 1995 — which probably means higher fees on your property tax bill.

  • Zoo tickets are going up by $5. Still cheaper than Disneyland, but now that adorable trip to see the meerkats will cost a tad more.

Also, the Planning Department may raise fees to offset staffing cuts. If you’re trying to build something or remodel your home, prepare to shell out a bit more while also waiting longer.

🏘️ Homelessness Help Continues

Despite the budget’s tight belt, the city is still spending nearly $1 billion on homelessness efforts, including the Inside Safe program (still costing about $7,000/month per person - down from a wild $17K in 2023).

They’re also keeping:

  • Tiny home villages

  • Street medicine teams

  • RV cleanups

Translation: tent cities are coming down, more folks are getting indoors and getting the help they need. It’d be nice to see that cost per person come down a bit more, though.

🚓 🚒 Cops, Fires, and Fast Response Units

Good news: no layoffs for cops or firefighters. In fact:

  • The LAFD is getting more paramedics and upgraded vehicles (brush patrols, helicopters, etc.)

  • LAPD is keeping all sworn positions and adding recruitment classes

  • 911 dispatcher staffing stays high.

💡 Less Good News: Some Cuts and Consolidations

  • Illegal dumping teams are going from 7-day coverage to 5. So if someone dumps a couch on your curb over the weekend, it may become a temporary “urban sculpture.”

  • The East San Fernando Valley Transit Neighborhood Plan team was cut — so if you were dreaming of zoning updates and streamlined transit near the Orange Line, maybe put that dream in a nice frame and hang it up for now.

  • Several city commissions (like the Climate Emergency one) got the axe.

  • Neighborhood Councils (NCs) got their budget’s cut… again. This part is especially disappointing. Annual funding for each NC is going from $32,000 to $25,000 across 99 NCs represents a savings of… $693,000. With an annual budget of $14 billion, this savings represents .005% of the annual budget. These dollars represent real impacts the NCs can have on their communities. In the overall budget it’s a small amount of money, but to each individual community, it’s significant. Maybe I’m being a little pessimistic, but this just feels like City Council trying to further reduce the NCs influence on the city’s trajectory.

🐶 No Dog Left Behind

Shoutout to the Animal Services Department, which was on the chopping block… until a last-minute hero move tucked $5 million into the “unappropriated balance” (a very fancy way of saying “oh sh!t, let’s fix that”).
All six animal shelters are staying open, so you still have a place to adopt your next fur baby, get them chipped, or receive other important pet services.

🏁 Final Thoughts

All in all, the Valley walked away with a few solid wins.

We’re getting a new skate park, a shiny new pool, less trash, and fewer tent encampments. Could we use more investment in our side of the hill? Always. But for now, we’ll take the upgrades.

🥕 New Trader Joe’s Locations Opening in The Valley

While Trader Joe’s provides very little information about when these locations will open, we all know one thing will remain the same about any TJs location in the Valley… the parking will probably stink!

  • Sherman Oaks — 14140 Riverside Drive. Inside the new Citrus Commons apartment complex whose name is a throwback to it being the former location of the Sunkist building. Also, literally across the street from their current location where… the parking sucks! Maybe it’ll be somehow better being located in the midst of a huge apartment structure?

  • Tarzana —18700 Ventura Boulevard. Right next to the former location of a Whole Foods where… the parking isn’t too bad if you use the underground structure. Street spaces right out front are convenient (and free on weekends) when you can find them.

  • Northridge — 9224 Reseda Boulevard. While in a busy part of Northridge, they’ve chosen a location where… the parking might not actually suck! It’s right next to, and shares a parking lot with, a Chili’s so you can expect the parking to be crowded around dinner, especially on weekends. It’s also right next to the CSUN campus and several student housing buildings, so this’ll be a pretty hopping location. I was in the neighborhood and took a peak, here’s a couple pics.

Looks like they just have to put up some more shelves, draw on the chalkboards, and stock the shelves.

Not pictured, a decent sized parking lot.

⚾️ Two Giveaway Nights in One Week at Dodger Stadium

Not in the Valley, but a coupla nice giveaways a Dodger Stadium this week I couldn’t help but mention. If you can swing it, tonight is Tommy Edman bobblehead night. Filipino Heritage Night is Tuesday night, June 3rd and Sandy Koufax night on Wednesday night, June 4th. We’ll be playing the Mets all three nights. You need a special ticket to get the Heritage Night jersey, so make sure you purchase the right kind of ticket! The bobbleheads and Koufax jerseys are being given out to the first 40,000 ticketed fans, so be sure to get there early. Tip - for some games you can buy early entry tickets that let you in three hours early. Not cheap!

