SM.a.r.t, Author at SM Mirror

News May 6, 2021

SMa.r.t. Column: Santa Monica Needs More Sunshine

You wouldn’t think so by looking outside, but Santa Monica is under ominous dark grey clouds on the horizon in which a storm is brewing, but this is not a weather forecast or about climate […]

News May 4, 2021

SMa.r.t. Column: Politics as Usual

Friday, October 11, 2019, was a warm, pleasant day in the Bay Area town of Newark, California. Midday temps were in the mid-70s, but the folks working in the office of a local attorney were […]

Education April 22, 2021

SMa.r.t. Column: SMMUSD’s Financial Performance and Underlying Issues

There has been much discussion regarding the SMMUSD’s financial performance. The Board recently issued a statement noting that they have “Fortified our financial reserves, balanced our budget and Improved our credit rating.” All good things. […]

News April 16, 2021

SMa.r.t. Column: History Repeats Itself

Santa Monicans today understand there is a titanic struggle going on for the heart and soul of their City. And it’s not the first time this has happened. The battle manifests itself in infinite ways […]

Opinion April 9, 2021

SMa.r.t. Column: Santa Monica’s Precarious Business Plan

As the City’s budget season gets underway, it is helpful to step back from the minutiae of an annual process and reflect on the emerging financial trends from City management decisions that will impact the […]

Opinion April 2, 2021

Time for the School District to Adopt 20th Century Capital Project Financial Reporting

There has been significant confusion and debate surrounding the financial performance of the many SMMUSD facilities projects. The absence of clear and accessible financial performance reporting is the cause. The issue is not just […]

News March 29, 2021

SMa.r.t. Column: The City of Santa Monica Monica – “Progressive” in 1989, “Chaotic” in 2021

The STATE of our CITY Are we to be a city of gardens, recreation, the arts, with courtyard housing and boulevards as linear parks. Can we turn our boulevards into parkways or will our downtown […]

News March 23, 2021

Zapped! A Promising Proposal Bites the Dust

Santa Monica has long touted its credentials as a “green” city, always in earnest pursuit of solutions to ongoing environmental problems. Back in 2017 the City introduced the Electric Vehicle Action Plan. The intent was […]

News March 14, 2021

SMa.r.t. Column: SB 9 &10 Doom R1 Districts

Like zombies that refuse to die, every year Scott Weiner, the California Senator from San Francisco, comes up with new bills to wreck our City and State. His latest incarnations are SB 9 and SB10. […]

News March 4, 2021

A Field of Dreams: Realized

It is finally here, it is beautiful, and it is a testament to tenacity. The new field at the Civic Center is an example of how a number of individuals with no official support, budget, […]