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

News May 2, 2019

SMa.r.t. Column: So Sad

This is an article about the decline of a city locked into a poorly conceived code, about a city controlled by developers and the money they bring to the table. It is also about one […]

Opinion April 25, 2019

SMa.r.t. Column: What Are They Thinking?

At the April 9 Santa Monica City Council meeting approval was given to order the staff to publish an RFP to developers for the demolition of Parking Lot #3 at 1318 Fourth Street and the […]

News April 12, 2019

Many science fiction stories involve humans battling for survival from the robots they themselves created. Unfortunately that future is already here. There are three ways cars kill us: quickly as in car crashes or collisions, […]

News April 7, 2019

Micro Thinking Without Master Planning

Six new apartment projects, all with 100 percent micro units, have been proposed for Santa Monica’s downtown. The developer is claiming that a normal mix of unit types is “financially unsustainable” without his proposed higher […]

News April 1, 2019

Tunneling for Mobility

Starting this year permits from the Santa Monica Planning Department will require a new additional fee called “Travel Demand Forecasting Model.” This has come not a moment too soon, as the model predicts that the […]

News March 22, 2019

Our City’s Unique Charm…And our ability to share it.

Santa Monica is unique in many ways. Perhaps most significant is how we are perched, high on a cliff overlooking the Pacific Ocean to the west. On our north side, we have another attractive view […]

News March 15, 2019

Thanks, Village of Field Warriors

That huge gust of wind you felt one rainy afternoon last week wasn’t a gust of wind at all. It was the collective sigh of relief from supporters when the Coastal Commission granted a Coastal […]

Opinion March 9, 2019

Open Space… Is There Any Left?

Yes there is. Small as it is, there is about 2.5 acres in the heart of downtown waiting to be designed as a public park/plaza. Well, maybe. Our city has designed and approved a Downtown […]

Opinion March 1, 2019

No Excuses: Stop the Crime Wave

My mother turned 91 last Saturday. Happy Birthday, Mom! She has walked the streets of Santa Monica her whole life and almost always lived in our Mid-City Neighborhood, between Santa Monica and Wilshire Boulevards. She’s […]

Opinion February 22, 2019

SMa.r.t. Column: Gridlocked Best Intentions

On any given evening (and especially weekends) pay a visit to north-bound 2nd Street between Broadway Avenue and Santa Monica Boulevard, and you’ll encounter a world-class clusterpuck. A cast-in-cement gridlock that often extends back along […]