🌱 Masks In Schools Continue + $30,000 Storefront Recovery Grant

Good morning, neighbors, and happy National Plum Pudding Day! It's me again, Sylvia, your host of the Long Beach Daily.

Good news is thin on the ground today. Kids will continue to wear masks in school for weeks to come. Also, vandalized downtown businesses may get a little relief. Finally, seven clerks of 18 stores sold alcohol to minor.

First, today's weather:

Very warm. High: 86 Low: 54.

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Here are the top five stories in Long Beach today:

1. How long will LBUSD students have to continue wearing masks? The short answer is that nobody knows. “Currently, there is a school mask mandate at the state level that’s set to remain in place even after Newsom eases the broader indoor mask mandate next week.” Governor Gavin Newsom said that Monday there would be an update to this policy. Right now, the estimate is that the mask mandate for schools will continue for weeks to come. (LB Post)
2. The Downtown Long Beach Alliance is trying to help small business owners who are being vandalized. We learned Thursday that it “is launching a $30,000 Storefront Recovery Grant Program in which small business owners can be reimbursed up to $1,500 to help with costs associated with vandalism damage.” You may remember that recently Romeo’s Chocolates, Salon Row, and Outfitters were vandalized. (LB Business Journal)
3. The LBPD reminds vendors that selling alcohol to minors is illegal. We learned Wednesday that the PD conducted a sting with the California Department of Alcoholic Beverage Control involving 18 stores. The PD cited seven clerks “for selling alcohol to minors between the period of September 2021 to January 2022.” (City of LB)
4. A man was murdered in front of a laundromat at East Burnett Street and Atlantic Avenue. It happened Thursday night around 10 p.m. when neighbors said that “they’d heard 10 rounds being fired off, followed by the sound of police sirens.” The LBPD searched an “area stretching from the 600 block of East Burnett Street to Lime Avenue.” (LB Post)
5. There was a traffic fatality on Thursday at Artesia Boulevard and Orizaba Avenue. A 17-year-old driving a 2011 Lincoln MKS “struck a pedestrian who was lying down in the roadway.” The driver remained on the scene and cooperated with the police. “Distracted driving, speeding, and impaired driving do not appear to have been a factor in this collision.” (LBPD)

Today in Long Beach:

• Mike Alexander Champs Memorabilia Show at LA Crystal Hotel/Carson (10 AM)
• Long Beach Vintage Etc - 8-Year Anniversary Celebration (12 PM to 6 PM)
• LBQA'S 22nd Annual Lunar New Year Celebration: Chinese Calligraphy Party at the Island Village Clubhouse (2 PM)
• Los Potros Nightclub presents Los Morros del Norte (8 PM) DJ Peeta spins at Caliz Sports Bar (9 PM)

From my notebook:

• Have you been looking for a dog, bunny, or cat? This is the weekend to find a furry Valentine! LB Animal Care Services is planning two in-person events this weekend. Head to 7700 E. Spring St. today (Saturday) from 10 a.m. to 1 p.m. Can’t find what you’re looking for? Drive over to Pet Supplies Plus at 2086 N. Bellflower Blvd. where an Adoption Waggin’ is going to be from 1 p.m. to 4 p.m. (LB Post)
• Our East Village neighbor is inviting everybody to the monthly LB Artwalk Street Fair this Saturday, between 11 am to 5 pm. (Nextdoor)
• A Houghton Park-NLB neighbor is wondering if anyone knows when Mom's Touch Restaurant will be open? It doesn't seem open, but it looks like it's all set to go. (Nextdoor)
• A Los Cerritos neighbor is looking for their short hair, tuxedo cat. (Nextdoor)
• A neighbor in Bixby Knolls-N of Cal Heights is looking for a good rain gutter service person. (Nextdoor)

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Alrighty, you're all good for today. I'll see you soon!

— Sylvia Cochran

About me: Sylvia Cochran works out of sunny Southern California and has been freelance writing full-time since 2005. She loves dogs, cats, books, plays Best Fiends (don't judge), embraces social justice, and tries to live out Micah 6:8.