🍉 Watermelon Festival This Saturday and Sunday 🍉 

Get your watermelon themed clothes ready because this year’s Watermelon Festival, held at the Hansen Dam soccer fields, is coming this weekend! As usual, lots of watermelon flavored foods and treats like funnel cake, tamales, fish tacos, bbq sauce, fried watermelon as well as traditional festival faire like turkey legs, burgers, and fried foods galore. And where else do you get to meet a mascot named Wedgie?

There’s a kid’s zone with activities and a children’s theater, kid’s talent show, a watermelon costume contest, carnival rides, live music, and Labubu giveaways (whatever a Labubu is). Plenty to do for the whole family. We went last year and had fun. It was wicked hot, though. It looks like the organizers recognized that and moved it a couple weeks earlier. The weather this weekend is shaping up to be pretty nice, in the low 80’s. But we all know that can change in a matter of a couple days. Fingers crossed 🤞 

Last year’s tickets came with all you can eat watermelon but it doesn’t look like they’re doing that this year, which is a bummer. It’d be cool if they at least offered that as a ticket. There is a kids watermelon eating contest two times each day, so maybe enter your kids into that and they’ll get their fill. Just don’t dress them in white!

📝 Tips

  • Apparently they’re close to selling out, so get tickets while you can.

  • Bring water, sunscreen, and an umbrella or parasol.

  • Food and tickets for the rides and kids activities ain’t cheap! Feed the kids before coming so they’re not ravenous (or grumpy butts) and budget appropriately. They have a deal for any 10 rides for $30, but you have to purchase before the weekend.

  • There were free bus shuttles to get you from your parking area to the gates, but the parking lots were dusty. Wear comfortable shoes and maybe don’t wear sandals.

  • Seating in the tents was hard to come by. Hopefully this year they’ll add more tents and seats, but get a table first then have someone get your food.

😆 Comedy

Thursday

  • Jay Leno – Thursday, June 5 at 7:30pm
    Flappers Comedy Club Burbank - Main Room

Friday

  • Friday Night Live at the Comedy Chateau – Friday, June 6 at 7:30pm (Doors at 6:30pm)
    Headliner: Jimmy Brogan, Armando Anto
    Special Guests: Alex Malt, Laura Terman, Effie Meadows
    Featuring: Mari Haig, Savannah K, Drew Scott, Scott Rowe

  • Friday Nite Laughs – Friday, June 6 at 8:00pm
    The Nitecap

Saturday

  • Ha Ha Comedy Club – Saturday, June 7 at 10:00pm
    Featuring: Pablo Francisco, Chaunte Wayans, Richard Villa, Nick Guerra, Mark Serritella

  • Pauly Shore and Friends – Saturday, June 7 at 7:30pm
    Flappers Comedy Club Burbank - Main Room

🎭️Theatre and Performing Arts

Thursday

  • LOFT SPEAKEASY – Thursday, June 5 at 8:00pm
    Poets and spoken word hosted by Antwan Alexander II and Lemon Baardsen

Friday

  • Urban Death at Zombie Joe’s Underground – Friday, June 6 at 8:30pm
    (Recurring Fridays and Saturdays through June 13)

  • The Wedding Singer – The Colony Theatre – Friday, June 6 at 8:00pm
    (Fridays at 8pm, June 7–29)

Saturday

  • Urban Death at Zombie Joe’s Underground – Saturday, June 7 at 8:30pm

  • The Wedding Singer – The Colony Theatre – Saturday, June 7 at 2:00pm and 8:00pm

Sunday

  • The Wedding Singer – The Colony Theatre – Sunday, June 8 at 2:00pm and 7:00pm

📽️ Film

  • Art Is For Everybody - Laemmle Noho 7 in North Hollywood and the Town Center 5 in Encino - multiple show times Tue, Wed, and Thu

🏋️ Health and Wellness

  • Sun Valley Women’s Wellness Fair - Saturday, June 7th 9am-1:30pm

🎵 Music

Other

  • Johnny Carson Park Car Show-Road Kings Sunday, June 8, 2025 7:30 AM 3:30 PM Johnny Carson Park Burbank, CA USA

Look out for the next edition on Thursday. My goal is to continue improving the content and the format of this newsletter so please email me with any feedback you have on how I could make the SFV 101 better!