🌱 Strip Mall Fire On Cahuenga + Bakkal Collects Goods For Turkey

Good morning, everybody! Today, we explore a new dessert on National Cream Cheese Brownie Day. It's Friday in Los Angeles, and I'm back in your inbox to get you caught up on the most important things happening in town. In today's issue, we have these stories and more:

• 🤔 Controversial City Council vote
• 😠 The latest scam
• 💰 A Brentwood Park mansion is for sale

💗 Please help us grow! Send a friend or neighbor this link, so they can be in the know, like you!

🌤️ But first, today's weather:

Partly sunny and warm. High: 78 Low: 49.

📢 I'm looking for business owners and marketers in Los Angeles who want to build awareness, connect with customers and increase sales.

I have a limited number of sponsorships available to introduce our readers to local businesses they need to know. If that's you, then I invite you to learn more and secure your spot now.

⛽ Three of the Cheapest Gas Stations in the City of Los Angeles

• ARCO at 9922 S Main St., $4.09
• Gold Star at 1100 W Martin Luther King Blvd., $4.18
• Sinaco Oil at 9930 National Blvd., $4.19

⏰ Daylight Saving Time Poll! 🤔
Daylight saving time begins on March 12. According to history, we can thank entomologist George Hudson for coming up with the idea in 1895. Implementation took place in 1918 to save resources and extend the work day during wartime. In 1966, daylight saving time became the law of the land, but states could opt out. So far, only Hawaii and Arizona have done so. Now, dueling studies point to the successes and failures of the practice. Where do you stand on the issue? So far, 63.7% don’t like daylight saving time, while 35.6% do. Only 0.7% don’t care one way or the other.

📰 Here are the top stories in Los Angeles today:

1. The Los Angeles Fire Department (LAFD) battled a strip mall fire on Thursday at 1820 North Cahuenga Boulevard. Calls came in just before 2 a.m., and responding firefighters saw heavy smoke and fire. In the strip mall operated a laundromat and a convenience store. A total of 81 firefighters worked for about 90 minutes to extinguish the flames and prevent them from spreading to other structures. No word yet on what caused the fire. (LAFD)
2. Bakkal is a Turkish-owned food delivery service for ethnic foods in and around Los Angeles. Now, it’s stepping up to collect much-needed supplies for survivors of Monday’s earthquakes in Turkey and Syria. Among the supplies that will be of greatest help are “first-aid kits, over-the-counter medication, diapers, clothes, sleeping bags, and blankets.” If you'd like to help out, Bakkal will come to your home to pick up donations. Conversely, you can go to the drop-off location in nearby Long Beach at 2037 West 17th Street between 10 a.m. and 8 p.m. From there, Bakkal will deliver the goods to Turkish Airlines, which will bring them to the areas of need. (LAist)
3. Earlier this week, the Los Angeles City Council voted unanimously to convert the Scattergood Generating Station at 12700 Vista del Mar from gas-fired to hydrogen-operated. It’s noteworthy that the City Council didn’t share the concerns of its Energy and Environment Committee. Critics cited a lack of knowledge when it comes to pollutant emissions and hydrogen’s legendary flammability (think of the Hindenburg). However, Council President Paul Krekorian said, “It was widely seen as being an impossible goal. And we’re now on the precipice of achieving that.” (Oil Price)
4. The Los Angeles Police Department (LAPD) warns residents of a scam that's targeting people in the area. Fraudsters learned how to mimic the PD’s phone numbers and are now calling around “soliciting fees, falsely claiming the payments are to avoid trouble with the law.” The LAPD notes it doesn’t call people asking for fees or payments. (LAPD)
5. If you have $29.99 million that isn’t doing anything, you could buy the Brentwood Park mansion put on the market on Wednesday by the Seagram liquor fortune’s heiress. The money buys you 12,300 square feet, six bedrooms, a gym and a wine cellar. It was last sold in 2017 for $16 million. (Barrons)

📆 Today in Los Angeles:

• Yuja Wang and Dudamel bring to life the Rachmaninoff Rhapsody at the Walt Disney Concert Hall (11 AM)
• Come to the Echo Park Farmers Market at Sunset and Logan (3 PM)
• Have some Family LEGO Fun at the Pio Pico - Koreatown Branch Library (3:30 PM)
• Be part of the Bilingual Book Club: "Panda Roja Y Oso Lunar" that takes place online and in person at the Central Library (4:30 PM)
• SubDocta is on the Bass Science Tour at The Echo (9 PM)

🖊️ From my notebook:

• "Remembering Fire Captain Steven McCann. Today marks the one-year anniversary of the line of duty death of LACoFD Fire Captain Steven McCann." (Los Angeles County Fire Dept. via Instagram)
• "TRAP investigators and the South Gate Police Department are seeking potential victims whose cars were stolen under false pretenses or fraud, including using firearms to carjack some of the victims." (Los Angeles County Sheriff's Department via Facebook)
• "🗓️ Save The Date: February 19th, 12:00pm - 4:00pm for A Healing Space by LA County Justice Care Opportunities Department at Earvin Magic Johnson Community Center." (County of Los Angeles via Instagram)
• "Students: Become the 2023-24 STUDENT BOARD MEMBER! Be the voice of all Los Angeles Unified students! Apply by Feb. 24 at https://bit.ly/3WW4nwJ." (Los Angeles Unified via Instagram)
• "Kickoff on one of America’s favorite past times is around the corner. - When it’s time for Super Bowl LVII, the Burbank Police Department is encouraging all football fans to celebrate responsibly by not driving impaired." (Nextdoor)

🏡 What are homes selling for these days in Los Angeles?

• Median Listing Home Price $1.1M
• Median Listing Home Price/Square Foot $658
• Median Sold Home Price $885K

Check out more Los Angeles real estate information!

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Featured events:

• The MBA Tour, Los Angeles - Meet Top MBA Programs (February 11)
• [Free Masterclass] Increase Your Website Sales & Leads Using SEO (February 11)
• Myron McKinley, "Sound Alchemist" Album Release w/ Special Guests Verdine White & LaVance Colley (February 11)
• Pizza and Beer Valentine's Kit - Pickup 2/9-2/11 - Over Town Brewing, Monrovia (February 11)
• Assets of Simple Feast Online Auction (February 14)
• Add your event

You're all caught up for today. See you all tomorrow morning for another update!

— 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.

Have a news tip or suggestion for an upcoming Los Angeles Patch newsletter? Contact me at losangeles@patch.com