Bass touts San Fernando Valley gains for 818 Day
Los Angeles Mayor Karen Bass marked 818 Day on Monday, the city’s annual recognition of the San Fernando Valley’s businesses, culture and contributions, with a broad rundown of investments across public safety, homelessness, housing and infrastructure in the region.
Bass’s office reported that burglaries in the Valley are down 42% since last August following a surge in LAPD resources, alongside continued investment in Summer Night Lights, which served more than 50,000 residents across seven Valley parks this summer, and more than $2 million in federal funding for CIRCLE in the Valley, which sends mental health professionals to respond to non-violent crisis calls.
“There is no Los Angeles without the contributions of the San Fernando Valley. This 818 Day, we celebrate the incredible businesses, culture, and communities of the Valley and continue our work to improve public safety, reduce homelessness, build more housing, and accelerate economic growth across the region,” said Bass
On homelessness, Bass’s office said more than 900 people have been brought inside and more than 268 tons of debris cleared through 29 Inside Safe operations across Van Nuys, Woodland Hills, Canoga Park, North Hollywood, Chatsworth, Pacoima, Reseda, Granada Hills, Panorama City, Sun Valley, Shadow Hills, Arleta, North Hills and Valley Glen.
On housing, Bass recently unveiled Viva Warner Center, the largest affordable housing project approved under her Executive Directive 1, which will provide more than 3,000 units for LA’s senior population; to date, Bass has fast-tracked more than 12,000 affordable housing units in the Valley.
On transportation, Bass — now chair of the Metro Board — voted to approve the Sepulveda Transit Corridor connecting the Valley to the Westside, and the city has broken ground on the Chandler Bikeway, a planned 21-mile continuous bikeway from Chatsworth to Burbank.
Sánchez presses Trump administration on Kazakhstan minerals deal
U.S. Rep. Linda Sánchez (D-Whittier, Norwalk, Pico Rivera, Santa Fe Springs, La Mirada, Montebello, Hacienda Heights, Rowland Heights, Diamond Bar, Walnut), ranking member of the Ways and Means Trade Subcommittee, led a letter of 51 other House Democrats this week in pressing the Trump administration over recently announced critical minerals agreements the lawmakers say lack transparency and enforceable labor, human rights and environmental protections.
The letter cites reporting by The New York Times that companies linked to President Trump’s family and Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick stand to profit from a U.S.-backed critical minerals agreement in Kazakhstan.
According to the Times, Trump’s sons took a stake in the project through Dominari Securities days before the deal was finalized, while Cantor Fitzgerald — the investment firm run by Lutnick’s sons — helped raise funding for a related entity around the same time. The Times has also reported the administration has provided or is considering more than $8.9 billion in federal funding to 14 companies with financial ties to the two families.
“In light of these concerns, we call for a transparent and accountable negotiation process, alongside a clear commitment to advancing high-road, sustainable critical minerals mining and processing,” the lawmakers wrote. “The United States must also engage partner countries with respect for their sovereignty and support value-addition in critical minerals supply chains that strengthens emerging economies and ensures exploitative practices of the past are not repeated.”
The letter was addressed to U.S. Trade Representative Jamieson Greer and Secretary of State Marco Rubio, among other administration officials.
Gomez tells postal workers he’s still fighting for them
U.S. Rep. Jimmy Gomez (D-Downtown Los Angeles, Boyle Heights, East Los Angeles, Eagle Rock, Highland Park, El Sereno, Glassell Park, Chinatown, Koreatown) delivered keynote remarks at the American Postal Workers Union’s 28th Biennial National Convention, held this week at the Los Angeles Convention Center, highlighting his record on organized labor and the U.S. Postal Service.
Gomez, a former union organizer and the son of working-class immigrants, told the convention his upbringing shaped his commitment to collective bargaining and worker protections.
“Before I came to Congress, I was a union organizer because I saw what happens when working people come together and demand better: better wages, better benefits, a better future, and that’s what still drives me today. Postal workers deserve good wages, strong benefits, safe workplaces, secure retirements, and the right to bargain collectively, and every American deserves a strong, affordable, public Postal Service,” said Gomez
Gomez’s office cited a record that includes halting the closure of the Chinatown Contract Postal Unit, working to eliminate a federal requirement that USPS pre-pay decades of future retiree health costs, supporting $25 billion in emergency COVID-19 funding and hazard pay for frontline postal workers, and passing legislation naming neighborhood post offices for Marine Corps Pvt. Jacob Cruz in Boyle Heights and Korean independence activist Dosan Ahn Chang Ho in Koreatown.
The APWU represents more than 200,000 postal and private-sector mailing industry employees nationwide. Its convention runs Aug. 17-20.
Kalani celebrates second Torrance sports mural
Torrance Mayor Sharon Kalani joined internationally recognized artist Robert Vargas this week for a press conference marking the start of a new large-scale mural at the DoubleTree by Hilton Torrance South Bay, the artist’s second major commission at the hotel.
The mural, titled “The Storm Is Coming,” will span the hotel’s north wall and depict Los Angeles Chargers quarterback Justin Herbert and safety Derwin James Jr. Vargas is painting the work entirely freehand, allowing residents and visitors to watch it take shape throughout the installation.
“This project reflects the City’s continued commitment to strengthening our local economy, attracting visitors, and supporting our business community. We are thrilled to welcome another masterpiece by Robert Vargas that celebrates the intersection of art and sports and reflects the very best of Torrance,” said Kalani.
“This mural will, I believe, turn the Hawthorne corridor into not only a sports destination, but also a cultural and artistic flashpoint. I’m so excited to be able to contribute my work, team up with the City of Torrance and the DoubleTree, and get the Chargers on board to celebrate sports and culture,” the mayor added.
The piece follows Vargas’s “Samurai of the Diamond,” unveiled at the same hotel in March 2026, which honors Dodgers stars Shohei Ohtani, Yoshinobu Yamamoto and Roki Sasaki alongside Torrance’s Japanese American heritage. The Torrance City Council approved the new project unanimously on Aug. 11 at no cost to the city, following a recommendation from the Cultural Arts Commission.
The mural is scheduled to be unveiled Sept. 8, ahead of the Chargers’ home opener on Sept. 13.
