Newsletter: Essential California: Katy Perry vs. the nuns

Good morning. It is Monday, June 29. When two paddleboarders heard there were 10 great white sharks off the coast of Orange County, they did the only reasonable thing -- they got in the water to videotape the sharks. Here's what else is happening in the Golden State:

TOP STORIES

Gun rights

Retired police officers should be exempted from a proposed Los Angeles law that would require handguns be locked up or disabled when they’re not being used, according to the city's police union. The Police Protective League argues that all officers, even those who are no longer on the force, face dangers. And that argument seems to carry weight with two council members with law enforcement experience. Los Angeles Times 

Katy Perry vs. the Nuns

Los Angeles Archbishop Jose Gomez is in a legal dispute with the Sisters of the Immaculate Heart of Mary over the pending sale of the nuns' former convent in Los Feliz to singer Katy Perry. The battle is over a stunning property with sweeping views of the city. It’s also about Perry. "Well, I found Katy Perry and I found her videos and ... if it's all right to say, I wasn't happy with any of it," Sister Rita told Steve Lopez. Los Angeles Times

Too much of a good thing?

Moreno Valley is quickly becoming California’s warehouse capital.  The German grocer Aldi is building an 825,000-square-foot distribution facility. A 1.6-million-square-foot distribution facility for the footwear company Deckers Outdoor and other businesses is under construction across town. An Amazon fulfillment center totaling 1.25 million square feet opened last year. Now, a developer wants to build more than 40 million square feet of warehouse space — enough to fit almost 700 football fields. Some say enough is enough. Los Angeles Times

DROUGHT

Military savings: Naval bases in California have been reducing water usage since 2007. But now they’ll have to find even more creative ways to comply with the state’s new cutback orders. “We need to lace on our bootstraps and take a tug on the oar,” said Rear Adm. Patrick Lorge. Los Angeles Times

No irrigation: What happens when a farmer has to rely on rainfall to water her crops? She turns to dry farming. “If farmers have the right soil and the right conditions, it can be done ... And who knows? Maybe this drought will make that happen,” according to one farmer. KQED (audio)

Drying up: Folsom Lake, which provides water to suburban Sacramento, is losing a billion gallons of water a day. Water officials say they are prepared, but what happens if the water source dries up completely? Sacramento Bee

L.A. AT LARGE

Decapitation stuns community: Robert Hollis was a well-liked fixture in his Inglewood neighborhood. At 75 and partially blind, Hollis was a singer in various church choirs, a sign maker and former South L.A. car pinstriper. He was known around town as Mr. Bojangles. Last week, he was found decapitated inside his apartment.  His friends and family were left stunned. Los Angeles Times

POLITICS AND GOVERNMENT

Airport pickup: Uber and Lyft may soon be able to pick up travelers at San Diego’s airport. The city’s airport authority could vote as early as Wednesday to allow the ride-share companies to work the airport, something that’s only been available to commercial vehicle permit-holders. San Diego Union-Tribune

BUSINESS

Marriage rights: Is Silicon Valley to thank for last week’s U.S. Supreme Court decision on marriage equality? “Leaders of the world’s biggest tech companies coupled moral conviction in support of marriage equality with bottom-line financial arguments — arguments that only the country’s most powerful business leaders were in a position to make.” Wired

Disney tax: The city of Anaheim has never charged a gate tax on Disneyland tickets, and theme park officials want to keep it that way. They’re proposing a $1-billion expansion of the Disneyland Resort but only if the city will renew a deal that exempts admission tickets from a tax. Disney wants that proposal to remain in place for another 30 years. Orange County Register

CALIFORNIA CULTURE

Preserving history: Activists with Rainbow Heritage are working to preserve sites important to the history of the LGBTQ movement. In California, those landmarks include Henry Hay Home in Los Angeles, the San Francisco Bisexual Center and Dr. Fritz Klein’s home in San Diego. Curbed LA

CALIFORNIA ALMANAC

There is a 20% chance of rain in Los Angeles. Later on, it will be sunny with a high of 84. Riverside will be partly sunny and 95 degrees. In San Diego, there will be patchy fog this morning, followed by some sunshine and 74 degrees. San Francisco will start with fog and then gradually get some sunshine and 70 degrees.

AND FINALLY

Some numbers from San Francisco’s Pride Parade, according to SFist:

• 13: People who used the Civic Center "sobering center"
• 4: Handguns seized at the Civic Center celebration

• 3: Juveniles busted for possession of M-80 fireworks in the Mission District

Please let us know what we can do to make this newsletter more useful to you. Send comments, complaints and ideas to Alice Walton or Shelby Grad.